FEATURE:
Spotlight
staying on top of all the great artists to watch and stick with. I can thoroughly recommend THALA. The Berlin-born multi-talented songwriter and musician released her E.P., twotwentytwo, on 2nd November. It is a wonderful listen that confirms the fact that she is someone that everyone needs to listen to closely. I will get to details about that E.P. very soon. Before that, there are some other things that I want to bring in. I will come to an interview from a couple of years ago. Before that, here is some biography about a truly astonishing and bright artist:
“On new EP ‘twotwentytwo’, indie riser THALA continues to embrace vulnerability, summoning long-buried emotions to colour her ardent love for lyricism amid psych-tinged ‘90s indie rock soundscapes.
Filled with potent songwriting and coming-of-age anthems straight from the heart, these everyday love stories surrender to life’s insecurities. It’s a page from THALA’s diary with impulsive, adolescent brilliance. Evoking the soundscapes of Slowdive, Deerhunter and Mazzy Star alongside the widescreen pop of boygenius and Snail Mail and the subtle punk influences of Juliana Hatfield.
‘twotwentytwo’ was recorded in London and Berlin earlier this year and follows the release of ‘In Theory Depression’, THALA’s first EP on Fire Records. Spanning six tracks, it builds on its predecessor’s fearless lyricism, excavating deep-set feelings of loss, pain, desire and conflict against luminous production and addictive melodies. Bill Green’s striking design, first employed on the cover of the last release, melding sepia-tinted photographs with scribbles of youth, youth, evoking bygone days and personal secrets yet to be disclosed.
Blissful guitars and evocative crescendos permeate THALA’s unique vision of dreampop, revelling in soaring choruses and intimate storylines. On its surface, ‘twotwentytwo boasts a kind of glorious emotive draw – you’d be forgiven for mistaking any one of these tracks as a backdrop to any teen-angst drama. However, while THALA wants her songs to feel nostalgic, it’s the complexity of her songwriting that sees her modern compositions really resonate and she is keen to stress her lyrics can be interpreted in numerous ways.
“Music is the fuel to heal ourselves in whatever way we need” she says of her relationship with her craft.
And therein lies the heart of this release – a cathartic, wildly empowering, self-explorative from a future indie heartbreaker at her gutsy best.
Showing no signs of slowing down with rammed appearances at this year’s SXSW and The Great Escape, THALA was a featured artist on Rough Trade’s ‘On The Rise’, she also picked up the attention of BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, Nels Hylton and Sian Eleri, KEXP and Kerrang Radio. THALA will be touring the UK and Europe through October and November”.
I think that THALA is someone that should be on your radar. Digital Berlin chatted with her in 2021. An artist who Rough Trade and BBC Radio 1 have championed; she has recently done some gigs in the U.K. There is a lot of momentum and love behind THALA. It is interesting reading about her start, influences and favourite albums of all time:
“1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
I’ve gone through some pretty rough patches in my life – as everyone else has – and I don’t know, I guess I’m hoping, that somehow people can relate to what I write about and have to say. Because it’s things like love, happiness, disappointment, hate, insecurities that mess with us and our heads the most and to think, that you’re not alone at facing those those things, that sometimes turn out to be demons, is somewhat comforting, and so to get back to the answer of this question: I want to make people feel. Because some people have forgotten what it’s like to do so, and embrace it, and for me personally music has always been the best way of emotional release. Writing it, playing it or even just listening to it. An album can change your life I tell ya.
2. How and when did you get into making music?
How is a funny story and when is impossible to tell as it’s always been there. I am pretty sure, that the first time I sang, was to my mum’s Celine Dion ‘My Heart Will Go On’ CD, back then I must have been 6-years-old or something. Music has always done something to me that I was never able to explain. Had a certain pull. Even though I’ve never had training in anything, I never not wanted it to be a thing for me. I started teaching myself how to play the guitar only 3 years ago (am still shit haha hope it’s ok to say that here) and during that time I was living on the Canary Islands, living the beach dream life you could say. Then started writing songs slowly, became more confident with my guitar. When I returned to Berlin in November ’18, I quickly got into the open mic scene and fell in love with the stage and the feel of performing live but was working hard like a dog, 40-hour job plus a second one on the weekends. Sleep wasn’t really a thing back then. Lived as a street musician for a little while after I cut loose all of the old jobs. I went in saying ‘All or Nothing’ and than magically ran into the people that are working with me today (I do not believe in coincidences).
