Video: Anya Marina Shares New Single 'Waiting For A Difference'
“Waiting for a Difference” follows “Girl Shit” as the second single from Anya Marina’s new album Asteroid arriving on October 25th.
By: Josh Sharpe Aug. 22, 2024
Acclaimed singer-songwriter Anya Marina shares her new single and video, “Waiting for a Difference,” via Good Rope Records. “Waiting for a Difference” zones in on the passage of time while the protagonist yearns for love and connection in the midst of an emotionally and politically turbulent time. The song was written while Marina was single and relatively hopeless, wishing things would work out between her and her now husband. “Waiting for a Difference is a song about hoping against hope for a particular outcome, even though all evidence points to the contrary,” shares Marina. The striking music video was directed by Jesse Dufault and filmed at night in the middle of Wall Street in Kingston, NY.
“I recorded this bedroom demo in 2016, recorded it in earnest again in St Louis in 2019, and then re-recorded from the ground up in 2024 in a barn in Woodstock with producer Kevin Salem. We changed the key and the tempo but I loved the guitar solo so much from the St Louis sessions (executed by Kevin Bachmann), that we were able to pitch shift it and keep it in this newer, slightly faster version.” – Anya Marina
“Waiting for a Difference” follows “Girl s” as the second single from Anya Marina’s new album Asteroid, arriving via Good Rope Records on October 25th. With Asteroid, Marina feels comfortable in her own skin at last, excited to begin again. “Something about these songs feels young,” she says. “I’m finally learning how to take care of myself, how to say no to certain things, how to be more involved in the recording process. I wanted to make the album of my life. And I’ve done that, hands down.”
About Asteroid
Asteroid is Anya Marina’s her most assured work yet. Almost two decades into a distinctive career encompassing songs featured in Twilight: New Moon, Gossip Girl, and Grey’s Anatomy, an award-winning web series (Anya Marina: Indie-pendent Woman), seven albums, three EPs, and extensive touring with artists ranging from Jason Mraz to Spoon to superstar standup Nikki Glaser, the riveting performer / creative powerhouse is looking back, taking stock in song. Marina calls Asteroid “a coming-of-age story about a late bloomer. This record is about growing up, becoming fully who I am, and celebrating it.”
Newly married and recently landed in Kingston, NY, Marina crafted Asteroid’s songs from a newfound, and welcome, stability. Prior to this, she says, “I didn’t really have a safe, steady vantage point.” Although rich in adventure, Marina’s journey hasn’t been an easy one: moves from San Diego to Portland to New York City, and now Kingston, accompanied by heartbreak and emotional turmoil, well-documented in song. The assertive, wise Asteroid – her first studio album since Covid lockdown – finds her feeling “free of things that were pulling me down, getting in my way.”
Marina says all the work of getting from there to here – including sobriety, meditation, and especially long walks – has paid off: “I’ve written a lot of songs on walks, even some of the first I ever wrote,” she says. “Something about the rhythm and cadence of a walking beat.”
Most of Asteroid came fast on the heels of Marina’s relocation to the Hudson Valley. What she describes as “melodies that sound like strange Disney album B-sides, or bizzarro cousins of cabaret, classical music, Bossa nova, or jazz,” arrived quickly, “like tuning into a faraway frequency on a radio dial.” These include the hypnotic waltz “Where the Darkness Is,” on which Marina pledges to – actually prefers to – connect with someone during trouble: “Where the failure starts / I’ll meet you where things fall apart / I need it.” The beautiful, Beatles-y “London Blues” also came fast. “The entire melody of the song – even the feeling of it and how it should be sung – just arrived one day, unprompted. I’m so glad I recorded it into my phone before falling asleep.”
Whereas Marina’s previous studio release Queen of the Night (2020) was recorded piecemeal over months and featured layers of synthetic sound, Asteroid came together quickly, mostly in the Woodstock, NY barn studio of producer / guitarist Kevin Salem (Rachael Yamagata, Mike Doughty), who favors a more organic, spare approach. Acoustic guitar – Marina’s onstage weapon of choice – abounds: aggressively strummed on the rocking “Waiting for a Difference,” head-bopping funky on “Gimme Sugar,” delicately picked on the lovelorn “London Blues.”
The deft humor in much of Asteroid is no accident. Touring since 2019 with friend and former roommate, comedian Nikki Glaser, has made a big difference in Marina’s life, both personally and artistically. “Opening for Nikki has made me a better performer and songwriter,” Marina says. “I’ve learned to crystallize things better, get to the point. Playing to 2,000 comedy fans can be very daunting. It will whip you into shape fast. I love it.”
Ahead of Asteroid’s October release, Marina is supporting comedian Nikki Glaser on her sold-out Alive and Unwell Tour. For a current list of dates see below. Additional dates will be announced soon and for updates, please visit www.anyamarina.com/tour.
ANYA MARINA LIVE 2024
*All Dates w/ Nikki Glaser: Alive and Unwell Tour Except September 22, co-headline with Matt Pond PA in Portland OR
AUGUST
23 - Battle Creek, MI - FireKeepers Casino Hotel
24 - Battle Creek, MI - FireKeepers Casino Hotel
SEPTEMBER
20 - Lincoln, CA - Thunder Valley Casino Resort
21 - Modesto, CA - Gallo Center For The Arts - 4PM
21 - Modesto, CA - Gallo Center For The Arts - 7PM
22 - Portland, OR - Mississippi Studios - co-headline with Matt Pond PA
OCTOBER
11 - Syracuse, NY - Oncenter Crouse Hinds
12 - Hershey, PA - Hershey Theatre
13 - Hershey, PA - Hershey Theatre
25 - Ft Lauderdale, FL - Au-Rene Theatre at Broward Ctr For Performing Arts
26 - Fort Myers, FL - Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts - 7PM
26- Fort Myers, FL - Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts - 9:30PM
27 - Ft Lauderdale, FL - Au-Rene Theatre at Broward Ctr For Performing Arts
NOVEMBER
1 - Oklahoma City, OK - The Criterion
2 - Tulsa, OK - Tulsa Theatre
8 - Grand Prairie, TX - Texas Trust CU Theatre
9 - Des Moines, IA - Hoyt Sherman Place - 7PM
9 - Des Moines, IA - Hoyt Sherman Place - 9:30PM
10 - Des Moines, IA - Hoyt Sherman Place - 7PM
14 - Wilmington, NC - Wilson Center at Cape Fear
15- Wilmington, NC - Wilson Center at Cape Fear
16 - Greenville, SC - Peace Concert Hall - Peace Center
22 - Birmingham, AL - Alabama Theatre
23 - Memphis, TN - Orpheum Theatre
DECEMBER
12 - Concord, NH - Chubb Theatre
13 - Concord, NH - Chubb Theatre - 7PM
13 - Concord, NH - Chubb Theatre - 9:30PM
14 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Center for the Performing Arts - 7PM
14 - Burlington, VT - Flynn Center for the Performing Arts - 9:30PM
27 - Austin, TX - Austin City Limits Live at the Moody Theatre
28 - Nashville, TN - Ryman Auditiorium
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