ABBY POSNER showcases her jack-of-all-trades skillset as a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and composer with her newly released single, “Quiet On Sunset,” taken from her upcoming sophomore solo album SECOND CHANCES due August 11 via Blackbird Record Label. The song is available now across all digital platforms HERE, and the music video for “Quiet on Sunset (filmed on Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles, CA) can be streamed below or be viewed at YouTube HERE. Read more about the making of “Quiet On Sunset” in a Q&A with ABBY below.
“I wanted to create an electronic/folk song with lots of dark synths and basses blasting at the end,” says ABBY. “The organic elements I tracked with was the banjo and the marching drum...I love playing with texture when I produce, and I think there is something interesting in there about the two drastically different genres blending together--the duality of wants and needs within a relationship clashing.”
SECOND CHANCES marks ABBY’s debut release on Blackbird Record Label. ABBY produced, mixed, wrote and performed guitar, bass, drum, keys, banjo, mandolin, percussion and vocals for all 12 tracks at Sonic Boom Room Studios in Venice, CA with engineer Kevin Jarvis. Inspired by a life-changing breakup and the introspective soul-searching that followed, SECOND CHANCES embraces her genre-fluid blend of Americana, folk, indie pop and punk rock. The album’s debut track, “Simple Life,” (released June 7) was premiered via Glide Magazine who noted, “Channeling the majestic folk of 70s’ singer-songwriters with a modern Americana edge...Abby Posner certainly has a way with words, images, and echoing a sepia-toned light with her tunes that evoke the forthright sounds of Aimee Mann, Lydia Loveless and Lucinda Williams.”
ABBY, who identifies as queer (they/she), recently hosted Los Angeles’ Hotel Café’s first-ever Pride Festival event in June and will celebrate the release of SECOND CHANCES on Saturday, August 19 with a special headlining show in Santa Monica, CA at McCabe’s. Tickets are on sale now HERE. ABBY is also excited to announce she will be performing as an official showcase artist at AMERICANAFEST 2023 in Nashville, TN on September 21 at 7:00 PM at The Vinyl Lab. She will appear the following night, September 22, at The California Country Show AMERICANAFEST Specia Event at ACME Feed & Seed which takes place from noon – 7:00 PM.
Abby Posner “Quiet On Sunset” Q&A
--“Quiet On Sunset” is about romantic abandonment and the challenge of moving on when one is unwanted. Can you give us some background about the song? It is based on something you’ve gone through?
“Quiet on Sunset” was written after I went to my friend's birthday party in a neighborhood that my ex-partner lived in. A neighborhood where we created a lot of memories together. I stepped outside and Sunset Blvd was so quiet for a moment. It felt like the world stopped, and I wanted to go by and see her, but I knew that our relationship wasn't in a place where I could just show up at her door, so I went home to write this song instead.”
--It’s interesting that “Quiet On Sunset” is a gently strummed and softly sung lover’s plea, and that the final third of the song musically takes an upbeat turn, perhaps suggesting that you’re getting closer to the idea of moving past a fractured relationship—you’re also seen confidently smiling at this point in the video. As the album’s producer, can you talk about your production choices to accentuate the song’s sentiments?
“I think most importantly, I wanted the song-form to feel a little bit herky jerky on purpose, because that was an aspect of the relationship. There were a lot of push/pulls and ups and downs. I wanted to mirror that in the song structure. It is one of the only songs I have ever written where the chorus occurs once throughout the entire piece. The ending is the explosion. It was me letting out my frustration and anger that we could never get back to where we were. I wanted to create an electronic/folk song with lots of dark synths and basses blasting at the end. The organic elements I tracked with was the banjo and the marching drum...I love playing with texture when I produce, and I think there is something interesting in there about the two drastically different genres blending together--the duality of wants and needs within a relationship clashing.”
--The “Quiet On Sunset” video shows you walking down one of the most famous streets in America, playing the song’s various instruments (acoustic guitar, bass guitar, banjo, snare drum, rhythm machine) which highlights your multi-instrumentalist skills. Can you talk the video’s concept and the stretch of Sunset Blvd where it was shot?
“I originally wanted to shoot this video in the exact neighborhood, but I didn't want to take the risk of running into her--haha! So we changed location at the last minute and shot about 7 miles away in Los Feliz...still on Sunset Blvd, just not at the scene of the crime.”
--During the shooting of the video on the streets, did any unexpected things happen?
“If you watch at the very end of the video there are two women that run out of a store...I think it was on purpose, so they could be on camera. The funny thing was that they seemed really embarrassed after making that decision. it is hard to miss that shot, and it is actually one of my favorite moments of the music video.”
--The Second Chances bio says the album was “inspired by a life-changing breakup and the introspective soul-searching that followed.” What advice might you have for others who find themselves in a painful, angry place when a romance deteriorates?
“My advice is to feel all of the feelings. Do not avoid or push them away! Feel them deeply, feel the anger, feel the grief and sadness...you will be able to move on in a much healthier way. Repressing and rebounding too quickly never ends well. I am so grateful that I have my music to help me sort through all of the emotions. Everything becomes much clearer after I write a song, and I hope that others can use art and creativity in the same way.”
