Fragment Meets Anna Clavi
Breathing sexuality into her music with a conviction that is rarely found in the realms of pop, Anna Calvi is a softly spoken songstress whose work radiates dark romanticism and heartfelt compassion. The combined sound of delicately plucked strings and an almost haunting voice has earned her support slots for the likes of Nick Cave, Interpol and The Arctic Monkeys. Taking time out to talk about her self-titled debut album, Ray Murphy meets a truly unique artist with a clearly defined vision.
Your backing band consists of Daniel Maiden-Wood & Mally Harpaz . How did you come to work with them?
Mally had been a good friend of mine for years, so it seemed very natural to ask her to be involved in the new album. I wanted to achieve a real orchestral sound that can be difficult when working in a trio, but having a real multi-instrumentalist like Mally has helped make this easier. I met our drummer, Daniel Maiden-Wood through a mutual friend. He’s really expressive as a musician, plus it’s rare to find drummer like him who listens.
Have you considered adding another member to the trio, say a bassist?
I think it’s really useful to work in restrictions, it means that you have to use your imagination more and that allows you to develop. Maybe in the future I’ll consider bringing in another musician, but at present, I feel that the current dynamic of the group is having a really positive effect on our music.
What made you choose Jezebel as your first single & why doesn’t it appear on the album?
I remember when I first heard the Edith Piaf version, I was so moved by it that I felt compelled to record my own version. When it came to deciding on what we should put out first, we thought it’d be fitting to release my cover of Jezebel because it’s a song that’s had such a big impact on me as an artist. I want people to know that because when you’re really moved by something you want to tell people about it.
It doesn’t feature on the LP because I feel as though the album is a journey in itself, it feels like one entity to me. The notion of splitting it off into pieces didn’t seem right, almost disrespectful.
Part of the album was recorded in Black Box Studios in a rather remote area of North-West France; would you say that working in these isolated environments influenced your songs?
To some extent yes, I really wanted to get away from the world and delve into my imagination to see what I could find. It was quite a scary thing to do but I felt it was necessary for the process. On top of that, Black Box Studios is an amazing space full of old vintage equipment like microphones that were made in a time where people really took pride in their handiwork.
One of my personal favourites from the album is ‘Suzanne & I’. Can you tell me what this song means to you?
‘Suzanne & I’ is about the idea that you could fall asleep, meet someone in your dreams & never wake up. Perhaps that’s about death or something else – I really prefer to leave it up to the listeners to interpret it for themselves.
‘Rider to the sea’, the opening track on the record, reminds me of the reverberating guitars in the Old Westerns from film composers like Ennio Morricone. Do you find that you’re inspired by film scores?
Most definitely, Morricone is incredible. Some of what he does is almost punk in terms of the risks he takes and I admire that. I see the songs as films & feel music very visually. When recording ‘The Devil’ I wanted to make the guitar sound like another instrument; like the strings on a Hitchcock soundtrack.
What was it like having Brian Eno as a mentor & also supporting Nick Cave’s ‘Grinderman’ on tour?
It’s been really amazing, Brian’s been really supportive. As for the Grinderman tour, Nick Cave & the Seeds have always been one of my favourite bands so it was a dream come true. I got to talk to Nick about song writing, which has influenced my own work.
You studied music whilst at University, has this impacted your approach song writing?
It’s given me a certain confidence because I learned how to orchestrate & arrange. I was also exposed to a wide variety of music, which is healthy for any artist. But to be honest, I tend to approach song writing in an emotional way as opposed to a theoretical way.
What’s next for you?
Well, I’ve just finished touring with Interpol & have been preparing for the album launch but after that I’ll be starting work on the new record.
Anna Calvi is out now on Domino Records.
