horsegiirL
Nature Is Healing
RCA
Berlin-based artist Stella Stallion—whose beguiling persona is largely defined by her insistence on being identified as the half-horse, half-human entity horsegiirL—is an enigmatic DJ blurring the line between irony, camp, and sincerity. Her backstory seems to be entirely fabricated, with the liminal, otherworldly space this character exists within feeling like a mash up of Daft Punk and Jo Calderone—it’s as strange and inexplicable as it is dancy and captivating, like a dissociative ketamine trip that feels slightly off in a particularly entrancing way. Still, horsegirrL’s identity is only one part of her mystique, the other part being her ability to create immersive club music.
Her debut album Nature Is Healing isn’t a cliche DJ record. Just like her identity, this project exists between multiple spaces of reality: It’s very much a dance record filled with synths, heavy bass, and the traditional beeps and bloops, yet somehow it also feels organic and alive. It’s an electronic world that feels techy, yet earthy. Nature Is Healing is intense, yet is occasionally subdued through lyrics and a deliberate withholding of that sense of aggression. The record does have the traditional bangers, like “That’s My Beach!,” “Karma Is,” and “Earth Is Turning”—all feel-good songs with empowering lyrics and repeating syncopated beats. But then there are other tracks that lean toward a mellower, more introspective mood: the title track, “Organic Intelligence (Oi),” and “Rivers Run Free” are among the more restrained numbers.
horsegiirL word-paints with her nature-centric lyrics, combining them with calming melodies and textures. This deviation from a clubby atmosphere works well, contrasting with the explosive dance numbers (there are even songs that dip their feet in both the calming waters of nature and dopamine-induced club atmosphere, like “Take Me to Venus”). The club-oriented tracks are Dionysian in expression, both melodically and lyrically—although still self-aware—while the more tranquilized tracks feel Apollonian, contemplative. It’s a balance Nietzsche once advocated for because he believed that this was where the more interesting art came from. And what horsegiirL is doing is certainly interesting.
