US-born, Norwegian-Mexican artist and producer Carmen Villain (aka Carmen Hillestad) shares a new single, “Subtle Bodies,” from her forthcoming album, Only Love From Now On (out now on Smalltown Supersound), and in addition, presents a second version of the song by Huerco S. Only Love From Now On showcases Villain’s aesthetic blossoming into something unexpected, benevolent in its composure and altogether luxuriant in its sensuality. In turn, “Subtle Bodies” begins with minimalistic instrumentation, blooming with finely rich layers. Just like how lead single, “Gestures,” refers to Hannah Wilke’s video piece of the same name, “Subtle Bodies” pays tribute to the performance/sculpture of Ana Mendieta, who Hillestad responded deeply to in that artist’s rage, protest, and love for nature in connection to the female body.
“I found Ana Mendieta’s work deeply moving in many ways, in an emotional sense but also in the way she fully immersed herself into her art, connecting her humanity, strength, rage and vulnerability with nature,” says Villain. “It’s a deeply layered immersion. I had her, and especially her ‘Silueta’ series, in mind when I made ‘Subtle Bodies.’ Making music is for me about a complete immersion into sound, a continuous conversation between an idea and what comes back to me from what develops sonically. While I certainly consider Mendieta’s work and what she was communicating was far more important than what I do, she continues to be a big inspiration in many ways.”
Of the Huerco S version, Villain elaborates: “I have been a big fan of Brian’s work for a good while. He’s got an impeccable approach to sound and texture and communicates a lot with his music I think. So I was very happy he was into doing a version for me when I asked him. I asked him to choose whichever track he wanted from the album, and he went for Subtle Bodies. The result is deep and fizzy, I love it.”
Listen to Carmen Villain’s “Subtle Bodies” and “Subtle Bodies” (Huerco S. version)
Only Love From Now On is fueled by the sense of scale in feeling small in the face of things so large, the contemplation of how the biggest impact we can have is in the people close to us, the attempt to make sure that impact is a positive one, and the choice to try to focus on love instead of fear.
Listening to Only Love From Now On is simultaneously comforting and alluringly strange, with Hillestad engaging themes both philosophical and occasionally abstract. Hillestad describes it as “wishing to maintain a sense of careful optimism for the future, while on the cusp of something unknown.” Employing a panoply of instrumentation – such as woodwinds – field recordings, the studio, jam, and careful composition, Hillestad invokes a conversation with sound that occurs in her deliberate attempts to experiment with new methods, like granular synthesis, for her music-making. The emotional tenor of her music is clear and purposeful. It makes sense that her key musical touchstones are dub, ambient, and cosmic jazz – flexible vehicles for tranquil wonder.
Listen to “Gestures” (with Arve Henriksen)
Keep your mind open.
[Don’t forget to subscribe before you go.]
[Thanks to Sam at Pitch Perfect PR.]
