Los Angeles duo Mortez – vocalist Rachele Royale and guitarist Brett Daniels – released “Purgatory” on March 12th, their latest dark pop single and another entry in a catalog that leans hard into gothic theatrics and orchestral ambition. Rachele Royale comes from the pop world, with a debut album produced by Mutt Lange behind her, while Brett Daniels has spent years as a first-call session guitarist in Hollywood’s elite circles. The two are opening for We Three on April 2nd at The Alpine in Reno, NV. “Purgatory” was written about resilience and the fight to surface from pain, and the duo describes the recording process itself as their own version of the experience – a long, difficult haul before finding the right form.
The track’s strongest aspect is definitely the great lyrics, which weave through the themes of heartache, internal struggles with addiction or self-discipline, and the unwavering determination to find a way out, regardless of the obstacles faced, with great precision and emotional weight in the delivery. However, the writing of other elements falls a bit flat, only because some of them seem a bit generic, with the orchestral percussion elements like timpani samples that have become kind of overused in the genre to create a kind of epic feel. But it doesn’t take away from the song – it’s just that the lyrics seem to have a lot more soul in them, let’s say, than the other elements.
Rachele Royale’s vocal performance is the other thing carrying the track – she has a naturally dramatic instrument, and the material suits her. Mortez is still building toward something bigger, with live orchestral ambitions on the horizon. “Purgatory” shows where the ceiling could be if the production catches up with the writing.