BEST NEW TRACKS: LUHA - SHE

Swedish/Filipina singer/songwriter/producer Luha channels the divine feminine on “She”!

LUHA - SHE

It’s not unusual for modern Pop to sound HUGE - swathed in gigantic reverbs, like the melodies are echoing out of some crystal cavern at the center of Time and Space. But while most modern Pop Provocateurs use this signalling to evoke a sense of distance, of removal and isolation - the sound of isolation and standing apart from the crowds - Luha uses reverb to simulate some metaphysical reality - a place beyond names, beyond figures, beyond trends and tastemaking.

On “She,” Luha comes across like the Mother Of Dragons, sounding like the source of all life, as she sings “I bring you fire/I bring you rain,” and “I give you life/I take it back again,” in a mysterious, Persian-sounding sing-songing, over tick-tocking tabla beats and partytime hand claps. “She”’s ginormous chorus could be sourced from Lana Del Rey’s playbook, but Luha is not playing at miserablist Pop, no self-pity or succumbing to weakness here. Instead, Luha’s soundscape sounds like Ishtar stripping off her seven veils, in search of Essence rather than superficial trappings.

It’s fitting, as Luha takes much inspiration from the non-musical world - long walks or hypnotic train rides. She’s not trying to come across as a particular ‘kind’ of musician, instead just using beats, melodies, and most every production trick known to modernity to create her personal visions. We Are: The Guard encourage you to let her transport you.

J. Simpson occupies the intersection between criticism, creativity, and academia. Based out of Portland, Or., he is the author of Forestpunk, an online journal/brand studying the traces of horror, supernatural, and the occult through music, fashion and culture. He plays in the dreamfolk band Meta-Pinnacle with his partner Lily H. Valentine, with whom he also co-founded Bitstar Productions, a visual arts collective focused on elevating Pop Culture to High Art.