Q+A: Greta van den Brink on ‘Valentina’: tequila, ghosts and a hotel in the desert

The Tāmaki Makaurau Americana artist, whose film and stunt work shapes her songwriting, talks about her darker new single.

Auckland Americana and country-rock artist Greta van den Brink released ‘Valentina’ on Friday 16 October, a dark, cinematic single set in a sunburnt border town and built on tequila, secrets, gasoline and ghosts. It follows her debut album This Wasn’t Planned, and her debut single ‘Road to Hell’ was featured on the Netflix series Territory.

Greta’s screen and stunt credits include The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Time Bandits and Evil Dead Rise, and that runs through her writing. We asked her about the story behind the song, her time on set, and where she’s heading next.

Tequila, secrets, gasoline and ghosts: ‘Valentina’ feels like the opening scene of a film. Where did the story come from, and who is Valentina?

I seem to be drawn to a desert that I have never been to. This time in the desert there was a hotel in the middle of the dust. My producer Noema started playing a riff on the guitar and I talked about what I imagined it would be like to work at a hypothetical Hotel California. From there the story grew and as we fleshed it out I saw different characters until I found Valentina. I have this strange feeling when I write, like some of these ideas that feel so vivid like memories belong to a ghost. On the last album we lovingly named her Valentina and so I guess this song is her story.

You’ve worked on The Rings of Power, Time Bandits and Evil Dead Rise, including stunts. What’s the wildest thing you’ve done on a set, and does any of that end up in your songs?

I think every time I was on set it felt like the wildest thing I’d ever done because I was so inexperienced and I was always learning something VERY new. On Time Bandits I spent so much time free falling from the ceiling and being caught at the last minute which is a crazy exercise in trust. My first ever day on a film set was hectic because I was being thrown over a glass table and then my second ever day was spent in a church built inside the studio shooting blanks out of an Uzi. I’m noticing more violent imagery making its way into the lyrics which is the most prominent crossover.

Your debut album is called This Wasn’t Planned, and ‘Valentina’ takes a much darker turn. How did you get here, and is this where you’re heading next?

Yes, Valentina feels grittier and dirtier which I am enjoying exploring. I like to write viscerally, in a way I can clearly see and feel the story being told. I am curious by the spectrum of emotions and frustration is one that has been coming up a lot. Rock is a very useful genre to explore that.

‘Road to Hell’ landed on the Netflix series Territory. If a director asked you to put ‘Valentina’ over a scene, what would be happening on screen?

Ohh! I love this question. I imagine it going in between a party that’s happening in this dusty hotel in the desert, a negotiation over drinks where there are bullet shells at the bar and two lovers on the run.

There isn’t a lot of Americana and country-rock coming out of Tāmaki Makaurau. What drew you to that sound, and what do you want people to feel when they hear it?

I think it’s what I’m made of. I grew up on a farm and working with horses and country music just go together. The more Americana feel has come from film, working with Zoë Bell made me do a Tarantino deep dive. I like the mix of nostalgia and exploration. There is so much room within the genre and it has so many influences. I want people to feel deeply and be moved to dance and let out whatever they are holding. I think that music can make people feel seen in an unexpected way.

‘Valentina’ is out now on all major streaming platforms.