Leon Vynehall leans into vulnerability on new single ‘Cruel Love’

Leon Vynehall has released ‘Cruel Love’, the latest preview of his upcoming album In Daytona Yellow, due 19th September.

The track features vocals from Beau Nox and arrives alongside a striking video directed by long-time collaborator Alex Takacs.

Built around warped textures and a haunting vocal performance, ‘Cruel Love’ continues Vynehall’s shift towards more diaristic, song-driven work. “I started this song in the latter half of 2022,” he says, “and when it was taking shape I knew exactly who I wanted to sing on it. Beau and I met earlier that year and I was totally bowled over by his voice. His tone and unique vibrato stuck with me.”

The accompanying video is a surreal, dream-like exploration of self. “We’ve been discussing and plotting what we wanted to do with this video for over two years,” Vynehall explains. “To finally see the vision through at this level feels cathartic. Alex is genuinely one of the most intoxicatingly innovative and creatively thorough people I’ve been around.”

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In Daytona Yellow will be Vynehall’s third full-length record, and his first to fully embrace live vocal collaborations, including appearances from Tyson, Poison Anna, Jeshi, Kenzie TTH, and Chartreuse. It also marks the first time he’s incorporated his own vocals and lyrics.

Where his previous album Rare, Forever detoured from the club into a realm of avant-garde electronics and post-punk abstraction, this new project leans more into structure without abandoning experimentation. Vynehall describes the album as a rejection of perfection; an embrace of vulnerability and imperfection as creative fuel.

The visual concept of In Daytona Yellow was shaped by a visit to James Turrell’s Minamidera installation in Japan, a light-and-darkness experience that left a lasting impact. “The artwork hasn’t changed, you have,” Vynehall recalls hearing from a guide at the exhibit; an idea that sits at the core of the record’s philosophy.

With collaborators including artist Eric Timothy Carlson, multi-instrumentalist Harvey Dweller, and string arranger Amy Langley, In Daytona Yellow promises to be Vynehall’s most expansive and personal work to date.

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