Norwegian singer-songwriter Moyka is gearing up for the release of her debut album, The Revelations of Love, next month and is keeping fans anticipated with her new single, “Illusion.” In true Scandi style, the euphoric, electro-pop banger might leave you with tears on the dance floor, but also with a rush of energy.
For the single’s exclusive premiere for EUPHORIA., we spoke to the self-proclaimed “pop witch” about how “Illusions” came about, its music video, and what listeners can expect from her album.
Lyrically, what inspired your new single?
It’s inspired by the feeling of having a crush on someone. I get really inspired by words and had for a long time carried the word “Illusion” with me because I think it’s a really nice word that holds a lot of meaning. I brought it into the studio and slowly this scenario started to play like a movie inside my head.
When did you start creating this song? And how long did it take to complete?
All the text and melody were set on the first day of writing it. After that, we had to decide on the form, record vocals, and complete the production. I’m actually not sure exactly how long it took, but you have to respect the process, you know? I made it together with Anders Kjær and Sivert Hjeltnes Hagtvet.
Was there any particular era or artists that influenced the song?
I am inspired by a lot of music all of the time, but I find it very hard to pinpoint exactly with this song. To me, it sounds very modern. I’m very fond of big melodies, synths, and creating sonic landscapes my songs can live in. I listen to a lot of artists that I think do the same thing like Lykke Li, Robyn, Röyksopp, and Lorde.
Tell us about the music video and shooting it — how was that experience?
It was so much fun to make this video. The album is about a lot of first-time experiences regarding love and relationships and what better way to emphasize that than making a coming-of-age music video? The different scenes were filmed on different days and some of them in different cities even! But the most fun about the video is that I got to gather almost all of my friends and throw a party!
Did you come up with the concept while writing the song or did that come after?
The music video concept was developed by me and Sara Westergaard Karlsen, who has done all of the visuals for the album. We had so many ideas for this song but decided we wanted to do something completely new that none of us had done before. It was definitely a learning curve for both of us.
Your debut album is due out this fall. Is this song a good indication of what fans can expect?
Yes, I think I’ve challenged my inner pop witch with this album, so there will definitely be big melodies and moods in there.
What can you tell us about the album?
The album is a concept album mainly about love. It’s a story from the start to the end about different situations you could find yourself in when you’re experiencing love. It’s both personal and fictional stories about the intense feelings of happiness, joy, and heartbreak, and bitterness.
How will this project differ from your previous work?
I think I’ve challenged myself in both writing and producing it and made some of the songs on the album kind of “brighter” than a lot of my previous work. I realized last year that it’s important to sing about the good feelings as well as the bad ones. After I had dealt with a lot of anxiety and bad emotions for a while, I realized that music about hope and togetherness was what woke me up again. Not the sad ballads about everything that went wrong. It’s a balance between the good and the bad, happy and sad, which I think is important.
