The aftermath of a breakup: an all too familiar feeling for many of us. The endless back-and-forths of whether to stay friends, whether or not it was the right idea, the list goes on. Bottom line: breakups are hard, and watching people you once loved grow distant is equally difficult. Copenhagen-based artist Marie-Louise Pierini Lüders, who is also known by her stage name MALU, understands this, and vocalizes the feeling in her newly released song “Small Talk”.
The idea for the song came from a “deep discussion” with her producer and friend Mads Bramstoft about how relationships come and go, the singer stated, before continuing to say, “As we sat down by the piano, Mads began jamming a few chords and when I started humming. It was like the song just happened out of nowhere.”
A haunting piano drives the song, creating an acoustic sound unaccompanied by much else aside from the songstress’s equally haunting and heartbreaking vocals. In turn, this creates an extremely raw, vulnerable and open feeling that tugs at the listener’s heartstrings.
Speaking of the heart, the song’s lyrics primarily touch on heartbreak, more specifically the aftermath of it. The narrator has just gotten out of a relationship with their now-former partner, and is having difficulty coping with the consequences of it.
They are attempting to stay somewhat in contact with their ex-partner, but find it difficult, explaining that they used to share all of their secrets, know everything about each other and permeate all of their conversations with “I love you’s,” but now find their short conversations reduced to meaningless small talk as they grow apart and see each other become strangers they don’t quite recognize as much anymore.
“Small Talk' is about the heartbreakingly familiar aftermath of a relationship, and the realization that the people we once held close can become distant and unfamiliar to us when a relationship comes to an end. It's a story that resonates with anyone who has experienced heartbreak, and I hope listeners will find solace in the shared experience,” the singer explained in a press release.
She has described the song as being extra personal to her, stating in an Instagram caption of a post promoting the release of the song that “showing it to people feels a bit like being naked in a crowd with all my feelings out in the open.”
However, this is by no means MALU’s first foray into the music world. She started playing music at the age of five, eventually performing in jazz and soul orchestras throughout her younger years.
Furthermore, since the start of her solo music career, the songstress has been a prominent artist on Copenhagen’s live music scene, selling out all of her shows at the venues she plays at. She is also scheduled to headline one of Denmark’s most well known live music venues, The Vega in Copenhagen’s Vesterbro neighborhood on November 17.
Also, she has already achieved critical success in the past, with the success of her upbeat R&B song “Comfort Zone,” which was released in April of this past year, and premiered on Danish radios, all the while garnering some solid coverage from international music blogs and publications.
MALU is quickly becoming a phenomenon on the Copenhagen music scene, and her new release “Small Talk” is only propelling her further into Danish stardom, and fans are excited to hear what the songstress will do next.
“Small Talk” is out now on Spotify.
