An ethereal, intimate, and soulful seduction, “Thieves” sends shivers down the spine as singer/songwriter Yvonne Ambrée evokes the unsettling, wild world within us after dark.
Stream: “Thieves” – Yvonne Ambrée
We’ve all been held captive by our own racing minds.
Late at night, when all the stimuli and dizzying distractions of our busy days have dissipated, our brains take over. It may be dark outside, but it’s a cataclysm of colors within as unresolved emotions and half-baked ideas come bubbling back up to the surface, often all at once – each thought and feeling demanding our undivided time and attention.
We’re victims to ourselves, but the night is our thief, as singer/songwriter Yvonne Ambrée observes in her beautifully tender, hair-raising new single: An ethereal, intimate, and soulful seduction, “Thieves” sends shivers down the spine as the New York City-based artist evokes the unsettling, wild world within us after dark.
Memories made
When space trades
The room was losing shape
She could not lift her hand
to light a lamp
Memories weight
Alone with the words
When the world’s asleep
She won’t be the only one
She won’t be the only one
The night is her thief
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Thieves,” Yvonne Ambrée’s first single of the year and an achingly evocative, visceral eruption from the artist’s innermost depths. Following 2023’s debut EP Another Space, “Thieves” sees the New York City-based, German indie pop artist dwelling in a moody, brooding electronic soundscape. She sings hot on the mic, her evocative voice at once immediate and hushed as she evokes a not-so-silent night.
While her mind may be racing, the music itself is gentler: Soft and soothing guitar and piano tones send chills through provocative harmonies and well placed moments of friction as Ambrée deftly evokes the tension within – a world we can so undeniably feel, but never once see:
Silent the sound
As he turns around
The air was paper thin
He did not hear a thing
Silent the sound
“‘Thieves’ is a metaphor for thoughts that stay with you through the night. Those moments when you are not fully asleep because something or someone preoccupies your mind,” Ambrée tells Atwood Magazine.
“When I wrote the song, I needed to make some important personal decisions and after a few nights without finding any rest I got up and started the lyrics for the song. I thought of all the people that might be awake just like me trying to fight their personal battles and it gave me a strange sense of comfort knowing that I’m not alone. There is something sad and beautiful about being awake during the darkest part of a 24-hour day.”
“Lyric phrases like ‘the air was losing shape’ or ‘the room was paper thin’ refer to the uncomfortable silence of the night while in your head there is a whole circus going wild. I guess the correct term for it is “insomnia” but the idea of “thieves” stealing your precious time to rest felt more appropriate for my experience during the days when the song was written.”
He let down his guards
When the world’s asleep
He won’t be the only one
He won’t be the only one
The night his relieve
Together with her new song, Ambrée has also shared an accompanying music video that effectively elevates and enhances the “Thieves” experience, bringing us deep into the chaos and inner turmoil keeping her from more restful slumbers.
“The song is accompanied by a stop motion video created in a dollhouse,” she explains. “Strange action figures that I found in various places on the internet will take over the house at night, while my two main protagonists are fighting their own personal ‘thieves.’”
Yvonne Ambrée has without a doubt captured some of the angst and fright of the witching hour, but even more importantly, she’s shed light on a shared late-night experience to which we can all relate. And while this song may not be the most bedtime-appropriate material, if you can get past some of the more eerie chords and tonalities, “Thieves” promises to be a cathartic balm for the mind and the soul.
Stream Ambrée’s new single and music video exclusively on Atwood Magazine, and stay tuned for much more to come from this soul-stirring singer/songwriter!
Alone with the words
When the world’s asleep
She won’t be the only one
She won’t be the only one
The night is her thief
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Stream: “Thieves” – Yvonne Ambrée
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