Stillwater Blackball release new single ‘Light’ on August 6
After hitting the road straight out of school, Stillwater Blackball toured non-stop for years as a session musician, learning almost everything there is to know about the industry. But souls on the road get worn: when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he decided enough was enough, cashed out of the game, and started single-handedly writing and recording his own music in the middle of nowhere. Earlier this year, he dropped the “soulful, dynamic and uplifting” groover Waterside (Pario Magazine), and now he’s back with the follow-up single Light.
Released alongside a genuinely stunning video, Light manages to be at once intimate and universal, like a self portrait for humanity. It’s a beautifully choreographed balancing act between epic soundscapes, hard-hitting grooves, introspective reflection and screaming guitar solos. Stillwater explains: “I had this idea that you don’t really know yourself until you’ve been at your lowest, and that maybe that’s something we all share, maybe that’s the only thing we all share. It’s kind of a strange idea, but it was interesting to me at the time, and so that became Light. Ultimately it’s me trying to reflect constructively on my darkness”.
So who is Stillwater Blackball? Good question. We don’t really know, and it seems he likes it that way: “there’s so much noise today, so much you’ve got to do on top of just making music. It seems you have to sell yourself to sell your songs. That’s not me, I’m a quiet guy, so for a long time that held me back. Then I just decided to do it on my own terms”.
One look at the video for Light and it’s easy to see how this approach might pay off. Stillwater stands silhouetted against a whirlwind background of chaos and peace, light and dark. This release is a truly immersive and intense audiovisual experience that you don’t often see from someone at this stage in their career.
Revelling in his self-imposed studio exile, Stillwater is constantly honing his sound. “I send my tracks off in batches to be mastered by Chris Chetland at KOG Studio, NZ. At this point, the release schedule is so far behind the pace I’m making them at It’s kind of frustrating and exciting at the same time”. With so much still to come, the future looks bright for this hotly-tipped breakthrough artist.
