Q&A: Dyan's "Steady Hand" is an Exploration of Devotion and Uncertainty
DYAN UNVEILS THE CAPTIVATING LAYERS OF HER LATEST TRACK, "STEADY HAND”. This song finds its roots in an intriguing blend of influences, from a poignant scene in "Normal People" to the imagery of a devoted librarian arranging books for others to enjoy. DYAN's songwriting prowess transforms everyday moments into profound metaphors, such as the act of a mother patiently waiting for her son to finish a swim, juxtaposed with the disheartening realization that her own joy in the simple pleasures of life has waned.
"Steady Hand" explores the quiet, often thankless tasks that people undertake, and the doubt that can emerge, prompting them to reconsider their commitment to endeavors that might not reciprocate their devotion.
In this song, DYAN captures the essence of the human experience, inviting listeners to reflect on their own journeys of love and dedication. Read below to learn more about the making of the track and what this fall has in store for Dyan.
LUNA: Congrats on the release of “Steady Hand”! This track is a captivating song with deep emotional layers. Could you tell us more about the inspiration behind this track?
DYAN: The first line came from a scene out of Normal People where Connell is working at a library - he was putting away books or something and I thought it'd be devastating if he became a librarian and had to file a book of hers away for others to take out - the steady devotion of a quiet librarian organizing libraries so the rest of us could enjoy. I fucking love libraries. Anyway, from there, the metaphors came fairly easily - my role as a mother watching my son deliriously enjoy the pool, waiting with a towel for him to get out, wondering when I stopped enjoying a pool in the same way...reading about how much garbage there is in our atmosphere, who will have to clear that out. It's about seeing the person working away at a thankless task, how adages can glorify such labor as righteous, and what happens when doubt sets in, opening up the possibility for walking away from something that doesn't love you back.
LUNA: You've had a successful career as a film composer, working on projects like TNT's "Animal Kingdom." How does your experience in film scoring influence your songwriting for your personal artist project? Are there any particular challenges or benefits to transitioning between these two creative realms?
DYAN: Images are essential to both approaches - just walking around an art gallery can plant melodies or chord changes in my mind like finding a good radio station on a dial. With film, I don't have to go out and find that inspiration. Either way though, the color, pace, composition of a scene or painting or sculpture or photograph evokes sounds, and I transcribe them or sing them into my phone to develop in the studio. If I hadn't started with film, I'm not sure I would have had the practice of recognizing what brings those ideas to the surface.
LUNA: "Steady Hand" seems to explore themes of devotion and uncertainty. Can you delve deeper into the emotions and experiences that you wanted to convey through this song?
DYAN: I think lyrics are easier if you can determine your main idea and then keep an eye out for other examples. I can't remember where 'steady hand' came from exactly. I took a 10-month drawing class from Manifest Gallery here in Cincinnati as a way to looking for more imagery to help songwriting for this album, and the concept of a steady hand in drawing, practicing that, developing muscles to be able to move your arm across a canvas without smudging what's already there felt apt to being an artist, a parent, a partner, having a healthy way of communicating to either. I had to find a balance between serving a family without abandoning my own desires.
LUNA: The song takes an interesting turn towards the end with a burst of woodwinds and vocals. Can you share more about the creative choices behind this shift in the music?
DYAN: I wanted something to feel like a release - whether this person continues in the relationship or ends it, some way to feel like a choice was made, but it wasn't completely resolved, there's still some bit of angst and uncertainty. The image, if I had the music video budget, would be the mother from the first verse jumps into the pool at that shift, her clothes on, the kids watching, shocked or frightened, and seeing the woman swim deeper, deeper, the depth of the pool infinite, until in the last few seconds of the song, a hand reaches into the frame for her, she looks up toward the hand/surface, and it cuts to black.
LUNA: Your upcoming album, ‘Midwest,’ documents your move from Los Angeles to Ohio and the experiences of raising a child with your partner. How has this significant life change influenced your songwriting and the overall tone of the album?
DYAN: Looking for Knives was about longing for the life I have now, but not really understanding what I'd be getting into, just wanting it anyway. Midwest is about what it is to live with the choices, making my own way forward. I had this idea - which I think is still true - that living in Los Angeles or New York affects your opportunity to make art - it can give you deadlines, collaboration, access to the folks that can open things up a bit more, venues, and audiences. I miss that a lot. But I think it's ok to disappear for while in the words of Michaela Coel. I loved working on films and television, but I also wanted to write more for DYAN. Living in Cincinnati gives me more time to write because I don't have to work constantly to cover my expenses, but it can feel isolating, lonely.
LUNA: Your music often evokes vivid imagery. How do you balance crafting songs that stand alone as emotional narratives with songs that could complement visual storytelling in films or television?
DYAN: I've always loved trailers and how scores set a style as much as an emotion or energy - songs and score work so well together in that context. In wanting to focus on DYAN, I was also wanting a break from auditioning and facing potential rejection from projects I would write demos for. It felt there were enough failed auditions to feel like I needed to recalibrate what I was doing in order to continue working and writing music I liked. And I think my approach is like writing mini scores without pictures - the script is the lyric, the music, the world. If I can evoke emotion and imagery with these songs, it serves my effort to write film and tv music that serves the project, but also works outside the project. Those are the scores I am most moved by.
LUNA: What can we anticipate in terms of the upcoming album's overall feel compared to what we’ve heard from you so far?
DYAN: I'm not sure yet. I've been releasing songs as I finish them instead of amassing a collection. It's one of the benefits of being unsigned: experimenting with how to release music. Midwest is the first collection of songs produced on my own, without the collaboration of Sam Jones and Dan Dorff. I'm still trying to understand how we ended up here, but I think I wanted full control of the songs I wrote. I wanted to feel like I could play a set on my own, and to produce and release a record on my own - something about confidence and certainty after being in a habit of deference - that someone else knew better, denying my own preferences. These ideas likely come out in the lyrics, but I feel more confident going after sounds that I'm curious about, but at one time decided were out of my boundaries as an untrained - you name it - singer, songwriter, guitar player, producer, bandleader.
LUNA: What intentions do you have for the rest of the fall season?
DYAN: I'm happy to be back working on a film score - it's all pretty early so I won't say more because until it's in a theatre, it can always be replaced. I'll be touring with Sun June playing various instruments - saxophone, woodwinds, back up, maybe synth, whatever they need - for their east coast leg in November; west coast in January. Finishing the production and mix of the rest of Midwest, and looking for places to play over the winter/spring/summer of 2024. Hope to see you out there.
