Q&A: Saudi Oil Share Haunting New Single “CRACKEDWINDOW”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
NYC-BASED FIVE-PIECE ART ROCK BAND SAUDI OIL are coming in hot with their latest single, “CRACKEDWINDOW,” out now. The track feels both fragile and forceful, carrying an intimate, unpolished quality - quiet but steady, with a soft midrange presence that demands attention. Rather than smoothing out imperfections, the band leans into them, letting the raw edges capture a moment in time. Its accompanying self-directed music video, shot in stark black-and-white, echoes that tension. With subtle references to drone strike footage and contrasting shots that shift between distant and uncomfortably close, the visual is as haunting and layered as the track itself.
Saudi Oil began as the recording project of Christopher Al-Jumah, who brings a background in architecture and design that shapes the band’s sense of precision and structure. Alongside Rayan Mustafa, whose roots in poetry add sharp lyrical depth, and vocalist Laura Searles, who lends both formal music training and industry insight, the group’s sound has grown into something uniquely elastic. At turns angular or fluid, vulgar or angelic, their music refuses complacency. With “CRACKEDWINDOW,” Saudi Oil capture that ethos in full—an uncompromising exploration of intimacy, observation and dissonance that signals a bold step forward for the rising band.
LUNA: Your new single “CRACKEDWINDOW” has this intimate, unpolished quality that really pulls the listener in close. What was the vision behind approaching the song with that raw, understated sound?
CHRIS: You know I feel like if you have something to say you don’t have to dress it up too much. I was pretty pissed off when I wrote the track and I wanted everyone to know.
LUNA: The video feels both stark and loaded, especially with its subtle references to drone strike footage. Can you talk about the themes you wanted to explore visually, and how they connect with the song itself?
CHRIS: At its core the track is about reflecting on something that’s passed by, either voyeuristically by looking into someone’s cracked open window, or in a distorted sense of looking through a window with cracked glass. Similarly we wanted a visual that had a cold and distant camera placement that felt inhuman, and then contrasting that with a very human handheld and up-close camera. There’s some other allusions to where we got drone strike inspiration but I’ll leave that to the viewers to think about.
LUNA: The recording feels intentionally imperfect in places. How do you decide when to embrace flaws and texture in your work versus polishing things up?
CHRIS: I feel like music at its best is all about capturing a feeling or moment in time and bottling it up to be revisited over and over. When it comes to the recording process, I find that the more takes and renditions you do the further you get from the raw emotion that drove you to make the track in the first place. I don’t think there’s anything recorded on this track that took more than 1 or 2 takes and maybe that’s what you’re hearing—for better or worse haha.
LUNA: Saudi Oil began as Christopher’s project and grew into a full five-piece with diverse artistic backgrounds. How have each of your perspectives (architecture, poetry, formal music training, etc.) shaped the band’s sound?
CHRIS: Everyone’s pretty committed to doing something interesting if nothing else, we’re not interested in pastiche.
LUNA: What does collaboration look like for you? Do songs usually start with one person’s idea, or is it more collective from the outset?
CHRIS: I catch a wave writing a song and then blow up Laura’s phone with about 20 different versions until I get a thumbs up emoji to like…version 2.7 or some shit.
LUNA: Laura, your contributions bring both formal training and industry knowledge into the mix. How does that balance with the more raw, experimental elements of the band?
LAURA: I’m just trying to get these guys to not sound like Pulp all the time.
LUNA: What do you hope people take away from experiencing Saudi Oil’s music?
CHRIS: I think the true live band is a lost art, especially in NYC where it’s almost logistically impossible to have a group of people consistently play and grow together live. I hope people enjoy that part of the experience—seeing a group of people continually play and adapt together.
LUNA: The band name itself, Saudi Oil, is provocative and politically charged. What does that name mean to you, and how do you want listeners to interpret it?
CHRIS: JD Vance said it best, protect saudi oil baby.
LUNA: With “CRACKEDWINDOW” out on September 17, what’s next for Saudi Oil?
CHRIS: We’re playing a rooftop show on the 25th at 310 Meserole Street in Brooklyn. We also have another track coming out in mid-October.
