IDER’s ‘Obsessed’ is a vulnerable and thoroughly replayable exploration of relationship struggles and personal doubts

‘Obsessed’, the latest release from duo Lilly Somerville and Megan Markwick, is a dreamy and introspective track that’s built around constant questioning of both oneself and the other within a relationship. Along with ‘Bored’ and ‘Cross Yourself’, ‘Obsessed’ will appear on their second album ‘Shame', set to be released on August 6th. 

The song feels simultaneously deeply personal while also creating something relatable for all those who have had similar experiences. 

The instrumentation is spacey and soaked in reverb and contrasts perfectly with the more clean cut and beautifully layered vocal performances from the pair; especially when paired with the simple but moving lyricism. It all combines to create a piece of music that has a clear sentiment and is confident in the tone that it seeks to create.

To analyse the lyrical content further, we can see the constant struggle of wanting reassurance put quite simply.

 

“Are you obsessed with me? Do you get bored of me? Did I act crazy? Is this a relationship? Could I cheat on you? Could you cheat me too? is this loyalty, what is loyalty?”

 

This line of one sided questioning feels like not only an outpouring of emotions after a relationship has reached breaking point but also a serious bit of soul searching and it’s this ‘two sides of the same coin’ dynamic that can be found by searching between the lines. This makes the songwriting so intriguing without having to fall back on overly verbose language.

 

The same principles can be found throughout the song, with the chorus being where the song reaches its most confessional and vulnerable moment.

 

“I’m just too scared I’m too obsessed with you/ I’ll lose my mind and throw it long for you/ I hate the way I’m so impressed by you/ next thing I know I’ll write a song for you/ I’m just too scared I’m too obsessed/ I’m just too scared I’m too obsessed with you”  

 

The pair have revealed in interviews that along with their two previous releases this year, Bored and Cross Yourself, that they were written in Berlin during the current Covid-19 pandemic, saying that “We got there, and we got COVID four weeks later. We had three weeks of heaven where we wrote so much new music and it was everything we dreamed of, living that chaotic, no-routine lifestyle”.

 

Next on the cards for IDER is a stripped back, but unfortunately now sold out, gig at Map Studio Cafe in Kentish town on August 17th to accompany the release of their sophomore project.

 

Morgan Springer

 

Image: Dani Monteiro