It has been nearly two years since Naarm/Melbourne multi-talented artist Eilish Gilligan released her EP ‘First One To Leave The Party’ – reviewed by me here and described as being a beautiful expression of deeply personal frailty and vulnerability, tempered by a defiance and strength. Gilligan is back and her new single ‘Involved You’ exhibits a new steely strength and profound maturity that seems to brush aside the vicissitudes of her earlier lockdown introspective world and defiantly enter a new sphere.
An electronic voltage seems to have been inserted into Gilligan’s velvet vocals with an insistent synth bass and a dramatic blast of instruments that splashes in and out of the mix. Gilligan’s delivery is as dramatic and bold as the instrumentation, layered and angry, defiant and bold.
Gilligan says of the track:
This song is about accidentally falling into the role of the villain in relationships, and kind of regretting it… but also kind of embracing it, too. It happened a few times in a row and I started to think ‘what if my worst fear of being a bad person has come true without me realising it?’ With hindsight I don’t think that was actually the case, but this song was written from that place.
The lyrics reflect this brutal level of self reflection:
i get up hurt you hard
i nurse the wound accordingly
i back out back to blue
i never should have involved you
i had you, had you whole
i took you and i threw you up
i back out, back to blue
i never should have involved you
The accompanying video, directed and edited by Katy Roubin, sees an animated Gilligan, imperious and distant, performing the song in an anonymous room. Is there any self-doubt or regret for actions passed? Not in this strong performance:
‘Involved You’ is out now and available to download and stream here.
Gilligan will be putting on an exclusive live show in Melbourne on Friday, 21 July, 2023 — tickets here
Involved You was self-written, and produced by Eilish and her long-time friend and collaborator Gab Strum, mixed by Hamish Patrick, and mastered by Matthew Agoglia.
The song marks the beginning of a new era for Eilish, as she explains:
My attitude to life and music has changed so much over the last few years. I feel so strong, and I want my music to reflect that. There’s so, so much more to come, I literally cannot wait.
Neither can we.
