MOLTENO makes bad memories beautiful on new single ‘Daydream’

Memory has a habit of editing the past, and MOLTENO captures that uncomfortable truth beautifully on ‘Daydream’. The second glimpse of forthcoming EP 'Element 3' finds the London alt-pop artist looking back at a relationship she knows was damaging, only to discover that distance has softened the edges enough to make it strangely desirable again.

Throughout, analogue synths and repeating arpeggios drift in circles, creating the sensation of returning to the same thought despite knowing exactly where it leads. Live and electronic drums provide a steady heartbeat underneath, while sweeping synth strings give everything a faded cinematic glow.

Her stunning vocal sits almost weightlessly above the arrangement. There's this longing in the performance, but also frustration at her own nostalgia, giving ‘Daydream’ more complexity than a straightforward song about missing someone. She understands the relationship more clearly now; but that doesn't necessarily remove its emotional hold.

Fans of Björk and Bat For Lashes will recognise MOLTENO’s instinct for pairing intimate songwriting with expansive production, but her increasingly elaborate world-building gives the project its own identity.

There's also anger beneath the beauty too, surfacing in moments where hindsight exposes what should never have been tolerated.

Mesmerising, bittersweet and quietly unsettling, ‘Daydream’ finds MOLTENO turning toxic nostalgia into something seductive enough to explain why letting go can remain difficult long after you know better.