Premiere: Perth's Mal De Mer end their year with a brilliant new single, Do You See Me?

After starting the year with their debut EP, the Perth six-piece now tie it all together with a new single that looks forwards.

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For the most part, 2021 has been Mal De Mer's defining year. Since making their debut with 2018's Wet Socks, the Perth-based six-piece have been consistent with their stream of crafty, forward-thinking indie-electronica, and while they might've had years a little more active on the live stage (understandable, considering the global pandemic happening around us), the past 12 months have seen the band take a leap forwards, largely due to the release of their debut EP Gone Fishing back in May.

Gone Fishing was a five-track encapsulation of Mal De Mer's brilliance and the versatility in their sound, showing how they've continually grown and evolved as they incorporate different genres and textures into the music they create. Gone Fishing brought all of these sounds together into one tidy release, showing their multi-facetedness as they veer between bursts of pop, funk, indie, R&B and beyond; genres united by Mal De Mer's craftsmanship and the intimate storytelling that would often dance amongst the flashy, bold productions.

Now, six months later, Mal De Mer are ending their breakthrough year and showing yet another side of themselves with their new single Do You See Me?, which premieres on Pilerats today ahead of its release this Wednesday, November 24th. It's a shining light of a new single that yet again showcases Mal De Mer's consistency, even as new music points itself into different edges of the band's wide-ranging sound. Do You See Me?, for example, feels a little more intimate and emotive than what we've heard from them already, as the emphasis on their songwriting grows amongst a swelling production underneath.

The end result is a striking few minutes of Mal De Mer hitting yet another newfound peak, veering into new territory without losing the charm and energy that made them such a draw-card in the beginning. "The song came about when I was in a pretty dark headspace," says the band's Saskia Fleming on the single, drawing attention to the darker emotive underlay that sits amongst the single's instrumental. "At the time, I was trapped in an exhausting combination of deep sadness, and overwhelming anger.

"I'll let the lyrics speak for themselves, but I hope the listener can feel those emotions wash over them as they flow through the song," she continues. "When I finally plucked up the courage to show the band what I'd written I was blown away - everybody's parts felt like essential pieces of the song that were meant to be there all along. It was like everything just clicked into place."

Do You See Me? arrives alongside a lyric video worked on alongside photographer Mare Elzinga, which adds a bolder edge to the single's looming sound through colour and animation that brings everything together. "The concept is using colourful childlike craft supplies to create a clip that at first seems upbeat, and straightforward, but over the course of the track, gradually begins to reveal it to be a facade hiding the dark reality of what is going on beneath the surface," Saskia explains.

We have no doubts that there is more from Mal De Mer to come in the year ahead, but in the meantime, take a dive into Do You See Me? below, as it premieres on Pilerats today: