You can hear the mourning in the opening line of Morete’s latest single Sky City. She lowers the volume of her generally powerhouse vocals, evoking the sense that this is a secret and thoughtful moment. This allows room for her to build into a belted section later, driving a steady emotional build for the duration of the song. A clear strength for Morete is her vocals, and it is impressive to see the way she utilises harmony, dynamics, and controlled falsetto to craft an emotional narrative.
The song is an epitaph for her childhood cat, who Morete has "never known life without". She skilfully captures the unique connection that children share with pets with which they have grown up. Her choice of electric piano compliments the melancholically mellow nature of the song.
Produced at home by Morete herself, Sky City is a piece with a creative subject matter and a sense of authenticity. While sincere and considered, the song had potential to build to a bigger sound with more presence in the low end at the end of the song. Morete’s early dedication to her craft is sure to pay off, as she will only continue to grow as a musician, achieving new heights as both a writer and performer. I look forward to following her successes, of which there are sure to be many.
Peyton is a singer songwriter living in Poneke. She has been performing locally in music events since she was nine years old and performing regularly for the last 10 years around the greater Wellington region. Her sound is soulful, powerful and contemporary with big vocals. She has released a handful of songs on all streaming platforms and recently released her debut concept album paired with a short film. All songs were written, recorded, mixed and mastered solely by Peyton in her home studio.
She has racked up a number of awards including Smokefree Rockquest Regionals (numerous times) and Kapiti’s Champion of Change. She performed on Maori Television in October 2020 as a finalist on Korihi representing Te Whanganui-a-Tara.
While performing, Peyton has been studying for the last three years for a degree in Commercial Music at Massey University.