• News

• All

Nov 18, 2021 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Megan Steen

This year, Canadian chamber folk singer/songwriter Raine Hamilton has been steadily sharing new tracks from her upcoming third album, Brave Land. Set against intricate sting arrangements, Hamilton’s latest record tributes and explores the natural landscape, drawing comfort and wisdom from the imposing presence of the mountains. Hamilton has slowly shared new tracks from the album, with one arriving roughly every month, and tomorrow she’s back again with her latest track, “Eclipse,” premiering early with Under the Radar.

“Eclipse” explores the tension between light and dark, inspired by Hamilton’s experience seeing a real lunar eclipse in Banff National Park. Hamilton’s rich string arrangements rest against a bed of xylophones and glassy vocal melodies, conjuring her trademark combination of folk melody and swelling strings. Hamilton’s sweet melodies are the song’s shining light, offering warmth and intimacy even as the strings inject bursts of dark drama into the track.

The ebb and flow of darkness and light also acts as the focal point of the lyrics, with the moonlight acting as the guide through the dark of the night一“From the highest point / Of the darkest night / There comes a light / Waxing, waning / Reach for the comfort of the moon / See us through the effort of the dark.”

Hamilton explains the song’s inspiration, saying: “The tension of the dark and the light is such a tangible experience. In the winter, as the days grow shorter, I really feel that tension, that discomfort of the loss of the light. We need her so much. And it can feel like there is a lot to sit with in the dark. When we hit that turning point, and the light starts to lengthen again, I feel so relieved. Some primal part of me is reassured: ‘Ok. The light comes back.’

Add to this winter tension a lunar eclipse, and the experience is amplified. I witnessed a full lunar eclipse in the mid-winter, and it was profound. The loss of the reassuring light of the moon is a lot to handle, especially when we are already in our darkest moments of the winter. I learned a lot by sitting with the dark through that experience. There was something about enduring, moving through, and accepting that darkness that made me more able to trust my own ability to endure, move through, and accept. That winter eclipse taught me that I can make it through my own darkness, too.”

Check out the song and video below. Hamilton’s new record Brave Land is out January 21st.