Next month, Perth-born and London-based songwriter Sophia Hansen-Knarhoi will release her debut collection of songs, Undertow, an experimental set of recordings that set sometimes-disarmingly soul-searching lyrics to minimalist compositions largely based around cello. The second cut of gothic-tinged chamber-folk to arrive from the set is “My Mother and Me,” which, as you can imagine based on its title, takes the artist deep into her childhood in Western Australia as she strives to escape from her present demons. “The song begins with frustration,” she shares, “an inability to separate my pleasure from the pain. It’s a late-night, tossing-and-turning spiral, weaving its way to a younger version of me and my mother on the beach.”
That younger version is highlighted midway through the song after a beat switch, of sorts, when the elegant strings give way to a nearly ambient passage over which Hansen-Knarhoi nakedly lays out her past. “The spoken-word section reveals a simpler state of being, memories of my mum and I combing the beach in all of its tactile, sensory glory. We would comb mostly in silence, unless sharing a prized treasure with each other. I have kept many of the items we collected together over the years, many of which you see in the music video. This particular set of childhood memories became a grounding force in repairing the rift between my mind and my body. I began finding ways to experience my senses through the lens of a younger self, to find meaning in my sensuality beyond its possession by someone else.”
Among the orchestral backing, Hansen-Knarhoi shouts out the polyrhythmic harp as well as handmade shell horns, an apt touch brought to the proceedings by Peter Zummo. Check out the moody music video below, and anticipate Undertow out November 14 via Ba Da Bing! Records.
