Jordan Rakei is known for putting out spellbinding, soulful music that often explores largely personal themes. The New Zealand-born artist bucks the latter of those trends on his latest single “Mind’s Eye,” expanding his scope to examine larger ideas of humanity and technology. In a Facebook post, he described the song as being about “a future dystopian world in which humans have neural control interfaces implanted in their brains.” It’s a dramatic change in theme from his previous work but a welcome one and it comes with his signature expertly absorbing sense of production and composition.
Anchored by a repeating harmonic phrase in the keys and bass, the song offers a mix of minimalism with more flowing music in the choruses. Rakei delivers some soulful vocals and layering throughout as he sings about a disconcerting future. The song’s bridge presents one of the more impactful moments as he writes, “Always in my brain / I’m trapped in a magical maze / not feelings of hopelessness / I’m facing the mess that I’ve made.” The lines between reality and technological fantasy have never been more blurred and don’t appear to be turning back any time soon. Rakei offers a successfully poignant comment on this phenomenon with “Mind’s Eye” in a way that only he could.
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