Following the release of their critically acclaimed sixth studio album ‘100% YES’, out now on Decca Records, Melt Yourself Down share their powerful single ‘Born in the Manor’.
The track shines a light on the pressing and timely realities of life in Britain today, commemorating the three-year anniversary of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. Amidst looming synths and staccato brass, as Kush’s vocals morph from menacing speak-raps to a desperate wail, the song’s poignant and thought-provoking lyrics indict the powers that be whose negligence allowed the West London fire to happen with still no prosecutions three years on: “Born in the manor / Born in the gutter / For dem it don’t matter / Blacker, whiter, browner / You burn in a tower.”
Kush explains: “It’s harrowing. Those lyrics are a shout against the authorities for not really caring whether you’re black white or brown.”
In line with the current climate of protest and self-examination, the band see the track as a wider vehicle, offering it as a platform for comment about all the issues surrounding us currently. Melt Yourself Down say, “The subject matter of the track and the space it sits in musically offers a place in which other artists can collaborate. We’ve been in discussions with various artists, poets and singers with a view to collect a range of reimagining’s to reflect on where the world finds itself today.”
Formed in 2012 by Mercury nominated sax innovator Pete Wareham and fronted by vocalist Kush Gaya, Melt Yourself Down rose from the ashes of Pete’s previous outfit Acoustic Ladyland and from everything he learned with Polar Bear. His work in reinventing and defying musical genres has paved the way for acts such as Comet is Coming, Black Flower and Sons of Kemet, to name a handful.
Described by The Quietus as “the album of tomorrow”, the new record has set the bar for today’s music innovators and presents an unflinching focus on what it means to be British in today’s political and social climate. Working with production legends Youth and Ben Hillier, the band have reimagined themselves and created a bruising re-up of their signature sound with added synths, anthems and epic joyrides. It is a timely document of the increasingly complex nature of humanity, whilst at the same time bubbles with excitement and hopefulness.
“So much has changed in the world since we started writing in 2016” says Pete. “We couldn’t ignore any of it and this new music is borne from our feelings of extreme cultural restlessness”.
‘100% YES’ is available on physical formats now.
