Award-winning songwriter and performer Darren Hayes shares a brand new single in ‘Do You Remember?’ from his long-awaited new solo record – his first in a decade! Listen / stream / download the track here and watch the lyric video here.
A reminder of love and lust found under neon spotlights, to soundtracks of pulsating drum machines and synthwaves, ‘Do You Remember?’ drops at the most perfect of times: as the LGBTQIA+ community comes together to celebrate unity and strength, and as Darren’s fanbase prepares to see the iconic performer return to a stage near them in the near future.
‘Do You Remember?’, following on from the strikingly personal single ‘Let’s Try Being In Love’, is a song that has been tailor made for the club; a burner of a tune that is ready for bodies to get sweaty and lose their inhibitions through.
Written and recorded in Darren’s home base of Los Angeles, ‘Do You Remember?’ is another strong example of his re-energised talents as a solo songwriter, arranger and producer. From the top down, each element of the track was conceptualised and executed by Darren himself, with mixing and mastering completed by Trevor Yasuda (Dua Lipa, Lana Del Rey) and Mike Bozzi (Childish Gambino, Janet Jackson) respectively.
The song itself is a gleeful deep dive into Darren’s love for records by the likes of George Michael and Prince, while in the rhythms and synth progressions, fans of artists like Vulfpeck and Jungle will find common ground. Lyrically, ‘Do You Remember’ is a retelling of Darren’s first gay kiss, an event Savage Garden fans will remember he detailed on the band’s 1999 tune ‘Chained To You’.
Here, Darren presents a retelling of what was such a transformative event, now through an out and proud perspective. The song itself is an addictive listen; the confidence in Darren’s vocals adding to its overall insatiability.
“From a production point of view this is what I have always wanted to do but never had the skills until now. It reminds me of what I loved about songs from George Michael’s ‘Faith’ and some of my favourite Prince records from the late 80’s. It’s all about the groove.
I spent ages trying to tune a Linn drum machine to sound like those snare drums. In doing so I went down this amazing rabbit hole of vintage synth sounds – understanding what it is I loved about 80’s tech like the Synclavier and the Fairlight. I let my voice wander and stretch – and I had so much fun with trippy keyboards and big fat square bass patches.”
DARREN HAYES
