Fae Explores Her Dark Side in New Single ‘Devil May Care’
Morosely magical and a force to be reckoned with, queer musical artist Fae has returned with a vengeance in her new single, “devil may care,” an ominous track that begs the question: “Where’s your God now?”
The LA-based singer-songwriter is no stranger to delving into controversial themes in her music. “Devil may care” dives deep into dissonant themes of revenge and religion, under the guise of a god complex that creates a sinister, chaotic soundscape where Fae indulges her darker side, bringing the absolute worst parts of herself to light. Far from a protagonist with a sympathetic worldview, the song paints the picture of an antagonist that is angry, narcissistic, and downright evil.
It is also the final single release for Fae’s sophomore EP false memories, which is scheduled to release early 2023.
She took some time to talk more about the track and her musical journey with OFM.
Can you begin by telling us more about the concept and inspiration behind your new single “devil may care?”
“Devil may care” is a phrase that basically means reckless or careless, and I really like to play off phrases and wordplay in general. I’m somebody who grew up in a completely non-religious family, so I sometimes like to play with religious themes in whatever way I want because I don’t have much of a predisposed notion of them. My thought behind this was, “devil may care” usually means reckless or careless, but I kind of feel like if the devil did care, it would be much worse than him just letting you do whatever you want. I feel it actually pushes things in a worse direction.
So, I kind of used that as a hold for a metaphor of showing how I feel on the inside when I get very angry. I used to have pretty bad anger issues that I had to unlearn from my dad, and while I have gotten good about not expressing that to other people and not acting on it, that doesn’t stop the fact that my brain is still like, you should slash their tires (laughs). I’m like, we’re not going to do that, but I think it every single time! If you could get arrested for thinking about slashing someone’s tires, I would be so incredibly screwed.
But yeah, it was basically an expression of me being very angry, but again, not wanting to express it to the actual person or situation at the time, but still feeling those things and then kind of using this sacrilegious lens as a theme to express that, which is something I’ve done in the past. Like I mentioned, I grew up in a really non-religious household, so I’ve always been fascinated by that as a concept because there’s so much religious speech in the world in general, and I never really knew what any of it meant. Now, I get to make up my own definition.
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We don’t see too many tracks painting the picture of an antagonist that is angry, narcissistic, and downright evil. What exactly made you want to indulge in your darker side?
I think it’s something that should just be let out in one way or another because when you don’t express it, that’s kind of when you end up acting on it. In a way, me writing a song that is this really fucked up evil thing is a way of preventing myself from being a fucked up evil person. There was a situation I had recently with my roommate, and I wrote this incredibly fucked up thing. I have not shown a single person, but I’ve told a couple people the synopsis, and they’re like, whoa, that’s really dark. I’m like, yeah, but it’s still not as bad as what he did to me because it didn’t actually affect him. I just wrote it down, felt better; I got to express it, and I didn’t slash his tires!
This is a therapeutic process for you.
Exactly. I feel like letting that out is such a healthy way to deal with anger. Again, as somebody who learned anger issues from their parents, this is a much healthier way to do it. There still needs to be a channel for it. It’s still a feeling that should be felt, and it shouldn’t be bottled up. Again, that’s when I think you end up acting on it.
Do you always try to explore controversial themes in your music?
It’s not that I try to (laughs). It’s just that my natural interests end up leading me down that road. I feel like it’s kind of been that way my entire life. I’ve never tried to be the contrarian. It’s just that my natural stance on things happens to be a little bit controversial.
This is also the final single from your sophomore EP false memories, which will release early 2023. Is there an overall story that the album is telling?
“False memories” as a whole was taken from a chapter of Salvador Dali’s autobiography, which I read when I was 16. In his autobiography, he has two chapters directly next to each other. One is “False Childhood Memories,” and the other is “Real Childhood Memories.” In “False Childhood Memories,” he’s telling you in the title and right off the bat that everything is made up, but then he goes into so much detail where it feels real.
For me, “false memories” is kind of about how you remember situations in so much detail, and you really live in this memory of whatever the situation was, regardless of how far removed it is from the truth. Though, again, in “devil may care,” it’s being able to feel that anger and sort of expressing it in a way, but I’m not acting on it. It’s not actually happening. It’s fully a mental thing.
Ultimately, what do you hope audiences always take away from your music?
I always want to leave people, especially women and queer people, feeling more powerful. I am very fortunate that I have always been able to stand up for myself and be loud about it, but it took me a while to get to the point of where I currently am. I always like saying that I’m writing music for a younger version of myself. I like writing music for people who maybe need some encouragement to be able to speak up and stand up for themselves and others.
Have you always had a passion for singing and songwriting?
Oh, yes. It’s the only thing I can ever remember wanting to do. I remember in, I think it was third grade, me and my best friend Britney convinced our teacher to let us push our desks together, stand on them, and sing for the class. I don’t know why they let us do that, but it was a different time (laughs).
You describe yourself as a dark pop artist. What does that exactly entail?
Pop in a minor key, if you want to be very literal about it. It’s interesting that there’s been such an emergence of dark pop, especially female artists, and I’ve also noticed that a lot of us grew up on the same pop-punk spectrum. A lot of us kind of identify as elder emo kids. We were really into Panic! At the Disco, My Chemical Romance, and bands like that.
What’s really interesting, and I’ve thought about this before, the reason that there are so many female artists in the dark pop genre is because a lot of us are influenced by this pop punk era of music that we were growing up on. Then as we got older, we became a little bit disenfranchised by it because there are so many people within that space that kind of came out as groomers or sexual predators.
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It’s cool that we grew up and we’re like, fuck that. We’re going to rewrite this narrative ourselves. We’re going to write songs about things that matter to us and aren’t about or for people who are harming other people.
What has been the biggest challenge for you in the music industry so far?
For me, it’s been getting a foot in the door. I’m someone that works completely independently. I don’t have a manager, label, or literally anyone. It’s been a little difficult to build connections and network and crack that door open. I never go into something being like, I’m here to network. I usually end up making friends and just being around good people. Once you get a foot in, then it becomes a little easier.
What is one thing you are most proud of in terms of your music?
In terms of my music, right now, I’m very proud of the fact of just being able to put it out at all. I know that’s the most basic thing you’re supposed to do as an artist, but I don’t think people realize how much goes into that. Like, this will be my first song out since January. I was working and focusing on writing for a bit, but then I sat down and was like, I need to choose a release date so I can put something out. So, the thing that I’m most proud of is literally just doing it at all. Again, I know that sounds so simple, but it is so much more than I could possibly explain.
What are some future goals you hope to accomplish with your career?
I would love to be able to make a living off my music. I’m very fortunate that I do make a living by doing marketing and social media stuff for other artists, which is cool and very inspiring to see, but I would love to be able to make a living off my own music. I would love to be able to write with artists that I love and be able to go on tour. I’ve only ever played two live shows ever, and my first one was a little over a year ago. Then my second one was in March, but I shattered my ankle a little bit after that, and I couldn’t walk or drive for three months. So, that put a pause on things.
Before we wrap up, are there any other upcoming projects or anything else you would like to mention or plug?
My initial instinct is no, but I’m sure there’s something (laughs). Just follow me and stay tuned!
Stay up-to-date and connect with fae by following her on Instagram and TikTok @acidfairy_, or visit her official website, listentofae.com. Her music is available on Spotify and all other digital streaming platforms.
Photos by Paige Margulies
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