Clara Benin sings about a teenage romance on new single ‘Affable Dork’

Filipino singer-songwriter Clara Benin has released a new single about the musings and innocence of teen romance titled ‘Affable Dork’.

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Released on streaming platforms today (July 15), the stripped-down single sees Benin adopting a jazz-pop approach, telling a tale about a girl who is overthinking her relationship. “The song is about the thought process of a girl overthinking her relationship with an affable dork because she feels unworthy of his attention,” Benin explains in a statement, adding that the single paints a more complex picture as the story continues: “You later on realise that fantasies only remain as such and don’t translate to reality.”

Benin also released a music video alongside the track, which was shot at the Enchanted Kingdom theme park in Santa Rosa, Laguna in the Philippines. Watch it below.

The track is also inspired by Benin’s love for romantic comedy movies, citing Ruby Sparks and Stranger Than Fiction among the classic stories that have inspired the single. “I’ve always been fond of coming-of-age films and books,” she says. “I think that when you’re head over heels over someone, you start to romanticise your relationship like you’re in a cute romcom.”

The single is Benin’s first solo single this year, having previously appeared on English indie singer-songwriter Lowswimmer’s new album ‘Glasshouse Part 2’ earlier this month. Benin’s last solo release came in the form of the 2021 single ‘blink’, which she described as “a sonic journey that is metaphorical to one’s journey towards healing.”

‘blink’ followed the release of a Bahasa-written version of her 2015 ballad ‘Tila’ called ‘Suara Hati’. She also released two collaborations last year in the melodic single ‘A Day At A Time’ with Singaporean singer Gentle Bones and ‘Closer Than Before’ with indie outfit Lola Amour.

In 2020, Benin released her “healing and cathartic” EP ‘Fragments’, which featured a collaborative track with Charlie Lim.

The post Clara Benin sings about a teenage romance on new single ‘Affable Dork’ appeared first on NME.