Live Review: Let Sui Zhen blow you away with 'Calm Winds'

Sydney experimental pop artist, SUI ZHEN has unleashed a banger with heart 'Calm Winds.' ZHEN's a pretty vocal feminist, and important role model for young women everywhere, who are struggling with identity politics and voyeurism. 'Calm Winds' is particularly impactful because all the proceeds of her track are actually being donated to Planned Parenthood. She's decided to include her track as part of the Our First 100 Days playlist from Bandcamp, that's become part of a wider global movement to protect women's reproductive rights. 'Calm Winds' is a bit slower than her usual material, but it's definitely distinctive, as she maintains her distinctive and nostalgic charm across this track.

The first 30 seconds or so of 'Calm Winds' are serene, electronic and dreamy. As the track builds, Sui Zhen layers in a vocal hook atop of broken percussion. The brass throughout injects 'Calm Winds' with a light, upbeat sass, to subtly offset the moodier instrumentals. Despite adversity, Sui Zhen's message is clear, as the lyric "We can work around it" implies she is optimistic that the future is positive if we don't give up the fight.

"I wanted to make a song that turned that feeling of frustration and unrest into some kind of unifying feeling, to say that, perhaps if we work together, we can find a way out of this difficult time," Sui Zhen commented about the making of 'Calm Winds' which was not only cathartic, but perfectly encapsulated the sentiment of unrest. You can grab your copy of 'Calm Winds' via the Our First 100 Days Bandcamp on May 1st.

PHOTO CREDIT: PHEBE SCHMIDT

Words by ROSIE RAE

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