Introducing: Nine Perfect Lives

Brooklyn-based duo Nine Perfect Lives (formed by Helena Straight and Stella Wave of alternative rock band Hello Mary) use unique song structures, complex drumbeats, and stunning vocal harmonies to combine art-rock experimentation and intimate folk songwriting. Today, they announce their signing to London label AD 93 and share a new single entitled ‘Die’, accompanied by a music video directed by Milo Hume, watch here.

Says Helena Straight, “I started writing ‘Die’ when I was living in LA and Stella was still in Brooklyn. We made deliberate efforts to stay in touch and work on music but I wasn’t yet sure when or if I was moving back to New York. I wrote and recorded a demo of the song in a few hours and realised that it was a direct response to Stella’s heartbreak and confusion about my impulsive move across the country. Fleshing out the demo together felt effortless and reinforced our creative bond which was compromised in the context of Hello Mary at that time. ‘Die’ became the first NPL song so we are pleased for it to be our first single.”

Helena Straight and Stella Wave, the Brooklyn based duo behind Nine Perfect Lives and former members of Hello Mary, have always been inseparable, making music together since teenagers over the past seven years. The pair have been in each other’s orbit through the growing pains of early adulthood and have always been able to soundtrack such pivotal moments together with the music they make.

Nine Perfect Lives is born from a period that challenged such closeness, their new music under the project written during a period of long distance when Helena was living in LA and Stella was in NYC. Up until that point, they had hung out almost every day and collaborated on music in person. During this time, they worked on songs remotely; sending demos back and forth and each refining the other’s work.

The challenge of distance only solidified their connection and spurred them onto a new musical chapter, growing together. As the songs accumulated into a body of work, the pair felt that it belonged to a different world than the one that Hello Mary was headed towards. Additionally, it felt like a ripe opportunity to establish a collection of songs as a standalone, properly showcasing the current state of their artistry, rather than releasing music under a name that largely contains material from their teenage years.

More new music from New Perfect Lives is on the way; stay tuned for more information.

Stream / download ‘Die’ here.