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NILÜFER YANYA delivers her most vulnerable performance yet in new single ‘Method Actor’, taken from her just-announced third album, ‘My Method Actor’. Check out our latest Dork Mixtape cover feature.
Words: Ciaran Picker.
Photos: Molly Daniel.
Every day, we put on a front. Whether it’s going to work, meeting friends or family, or even to ourselves in the bathroom mirror, we’re always trying to present an acceptable version of our life to anyone watching. For Nilüfer Yanya, though, those days are gone. In her new single, ‘Method Actor’, she drops the façade, exploring who she is deep down.
Even for an artist like Nilüfer, who has gathered an army of fans by producing soulful guitar music with a centre eminently darker than the shiny exterior would have you believe, bearing her soul without over-complicating the message hasn’t been easy. Drawing on the theory behind method acting, a craft that embodies the battle between risk and reward, her new single explores the relationship between the art and the artist in a starkly raw way.
“There’s such a parallel between making music and method acting, because you’re always digging into that one defining moment in your life that’s going to make what you’re working on come to life. It’s all about what you have to do to be authentic, to find your own origin.”
“Sometimes you can’t complicate it without totally ruining it”
Nilüfer Yanya
The single heavily inspired the album, which (almost) shares the same name. An eleven-song exploration of her soul, ‘My Method Actor’ sees Nilüfer drop any mask from previous projects, cutting the fat and putting forward a record full of introspection and self-discovery.
“I didn’t want something that I’ve done before. I’ve done the skits and thirty-second tracks and stuff; this one, I didn’t want anything that you could skip or cut away.” As such, each song draws from the same sonic palette, creating an atmosphere that is as intricate as it is immersive.
Each song still has its own character, feeling like a new scene that explains the central themes that thread the whole project together. As such, it becomes clear why the idea of method acting was such a potent source of inspiration for Nilüfer throughout this process.
“I’ve always explored the idea of mortality, in a way. I’m trying to figure out who I am while also trying to get back to the old version of myself. I’m not trying to conceal it with a cool story anymore. Basically, I just don’t know who I am.”
This honesty is represented by lyrics, which Nilüfer initially used as placeholders. “A lot of the lyrics were ones I was going to change, actually. I felt like I could do better with some of the simple ones, but honestly, sometimes you can’t complicate it without totally ruining it.”
Sometimes, to grow means to shed dead weight, go back to basics and strike at the heart of an idea. For Nilüfer, this phase of her life represented the perfect opportunity to do that. After her 2022 album ‘PAINLESS’, she switched labels over to Ninja Tune, allowing her to be permanently in her hometown of London. She also made the decision to stick with long-term friend and producer Will Archer, who played a huge part in the creation of ‘My Method Actor’.
“We went in with the intention of writing an album together,” she reveals. “People in the industry will tell you that you should go to LA and write with these ten different producers, just so you have a name on your record. But it takes me so long to feel total trust in someone, and really, this album was meant to be an investment in each other and our friendship.”
Having someone to riff ideas with and to share writing duties with was a new experience for Nilüfer, but one that was arguably necessary to allow for her personal deep dive. “It was so weird giving up control,” she remembers, “because in the past I felt like I had to do everything, write everything, play everything, but this time I pretty much just wrote the lyrics and melodies.”
The pair were laser-focused on this project, with Nilüfer taking time out from touring to fully commit to creating this record, her most vulnerable one to date. “I’ve never been able to write successfully on tour; it’s all just too overwhelming,” she states. “I had to carve out and protect that time and give all my energy to the process because when things are still, they’re more confrontational.”
The confrontation she had to dig into the most was with herself and her past, and it’s a struggle that feeds into the wider soundscape. Yanya’s silky, laid-back vocal style is layered over a combination of thick, fuzzy guitar lines, Mediterranean-esque percussion, and a healthy kick of static and electronic builds. The result is full of grit and intensity, creating an incredibly detailed tapestry that still lets her retrospective journey back to where it all began take centre stage.
“There’s 4 or 5 songs that could have been singles, so I hope they all get their moment”
Nilüfer Yanya
All of the songs bring something different to Nilüfer’s eleven-part play. Scene-setter ‘Keep On Dancing’ portrays insecurities through scrubbed acoustic guitar before distortion-heavy lead single ‘Like I Say (Runaway)’, beach bar break-up anthem ‘Ready For Sun (touch)’, and soft-edged closer ‘Wingspan’ act as a three-part romance series, travelling through all the stages of grief.
It’s an album designed to lose yourself in, with acoustic guitar and comfy drum beats giving way to arena-rock riffs and heavy electronic feedback to keep you paying attention. Conflicting ideas that could easily feel like they’re battling for the top spot instead feel like they were always meant to be together, giving everything a similar sound without feeling like a copy-and-paste job.
“I love when an album is really different and when each song is clearly its own thing,” she points out, “but it’s super jarring when there’s one or two that feel like they’re just thrown in there and don’t blend. You’ve got to know when to stop, and I think we knew when to go, ‘Oh, ok, this is done now’.”
“I listen to loads of Adrienne Lenker and Big Thief,” Nilüfer continues. “The way they write and the songs they make just do something to my nervous system; they make me feel comfortable without wanting to have them on in the background. If I’m listening to it, I want to have it in front of me, and I wanted that for this record. I think it’s a record where, in a different world, there’s like 4 or 5 songs that could have been singles, so I hope they all get their moment.”
Without putting too fine a point on it, being a little bit older has allowed Nilüfer to not only grow into her skin but to feel more at ease in calling the shots. Now in her late twenties, she appreciates the value of time in an active industry. “Music is a really ‘go, go, go!’ industry,” she says. “It’s like people want you to be an artist but don’t give you any time to actually make art.”
Since her debut album five years ago, she’s seen how much of an impact social media has had on music, and what it means to be an artist, something that still doesn’t totally sit easily with her.
“I’m not a pop star,” she levels, “but I think from the outside people think music is just the Grammys and awards shows, but that’s not the real world. It must be so overwhelming being in that environment where it’s just getting music out as soon as possible and not really thinking about it.”
She continues, “For me, being an artist is just being honest. The real joy in all this comes from writing and creating, and you can’t progress if you don’t practice your practice.”
Now on the verge of having this album out in the world, alongside all the vulnerability and authenticity that spills from every corner of this record, it would be understandable if Nilüfer were nervous about it. It’s quite the opposite.
“I’m super excited now!” she beams. “We haven’t really been sat on it that long; we started writing in January or February 2023, so for it to be ready and about to come out already feels pretty quick. I’m ready for people to hear these songs and hopefully connect with them.”
There’ll be plenty of opportunity to do that on the road, too, with Yanya getting back on tour across the US and Europe and finishing in the UK in the autumn and winter. “We usually do the UK first, so it’ll be lovely to end it here and have people know the songs and sing along!”
‘My Method Actor’ is Nilüfer Yanya at her most courageous. The bravery to drop her armour and put her heart and soul on a silver platter is a risk that has paid off ten times over, culminating in an album that takes her weakest points and turns them into examples of immense strength.
Nilüfer candidly and poignantly puts it that, “When you’re a kid, you have such an intense sense of who you are, but I guess that just doing all the stuff that makes you a person means you lose it. Basically, I really want that back.” In going back to the start and looking for her origin story, she has secured her legacy as one of Britain’s most uniquely brilliant talents. ■
Nilüfer Yanya’s new album ‘My Method Actor’ is out 13th September 2024. Follow Dork Mixtape on Spotify here.
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