Tessa Rose Jackson’s new single, “Fear Bangs the Drum”, marks a stunning return for the Dutch-British singer-songwriter and composer. Ahead of her upcoming third studio album, The Lighthouse — set for release in January 2026 — Jackson offers a deeply introspective and surprisingly uplifting meditation on fear, mortality, and the human experience.
Right from the first notes, “Fear Bangs the Drum” feels like an echo in an ancient hall—spectral atmospherics swirl around a playful, almost mischievous brass hook that keeps the track grounded in something oddly joyful. The production dances between the ethereal and the tangible, reflecting Jackson’s core message: that fear, though powerful, can be acknowledged without being given control. It’s a song that doesn’t run from the dark but instead turns to face it, smiling.
Lyrically, Jackson’s writing carries a poetic and deeply personal weight. She admits to being a fearful person, one who worries about her loved ones and the state of the world. Yet, rather than suppressing those anxieties, she leans into them. The result is a song that feels both cathartic and liberating — a sonic exhale after a long-held breath. The bridge, which Jackson herself describes as her favourite moment on the record, bursts with a sense of release: “Everything passes. As will I. As will this. Be here now.” It’s a mantra for acceptance, and in her hands, it becomes something quietly transcendent.
The accompanying video, directed by David Spearing and designed by Joseph Bisat Marshall, mirrors this duality — blending surreal imagery and tactile warmth to create a visual poem that complements the track’s mood perfectly.
Written during a period of solitude in rural France, The Lighthouse promises to expand on these ideas. Jackson, now stepping out from behind her former moniker, Someone, explores ancestry, identity, and belonging through cinematic alt-pop soundscapes steeped in ghostly folklore and spectral folk tones.
If “Fear Bangs the Drum” is any indication, The Lighthouse will be a luminous journey through life’s darker corners—a celebration of impermanence and presence. Tessa Rose Jackson doesn’t silence her fear; she lets it sing, and the result is something profoundly human and beautifully alive.
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