Following the critical success of their 2022 album ‘Accidents’ and breakout single ‘Settle’, British-American electronic duo Ready, Steady, Die! return with their first release of the year — ‘WYSIWYG’, a gripping, genre-bending single that lands as a powerful celebration of International Drag Day.

The track, an acronym for “What You See Is What You Get,” sees Morgan Visconti (based in New York) and Sam K(UK) pushing their collaborative process even further. Continuing their unique remote songwriting method, this time the pair reversed their typical approach — building the song around a pre-existing concept and script provided by director Max Clendaniel and DP/writer Matt Riley. The result is a short film scored by electronic pop/rock, rather than a video simply supporting a song.

The emotionally rich video tells the story of a man returning from his mundane 9-to-5 to embrace his true self in drag for an online fan base — an allegory for identity, societal masks, and freedom of expression. With surreal and often humorous moments, including awkward run-ins with people he knows and doesn’t, the visual offers an honest reflection of modern duality.

Sonically, ‘WYSIWYG’ blends cinematic new wave, gritty electronica, and pop-rock punch, driven by heavy bass guitar and industrial electronic drums. Sam K’s serene, emotionally aloof vocals deliver piercing lines like “We are survivors, you and I… we are the same,” amplifying the song’s core message of shared pain and hidden truths. A Zeppelin-esque post-chorus wall of sound gives the track a dramatic, crashing climax.

At its core, ‘WYSIWYG’ captures the tension between mechanical grit and raw vulnerability — a duality that has become the signature of Ready, Steady, Die!’s sonic identity.

As their most accessible and pop-rock leaning release to date, ‘WYSIWYG’ marks a bold new chapter for the duo, expanding their sonic palette while staying true to their emotionally incisive roots.

Q&A

This is an anthem honoring authenticity, identity, and the fierce beauty of being exactly who one is. Where did you first get the idea to release ‘WYSIWYG’ as music to score a short and impactful film?

Sam: Actually, for the first time since we started working with Max Clendaniel, he came to us and told us that he and his director of photography, Matt Riley, had an idea for a short film, and asked if we would be interested in writing a track for it. Of course, even before we saw the script, we thought it was a great idea.

What did director Max Clendaniel and writer Matt Riley provide you shell-wise, and how did you add your artistic touch(es) from there?

Sam: Initially, it was a storyboard with an idea of some of the script, so we knew whatever they ended up with would be quite dark and gritty, and we were totally on board for matching that.

How did creating ‘WYSIWYG’ feel versus, say, your 2022 album, Accidents? If you had to assign a color or feeling to each, what would you choose?

Sam: Accident’s front cover features a broken dummy in the snow, and so it’s a very clean white/off pale blue cold feel. WYSIWYG is a celebration of being whoever the hell you are, and that means color! We’ve chosen a very vibrant pink and yellow logo against a bright canary yellow background, so the two are very different.

You mentioned that this release is a celebration of International Drag Day (the same day as your song drops). For each of you, what was your first experience with drag, and how did it inspire you creatively?

Sam: I grew up in Camden and have seen this world for a long, long time. I find it glamorous, beautiful, and powerful in that it can be a form of expression, protest, and joy. I would like to think that my creativity and writing offer a nod to that unapologetic, bold energy.

Morgan: Rocky Horror, the most rocking of all musicals, and it works because of the breaking of literally all norms. All of the musicians I grew up admiring, from Bowie, T. Rex, and Boy George, brought the idea to the mainstream. I have worn a dress and/or makeup on occasion, and it’s an amazingly liberating feeling.

How did you get that sort of seamless, dual-vocal type sound in the introductory lines of the song?

Morgan: Although I sometimes add vocals to our songs, this is 100% Sam, and I used a pitch shifter to lower her into a male register. At first listen, she thought it was me! It wasn’t intentional at the time (it’s an effect we’ve used a few times in the past), but it does provide another perspective on gender and shifting.

There are a lot of different waves of genres in this; a noir sort of pop-punk, a touch of synth-wave/80’s, and gothic feeling moments. Was this the sound you planned to create? How did it emerge or unfold through the songwriting process?

Morgan: This song went through possibly more iterations than any other we’ve done from acid house, trance. There was a version we did like, Rock On by David Essex, but ultimately we went for a sound you could just nod your head to. We both love the eighties, and it’ll always come through in our work, but I also wanted to write the ultimate rock bass line, so … we tried!

Why did you choose to end the music sonically/cordially unresolved?

Morgan: The ending was very much inspired by the way the initial cuts of the film were taking shape. The protagonist’s conflict is over, and they’re back into it, just enjoying it, another day at the gig. It felt like having a “cliff hanger” ending to the super heavy post-chorus felt appropriate and a little bit comedic too.

‘WYSIWYG’ seems to encompass life… Paying rent, feeling ‘over it’, enjoying oneself, and little, comical, unexpected moments. What is your secret to making such a realistic/life-like art piece?

Sam: Thank you for the recognition, because exactly, life is messy and comical and dark and beautiful. We hope that our lyrics and music match the visuals that Max and Matt had in mind for this short film. Both the video and the song demonstrate the fact that life isn’t always dramatic; we just do what we need to do, sometimes just to survive. So hopefully the song feels raw and real whilst also being a celebration of who we all are.

Thanks for having us,

Sam and Morgan

Video Credits

Directed by: Max Clendaniel
Written by: Matt Riley
DOP: Matt Riley
VFX: Jack O’Dowd

Starring

  • Jordan Brookes
  • Keith Morris
  • Cameos by:
  • Mark Silcox
  • Eddy Hare
  • Saima Ferdows
  • Sasha LaToya
  • Mark Kelser
  • Sam Kelser
  • Morgan Visconti
  • Luke McQueen
  • Jake Roche
  • Chris Cantrill
  • Jack O’Dowd

LINKS:
https://www.facebook.com/readysteadydieband
https://www.instagram.com/readysteadydie/
https://www.youtube.com/@ReadySteadyDie