WILDES - 'Run to the (Flames)'
WILDES is electric in new single ‘(Run to the) Flames’.
Indie-rock rising star Ella Walker, who works under the moniker of WILDES is back with a mesmerising and melodic single.
The London-based artist has released two EPs since her 2016 debut single Bare; Illuminate in 2017 and Let You Go in 2020, the latter echoing the vocals and production on Lana Del Rey.
Her latest offering (Run to the) Flames is her fourth one this year, following on from her previous release Far and Wide, a faster-paced, joyful track. Flames has a gorgeous, soft sound that wraps itself around you, drawing you in, which is fitting given the title. Walker’s voice is the star of the show, with its rich, luxurious tone. The track opens with a reverbed electric guitar and vocals that make you feel like you’re sitting in a large, empty, light-filled room with nothing between you and the music.
Walker’s songwriting is incredibly introspective and open, sharing thoughts and fears we’re all bound to experience at some point. “It’s the strangest feeling/To watch your hope leaving/And not even put up a fight” she confesses.
The song touches on knowing you need to change, in a time when it’s difficult to, and all the anxieties that come along with that. Speaking on the writing process, she said: “It was a time where I felt really useless, musically. I was really without direction. I had a strong connection with it emotionally: it was all about running into the flames when you’re in a really dark, sad place, and deciding that you’re going to change.”
Airy drums kick in during the second verse, alongside layers of vocals that make you feel like you’re devoid of gravity, floating through the atmosphere.
The song builds gloriously, reaching the climax in the last chorus which is a spectacular wall of strings, guitar, and vocals stacked together.
(Run to the) Flames is an illuminating single, and if WILDES is heading toward the flames, I will be following.
WILDES debut album Other Words Fail Me is out 13 January 2023
Words by Lucy Skeet
