Benedict Sinister is a French-Australian artist, producer, poet and video creator who has just come to my attention thanks to his recent single release. An adaptation of an Italian song about a teenage breakup. It’s called Only Sixteen.

By Graeme Smith

The original Italian track by Psicologi is called Autosima, which would translate into English as “self-esteem”. As a sign of the times, though, Benedict called his version Only Sixteen due to Spotify and social media algorithms. Benedict has a history of adapting the language of songs, having previously do so with tracks by French legends Serge Gainsbourg and Vincent Delerm. For Only Sixteen, Benedict delved into the world of Italian music as we have all been prone to recently since the success of Eurovision rockers Maneskin.

Benedict’s version is wonderfully atmospheric, opening with moody electronica before his characterful vocals come in. They deliver lyrics that are rich with storytelling detail. There’s something wonderfully unique about Benedict’s style and he’s truly made the track his own.

Though new to us, Benedict Sinister has a twenty year career behind him in the music industry and has performed all over the world.

Only Sixteen was recorded and produced in Los Angeles, USA with the help of Nikola Bedingfield. The track is out now via Music For Sapiosexuals. You can check out its video, featuring Jude Karda, below.

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