Reetoxa turns heartbreak, isolation, and emotional survival into something powerful on new single “Love Keeps Burning Still”

Reetoxa return with "Love Keeps Burning Still," a deeply emotional record born from one of the most turbulent periods in Jason McKee’s life. The single was released at the height of the COVID lockdown and came at a time when McKee was pushing himself to his creative limits, writing as many as ten songs a day while struggling mentally and emotionally under extreme isolation. That strain led eventually to six weeks in hospital, and gives the song an emotional history that seems impossible to untangle from its quiet beauty.

“Love Keeps Burning Still” is one of the more tender and delicate moments from what is expected to be a powerful double album. The single doesn’t tip into excess, instead it has emotion unfurl patiently in tender piano arrangements, vulnerable vocals and sweeping orchestral textures. At the center of the song there’s a stillness, but beneath that stillness is exhaustion, contemplation, longing, acceptance. The delicate balance between fragility and restraint gives the release an ongoing emotional weight without the need for dramatic moments.

The story behind the song makes it even more powerful. The single is about McKee’s divorce from Lee, who began dating after they met at Oktoberfest in Munich in 2003 and eventually got married. Between 2011 and 2016, their relationship spanned major life stages, but the same musical ambition that propelled McKee creatively also caused distance in his personal life. That contradiction is quietly at the heart of ''Love Keeps Burning Still," transforming heartbreak into reflection rather than bitterness.

One of the strongest elements surrounding the release is the willingness to stay emotionally open without tipping into overt sentimentality. The orchestral arrangements were done remotely with a European orchestra through Zoom collaboration, adding depth and cinematic warmth to the song. It was a massive gamble for an independent artist to undertake a project of this size in such uncertain global conditions, but the result doesn’t feel overblown, instead feeling focused and sincere. The single is imbued with a timeless quality thanks to live orchestration and intimate songwriting which lends itself naturally to visual storytelling.

People close to the project are already optimistic that “Love Keeps Burning Still” will have a place in romantic cinema, and it’s easy to see why. The song’s emotional pacing and atmosphere are reminiscent of a memorable moment in a film, letting the feeling develop over time instead of demanding attention immediately. Friends who first heard the record in the seaside town of Lorne, in the circumstances of its creation, reportedly found it hard to believe what they were hearing.

Reetoxa turns ‘Love Keeps Burning Still’ into more than just a reflection on heartbreak. The single captures the emotional instability, creative obsession and personal sacrifice that can exist behind artistic pursuit, while still leaving room for warmth and tenderness to survive. In many ways, the release is evidence that even during times of isolation and emotional collapse, something meaningful can come out of the noise.