Feature: The New Citizen Kane Decodes ‘PSYCHEDELIKA Pt.1’
Punk Head: Psychedelika is described as “an era, not just an album.” When did you realize this project needed to expand beyond music into apps, visuals, mindfulness, and immersive art?
The New Citizen Kane: It’s hard to pinpoint just one moment. The album organically started evolving into a mega project as I was writing & recording the songs.. Initially I had set out just to create an album, a follow up to The Tales Of Morpheus, but having had the luxury of being able to focus purely on creating, creativity tends to amplify exponentially… the more you create, the more ideas come forward. The album is an exploration of human experience & emotion & contemplation, without the sugarcoating, with judgement, just simply as I see or have lived it. This creates such a broad array of topics that it quickly became clear I would have to split the album into two parts. Then the visuals became another evolving anchor, from the artwork to the videos. Blending the surreal & the raw to create something that can be enjoyed at surface level but that held deeper meaning to the curious & the deep feelers. I had always wanted to make another visual album and was also more confident in exploring more ideas & shooting visuals myself. My music tends to amplify the mood of the message of the song, I wanted to push this further when creating visuals, whether the dreamy nostalgia of San Diego, the distorted happiness of Ratbag Joy or the melodrama of Well, Damn! Here You Are. The app & the mindfulness were really the final element to come into the fold as I started to materialise the vision of how I want to move forward as an artist, as an indie artist really, because I want to continue building this universe I’ve started in a meaningful way. I’m not interested in amassing fans and selling them a whole bunch of this or that, some artists are very successful at commercialising their brand but I want to create value, and community for the people that connect with my music. So, when thinking of the things that I would want from an artist I like, I try to act on that. So the app, while it won’t be of interest to many who perhaps know me from Subconscious and maybe enjoy a couple of other songs, for those who are getting deeper into my world the app gives all the added value I think a fan who invests time and/or money in you deserves, direct access to me, exclusive songs & early access to upcoming projects, fun distractions through mini-games, and an exclusive mindfulness suite. It all connects back to our human experience, in a positive way.
Punk Head: You left music for nearly a decade. What happened internally the day you wrote “My Muse” that made you understand you were ready to return?
The New Citizen Kane: So much!! I had been suffering with anxiety, without even realising what was happening, I just felt disconnected, alone, but I would paint on a happy face and pretend everything was fine to the people around me... I didn’t give myself the time or space to recognise I was feeling, until one day I had a panic attack & I was forced to sit with myself and acknowledge it, and start to unpack everything that had led to it. It wasn’t even a choice that I could make to return, it was an innate need to create, to express, to heal. If I didn’t start making music again, I would have been stuck in that dark space.
Punk Head: The companion app is a wild innovation. What was the first feature you imagined, and which one scared you the most to execute?
The New Citizen Kane: Well, the music play & visual album player were the standard base, but not enough to engage beyond a quick interaction for curiosity, so I the first added feature were the mini games as a fun way to share exclusive content, you play build up points, we all use our phones when on the toilet or public transport to pass time right?! So I thought gamify the unlock feature and create a community space to interact with people directly, get people’s opinions directly... then I thought about adding some guided meditations with music produced by me, as I had been exploring healing frequencies, that then mushroomed into a quick guided breathwork feature, 1-5mins, for those overwhelming moments – because we all forget the power of breathing, it’s amazing what even 1 minute of deep focused breathing can do to change your mood and your day.. and then the final piece was to add a binaural beats generator for those that need help with focus. I guess I was worried that some might find the mindfulness suite a bit ju-ju-woo-woo, but I think there should be a much bigger focus of mindfulness in general and thought actually this might be a simple accessible way to start for someone who a bit put-off by the more pro apps are out there. Access to the web-app is free for anyone who buys the album.
Punk Head: “Heads Are Round” digs into mental flexibility vs. mental chaos. What’s one intrusive thought or loop you used to get stuck in that inspired this song?
The New Citizen Kane: There are so many, the mind can be a constant jet stream of thoughts sometimes, especially negative ones, self-doubt, come-backs that you think of too late haha; but it was really the Francis Picabia quote “Our heads are round so our thoughts can change direction” that inspired me and inspired the song, because we don’t have to prisoner to our thoughts, we have to the power to shift our focus, the chatter will still be there but we can turn down the volume, acknowledge the thought but then change the course of our conscious thought to a more positive subject.
Punk Head: You fuse philosophy, nightlife, satire, heartbreak, and spirituality into one universe. Was there ever a moment you worried the world of Psychedelika was becoming too big?
The New Citizen Kane: I always worry it’s too big, I had the same worries with Morpheus, and I tried to contain the album to 13/14 songs, but then the album felt incomplete. Instead, I can safely say that both part 1 & part 2 feel like very complete albums in their own rite, while still creating a full universe together. And yes part 2 is already a wrap!! I have basically worked on overdrive the last 6 months to complete this because in February I am going to become a father for the first time, my husband & I are expecting a baby girl, and it was important for me to be able to slow down at that point to focus on family life, with an arsenal of material ready to go.
Punk Head: “Ratbag Joy” hides heavy themes under euphoric beats. Why does the contrast of darkness disguised by dance resonate with you creatively?
The New Citizen Kane: It’s not that the music is oblivious to the darkness; it reflects the very denial the lyrics describe. It's the mask the protagonist wears, the carefully constructed façade of carefree abandon. The track sonically embodies the act of "escaping life," as the chorus bluntly states, using music to amplify the song’s core message.
The contrast makes the message hit even harder, because the listener can be dancing along, lost if the Joy before they realise the actual message of song, by which point it’s too late, you have to take note. Because we all have form of escapism, for some it’s drugs, for some it’s food or sex or fitness or alcohol.
PSYCHEDELIKA Pt.1 is coming out on November 28th, 2025.