3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time?
Beach House – Depression Cherry
Mazzy Star – So Tonight That I Might See
Beach Fossils – Summersault
Holy Wave – Relax
Dayglow – Fuzzybrain
4. What do you associate with Berlin?
I associate pure freedom and individuality with Berlin but strongly believe, that we are the ones who are creating it. Not the old buildings and trendy places to sip your coffees at (they might play a part though). Berlin is a place of art and no-fucks-given, a place many want to call home because here you can re-invent yourself and be whoever you wanna be.
5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
My favorite place is a little lake, that is very near to my house and it’s very idyllic. Love to go there alone, with some friends, swing, think, read, play my guitar, soak in some sun. And during winter I basically become my bed.
6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
I think I wouldn’t wanna live in a world like that.
7. What was the last record/music you bought?
I bought a super old Fleetwood Mac record a few months ago, a limited edition thing and it didn’t even work.
8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
I would LOVE to write something with Beach House, Phoebe Bridgers or Sharon Van Etten.
9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
Ohhh I gotta go with Foo Fighters. First Festival I ever visited, it was raining loads and we were in the first line. INSANE.
10. How important is technology to your creative process?
It is definitely a thing that I enjoy working with just as much as analog gear. There might be that one synth, that you’ll only gonna find with that one midi. The world of sounds is so amazing and interesting. I feel like a kid at a toy store when I’m at the studio”.
PHOTO CREDIT: Nathan Stewart
Prior to getting to some information about her twotwentytwo E.P., Ticketmaster ran an interview recently. They were keen to know what we would get from THALA’s E.P. They were curious to know about her influences and what compels her songwriting. This is someone I am very excited about. I really love what THALA is putting out into the world:
“What can people expect from the EP?
Obviously, the first one is very personal and very vulnerable. Thematically, it’s definitely about mental health, my upbringing and the way I see the world. And the second one is goes deeper into what I feel; how I cope with memories; and into the stories I’ve picked up about other people, friends and loved ones that I then somehow combined. I would say I definitely experimented a bit more in this second EP. When I’m in the studio I’m super nerdy, and I’m even happier when I have a producer who likes to be nerdy as well – together, we can figure out weird sounds. One time, for one of the songs, we were on the phone in a queue to order pizza. And they had such a funny melody that went kind of like [hums a jingle]. We recorded it and then we reversed it. And it’s in one of the songs.
No one’s ever gonna know. Well, now people are going to know… But yeah, I love to do these little gimmicks and little tricks. Just build in some ear candy and get more experimental. I’ve started using a bit of a vocoder effect on stuff, those layered vocals, and I’ve done much more of that. I started getting into changing structures too, so things happen that you don’t expect. There are a few really nice rocky shoegazy outros that I love. And I’m just excited to play them on stage because I haven’t played most of them yet. We rehearsed yesterday and I was just so happy with the way it sounded, and we were drenched in sweat after we finished. That’s what I want.
It’s definitely a good sign when you’re really excited to play music live.
I don’t know though, it’s a first tour, right? I said to myself, if there are only three people, you’re gonna play like it’s 30,000. It doesn’t matter. Like, I’m gonna own that sh*t. In the case of there being not as many people as maybe one would wish for, I will not make that demean the work I put into it. The effort, sweat, blood and tears – everybody says that, but it’s so true. And I’m starting to really feel like that is really true.
Are you feeling that more than you were with the first EP?
Yeah, I am. It’s a funny mixture between the heat being on, but then also more like finding the path of the thing that you really want to do, and feeling more secure in that path. When I first started out, I was just writing for fun. I lived at the beach three years before. I didn’t really have a care in the world in that sense, not about music. I was like, yeah, cool, grab a guitar sometimes and play some covers, nice. But I didn’t think I would ever make it my career. And now it’s dawning on me: this is what I’ve chosen. This is the career that I want; this is what I want to do for the rest of my life, ideally. And so it becomes more and more serious in that sense. But it’s also more interesting, because I get to tap into different types of production.
I get way more creative in moments where I didn’t used to get creative. I’m walking down the street and I hear a funny sound on someone’s bike, which would just pass me by back then, but I get so excited about it now. Yesterday, I recorded something on my phone when I was cleaning out my trash bin. It’s a metal trash bin. I know it sounds funny, but when you come from above with a water hose, and you go in the motion of a circle, it sounds cool. And I recorded it, and I sent it to a guy that I’m working on a song with. I never used to do that, but now I do. So, I feel like all I breathe, all I feel, all I talk, all I am, is becoming more and more what I do.
