Mary Middlefield is saying her piece

The Swiss musician is singing the words she wants, and she doesn’t care if you like it or not.

October 8, 2025

Early interviews present Mary Middlefield as sweet, ethereal and folky. The twenty-three-year-old Swiss-born musician I chatted to over Zoom was, despite an earthy landscape sitting behind her, anything but. Thoughtful, yes — drifting from one topic to another throughout our conversation — yet full of a newfound “self-appreciation”. The artist, a classically trained violinist since the age of five, is only now being unapologetically candid about sex and desire in her music. “If you find it abrasive, good for you,” she hardlines. “I’m just telling you that everybody’s lonely and having issues in their love life.”

Despite a success-filled 2024 — including standout performances at the Paris Olympics, a Glastonbury Festival debut and the release of her critically acclaimed second EP, Poetry (for the scorned and lonely) — Middlefield still punishes herself for not doing ‘enough’. She hit the summer festival circuit hard this year, playing Eurockéennes (one of her “favourites ever”), Kultling and The Garden Parties in her hometown, Lausanne, where she debuted her fun-fuelled new single ‘Summer Affair’. To keep the shows interesting, Middlefield uses audiences to “crash test” new tracks. “I love learning what we could do better, then reworking them behind the scenes,” she confesses. “I’m not famous, so nobody’s going to remember.”

But it’s clear she will. Middlefield, who “hates sitting at home and doing nothing”, admits that she’s “ready to do anything” to find her sound. When she’s not writing, the musician keeps her brain busy by knitting — she hand-made scarves for her whole band as a Christmas present, she tells me, and is currently working on a balaclava for her cellist (and best friend’s) birthday. Aside from that — and the ant- print sweater she’s knitting herself — Middlefield is now working on her third album, which is, as she puts it, “the best thing I’ve ever made.” (Not to insult any past or future woollen gifts.)

Mary wears dress by EUDON CHOI.

Hattie Birchinall: ‘Summer Affair’ has a fun, rock- infused vibe — different to your older releases. Does this new sound feel like a natural progression?

Mary Middlefield: I’m always actively looking to switch up my sound. My favourite artists constantly reinvent themselves — I love it because I have the feeling I’m stumbling onto something new. I also realised that I didn’t like playing folky ballads after two years of touring my first project. I was boring myself (and the people in front of me). Kudos to the artists who don’t give a crap and can stand in front of a deadpan crowd talking over you.

HB: How would you describe your sound now?

MM: I’ve said from the beginning that I wanted to make an opera that sounded like rock. I love how something unexpected, or suddenly cathartic, can happen in operatic music and how it ties in with the story. When producing the upcoming record, we were thinking in pictures or soundscapes – we were inspired a lot by film scores. I’ve trained as a classical violinist for the last sixteen years, and my mother always says to me, You can’t forget where you come from. And that classical side is iniected into me at this point.

HB: You’ve previously talked about the incredible power that language has. How do you mix this with your ‘instrumentals-first’ approach?

MM: Usually, I start with some sort of instrumental, then create a lyrical world around that. It’s more interesting – and more restricting – because it puts you into a specific space. If a friend sends me a hardcore instrumental, I’m not going to write a love song about me and my pet. I have to work to find the honest themes within the music. Once I’ve nailed that, that’s when I can use language.

HB: You’ve also spoken about the artistic control that’s afforded to you as an independent artist. How do you balance that when collaborating with others?

MM: There’s so much energy and respect that goes into creating healthy working partnerships, especially with friends. You have to create boundaries of being professional with one another. With ‘Summer Affair’, a friend sent me the guitar riff and the original base track, but I thought, I want to see more women singing about sexuality without being shamed, it’s so hot and powerful. So, I blabbed about my own experience in the chorus.

Mary wears top and skirt by NORMA KAMALI, belt by R & M LEATHERS and earring by RAY CHU.

HB: Why is it important to you that you speak about this now?

MM: I wrote ‘Sexless’ two years ago. A lot of people called it abrasive and vulgar, and I was like, Why? I’m just telling my story. Men always sing about sex. I don’t want to shade One Direction (I listened to them a lot as a teen), but two years ago, I did a little digging into their discography, and I was like, Wow, this is very horny. Eleven-year-old me was singing these words without understanding the meaning, and nobody seemed to bat an eye. But as an adult woman releasing songs about having sex in the summer, or not having any during the year, getting so much shit for it was kind of weird.

HB: How did that public reaction make you feel?

MM: Most of the bad reactions were from men. I kind of expected it. But certain radio stations said they wouldn’t air the track because it was too ‘aggressive’. Change is going to come eventually. Lots of mainstream female artists are joking around and making songs about sexuality that are really good. But we’ve still got a little road ahead of us as women.

HB: 2024 was a big year for you — Glastonbury, Paris Olympics, a second album. Do you feel a pressure to do ‘more’ year on year?

MM: Totally. Every three months, I have this battle with myself where I say, You’re not doing enough! But I have to be more empathetic with myself because, three years ago, I was a nobody who hadn’t released a song and was having stage anxiety. Now, I’m stepping on stage every weekend and feeling great doing it. I can see myself getting better every day in my craft.

HB: What’s next for you?

MM: I’m releasing a new track [‘The Feast’] in October and a record next year, which is all about my journey with self- love and letting go of the constant need to be validated by the music industry. I’m not there yet, but I’m getting closer as I finish the record. It’s my baby — I’ve finally found my sound and the things I want to say.