“Say What You Want” is the lead single from Andrew Hung's upcoming debut LP Realisationship, which will be released on October 6. Hung is best known for being one-half of Bristol's experimental noise duo Fuck Buttons, whose atmospheric, mostly-instrumental soundscapes have been influenced by Aphex Twin and Mogwai. Hung is also known for founding the band Dawn Hunger with vocalist Claire Inglis and musician Matthew de Pulford in 2012, and for his solo debut EP Rave Cave in 2015.
As the album's title suggests, Hung is now departing from his digital-intensive oeuvre by exploring more 'organic' subject matter. The song aptly features his vocals in an unprecedented way that is surprising even to himself: “I can’t completely identify with the voice on the record. Yes, it’s me, but it’s not me. Singing as an expression is very new to me.... I see an oscillation between myself and the character of the album especially the voice. It’s naked vulnerable duality" (Pitchfork).
The tentative, hesitant quality in his vocal performance nevertheless fits the song's repeated vocal line ('Say what you want/ Not what you don't/ Cause/ It's not the same'), which hints at a deeply unfulfilled need for honesty, disclosure, and transparency in a romantic relationship. The emotional ambivalence and inconclusiveness on display here are made accessible by the song's simple pop structure, leaving the listener intrigued by speculations of what Hung and his addressee are not saying.
