NYC Scene Report – Rachel Grae, Samia, & Miriam Clancy

This week’s NYC Scene Report features Rachel Grae getting closure, Samia with something sad, but sweet, and Miriam Clancy showcasing her Black Heart.

* NYC-based pop artist Rachel Grae is about to hit the road with ANDI for a string of shows from March 3rd through April 4th (3/3 through 4/4!), but before packing up she gave listeners the powerful single “How Dare You.”

Discussing the song in a statement, Grae said, “‘How Dare You’ is about someone who left my life and tried coming back when it was convenient for them, leaving me feeling like my patience and loyalty were taken for granted. The songwriting process helped bring peace, and honestly helped give me closure.”

A soaring pop ballad, “How Dare You” is another winner from Grae, who has quickly become an exciting voice to keep an ear out for.

* Indie pop artist Samia has become a column favorite over the years, and she’s currently becoming a favorite of listeners outside the city, as she’s on tour though the 11th in support of her recently released sophomore album Honey.

Discussing the title track in a statement, Samia said, “It’s about always being drunk enough that you don’t have to look around. To me it’s the saddest song I’ve ever written, because it’s mocking my attempt to convince people I was good. Caleb Wright turned it into a campfire song, though, and I love that it can be interpreted as fun, too.”

With a mixture of sadness and sweetness, “Honey” is the yin and yang of Samia, and it sounds great.

* NYC, by way of New Zealand, indie rock artist Miriam Clancy recently released her latest full-length album, Black Heart, and it’s a deep dive into some difficult times in her life.

“This album is a tsunami, a spiritual purge,” she explained, “smashing out my big feelings with an insight that growing up too soon has gifted me.”

She continued, adding, “Some of these songs are staring right at my childhood trauma, so it’s a vulnerable, and awkward space, which is a bit freaky. I had to do it for myself, but hopefully it might help others in a similar situation past/present not to feel freakishly alone. It’s also calling out the dependency most of us have with connectivity, FOMO, and being overwhelmed with too much info, being too accessible by our own compulsive hand, and laying ourselves to waste. It’s handy, and beautiful, but we are running straight into the sun, and can’t help it. I can’t help it either. We are all going down together!”

To go with the emotional depth, Clancy also has a fantastic voice, and you can hear both of these things on the single “Cassowary.”

Fun Facts – a cassowary is a rare type of giant flightless bird native to tropical rainforests. It’s classified as a living dinosaur, and has been labeled “the world’s most dangerous bird.”

That’s right, you came here for indie music, but you’re leaving bird knowledge!

Click play on “Cassowary,” and enjoy.

For more of the best of NYC’s indie music scene, come back next Wednesday, and check out the archives for previous columns.