Holly Waxwing

“What does affection look like for a place instead of a person? And how can you transcribe a place not literally but emotionally?” These questions are the foundation for sonic exploration for the musician and sound designer Holly Waxwing. Sonically Holly's work manages to feel complex and focused, while also loose and fluid, a back and forth dynamic of exploring the micro and the macro. The result is a sound that eschews typical genre convention, taking in a wide range of influences from Arthur Russell to Prefab Sprout, and the writings of people such as Donna Haraway and E. O. Wilson. The process for achieving this deeply unique concoction is one that Waxwing has immersed himself in. “I use FM Synthesis heavily,” he says. “and for almost every sound you hear there's a lot of minute automation happening in the background.” However, despite the complexity of this process, the end result is not one that feels cold or detached in its execution – more rooted in life, color and movement. There is a tenderness, warmth and emotive element that radiates through the highly skilled construct of it all. “My last album almost felt like an exercise in virtuosity,” Waxwing says. “But my new work feels more exploratory and personal in nature. Like a journal entry.” - Daniel Dylan Wray