London based writer, poet, performer and artist Brocarde kicks us off with her debut single ‘Last Supper‘, there are no restrictions when it comes to Brocarde’s expression. Dark, brutal and refreshingly honest, this is a killer debut.
Brocarde was born in a rural village in the United Kingdom. She discovered her love for performing and storytelling as a young girl, when she would write poems and plays and perform them while dripping in beads from her Nan’s closet. Even back then, there was always an affinity between her outfits and how they helped bring her stories to life.
Her school years weren’t her favourite years. Her creative energy and unruly tenacity made her stand out in a way that other people didn’t always warm to, and when she was sitting alone in the corner of the playground she used to escape into the magical world of the stories she was writing.
As a young woman with so much to say, she wanted to bring her poetry and words to life and she be-dazzled herself my making her own gowns and jewellery.
Excited by the independence this gave her, she flung her heart into making and fulfilling orders and launched her jewellery brand officially. It wasn’t long before word spread and her designs were spotted on Lady Gaga and Katy Perry. Riding the crest of the wave, she spent every waking hour making jewellery in the hope that the company would give her a platform to launch her music.
The bigger the company grew, the more its ethos escaped her. Initially it was about selling quirky accessories, which at the time were unique and celebrated individualism, but as its celebrity following grew, the brand lost its heart. Brocarde became increasingly frustrated and felt as though she were encouraging people to dress like their idols instead of inspiring them to find their own personal style, which was a message she felt passionate about. As a member of over-thinkers anonymous, she concluded that there were a million miles between who she was as a person and what her brand had come to represent. The brand did provide her with a platform to launch music, but not the kind that cuts into your soul, not the kind that made her feel alive. So before she drowned in a sickly, sticky vat of bubblegum, she decided to burst her own bubble.
The bubble-bursting wasn’t pretty. Brocarde became increasingly frustrated with celebrity culture – and popular culture in general – so her only option was to destroy the monster she had created. She closed the jewellery company and never looked back. She went to LA to finish the album she had started and discarded every song that she had previously written. Brocarde made a promise to herself that she would never compromise her vision, and to never be filtered for commercial success.
During her time in the studio, her love for making clothing continued. Brocarde is one of those girls who shudders at the thought of looking like everybody else, so she’s always had a natural desire to create her own uniform. At this point in her life she was unshackled, supercharged and sassy as hell, so she created a brand called Twisted Bitches. It was tongue in cheek, unapologetic and a girl cult where women could celebrate each other and find empowerment. She created t-shirts with slogans like “Pussy Power” and “No Fucks Given”.
Her designs were modelled by rainbow haired girls and embraced by the “alternative” community, after being stocked on Dolls Kill. It was a liberating time but once again Brocarde felt like she had more to bring to the table than just a kick ass agenda, and as the writing of her album progressed, her personal voice developed a depth and romanticism that she wanted to transpire in her clothing design. Everything in Brocarde’s life finally had the same agenda, so it was the ideal time to create a clothing line using her own name. The collection would feature garments with her lyrics and poetry embroidered onto them. If you stop to analyse Brocarde’s personal style it is vintage inspired; she’s an old soul, she gravitates towards velvets, rich colours and feminine details. These are all elements that exist in her personal clothing collection. The way the brand can combine her love for writing and style excites Brocarde and has opened an all encompassing world of creativity.
The first song Brocarde wrote in LA was ‘Last Supper’. The song and her vision for it existed long before she stepped foot inside a recording studio, and every tiny detail was alive inside her head, from the video concept to the clothing she would be wearing. The song tackles her personal experiences with celebrity culture. It begs the listener to question their relationship with social media and loved ones, and it asks the all important question “What will you consume at your last supper?”. The video, written and directed by Brocarde takes the viewer on an uncensored journey and tackles a host of controversial issues such as cannibalism, religion and abuse of power, which leaves them open for interpretation and discussion. It’s a twisted fairytale with a haunting darkness that’s usually only present in horror movies.
Brocarde approaches music in a different way. She is genre-less. She uses instrumentation to capture the emotion in her words. She straddles a multitude of worlds; her vulnerable, fragile side is captured by an orchestra of delicately plucked strings; her full throttle sass makes you stand up at take note, and her angst and frustration marry with the Heavy Metal undertones. Brocarde is cinematic, captivating and an artistic storyteller.
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