Kara Arena Connects With the Past and the Present With Debut Album ‘Something Blue’
NEW YORK CITY HAS LONG BEEN A HAVEN FOR THE — folk music–inclined. The streets carry the memories of the renowned ’60s folk scene and the legendary musicians who sprung from it. There’s no question that in the midst of the modern folk revival, New York has become a hub once again. On Kara Arena’s debut folk album, Something Blue, she embraces this folk history while adding her own personal touch.
Recorded in NYC and with her debut performance of the album at Green Room 42 happening on March 27, the singer-songwriter is excited to see the response.
“This album release has been a slow burn,” Arena says. “I’m thrilled to finally have it out in the world.”
Arena took inspiration not only from the New York folk scene but from traditional and familial roots as well. The album opens with an homage to Appalachian clawhammer banjo player Matokie Slaughter, a musician who has special meaning to Arena’s family.
“The reference has a double meaning,” Arena explains. “My late cousin, Margaret Kilgallen, was a visual artist who was known for being one of the leading pioneers of the Bay Area Mission School movement. During the ’90s, Margaret began drawing freight train graffiti under the name 'Matokie Slaughter' as an homage to the folk musician. My dream is to one day create a concept album around this character, keeping both the original Matokie and Margaret alive in song, just as they live on within their own work.”
Throughout Something Blue, this theme of feminism is combined with explorations of love, heartbreak, and nature to weave together seamlessly over beautiful acoustic guitar and crystal clear, melodic vocals. The years of meticulous work on the album can be felt in every song.
“I began writing these songs five or six years ago when I was first exploring being a writer,” Arena describes. “When I first started writing these tunes, I never imagined I’d release an album. Nothing seemed more frightening to me than sharing music that came from my own brain. But I have always believed that if you’re not a little afraid of something, it’s not worth doing. So for better or for worse, I keep chasing the next frightening thing as a writer.”
Arena worked with producer Jacob Fjeldheim to find the right sound for the instrumentation on the album.
“Jacob … is a brilliant composer and musical mind,” she explains. “He was also my significant other at the time, and [the album was recorded] while we were experiencing the lockdown in our apartment in Brooklyn. While I play a little guitar and dulcimer on the record, you can hear him on the keys, bass, guitar, chord organ, and background vocals. The process was very collaborative, and his influence can be felt on every track.”
The final sound Arena and Fjeldheim found echoes global folk musicians of the past while maintaining a modern sensibility. These influences and natural themes find perfect visualization in the music video for “Everything You Are.”
“During my very early days as a songwriter, I traveled to Scotland for the first time — I’m Scottish and Irish on my mother’s side — and as strange as it sounds, being amongst the landscape of that part of the world seemed to bring about my true sound as a musician,” Arena says. “The misty cliffs and the gray seas feel like where my music was born, and my writing is a way of speaking to my ancestors. That connection is something I hope to continue to reach for always.”
With the anticipation of releasing and performing the album nearly in the rear-view mirror, Arena is excited to find out what will come next.
“I look forward to traveling a bit and writing some more songs,” she says. “A change of scenery seems to always inspire me, so I’m staying open and staying out of my own way so the ideas can come out.”
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