An Interview With Silky Disturbance
The latest track from Silky Disturbance dubbed "New Blood Transforms" creates a whole world for you to step into and become a part of.
The track is an alternative pop song with cinematic tonality and comes through with a dark and mysterious feel.
Electronic beats and keys build and swell from back to the forefront as vocals allure and become colors.
This single is all it's own. It's like having a dream you thought was intriguing so you fight to fall back asleep in hopes of getting back into that same one again.
There is a sultry and intense factor to "New Blood Transforms" that is so unique and different that by the time you get a minute into the song, you've been washed away by its sound already.
With such a beautiful and edgy release, we had to sit down with Silky Disturbance and find out where this one came from exactly.
TSWS: Okay let's start with "New Blood Transforms". This track is haunting and cinematic. Very transfixing. Where did this song come from?
SD: New Blood Transforms is a radio edit from my most recent album, ´Saturn´s Rejoice´, released in August 2020. The self released album confronts the windy path of a serious illness I had in 2018-2020. The song New Blood is the last song on the album and represents a psycho magic act of mortal realisation affirming the final stage of recovery. The original piece of work (9 minutes) was used as a sound and body performance art piece, showcased at Third Verse Gallery 2019, Suitcases of Discontent Prague 2018 and Hundred Years Gallery 2019. It was reworked as a radio edit dance mix and self released on December 2nd 2020.
TSWS: How did this start for you?
SD: New Blood centres around a feeling of coming home, to our chosen state, and was designed as a metaphorical rebirth in a deep time of healing. In the original performance a ritual is acted out, opening with a self affirming mantra and a chrysalis which represents the centre of gravity, a home, a womb . Slowly shedding it´s layers, I consciously unravel myself with a sound phrase or mantra, overcoming a physical or mental trauma through each layer. The birth slowly restores the body as it untangles from the umbilical cord. In a time of displacement and disassociation to our surroundings and our own internal eco-systems, I designed a birthing ritual to set intentions of reconciliation for our bodies and our sense of belonging, in a fractured and sometimes lonely world. In order to reconnect, we must shed layers of our old ancestry to make room for a more enlightened self and discover new physical spaces where we can begin again and find our true ´sense of home´.
TSWS: The Saturns Rejoice album is spacey and ethereal with a 90's alt pop undertone. What sort of bands or artists really influenced you?
SD: I am influenced by a broad range of music. Particularly psychedelic folk and jazz music from the 1960´s and electronic post-industrial music. I like sounds that take you somewhere else and have dark romantic depth, normally with a strong female lead. I´ve been enjoying lately Jenny Hval, Sudan Archives, Aolok Bala, Smerz, Yves Tumor, Gonja Sufi.
TSWS: Did you used to perform live at all? Do you think you'll be focusing on live shows when the time comes?
SD: I am currently trying to devise a live performance of the album and giving the songs a more live interpretation using live synths and samplers to trigger live and manipulating my voice live with effects pedals. In the stillness of the current time, I am working on new collaborative projects and ideas for a music video in March using dance and multi-media. I look forward to executing the work live virtually and hopefully have the opportunity to perform it live in the Summer. We have to stay positive and take the creative challenge of imagining new platforms of self-expression within the confines of social distancing for the future. In the meantime I will be working with various artists on a new concept album around characters in the Major Arcana and how they interpret the global shifts and climate issues we are facing.
TSWS: How do you record your material? Do you have a home set up? Do you produce the songs yourself?
SD: I record and produce all of my music myself using my small home set-up and make the album artwork from digital montage.
TSWS: What does someone like you do when you're NOT working on music?
SD: I have been in-recovery from Cancer since April 2020 and have been in remission since the Summer so have been slowly building my life back and getting a sense of routine and ´normality´, despite the Covid restrictions. Recently I have been putting on music and pottering around in my home doing exercise, making art and connecting with people in the glitchy world of zoom. I enjoy singing and am part of an improvisation vocal group, a choir and singing session for commercial odd-jobs. I also enjoy making potions and learning about the natural alternative medicine and having control over my own health. I lived in Spain for 4 years so speak a moderate amount of Spanish and affiliate strongly with spanish culture and way of life and would love to return once covid has dissipated to collaborate with artist friends in Madrid and Barcelona.
TSWS: What kind of non-musical things inspire you to write?
SD: Many things inspire me to write. During cancer treatment I had a lot of quite intense subject matter covering all things mortality and honouring my loved ones, but now I think I could find relevance even in the mundane act of going to the supermarket. There is opportunity for art everywhere. Recently I´ve loved hearing stories of how people have coped in various situations throughout the pandemic and shown resilience and stoic acts of kindness, the ways we use humor in times of despair and hearing people reinventing new civilizations of monumental change. It's an exciting time but we have to keep our mental health in check. My new work is a lot to do with the psyche and different perspectives on the trauma we face and different approaches to growth and transformation.
TSWS: Before we go, what would you like to say to fans?
SD: I would like to invite people to reach out and collaborate, virtually or in anyway they can to connect despite our limitations in the physical world. I believe we can create impactful work at this time and use art as a tool for healing and overcoming loss, trauma and bring new light in challenging times. It just takes a bit of initiative and things start happening.