When introducing the opening track to her debut album Floreilegium in her breakdown of the LP she did for us, Nigeria-born songwriter Uwade leaves out one important biographical detail about her life in 2020: Before her impressive stable of singles materialized leading up to and furnishing the new album, the songwriter contributed backing vocals to Fleet Foxes’ understated LP Shore. Although it wasn’t technically a feature, her vocals were woven through a dense bed of sound that also featured contributions from Kevin Morby and members of Grizzly Bear, helping to sew together the wholly unique patchwork of chamber-folk that made the record stand out among its predecessors.
Five years later and it’s a similar sense of subtlety that graces Uwade Akhere’s own folk-pop recordings, albeit songs less rooted in collaboration and more focused on the songwriter’s impressive sonic vocabulary. Recorded with Sam Cohen and Alli Rogers following extensive touring with Fleet Foxes (and after linking up with Sylvan Esso on a track for their Psychic Hotline singles series), Floreilegium remains diaristic both in its lyrics recounting the grief and celebrations that have defined the last five years of her life, as well as in its simmering instrumentals introducing a singular voice in soulful indie-folk and thoughtful chamber-pop.
With the record arriving today via Ehiose Records and Thirty Tigers, Uwade shared a track-by-track breakdown of the project’s nine songs that outlines the tensions, vibes, and hashtags that line Florilegium. Check it out below, and purchase the record here.
1. “The Place in the Sky”
When my dad died in 2020, I was just starting my senior year of college. I was home with my mom and my dog and pandemic-era Zoom classes. All I did was study and process and cry and sing. This song came out of an ache, a deep desire to see him again, to meet him wherever he was.
2. “Call It a Draw”
This song—one of my favorites—started as a songwriting exercise. I wanted to create something fun and dynamic and in what my mom calls a “hot” style (i.e. not a slow, emotional ballad). Something with a looser structure and a celebration of instrumentation and vibes. Having just gone through a breakup, I was noodling around on Logic and the phrase “call it a draw” kept coming up as a mumbled placeholder. I found something quite beautiful and metaphoric about it, so I just went with it! Glad I did.
3. “Eventime”
“Eventime” is an emotional reflection on the dissolution of a bond. To me, it represents the tension between the clarity that comes with ending an incompatible relationship and the temptation to keep the door open and remain in the liminal space, the in-between, the eventime.
4. “Harmattan”
“Harmattan” began with a chord progression that I felt embodied the transition from winter to spring. I wrote it across a couple of years, so throughout all the iterations it became a space to vent my anxieties about the decisions that come with young adulthood and unpack the complex feelings I have about music. I also tried to sprinkle a little bit of my heritage into it through the title and instrumentation. While tracking the drum solo, I showed [drummer] Jason Burger videos of an Esan dance masquerade called Egbabonelimhin that performed during my father’s burial, and during his first few takes I got chills. It’s a really special one.
5. “The Second Station”
This tune was written in and about an emotional crisis (surprise!) while I was facing (what felt like) failure. The lyrics of the chorus are quite intense, so I wanted the bright harmonies and bells of the chorus to serve as a contrast and create some interesting dissonance. The title is taken from a Catholic devotion observed during Lent called Stations of the Cross that follows moments during the passion of Christ. In my life, faith has been a great anchor during times of crisis, and I think I share that with many people, whatever shape their faith takes. Also, I do think disappointing oneself and others every now and then is a healthy and freeing practice. Highly recommend.
6. “Clearer Through You”
Like “The Place in the Sky,” “Clearer” also came out of the grief-filled fall of 2020 while I was exploring the warped sense of self one can experience after the loss of a loved one. I’ve always seen and understood myself in and through those closest to me. After my dad died, I really started to question my identity. Who was I without him? Who does one become when their mirror is gone?
7. “(I Wonder) What We’re Made Of”
This one is for the homies! “I Wonder” is just a straight-up love song for my dearest ones who have carried me through some rough moments! I love my friends! And I wish them nothing but light and love and joy and peace and solace and purpose. I would be a shell of a human being without them. Since we’re obviously cut from the same cloth, I wonder what we’re made of…
8. “Amenaghawon”
During a trip to Benin City, I stumbled upon the name Amenaghawon and asked my mom what it meant. She explained that it was a phrase from a larger proverb meaning “The water you will drink will not pass you by.” It really stuck with me, and as a diasporan I’ve always felt an urge to #Represent (#NaijaToTheWorld #NaijaNoDeyCarryLast #OvbiEdo), so I wrote this song to honor my place of origin and path to the present. My mom is the light of my life, so naturally I had to get a feature. #50kForAVerseNoAlbumOut
9. “Lost in Translation”
This is a 3 a.m. stone-cold sober reflection. When the party’s over and everyone has gone their separate ways. It had a different feel until my recording session with the lovely Sam Cohen at Slow Fawn. This was the last track we did in the last hour of a very productive week. I hadn’t quite finished it, so we made a temporary demo with a drum loop and makeshift arrangement. I was looking through some of the potential lyrics I’d written in my Notes app and improvising as I went (hence the verse one flub). After we finished this take, we held our breath and just basked in the magic. It was bare and raw and real and wonderful.
