Achingly intimate and brutally vulnerable, denn.’s lovesick new single “it’s happening?” is a beautiful, soul-stirring eruption of heartache and longing wrought from the dark and lonely depths of despair.
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Stream: “it’s happening?” – denn.
Freeze tag means that I stand still whenever you touch that…
You want to sob, but you’re all out of tears. You want to run ’til you’re out of breath, but you can barely move a muscle. You want to shout, but all that comes out is a whisper – so you cry out into the darkness, your bruised and broken heart heavy in your chest as your vocal cords make a sound that only you can hear.
Unless, of course, there’s a microphone in front of you.
Achingly intimate and brutally vulnerable, denn.’s lovesick new single “it’s happening?” is a soul-stirring eruption of heartache and longing wrought into this world from the dark, visceral, and lonely depths of despair. It’s an unabridged, unfiltered diary entry driven by pain, desire, and emotional exhaustion; a soft, shiver-inducing eruption of melancholy from the artist’s inner sanctum.
His love is gone; all that’s left is a trove of memories and an emptiness inside. Things might get better over time, but this is his moment of reckoning and reeling, and “it’s happening” right now.
Every January 1st
Whilst everyone is smiling
My fingers hit my phone
I’m so close to dialing
The suicide hotline
The suicide hotline
So fall down, tell me that
I’m everything you want now
And freeze tag
Means that I stand still whenever
You touch that
Whenever you touch that
Released October 30, 2023 via Cecil Park Records, “it’s happening?” is a beautifully uncensored and exposed introduction to New York City’s denn. (pronounced “den dot”), who debuted his first song late last year and has been putting out a steady stream of singles ever since. Making a dreamy, ethereal sound he describes as “some form of pop,” the self-produced singer/songwriter has worn his heart on his sleeve throughout well-received tracks like “control,” “eat me,” and “rottenteeth” – all of which, like “it’s happening?,” find him dwelling in the aftermath of what he calls a “life altering heartbreak.”
While other tracks have leaned on more lo-fi, alternative, and indie rock influences, “it’s happening?” – denn.’s sixth overall single – evokes a sort of “indie folk” meets “bedroom pop” sound, with close-miked acoustic guitar strums and subtle piano chords coalescing to make a fragile and seductive base. His soulful voice adds warmth and depth to the song’s production, but no amount of sweet singing can keep the chills away as he reflects on the lingering heartache that he can’t seem to shake, no matter how hard he tries:
Then I see your picture in my phone
Oh god I think it’s happening
Why can I hear your voice?
When I’m home alone?
I think that I’m going crazy
I’m, I’m going crazy
“It’s all grotesquely truthful,” denn. says of his songwriting. “I’m always trying to make something grossly honest, that’s still beautiful. If you’re not being unapologetically yourself in the music, you’re losing the opportunity to really connect to other people. That’s what pushes me to be so truthful that it sometimes feels uncomfortable.”
“it’s happening?” is especially vulnerable, immediate, and raw, capturing the artist’s emotional wreckage in real time.
“It’s a culmination of romantic pain, fomo, and longing for what once was,” the artist tells Atwood Magazine. “An honest confrontation against an amalgamation of memories and feelings of weakness whilst fighting in close combat with the urge for a permanent release from emotional turmoil inflicted by the withdrawal of a past love.”
And now I can’t enjoy my simple days
You ruin them, I’m not okay
I try to turn my love to hate
But then you smile back so deranged
Wait who do I hate?
With a smile like that?
Then I see your picture in my phone
Oh god I think it’s happening
Why can I hear your voice?
When I’m home alone?
I think that I’m going crazy
I’m, I’m going crazy
So every January 1st
Whilst I feel the worst
I take a bottle think of her
And pray to god that on this earth
I’ll get what I deserve
I think I’m way too good to hurt
So why must I suffer?
A candid and cathartic confessional, “it’s happening” hurts – hitting with all the weight a broken heart can muster.
denn. held nothing back in channeling his innermost pain into his music, and the result is a song that reminds us what it feels like to be young and vulnerable; to love and to lose. Stay tuned for more from this spellbinding artist as he continues to lay his soul bare in song: denn. is reportedly ramping up to release his debut album, which will bring all of his currently-released songs together under one beautifully tender, turbulent, and sonically stunning umbrella of moving musical heartache.
Then I see your picture in my phone
Oh god I think it’s happening
Why can I hear your voice?
When I’m home alone?
I think that I’m going crazy
I’m, I’m going crazy
Then I see your picture in my phone
Oh god I think it’s happening
Why can I hear your voice?
When I’m home alone?
I think that I’m going crazy
I’m going crazy
How can I forget when there’s always maybe?
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:: connect with denn. here ::
Stream: “it’s happening?” – denn.
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© Emma Pilkington Mead
© Emma Pilkington Mead
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