Have you always been interested in production and being involved with that side of things? Or has that been a more recent interest?
No, I’ve always had an intuition of, “We should stop here. The drums should come back in here. We should put this here”… But since I never learned any of it, people that don’t know me are surprised, because I jump out with these ideas. I see the sensation in every little sound and every little detail, and I get really excited, like a child. Like a grown woman child, I think. I love it. It’s the best f*cking thing in the world. Studio, and then stage. There’s nothing better than that for me.
Do you have a song that you’re proudest of so far?
I’m proud of all of them, because they come from very personal spaces. I think one of them is definitely ‘In Theory Oppression’ from the old EP, which I also then named the EP after, because I think that’s the darkest and most honest song I’ve ever written. And even though its chorus is such a simple repetitive element of the same sentence, it was such a feeling I had in that moment when I wrote it. It went so deep, and it shook me, which usually happens, but not the way it happened with that song. And even when I play it live, I tap into this old self again, and I get really sad when I play it. But it’s good that I managed to put it into a song, which doesn’t mean it’s gone, but it’s just an outlet. And I’ve noticed that it resonates a lot with people when I play it live.
Do you usually write about your own life? You mentioned that you write about your friends’ experiences sometimes.
It’s mostly my own life. But there are definitely parts in songs where I’ve had conversations with friends, and then they say a sentence to me, and I’m like, “Oh, that’s a great line”. And then I write it down, and when I remember it, I work it into the song if it fits. I would never use something like a story that isn’t mine without telling the person who the story is about though.
Looking five years ahead in your career, where would you want to be by that point?
They just opened this new venue in Las Vegas, and it looks crazy. That would be sick. I would not be against that. But I think anywhere I go in the world, I’d like to sell out a capacity of like, 200. In the bigger cities, it could be 500, 1000, to dream big… And I do. If it’s bigger than that, hey, I’m going to be so happy and grateful, but I’m already so grateful for what I have.
Honestly, the most important thing to me is that I still want to have fun making music. I don’t want this business to destroy me or turn me into a different person. I want to stay the same as I am, I want to be genuine. I want to keep writing songs that people can connect to. And hopefully have a hardcore fan base that stands in front of the venue with signs of lyrics that I wrote…”.
If you are new to THALA, then I would recommend you check out her twotwentytwo E.P. It is available on Bandcamp (and streaming platforms). This is someone that everyone will hear a lot more about soon enough. I know that she will enjoy a very fruitful career. Make sure you follow her and listen to her awesome music:
“On new EP twotwentytwo, indie riser THALA continues to embrace vulnerability, summoning long-buried emotions to colour her ardent love for lyricism amid psych-tinged ‘90s indie soundscapes. Filled with potent songwriting and coming-of-age anthems straight from the heart, these everyday love stories surrender to life’s insecurities. Evoking the soundscapes of Slowdive and Deerhunter, whilst recalling the widescreen pop of boygenius and Snail Mail.
Recorded in London and Berlin earlier this year, twotwentytwo follows the release of ‘In Theory Depression’, THALA’s first EP on Fire Records. Spanning six tracks, it builds on its predecessor’s fearless lyricism, excavating deep-set feelings of loss, pain, desire and conflict against luminous production and addictive melodies. Following rammed appearances at SXSW and The Great Escape, and having picked up the attention BBC Radio 1’s Jack Saunders, THALA shows no signs of slowing down…
Blissful guitars and evocative crescendos permeate THALA’s unique vision of dreampop, reveling in soaring choruses and intimate storylines. On its surface, twotwentytwo boasts a kind of glorious emotive draw - you’d be forgiven for mistaking any one of these tracks as a backdrop to any teen-angst drama. However, while THALA wants her songs to feel nostalgic, it’s the complexity of her songwriting that sees her modern compositions really resonate and she is keen to stress her lyrics can be interpreted in numerous ways.
And therein lies the heart of this release - a cathartic, wildly empowering, self-explorative from a future indie heartbreaker at her gutsy best”.
An exciting and wonderfully talented young artist who has a growing fanbase in Europe, I think that THALA is going to be a worldwide proposition. Her new E.P. is instantly one of the best of 2023. She is someone I confidentially predict will make some big splashes in the music world. Go and investigate twotwentytwo and find out why there is so much love and appreciation…
AT her incredible feet.
___________
Follow THALA
