Nerve Leak
Nerve Leak, aka Sam Friedman; photographed by Robert Bredvad.
Last year we had the pleasure of introducing Richmond, VA by Brooklyn’s Sam Friedman’s electro-laser sharp productions he makes under the moniker Nerve Leak with the previous summer’s Disconnected EP, and this week saw the release of the anticipated single “DR34M5”. Working in the progressive fusions of electronic r & b, Friedman allows the sparse & intimate nature of the track to speak evocative volumes of feelings from the heart expressed through digital atmospheres. Sam allows room for “DR34M5” to breathe, letting the emotive aspects of the song really resonate in a way where nothing feels rushed but always straddles the edges of that lay between the gulfs of the ephemeral and the material, physical worlds. Sam shared the following reflections on the making of the new Nerve Leak cut:
“DR34M5” started as a skeletal beat—the bare reverb-blurred, thrashing trap drums with pitched-up samples of my voice that you hear in the beginning of the song. After adding some chords, I sat with it for awhile in my practice space, just humming words and melodies until something stuck. I was going through a rough period of falling for someone new while still reeling myself in from the recent ending of an unhealthy relationship. The lyrics came out as a confession that I needed to put myself first, re-learn who I am on my own, before giving myself away again. But I still felt tied up in the intimacy of this new love, and I didn’t know what to do with those feelings. ‘DR34M5’ is my way of trying to make sense of it all—the love, lust, hurt, confusion, and need for self-care.
