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Jan 18, 2024 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Monica Reyes

Geographer is the moniker of Los Angeles-based singer/songwriter Mike Deni. Deni has been crafting his style of atmospheric and existentially-laden synth pop for over a decade now, returning most recently with his 2021 album, Down and Out in the Garden of Earthly Delights. Later next month, he’s set to follow with his forthcoming album, A Mirror Brightly, out February 23rd.

The record once again finds Deni ruminating on purpose and loneliness, unpacking living in our atomized and digitized world. As he describes, the title “refers to the lights of the phone shining in our eyes, blinding us to ourselves, obscuring the truth. It also refers to the beauty of this life. That is the glimmer of hope on the record. It leaves the option open that one day we might turn the light back away from our faces to illuminate the darkness that surrounds us.”

Deni spent 2023 teasing the upcoming album with a series of new singles, and today he’s back with another new track, “The Light In The Dark,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“The Light In The Dark” sees Deni reflecting on love and yearning, singing about feeling unworthy of real affection: “You don’t get a lover/You don’t get a lover/You got too many feelings/Your heart/Is bringing me down/The light in the dark/You know it just went out.” However, Deni also pairs those reflective lyrics with an explosive melodic side, delivering a ripping synth pop number complete with soaring synths and an effervescent hook. The track steadily builds from its opening placid soundscape, bursting into motion with driving percussion and towering synth melodies. At moments, the track’s drama and passion feel like a feverish heartland rock sing-along, carried by Deni’s emotive vocal performance and an irresistible chorus.

Deni says of the track, “It’s not always something beautiful in someone that attracts us to them. Sometimes it’s something weak in ourselves. Those relationships are obviously doomed, and I’ve had many, because I spent most of my life thinking deep down that I was unworthy of actual supportive, respectful, real love. I thought I was just inadequately designed, destined to be forever reaching past my arm’s length, getting there by other compensations and compromises. This song is basically about that.”

Check out the song and video below. A Mirror Brightly is out everywhere on February 23rd.