Maxwell Stern seeks a break from exhausting reality on new single “Water Tower”

Maxwell Stern is back with “Water Tower,” a new solo single that gives us a break from the reality of everyday life. The Philly singer-songwriter keeps things upbeat, choosing to forget for a moment the things that bog us down — like social media, the news, and our daily responsibilities.

“I wanted to write a pretty positive song about the flickering moment upon waking, before you look at your phone, before you remember your responsibilities, before you wrap yourself in your identity that carries you through the day,” Stern said. “What would it feel like to harness that feeling and to be able to control it? That’s what the chorus — ‘When I turn it off, in the morning every silence is a song’ — is about. It’s not a novel concept by any means, but I get really wrapped up in social media as the ‘comparison machine’ and it tends to suck the joy out of a lot of what I do if I’m not careful.”

The new track also comes with a video, shot by Christopher Mecham, of Stern skateboarding around Brooklyn on a recent sunny, spring-like day — not realizing at the time that it would be the last day to enjoy outside before we all began to social-distance. With that in mind, the song becomes even more of an escape.

Watch the video below and stream/purchase “Water Tower” here.