ST. LUCIA SHARES NEW SINGLE “PEOPLE CHANGE”

Today, NYC-based husband-and-wife duo St. Lucia (Jean-Philip Grobler & Patti Beranek) return with their new single, “People Change” via Nettwerk. The track is lifted from their forthcoming album, Fata Morgana: Dusk, arriving December 5, and marks the second installment of the band’s ambitious double album Fata Morgana. Serving as the vibrant, modern counterpart to this year’s earlier release Fata Morgana: Dawn, Dusk embraces St. Lucia’s pop and electronic sensibilities while continuing their expansive exploration of sound and theme.

“People Change”is a luminous, bittersweet reflection on growth and forgiveness. It’s a glimmering fusion of disco pulse, emotional introspection, and widescreen synth-pop. Driven by crisp percussion, radiant synths, and Jean-Philip Grobler’s tender, reflective vocals, the track balances melancholy with movement, transforming personal reckoning into dancefloor release. With warm harmonies from Patti Beranek and lush, analog production, “People Change” captures the duality at the heart of Fata Morgana: Dusk — vulnerability wrapped in rhythm, confession turned to catharsis.

Jean-Philip Grobler shares this about “People Change,” “‘People Change’ is a pretty emotional song for me because it deals with bullying, and the cycle of violence which is something I suffered from as a child but that I also passed on. But it’s also about redemption in a way because, well, people change. But also, some people stay the same, it’s just a fact of life. As much as bullying sucks though, I’ve come to realize that it’s an important rite of passage, but people deal with it differently. Some people never get over it, and it makes others stronger and more resilient. The truth is that kids can be mean, but it often comes from somewhere else, whether it’s a parent or another kid, and that understanding was key to me being able to get over and forgive those people, and myself.

The song was written in around 2015, it almost made it onto our 3rd album ‘Hyperion’, but somehow it didn’t feel like it quite came together in the way I imagined. It didn’t feel like it had reached its potential. So, since then we’ve tried recording a few different versions, and the one you hear now is a live band recording we did at our favorite studio in NY ‘Mission Sound’ towards the end of 2019. We explored a few different directions with the song, but as the language and vision for ‘Fata Morgana’ developed it became clear that a slightly more minimal, disco-esque version of the song made the most sense in the context of ‘Fata Morgana: Dusk’.”

“People Change” follows album singles, “Lights Off,” “Giving It Up,” and “Crimes of Passion.” A rushing anthem influenced by ‘90s breakbeat, “Lights Off” steers Dusk into more explicitly carnal territory. The vibrant “Giving It Up,” reminiscent of Daft Punk’s “One More Time,” channels full-band enthusiasm into a hypnotic, mantra-like dance anthem. Meanwhile, “Crimes of Passion,” co-written with Aly & AJ and featuring vocals from both Grobler and Beranek, pulls from South African Shangaan Disco and Kwaito as well as early ’90s rave classics, further signaling the danceable, electronic-leaning textures of Dusk.

Mixed by longtime collaborator Chris Zane (Jack Antonoff, Passion Pit, The Walkmen), Fata Morgana: Dusk captures the duo at a new creative peak. Where Dawn leaned toward vintage rock, psychedelic, and experimental sounds, Dusk embraces infectious rhythms and electronic textures—leaning into the pop craftsmanship that has defined St. Lucia’s career while still honoring their experimental spirit. Together, the two halves of Fata Morgana showcase the full spectrum of the band’s musical identity: the danceable and electronic balanced with the introspective and experimental.

On the forthcoming project, St. Lucia explains: “‘Fata Morgana: Dusk’ is the latter half of our double album, primarily comprising songs written after our previous record, ‘Utopia.’ While Dawn leans towards rock, psychedelic, and experimental sounds, Dusk is a dance/pop record influenced by ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s dance music. Splitting the body of work into two distinct yet reflective parts mirrors the multifaceted nature of our music, which oscillates between contrasts like introversion and extroversion, or dark and light. This project marks the first time we’ve intentionally separated these aspects of our personality into two interconnected records.”

More new music and news from St. Lucia on the way.

LISTEN TO “PEOPLE CHANGE”:
https://stlucia.ffm.to/lightsoff

WATCH + SHARE “PEOPLE CHANGE” VISUALIZER:
https://youtu.be/rU-cCv1rojc Fata Morgana: Dusk LP Tracklist:
1. Oh Daddy
2. Crimes of Passion
3. Lights Off
4. People Change
5. Giving It Up
6. Summer Nights
7. Into the Sky
8. The Universe Explodes
9. Out of the Ashes
10. Something’s In The Way