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Watch Madeira’s “Let Me Down,” A Scenic Story About Letting Go

Literal chill waves.

December 07, 2015

New Zealand native Kim Pflaum, aka Madeira, formerly of Yumi Zouma, may only have one song to her name so far, but what a track it is. "Let Me Down" has a sound that weaves a myriad of influences—XXYYXX and Toro Y Moi, to name a couple obvious ones—into a wholly original tapestry. The single is as perfect for late-night dorm room heavy-petting sessions as it is for scenic drives through the countryside. Listening, it should come as no surprise then that the track premiered on Ryan Hemsworth's Secret Songs label.

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Thankfully, Madeira went with the latter image for her debut video. Premiering above, the "Let Me Down" clip is an intimate family affair: Pflaum directed the video herself, and shot it on location in her native Christchurch, in order to show off the beautiful scenery and beaches of the Canterbury Plains. Her brother, Kirk, handled Director of Photography duties, and her sister Gemma stars as the lovelorn video girl. She travels around, disposing of all of the physical evidence of her last love—photos, gifts, and ashes—as the surf crashes in beautiful slow motion.

Speaking to The FADER via email, Madeira said that the track is about "acknowledging disappointment and the feeling of despondency it can leave, knowing you will work through it but it won’t be easy." She also added that the video was intended to be "visually warm and calming, while still having a darker side to it - mirroring the bittersweet nature of my writing style."

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