Be Angry and Experience Catharsis with mercury on “Together We Are One, You and I”

Photo by Josef Lloyd

A shrieking guitar, a crash, and thrashing drums open mercury’s newest release, Together We Are One, You and I. Soon, the instruments give way to Maddie Kerr’s piercing vocals. It only gets more intense from here.

Together We Are One, You and I is a collection of three songs, released June 7. It’s a cohesive project that encompasses love, grief, and a whole slew of other emotions, opting to scream out feelings that can’t be put into words. The accompanying short film, directed by Harrison Shook, offers a mystical visual layer to the world created by the three songs.

The first track, “Born in Early May,” is the most intense, full of screams and thrashing instruments. Kerr shares, “It was the first time in a while I’ve allowed myself to put my emotions into words and to tell myself that it’s okay, I’m allowed to be hurt,” about the song in a press release. It is only fitting that “Born in Early May” opens the collection, shattering through a metaphorical emotional block, revealing raw insides. The short film does the track justice, with burning trees and dark, mythological visuals. It ends on a sobbing Kerr, which leads into the second song, “Special.”

In “Special,” Kerr slows the pace down as she picks herself off the ground, seemingly nursing the wounds inflicted by the emotions felt in the first song. The lyrics explore a dark mental state, but one that invites listeners to relate with and find solace in. “I wanna be something to you / I wanna be special too,” Kerr repeats, voicing a desire hidden within all of us.

“Crick,” the third and final song from the collection, offers a last look inward. “When I was writing ‘Crick’ I was angry at myself for not being able to say what I meant in moments where I really needed to,” Kerr shared in a release. “I was angry at other people for not giving me the opportunity to speak, but part of that was because I had waited too long to get my own words together.”

By the end of the songs, Kerr certainly managed to express enough, either through her vocals and haunting songs, or through the ethereal video accompanying them. In just thirteen minutes, mercury took us on a journey of self-exploration and discovery and reminded us that sometimes it’s best to let it all out.