Following their recent Splendour In The Grass appearance, Vallis Alps mark the cusp of their debut album Cleave (out Aug 24) with the release of their latest single, ‘Start Again’. LISTEN + WATCH HERE + PRE-ORDER CLEAVE HERE.

‘Start Again’, Vallis Alps’ latest preview of Cleave shuffles to the cycle of self-doubt and the pendulum swing of self-esteem. Sonically in line with their peers in Glass Animals or The Wombats, synths subtly bubble, growing with each skip of assurance and empowerment. Although uptempo in nature, ‘Start Again’ sparks a deeper internal impetus to managing our anxieties. “Are you living in a fever oh it only holds you down,” sings Parissa, pausing to consider the tools at our disposal to manage the manifestation of nervous tension, to “Find your feet or let me in, your mind’s awake, don’t hesitate to start again.”

In their own words, Vallis Alps explain, “’Start Again’ is about self-worth and the cycle of anxiety, inadequacy and confidence – emotions we’ve strongly felt while making this album. Thinking about it, it’s pretty funny that such a fun and light song has sad undertones. But I guess that’s one of the things we want to draw attention to – the inevitability and humanness of not feeling self-worth and the attempt to always rebuild that in ourselves.”

Of the visualiser created by Passive Kneeling, Parissa shares “We were so excited to collaborate with Tom from Passive Kneeling on this visualiser. The evolving faces and bodies represent the many versions human beings going through the cycle of – anxiety, doubt then to strength and courage. Tom’s fast moving and beautiful footage felt like the perfect backdrop.”

‘Start Again’ unspools a new narrative layer to Vallis Alps debut, an album about crossroads in many forms: familial, social, professional and mental, that highlight how severance gives way to strength. Where previously, ‘Set It Off, Set It Right’ and ‘On The Eve Of The Rush‘ spoke to the plunge of life-altering decisions, ‘Higher Than This‘ and ‘You & I’ on breaking free of trying relationships and habits, ‘Start Again’ points to the light at the end of overcoming the anxieties of an ever-changing world. That letting go is only half the work.

Cleave, meaning to cling to and to sever from, is an album between opposites, a defining statement of evolution for Vallis Alps. Since first meeting at age 18 and learning to write music together, demos flung online between Eora / Sydney and Si’ahl / Seattle respectively, Parissa and David could never have anticipated the explosion of their debut EP and the journey of rigorous touring that would follow. Across that time, as Vallis Alps the two have experienced the peaks and pitfalls of life alongside each other, processing their dizzying ascent into sudden success with a close-knit friendship that provided a source of stability and certainty amongst all their disbelief.

Fast forward and Vallis Alps’ forthcoming debut Cleave reflects on the acts of cleaving in their individual, lives in all their distinct and deeply emotional forms. Making sense of the desperation of life from family, vocation, migration, and just plain living, the record weaves together the contrasting forces of two halves of Vallis Alps to shift from states of turbulence and friction, dissecting their inner truths and values to come back together. To a partnership capable of flourishing alongside one another no matter how different they may be, of the tribulations of the past that must be cleaved to progress towards a mutual future. Reflective of Parissa and David’s friendship and siblinghood as a whole – today, closer than ever before.