The Yagas (l to r): Mike Davis, Renn Hawkey, Vera Farmiga, Mark Visconti and Jason Bowman.
Franco Vogt/IG: @franco.vogt
Not only does Vera Farmiga have a blockbuster horror movie hit with The Conjuring: Last Rites, she’s amping up the atmosphere off-screen with a spine-tingling new song
“Illusion” with her band The Yagas.
Coming 12 years after Farmiga and Patrick Wilson’s first Conjuring movie, The Conjuring: Last Rites marks the pair’s fifth and final film playing real-life clairvoyant Lorraine Warren and her husband, demonologist Ed Warren, in The Conjuring Cinematic Universe.
The film chronicles the Warrens’ final confrontation with a demonic presence in 1986 with the Smurl haunting in West Pittston, Pa., an event that put the Warrens’ daughter, Judy (Mia Tomlinson), in grave danger.
The Conjuring: Last Rites had record-breaking box office numbers over the weekend, earning $84 million domestically and $110 million internationally for a $194 million worldwide tally— making it the biggest global opening for a horror film of all time.
Now, complementing the massive theatrical debut of The Conjuring: Last Rites is the release of The Yagas’ new song “Illusion.”
Formed in 2023, the alt-rock group consists of Farmiga on lead vocals, Mark Visconti on guitar, Mike Davis on bass, Jason Bowman on drums and Farmiga’s husband, Renn Hawkey (formerly of the alt-metal band Deadsy) on keyboards. “Illusion” also features Farmiga and Renn Hawkey’s son, Fynn Hawkey, on cello.
“‘Illusion’ is my auditory expression of The Conjuring: Last Rights,” Farmiga said in a press release. “The Yagas wrote this song whilst I was in the ectoplasm thick of filming C4. The song emerges from a strange convergence of two events – my terrified offspring running into my bedroom, haunted by an out-of-body experience, and my on-screen child, Judy Warren, experiencing psychological torment.
“‘Illusion’ is our sonic interpretation of this haunted dreamscape – the fragile space between fear and acceptance; the space where you realize that the things in your head may be much more than just your imagination,” Farmiga added.
You can hear The Yagas’ new song “Illusion” by clicking below.
‘Illusion’ Follows The Release Of The Yagas’ Debut Album Earlier This Year
The release of The Yagas’ song “Illusion” follows the independent debut of the group’s full-length album, Midnight Minuet, in April.
To date, according to a press release from the band, The Yagas’ music has attracted more than 3 million streams and views.
According to the band’s press release, The Yagas have been using their platform “to shed light on Ukrainian culture and help those in need by partnering with organizations that provide humanitarian and medical aid to the Ukrainian population with their rendition of the popular Ukrainian love song ‘Chervona Ruta,’ with Gogol Bordello.”
Both Vera Farmiga and Gogol frontman Eugene Hütz are of Ukrainian heritage.
“Illusion” is available on several digital music platforms, while The Conjuring: Last Rites is new in theaters.
