AVNMEDIA.ID -  Singapore-based close-harmony vocal trio The Sugar Bees today released their latest single, “Man on the Moon,” in an homage to the timeless musical trope of lovesick crooning.

This is The Sugar Bees’ first true original track (but their second moonsong release), as their debut featured a reimagined arrangement of a classic. 

“Man on the Moon” introduces a mischievous figure who receives the wishes, pleas, and laments of lovers everywhere but pays none of them any heed.

It is sung from the perspective of a lonely lover, who you can imagine leaning against a windowsill, gazing woefully at the moon and casting blame across the sky for an as yet unrequited love. 

Featuring The Sugar Bees’ signature three-part harmony, the melody swings in an upbeat tempo, driven by the steady rhythm section and accompanied by lyrical piano accents.

The clarinet lines, improvised in the studio and performed with the grit of a bemoaning lover, add a gravely infectious groove. 

The concept came to one of the trio’s members, Siti Nur Iman, who sings the melody in this piece and led many parts of the songwriting.

“When I found myself humming this tune, I brought it to the girls because I knew there was a nuanced flavour to this ‘man on the moon’ imagery we could draw out together. There were a few iterations of the lyrics and I’m proud of where we eventually landed,” said Iman. “One of my favourite phrases actually escaped us for a while: the part where we sing ‘All I need is a spoonful of you’ as if referring directly to our elusive lover. With the way its accompanying melody progresses, it adds a more romantic and idealistic dimension outside of us complaining about the man on the moon.”

Sneha Menon, another Bees member, remarked on the timelessness of the song: