Q&A: Sapphic Folk Artist Gemma Laurence Announces Upcoming Album ‘We Were Bodies Underwater’ With Lead Single “Bloodlines”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY HAZEL RAIN ☆
Photo by Charlotte Schweiger
ALWAYS CREATING DREAMY ACOUSTIC SOUNDS FOR HOPEFUL TRACKS — Brooklyn-based folk artist Gemma Laurence has created a music video both haunting and nostalgic to accompany her newest single “Bloodlines,” out April 4. This single is the first to come as part of the upcoming album We Were Bodies Underwater, coming July 18.
Although this newest song captures painful pasts, there is always love and hope present in what Laurence writes. While the video shows bizarre imagery (such as nails for breakfast) it feels like a comforting film for the viewer, giving a glimpse into an important relationship.
Laurence has previously released two albums, Lavender and Crooked Heart. She has been compared to artists such as Phoebe Bridgers and Adrianne Lenker, although her unique sound always shines through.
Read below to learn more about Laurence and the making of We Were Bodies Underwater.
Photo by Kyle J. Wright
LUNA: Hello! How has your spring been so far?
LAURENCE: Hi there! It’s been dreamy, I’ve been queer line dancing every week, making music, playing shows. The magnolia blossoms are out in New York. I’m gearing up for this album. I’m excited! I feel like I’m on the cusp of something.
LUNA: Congratulations on your upcoming album! How has the process of writing and creating We Were Bodies Underwater compared to your past albums?
LAURENCE: Thank you! The creative process behind this album has been interesting. It took four years for these songs to come together, but when it came time to record it, we tracked the whole album in one go. My whole band piled into my drummer’s car and we drove up to Connecticut on Valentine’s Day. We spent nine days recording at my friend Charlie’s studio, Ashlawn Recording Company, which is such a special place. It was a beautiful, immersive experience. Every morning we’d wake up at 7am, put on some coffee, then trek across the snowy driveway to the recording studio and track for ten to twelve hours. We wouldn’t even notice the light fading. Snow would be falling outside, all the farm animals grazing in the pastures – it was magical.
LUNA: Can you tell me a bit about the story behind "Bloodlines?”
LAURENCE: “Bloodlines” is a song about loving someone who’s been through hell and back. When I was writing the song, I was thinking of Adrienne Rich’s poem “Diving into the Wreck” and had this clear image of someone extending a hand to me and bringing me down to explore a shipwreck, showing me the remains, the memories, the hidden corners of their life. I imagined these two bodies floating underwater, intertwined. The album title We Were Bodies Underwater comes from a lyric in this song. It’s a beautiful image, but there’s something morbid to it too. Like, the past is always going to be there. We can’t escape it. But we can keep an open heart in spite of everything, we can still love deeply and fully.
LUNA: The music video for "Bloodlines" is so lovely. Can you talk a bit about the imagery you chose for it and how it came to life?
LAURENCE: “Bloodlines” is a song rooted in the past, so I wanted to create a video that felt very nostalgic. I worked with my friend Ross Page, who shot the whole video on Super 8, which gives it this grainy, timeless feeling. The story follows this couple moving in together and building this seemingly picture-perfect home…until strange things start to happen around them. I’ve been on a Twin Peaks bender recently and I really wanted to incorporate some Lynchian imagery - stuff that feels just slightly off, that makes you question your reality. Because ultimately the video is not grounded in reality. It looks like a love story, but it’s more of a fantasy - a memory of how something used to be, a fantasy of what you hoped it would become.
LUNA: Do you have a favorite song or moment of creating that comes to mind from this new album?
LAURENCE: I think my favorite two songs are the next two singles coming out after “Bloodlines”… stay tuned! One of them has this all queer-femme line dancing video set in this purgatory-esque liminal space. It’s gonna be weird. And very sexy. I’m excited for people to see it.
Photo by Kyle J. Wright
LUNA: What has been your favorite part of performing recently?
LAURENCE: I’ve been loving all the touring I’ve gotten to do this past year. I’d never really toured extensively before, and this past year I’ve played all over the East Coast (like 35+ shows? Mostly solo or duo) and it’s been so rewarding. I’m an extrovert; I love meeting new people. It’s been such a treat getting to meet so many amazing new people on the road. I think I was kind of built for the touring lifestyle – I love New York, but I get restless if I’m in one place for too long.
LUNA: Who has been inspiring you creatively right now?
LAURENCE: I’ve been listening to Hurray for the Riff Raff’s album The Past is Still Alive on repeat since it came out last year, same with Adrianne Lenker’s Real House. Seeing Adrianne live was a transformative experience. Ethel Cain, Al Menne, Katie Gavin, Lou Hazel, Allie, MJ Lenderman are all on loop too. Lucy Dacus’s new record is amazing, so is Pictoria Vark’s. The Ophelias just put out their new record today too and it’s stellar. There’s so much good music coming out right now.
LUNA: Is there anything else you'd like to share, or that you're looking forward to?
LAURENCE: I’ve got a couple of shows coming up! I’m playing a house show in New Orleans on April 15, then back in New York City to play Union Pool on May 23. You can go to my Instagram or my website to see the details for those shows and more that I’m going to be announcing soon.
