More Than Skies – What Keeps Me Up At Night (2020)
When it comes to real love, we all have doubts that often come to us at the most inconvenient times. More Than Skies have turned these doubtful feelings into their latest single ‘What Keeps Me Up At Night’. While the song looks at these doubts, it also touches on being haunted by the choices in your dreams and the waking realisation that you can’t escape reality.
The single part of a series of albums that tell the story of a broken family and the choices that lead to the events they face. This story concept comes from Adam James (vocals, guitar, piano), Emily Lazio (backing vocals), Ben Silverman (bass), Phil Corso (drums), Pete Scholes (guitar) and Evan Closser (keys). This single comes from the second part of the series with the third being released later this year.
‘What Keeps Me Up At Night’ mournfully opens with the sound of a cello provided by Jiliane Russo. The lead-in with the cello sets a sombre tone to the single while being absolutely beautiful. As the song progresses, the cello takes a deep turn before being met with some light twinkling tones. This swings to a folky melody full of piano lines and guitars. While the music maintains a hint of melancholy and sadness, there is a slightly lighter feeling to the music. The cello does make an appearance in this section of the song as it weaves through the folk guitars.
James’ vocals have a raspy edge to them as he threads through the music. There is an interesting flow to his performance as he works through sadness only to inject some hope for the future. The lyrics are easy to get into while the cadence of the vocals matches the almost waltzing movement of the music.
The official music video is a joy to watch as it captures both the sombre emotions of the mournful cello and the somewhat livelier folk tones. Shot in black and white, the opening visuals match the melancholy of the cello. While the visuals could be taken as happy, there is a nostalgia to them when put to the music. The issues within the relationship outlined in the story of the lyrics come to visual life with the couple dancing only for them to go in completely different directions.
More Than Skies combines mournful cellos with folky guitars, a take on doubts and some hope for the future in ‘What Keeps Me Up At Night’. The mournful sound of the cello effortlessly transitions into the folk guitar before a waltzing melody enters. The vocals have a rasping edge as they tell the tale of the single. The official music video captures the emotions of the track in an artful black and white visual.
Find out more about More Than Skies on their website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.
