Milwaukee sister duo REYNA (Vic & Gab Banuelos) have unveiled their new single, “you could at least say goodbye” via Cosmica Artists. The release of the new song comes along with the announcement of their highly anticipated debut EP of the same name out May 6th and a performance at SXSW 2022 on March 15th.
The new single is a statement in itself, addressing something we have all become too familiar with – ghosting and the deafening sting of fading love. Asking the question ‘Why have we all become so used to ending things this way?’ it explores what we wish the other person had the courage to say and how they handled the situation. The message is perfectly explored in the vibrant and surreal video directed by Savannah Ziemann and Gab which not only showcases the duo’s lighthearted and fun personalities, but also the sombreness of the subject matter. We see them dressing up mannequins and doing various activities together but towards the end we see one of the sisters throw away the mannequin and picking up a leaflet for a breakup school (which is set to be further explored in their next release) and the other clings to it because she doesn’t want to let go. It represents how some of us can let go quicker and some of us choose to hold on to the hurt because it’s all we have left of that person/relationship.
Produced by Brad Hale (Now, Now), the track is part of their concept EP – a collection of songs which chronicles the journey of a breakup from beginning to end and is connected by a thread of clever songwriting and themes ranging from the stages of talking it through, being ghosted, those nights staring at the ceiling to moving on and pretending it never happened. The EP itself is an evolution for REYNA and the dance pop sensibilities they are known for and sees them hone in on the indie sound they were once previously known for.
REYNA adds, “No goodbye’s no explanation, just an unanswered text message. It’s barbaric. Ending a relationship like this kind of feels like pressing pause on a movie and not watching the ending. Even if the ending is sad there is something comforting about going through it, talking about it and experiencing it so you can arrive at the end knowing what got you there and with tools to get through it. Instead there were so many sleepless nights staring at the ceiling wondering what I could have done differently, what happened, when the beginning of the end was, was it something I did? It was excruciating”