Jazmine Mary’s first single of the year is here, and it arrived in stringently characteristic fashion.
“Jazmine Mary won’t tell you what the album is about or why… They could well be hiding something from us, but the more probable reason is that they are a responsible artist and know it’s not for them to tell you how to experience what they already have,” a press release about Mary’s 2023 album, Dog, read, and their follow-up release, the gently captivating single “In a Field,” arrived to minimal fanfare last week.
All of a sudden, a new song and video appeared on the indie-folk artist’s socials, with its creator simply writing, “It’s here… full video link in bio.”
The Australian-born, Aotearoa-based singer-songwriter’s music defies easy categorisation, but that’s where its charm and power lies. At first, “In a Field”, wafts pleasantly by, but it reveals its subtle beauty upon further, closer listens. (These beguiling, transportive songs will have me coming back to this album for a long time,” RNZ once wrote of Mary’s music.)
In a time where so many of Mary’s contemporaneous singer-songwriters overindulge their listeners, explaining too much behind their songs and blunting their lyrical impact, the elusiveness of “In a Field” holds its attraction.
The accompanying black and white music video is a striking collective effort, director Annabel Kean (one half of Tāmaki Makaurau-based filmmaking duo Sports Team) and choreographer Amber Liberté guiding Mary through mesmeric movements. It also perfectly matches the song, asking for inquisitive interpretation.
“In a Field” follows Mary’s second album, Dog, which was well-received last year. “Dog is vulnerable, enchanting, and true to Mary’s poetic, folk compositions, that exist to make you feel something that may be hiding inside of yourself,” we wrote after its release. (Read Mary’s breakdown of each track on Dog here.)
It’s currently unclear if “In a Field” is part of a wider release, but a third album from Mary is highly-anticipated. Their first album, The Licking of a Tangerine, won the Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award at the 2022 Taite Music Prize, despite facing strong competition from Adelaide Cara and Proteins of Magic.
To celebrate “In a Field,” Mary will be playing a special one-off show at Auckland’s Glen Eden Playhouse Theatre on November 1st. (Fair warning to anyone who likes to mosh to blissful indie-folk: it’s a fully-seated event.)
Mary will be accompanied by their full band, comprised of some fine local musicians in the form of Louisa Nicklin, Dave Khan, Babe Martin, and ARAHI, as well as special guest Pete Moriarty.
“In a Field” by Jazmine Mary is out now. Tickets to their Auckland show can be found here.
