Colleen, aka multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Cécile Schott, has shared the swirling, unshakable new single "Implosion-Explosion" from her forthcoming album The Tunnel and the Clearing, out May 21st. Emblematic of an album centered on processing the complicated washes of emotion while moving through tribulation towards revelations, "Implosion-Explosion" explores instabilities both internal and external through nimble gestures in production and composition. Schott elaborates:
"The album is a sonic translation of the highly emotional state and the heightened sense of perception that come in the wake of a breakup and a period of great changes, with the subsequent necessary reconstruction this entails. "Implosion-Explosion" is an attempt at expressing both the sensation of being completely "see-through" once out alone in the outside world, and the combined feelings of pain and anger at what cannot be changed. The song, paying homage to dub, is an exploration in rhythm and heavy filtering and delaying: it features two rhythms in unison from the rare 1969 Elka Drummer One drum machine going through the legendary Roland RE-201 Space Echo, with Japanese Ace Tone organ whistling and roaring through Moog filter and delay, and swirling, echoing vocals."
Colleen's albums are unified by their employment of distinct and personal instrumentation to tell their story. From albums built around music boxes or viola da gamba to albums built around electronics, her music remarkably shares a dreamlike modern quality. From the early stages of working on The Tunnel and the Clearing Schott restricted herself to using analog electronic instruments like the Elka Drummer One, the Roland RE-201 Space Echo and Moog Grandmother synth, coupled with Yamaha organ keyboard and select Moog effects. This limited instrument selection was inspired by years of listening to Jamaican and African recordings where musicians were pushed to maximize their creativity with minimal tools.
From May 21st to May 23rd, the Barcelona art gallery Chiquita Room will welcome Colleen for 3 days of special events to celebrate the release of The Tunnel and the Clearing, titled
Colleen in da Room.
Listen here:
Photo Credit: Luis Torroja
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