One of our most exciting musicians, whose guises include Circle Pit, Southern Comfort, Ruined Fortune and Straight Arrows and with 2 solo LP’s already under her belt, Angie is back with yet another brilliant record titled Shyness
Hi and thanks for taking the time out to speak with us at Musicology.
Thank you for having me!
Firstly, congratulations on the new LP, it is an amazing record.
Wow, thank you!
With such a broad musical palette that finds you performing in various outfits of varying styles, your new album Shyness is one of subdued piano pieces and quiet accompaniments. Do the bases of these tracks come from a wide time frame that eventually coalesced into a collection of works that become enough for a standalone LP?
I think that the time frame enacted from these tracks would be similar to gleaning material for any grouped recording. Some instances took utterances that initially were using guitars, but reframed within piano and without voice! It is a matter of stylistics, and music can always be mutated, it is like water in that sense, one of the liberations of the medium. I’ve slowly been gravitating towards more instrumental sounds - my last LP had 2 instrumental tracks and this one has 3, so it is something I’m exploring more and more as language starts to elude me.
Does your work in other outfits (as different as the genre maybe) actually help shape the work in this album albeit as an indirect influencer?
I’m definitely very interested in creating rock and roll music, well ‘interesting’ rock and roll music, as I find that it is a hard thing to do. It’s a lifelong project really, trying to do that. With that being said, the role is to try and extend those boundaries in any way you can, and I suppose with this recording I’m tying strings between that and the piano - in the way that electric guitar is still used, and there is still ‘rock’ utterances, but they are much quieter here.
Can you elaborate a little on the subject matter you address on this record?
This record definitely looks at the spaces between objects, places and people and inability to vocalise or attempt to change things that you know that you need to. It attempts to navigate this poetic space through the lack of words in the instrumental interlude in the middle. I feel that the instrumental songs ‘vocalise’ these feelings for me more than words could. The vocal bookends however, do examine these thematics with words, and attempt to create a narrative that explores and elaborates on and around these themes.
You’re second single This House, which has a great little clip to match, talks about spaces inhabited. Is it the permanence of a dwelling that speaks to you or alternatively the transience of its occupiers?
This House definitely looks at how spaces are often loaded. A particular structure can speak to you in emotive forms, whether it is somewhere you frequent regularly or upon your first visit. Sometimes places of note or repetition start to become heavier than the ceiling and walls they contain. I guess with this song I was trying to comment on this very human condition that I believe perhaps isn't so much looked at or elaborated. I read a lot of poetry, and I find comments on physical spaces and emotional conditions reflected within these formats, but not so much within music.
Do you find that with piano based pieces there is a certain sentiment that can only be expressed through the actual instrument itself?
Listening to someone who combines 'rock' aesthetics and piano together, Brian Eno comes to mind here, a lot of the time it could be seen as rather theatrical or verbose. I guess with Shyness I was trying to combine electric guitar (solos) and piano and make it intimate, restrained, and I guess complementary to the melodies initiated and the mode of song writing.
The album was recorded by Jonathan Hochman of Holy Balm. What did Jonathan bring to the table that really shines through on this record?
Working with Jonathan was a really rewarding and unique experience. His approach is very unique in the sense that he indicates what he thinks, but also has moments where he will keep silent and let you figure out things for yourself. He really pushed me to make the best performance possible, when I often found attempting to record the piano and acoustic guitar parts very difficult. I would describe his style as very relaxed but very focused, if that could at all make sense! I really love the way he mixed the record, as he kept things very sparse, but left just the right amount of content floating around in there. The result is meaty, but open...
What does the rest of 2017 have install for you?
I’m currently working on trying to perform the record live with a backing band which will comprise of percussion, electric guitar, acoustic guitar and piano, which I will do in May when I launch the album. I’ve also got two art exhibitions, but apart from that, just trying to hustle for work, money and trying to pay off debts like everyone else :)
ANGIE 'SHYNESS' ALBUM LAUNCHES
FRI MAY 26 - 107 PROJECTS, SYDNEY
w/ KNITTED ABYSS, SPIKE VINCENT & TABLE
SAT MAY 27 - AINSLIE ARTS CENTRE, CANBERRA
w/ THUNDERBOLT CITY + MORE TBA
SAT JUNE 3 - SOME VELVET MORNING, MELBOURNE
w/ SUPPORTS TBA
