Inspired by ‘Killing Eve,’ the NYC artist’s irresistible new single is a beautiful and bubbly proclamation— and celebration—of queer love
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Just like life, love isn’t all sunshine and it definitely isn’t always easy. The most amazing human experience can also be the most agonizing, and Elizabeth Wyld admits that she usually focuses on this kind of contradiction, seeking out the shadows, finding inspiration in the uncomfortable and making music magic out of the misery that serves as the flip side to our favorite feeling. However, with her latest single, the NYC artist decided to defy her darker artistic instincts, daring instead to go against the pain grain and create something that doesn’t harness hurt but draws on joy. Which somehow feels much more raw, real and vulnerable than anything else.
The result is “Love Comes With a Knife,” an unapologetic proclamation of infatuation inspired by the lesbian love story at the heart of BBC series Killing Eve, which—along with the corresponding video—I’m both honored and thrilled to premiere here.
“Whenever I attempt to write love songs, they end up focusing on the messy parts of a relationship, about the most painful sides of love,” Elizabeth said of the song. “I wanted to challenge myself to write something that was sweet and gushy, upbeat and queer. It’s my homage to Villanelle and Eve’s love story.”
For those who also gave up on keeping up with pop-culture circa 2007, for your convenience, here’s a short, 100% Wikipedia’d summary of Killing Eve:
Eve’s life as a spy is not adding up to what she had hoped it would be when she started. She is a bored, very smart, MI5 security officer who is very desk-bound. Villanelle is a very talented killer, mercurial in mood, who clings to the luxuries of her job. Eve and Villanelle go head to head in a fierce game of cat and mouse, each woman equally obsessed with the other as Eve is tasked with hunting down the psychopathic assassin.
… And you thought that crush you had on the cashier at Dun-Well Donuts was intense.
Of course, it can’t be ignored—particularly during Pride Month—that a queer love song, whether or not it’s the artist’s primary focus or intention, is always a statement. Not just a piece of art but automatically a work of activism. A manicured middle finger to every bigoted individual and organization and an open expression of happiness that doesn’t just exist in spite of or in opposition to hate, but makes it look even more small, pitiful and powerless in the process.
That said, just like Elizabeth’s single is inspired by Killing Eve but you don’t need a Netflix subscription to enjoy the song, while it’s an open celebration of queer love, you definitely don’t need to be gay to get it.
At its core, “Love Comes With A Knife” focuses on one of the most intense and pleasurable parts of being human: the joy of finding connection, the beauty of seeing and being seen, and the thrill—and tiiiiiiiny bit of terror—that comes along with letting go, opening up and diving in. A feeling that, though it might be rare, is available to anyone, and an experience that everyone deserves.
Along with its inherent importance, “Love Comes With A Knife” is a pure and perfect package of bounce and bliss, and I hereby proclaim it the official anthem for the 2022 Summer of Love we’re all hoping for. No matter how you identify or who you’re attracted to, Elizabeth’s voice, music and lyrics hit home and hit hard, and “Love Comes With a Knife” is here to slice your heart open—to help you let love in and pour love out—in the absolute best way.
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Follow Elizabeth Wyld at @elizabethwyldmusic, buy music on Bandcamp and add songs to your Spotify playlists!
Feature image provided by the artist.