Half Waif released “Orange Blossoms” with an accompanying video Tuesday ahead of her forthcoming 7”, set to release via Anti- on Feb. 24. The solo project of Nandi Rose was featured in Paste’s Best Albums of March 2020 following her release of The Caretaker.
“Orange Blossoms” showcases Rose’s haunting voice as she seeks refuge from a hectic life behind a track of hypnotic synths. The song’s music video follows the journey Rose takes lyrically as she finds her way out of a dark room and into the light of the outside world. The end of “Orange Blossoms” finds the singer building to a new life as she sows seeds in the ground to the lyrics, “I will plant a pot / of yellow flowers / They’ll be a sign / to whichever one of us survives.”
Rose says of the single in a statement:
I wrote “Orange Blossoms” soon after finishing The Caretaker, and in some ways, it feels like the next chapter in that story. In the fall of 2019, I found myself taking care of someone close to me who was struggling with addiction, and as a caretaker often does, I internalized that immense pain and took it on as my own. It’s paralyzing, to feel so powerless when trying to help someone you love. The song came out like an incantation, a desperate plea to be rescued from wrestling with everything. But it unfolded into something more resolute as I refocused on the task of taking responsibility for myself and my own life. The song touches on a phrase that kept coming back to me at that time, which was: “No one’s going to do it for you.” You can help and be helped, you can love and be loved, but salvation is your own to seek and claim.
Watch the “Orange Blossoms” video and revisit Half Waif’s 2018 Paste Studio session below, and keep scrolling for the 7” artwork. You can preorder the release right here.
“Orange Blossoms” b/w “Party’s Over” Artwork:
