The Invisible – Wings

Originally conceived by Dave Okumu, singer/guitarist with The Invisible, as a break-up song, “Wings” was transformed into something else by the death of his mother. In the first instance he had built the lyrics around the image of a bird trying to fly in a contained space – “but I was that contained space.” Now, after his mother’s sudden death, “I felt like I was observing myself all the time, as if I’d become my own CCTV, checking to see if I could function, if I would fall apart, observing in a detached way, allowing whatever needed to happen to come to pass.” The song changed, both in the way Dave approached it and how it sounded. The result is classic Invisible – a driving beat, warm bass and a vocal and melody of such subtlety that the result is at once achingly sad and strangely uplifting. Complete masters of mood, makers of quiet but teak-tough music, this is a band who take you further in and further out than anyone else around.

Remix duties are dealt with by Floating Points. Never one to shy away from the epic, Sam Shepherd stretches out the original, adds gently swinging electronic drums and subtle ambient touches, all of which draw the focus back to the quality of the song-writing.

Inspired by recent performances, the single is rounded out by a brand new version of “LND GRL”. The stand out track from their Mercury-nominated debut, “LND GRL” is here given a driving, dark, drum-heavy treatment that nods back to the original while giving a hint of the power and intensity of their current live shows.