Exploring the conceptual journey that makes the new single a standout moment.
In the vibrant Dublin music scene, the indie rock outfit Von Venn has been steadily carving out a space with their melodic and introspective sound.
The project is the brainchild of songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Gary Cox, who is joined by a core group of accomplished musicians: Terry Doyle on keyboards and vocals, Ciara Henry on vocals, and Mark Wogan on drums.
The band, formed in 2022 to bring Cox’s pandemic-era demos to life, found critical success with their debut album Jeanie is Out (2023) and its standout singles, ‘Ghost’ and ‘Constant Girl.’
Now, they are poised to release their highly anticipated new album, Forgetting the Fall, with the single ‘Be Free’ serving as its powerful, action-oriented finale.
Gary Cox’s musical influences are famously wide-ranging, from songwriting greats like John Lennon and David Bowie to indie/alternative artists such as Radiohead, Jeff Buckley, and Queens of the Stone Age.
This eclectic mix informs Von Venn’s sound, which Cox himself describes as an “unclassifiable, jumbled mix of rock, folk, indie and alternative, melodic and lyrical with a hint of grit.”
This unique blend results in songs that have a strong melodic and lyrical core while still sounding fresh and distinctive.
The upcoming album, Forgetting the Fall, is a conceptual journey that explores the loss of innocence and the path to a more grounded perspective.
As Cox explains, the album’s narrative arc moves “from the innocence of ‘Still Falling’ through to the realism of ‘Mainstream’ and ‘Can Talk to Me’, to the call for action of ‘Be Free.'”
This progression reflects his personal meditation on navigating a complex world. “I reflected upon my own experience from the naivety of youth… The challenge is to be realistic but not cynical about how people operate,” he says.
Ultimately, the album is about “waking up, and approaching the world with a healthy realism.”
Positioned as the climactic “call for action” on this journey, ‘Be Free’ is therefore more than just a song title; it is the album’s resonant thesis.
View this post on Instagram
While the specific sonic details of the track are yet to be publicly heard, its thematic weight suggests an anthemic and liberating experience.
Given the band’s penchant for crafting tracks with a “strong melodic core” and the fact that their previous single ‘Ghost’ was praised for its “powerful anthemic” quality and “catchy phrases”, it is easy to imagine ‘Be Free’ building to an uplifting and memorable crescendo.
It represents the moment of clarity and empowerment after a period of disillusionment, a final push toward liberation from both internal and external constraints.
The song is the sound of Von Venn not just observing the world, but urging their listeners to engage with it, clear-eyed and unshackled.
