North Carolina-based singer-songwriter, Skylar Gudasz, will release her sophomore album, Cinema, four years after her highly acclaimed 2016 debut, Oleander.
Videos by American Songwriter
Ahead of her new album, set for release April 17 via Suah Sounds, Gudasz released airy anthem, “Play Nice.” The track deceitfully uses lush textures of instrumentation and wistful choral lines as Gudasz threatens those who tell her to play nice with lyric lines that show just how not-nice she can be when prompted. Poetic ingenuity reveals itself in lines like, “I’m as nice as a guillotine.” With the help of producer Ari Picker (Lost in the Trees, Dante High), the song came to life at Goth Construction Studio, deep in the woods of central Carolina, an area rich in regional music.
“We were watching a bunch of old Heart performances and got super inspired by how epic they were,” Gudasz explained of the production process. “The idea in mind was that we were going to make a demo, just mess around, but then we really fell in love with these emo synths and the groove. It became entertaining to sing against, not to mention the perfect backdrop to the lyrics – it pulled out the drama and brought this immediacy to them. like, you might underestimate someone you perceive as sweet, but that sweetness, even while it might be a survival tactic, can also be a secret weapon.”
Gudasz recorded Cinema between the secret spot in North Carolina and the famed April Base in Eau Claire, WI, with Grammy-nominated producer Brad Cook. The influence of Cook’s previous work with the likes of Bon Iver and The War on Drugs resonates throughout Cinema. Her undeniable talent as a multi-instrumentalist is attributed to her early artistic roots. Raised in Ashland, Virginia, Gudasz picked up the flute at the age of five. Next came the songs, then, with the influence of Jone Mitchell, entered the piano and guitar.
The below video for “Play Nice” portrays the overdramatized storyline of toppling patriarchy in the music industry. The footage reveals a series of men built into the infrastructure of her day-to-day, serving as a footstool, a closet light, and other essential services to her life.
As part of the united force of female artists, the video reaffirms the fact that Gudasz does not need to fawn on industry leaders, or anyone for that matter, to get where she wants to be.
Watch the music video for Skylar Gudasz’s “Play Nice” below. Pre-save her upcoming album, Cinema, here.
