Following last month's announcement that Julianna Barwick had signed to Dead Oceans to deliver her next LP, Nepenthe, the experimental vocal loop artist has now dished out more details behind the set.
The record, which hits shelves August 20, was recorded by producer/engineer Alex Somers (Sigur Rós, Jónsi & Alex) and was tracked in Reykjavik, Iceland, last February. During the recording sessions, Barwick suffered a death in her family. This, along with the experience of being in a foreign land, allegedly left an impact on the LP, which is described as a "heady potion ... about moving forward, finding a way through difficult times — of retaining a feeling of hope."
"Everything I was making was visceral — the record represents some serious emotional stuff," Barwick said in a statement.
As previously reported, the 10-song set finds Barwick joined by a few guests, including "a teenage female choir" on "Forever," and members of Amiina and Múm elsewhere on the LP.
You can sample the choir and Barwick in action at the studio down below in a trailer for Nepenthe, which also features some scenic shots of Iceland's mountain ranges and natural hot springs.
"I had never had anyone play on any record before, so this was a 180 turn," Barwick said of adding other musicians to her solo material. "I also was inspired just by being there [Iceland], and the gorgeousness of that place. Your eyes can't believe what they're seeing. I walked home one night and got totally lost in Reykjavík. I ended up walking alongside the ocean — and it was glowing blue. It looked like it had a lamp underneath it. This is a completely different experience than recording myself in my Brooklyn bedroom."
Barwick has also updated her tour schedule with some fall dates, including a Canadian stop in Toronto. You can see the details beneath the tracklisting.
Nepenthe:
1. Offing
2. The Harbinger
3. One Half
4. Look Into Your Own Mind
5. Pyrrhic
6. Labyrinthine
7. Forever
8. Adventurer of the Family
9. Crystal Lake
10. Waving To You
Tour dates:
5/16 Montclair, NJ - Welmont Theater *
6/18 London, UK - Purcell Room, Southbank Centre (Meltdown Festival)
7/14 Kingston, NY - BSP Lounge
8/28 Brussels, Belgium - Feeerieen Festival
9/1 North Dorset, UK - End of the Road Festival
9/4 Paris, France - Les 3 Baudets
9/5 Utrecht, Netherlands - Night of the Unexpected
9/6 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Night of the Unexpected
9/7 Vlieland, Netherlands - Into The Great Wide Open Festival
9/19 Minneapolis, MN - The Entry
9/21 Chicago, IL - Constellation
9/22 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit
9/26 Toronto, ON - Double Double Land
9/27 Rochester, NY - Visual Studies Workshop Auditorium
9/28 Cincinnati, OH - Midpoint Music Fest
9/29 Bloomington, IN – Russian Recording
10/1 Pittsburgh, PA – VIA Festival at Andy Warhol Museum
10/2 Asheville, NC - Apothecary
10/4 New Orleans, LA - AllWays Lounge and Theatre
10/5 Baton Rouge, LA - Mud and Water
* with the Flaming Lips
The record, which hits shelves August 20, was recorded by producer/engineer Alex Somers (Sigur Rós, Jónsi & Alex) and was tracked in Reykjavik, Iceland, last February. During the recording sessions, Barwick suffered a death in her family. This, along with the experience of being in a foreign land, allegedly left an impact on the LP, which is described as a "heady potion ... about moving forward, finding a way through difficult times — of retaining a feeling of hope."
"Everything I was making was visceral — the record represents some serious emotional stuff," Barwick said in a statement.
As previously reported, the 10-song set finds Barwick joined by a few guests, including "a teenage female choir" on "Forever," and members of Amiina and Múm elsewhere on the LP.
You can sample the choir and Barwick in action at the studio down below in a trailer for Nepenthe, which also features some scenic shots of Iceland's mountain ranges and natural hot springs.
"I had never had anyone play on any record before, so this was a 180 turn," Barwick said of adding other musicians to her solo material. "I also was inspired just by being there [Iceland], and the gorgeousness of that place. Your eyes can't believe what they're seeing. I walked home one night and got totally lost in Reykjavík. I ended up walking alongside the ocean — and it was glowing blue. It looked like it had a lamp underneath it. This is a completely different experience than recording myself in my Brooklyn bedroom."
Barwick has also updated her tour schedule with some fall dates, including a Canadian stop in Toronto. You can see the details beneath the tracklisting.
Nepenthe:
1. Offing
2. The Harbinger
3. One Half
4. Look Into Your Own Mind
5. Pyrrhic
6. Labyrinthine
7. Forever
8. Adventurer of the Family
9. Crystal Lake
10. Waving To You
Tour dates:
5/16 Montclair, NJ - Welmont Theater *
6/18 London, UK - Purcell Room, Southbank Centre (Meltdown Festival)
7/14 Kingston, NY - BSP Lounge
8/28 Brussels, Belgium - Feeerieen Festival
9/1 North Dorset, UK - End of the Road Festival
9/4 Paris, France - Les 3 Baudets
9/5 Utrecht, Netherlands - Night of the Unexpected
9/6 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Night of the Unexpected
9/7 Vlieland, Netherlands - Into The Great Wide Open Festival
9/19 Minneapolis, MN - The Entry
9/21 Chicago, IL - Constellation
9/22 Detroit, MI - Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit
9/26 Toronto, ON - Double Double Land
9/27 Rochester, NY - Visual Studies Workshop Auditorium
9/28 Cincinnati, OH - Midpoint Music Fest
9/29 Bloomington, IN – Russian Recording
10/1 Pittsburgh, PA – VIA Festival at Andy Warhol Museum
10/2 Asheville, NC - Apothecary
10/4 New Orleans, LA - AllWays Lounge and Theatre
10/5 Baton Rouge, LA - Mud and Water
* with the Flaming Lips
