NAILAH HUNTER Shares New Single/Video “Bleed”
"Hunter's output is as beautiful as it is exploratory" DJ 'Album of the Month'
“This LP is a treat, like listening to an oracle from the depths of a digital cave” Uncut
"the missing link between Alice Coltrane and Enya… a true original” The Times
Today LA-based harpist/multi-instrumentalist and composer Nailah Hunter shares “Bleed,” the 3rd single made available ahead of the release of Lovegaze, Hunter’s highly anticipated debut full-length out this Friday, January 12, 2024 on new label home Fat Possum.
The entrancing “Bleed” showcases the casual might of Hunter’s voice and gorgeous harp playing, and comes with a video filmed by Dillon Howl at El Matador State Beach in Malibu, edited by Hayoan of America, and starring dancer Kearian Giertz.
Nailah shares: “I wrote ‘Bleed’ in Southsea with the Celtic harp. The song was born of a heartbreaking moment that I hadn’t had time to process until then. I let myself wallow and explore heartbreak tropes and clichés that I hadn’t engaged in since I was a teenager singing with my acoustic guitar in coffee shops. It felt really nice to reconnect to that part of myself with everything I’ve learned since then.”
Nailah Hunter also has this to say about the video: “Capturing the essence of profound human emotion through silent movements has always captivated me, and watching dancers effortlessly do so has been a source of admiration and envy. In creating the visual accompaniment for ‘Bleed,’ a song that delves into the depths of heartbreak, I sought to mirror the intensity of total surrender. The vast and tumultuous sea became the perfect backdrop, symbolizing the dramatic threshold that echoes the theme of the track. The concept of ‘death by the sea’ has long stirred my emotions, drawing inspiration from powerful images such as Miguel Carbonel Selva's Safo, viking burials, and the poignant stories of enslaved Africans who chose to jump overboard, seeking liberation from unimaginable horrors."
WATCH the video for “Bleed” filmed by Dillon Howl, edited by Hayoan of America, and starring dancer Kearian Giertz HERE
As the daughter of a Belizean pastor, Nailah Hunter began her musical journey in the church where she played drums, guitar and sang in the choir. She continued on to study music at CalArts, where she studied vocal performance and was given her first harp lesson. Associating the instrument with fantasy, psychedelia, and dream worlds, Hunter became an immediate devotee, locking herself in a room for six hours a day to practice the instrument.
To make Lovegaze, Hunter decamped to a small coastal city along the English Channel where she began recording demos with a borrowed celtic harp. After being introduced to London-based producer Cicely Goulder, Hunter returned to England a year later to further develop the songs.
Lovegaze is an enthralling album that draws listeners into her enchanting cosmology. The whole album was written during a time of both global and personal strife for Hunter, and while Lovegaze captures some of that sense of distress, it’s also a willful reminder of the fortitude and beauty of Earth’s natural processes. As Hunter says: “Nature remains; we’re the passing thing.”
Pre-Order Lovegaze out January 12, 2024 on Fat Possum Records HERE
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