Actor Director

The Actor Director duo (Jared Beattie and Emily Kohlert) re-take the stage with a new release that claims its rightful place in a trilogy of dreamy synths, moody hooks and expansive yet laser focused beats. “The Last Take” takes example from the deeply confessional “Dear Friend” and the anthemic “Gold”, while decidedly veering off into a lane of its own, taking a darker descending path. Lyrically, it’s an unraveling secret; unspoken anxieties and growing uncertainty, briefly moving into moments of hope and companionship, but just as quickly hint at an existential fear of loneliness, loss and feeling untethered in the increasingly uneasy world. Sonically, it’s a long drive home in the rain, a digital bath of synths and pulses, hovering between contemplation and resolution, and ultimately concluding with a darkly poetic epilogue. Each moment is anointed with crucial melodies, saturated with massive harmonies and waves of precisely layered concussive drums, synth washes and attention seeking leads. With Actor Director, there are no table scraps. A song is a multitude of ideas made into moving parts, with a meticulous will to put it all together. ‘The Last Take’ is no exception in its fullness, but in growing from its predecessors, there’s a progressive sense of focus and maturity to it. The chorus alone is a testament to how the duo work together, the song as a whole is cinematic in scope, monolithic in sound and lyrical imagery.