Anna Calvi makes her long-awaited return with a stirring rendition of Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy’s “I See A Darkness”, reimagined as a haunting duet with Perfume Genius. The pair’s voices entwine in a tender meditation on connection beyond romance — a celebration of the quiet, transformative love found in deep friendship.
Calvi explains,
“So many songs are about romantic love, but I wanted to highlight the romance of the chosen family, the depth of connection that isn’t tethered to heteronormative ideals. It’s such a powerful song about the yearning for intimacy. I love inhabiting other people’s songs. When I sing someone else’s words, I feel like I’m getting closer to myself somehow, because the songs I choose express something I can’t articulate.”
Directed by Alexander Brown, the accompanying video captures the intimacy of female friendship on a night out — looping moments of laughter and closeness that resist intrusion, embodying both beauty and quiet defiance.
The release marks Calvi’s first new music since her acclaimed work scoring seasons 5 and 6 of Peaky Blinders, with her compositions widely released earlier this year. Alongside her musical return, Calvi has launched her own Substack, Carving Silver In Strange Weather, where she shares unreleased material, playlists, and reflections on creativity, including her recent series The Guitar – Depravity and The Divine.
Following her appearance at the Southbank Centre’s Tribute to David Lynch, Calvi is set to play an intimate, sold-out headline show at London’s EartH Theatre, performing rarities from across her catalogue with special guests in what promises to be a spellbinding evening.
