“Up on the hillside / dressed in red,” as the track opens, “wasting the sunlight / is only fair / wronging what you can’t right / with me.” The vocals are crooned gently over languid acoustic guitar and strings, though as the track develops so too does its intricacy and drama, the song revealing itself to owe as much to the left-field arrangements of acts like Dirty Projectors as traditional folk. These sensibilities ebb and flow in keeping with the emotional turmoil of the lyrics and strings which lead with a poignant, often playful plasticity. What emerges is a picture of a failing relationship in all of its contradictions. Regret and longing sit side by side, so too conviction and doubt, as well as a steadfast belief in both the misery and wonder of any human connection. “I wanna say,” as Boyd and Norris voice together, “love is such a luminous waste.”

The song comes complete with a video illustrated and animated by Morvern Graham, which you can watch below:

‘The Favourite’ is out now and available from the usual places.

Artwork by Morvern Graham

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