KOOL artist biographies
HEATHER NOVA
Something
happens to Heather Nova as soon as she starts to sing. In the flesh the
beautiful, Bermuda born songwriter is softly spoken and painfully
modest. On record however, armed with an angelic voice which soars from
a glass shattering soprano to an earthy alto, she sounds supremely
confident. Having spent two years on tour since the release of her
700,000 selling last album, "Oyster", Nova has good reason to feel at
ease with her music. 300 gigs - following the release of "Oyster",
mostly with a full on rocking band, and some acoustic performances with
only a cello player as accompaniment - have strengthened her haunting,
poetic style and encouraged her to experiment more with her unique and
powerful vocals.
"When I finished touring," says Heather, "I
went home to Bermuda and rented this cottage that was right on the sea
and as it was winter time there were lots of storms. The front of the
cottage was literally in the water and the waves would lash the walls.
It was fantastic. I cut myself off from the phone, T.V, everything.
After being on the road for so long, I 'd got really strung out and
removed from myself. I needed to be alone to gather up all the ideas I
had and to write some new songs. I didn't want to just rush in and
record a new record to meet any deadlines, when the time came I just
took my time and really enjoyed being in the studio."
"Siren",
released in May '98, is a mix of stripped down, story telling songs,
string drenched, mid tempo guitar driven tracks and atmospheric
ballads. Written last year on a return trip to Bermuda, it's 14 tracks
were recorded at various studios in London at Real World in Bath with
longtime collaborators Felix Tod and Youth, as well as new Nova
producer, John Kelly.
The result is a deeply personal record
full of observations on love and relationships as well as Nova's
trademark emotive lyrics and earthy imagery. "This record is more raw
than "Oyster ". After living on the road for so long, I wanted the
production to be less of a process and more an art of capturing the
moment, with a lot more spontaneity and room for improvisation" , says
Heather." "Oyster" was an aftermath record it was about picking up the
pieces, healing old wounds; I buried my past in that record, and Siren
is about moving on: the schizophrenic life of being on the road and the
highs and lows of love."
The album was recorded with what Nova
refers to as her dream team of players, which included Paul Sandrone
from Raissa on bass, Nicolaj Juel from Addict on guitar , Nadia Landman
from Nova's live band on cello, and Geoff Dougmore from Killing Joke on
drums. Clearly influenced by the live experience, Nova's new songs are
both her most loose and direct to date.
Raised on a 40 foot sail
boat built by her parents, on which she travelled around the West
Indies until the age of 15,Nova grew up listening to The Beatles, Neil
Young and Jimmy Cliff. She started writing her own songs at art
college, where she majored in film making, before moving to London to
pursue a career in music. Her first album, "Glowstars" was little more
than a simply structured collection of demos, recorded at home on an
eight track. The next release couldn't have been more opposite, the
album "Blow" being a tape of a live show that was released to accompany
a European tour ,and ended up selling 40,000 in Europe within a few
months of release, on the back of some rave live reviews.
The
first single from Siren, "London Rain", was released in April '98, it's
an 'on the road' song. "As virtually all performers would say, the
actual on stage element of touring is fantastic , but all the bullshit
that goes with it can make you yearn for some kind of reality, familiar
places and familiar faces." The video for the single was shot in
Bermuda.
Nova's personal favorite is "Valley Of Sound". It's
about simply being overcome by music, where music has a power to bring
you to your knees. I was so inspired by an early solo performance of
Jeff Buckley's, the way he was willing to really expose his soul. I
felt transported..........music taking you to the depths of feeling we
can't sometimes otherwise attain."
"I'm The Girl" is about the
idea of ancestral memory. That as a woman I am connected to every woman
that has come before me......every archetype....every emotion....has
been felt by women before me. Sometimes I'm the siren and sometimes I'm
drawn to the rocks myself."
"Paper Cup" is the song about
unrequited love, something that might have been. At the same time,
trying to hold on to something that can never last".
In the
summer of '98, Nova and her new band consisting of Bastion Juel (bass),
Berit Fridahl (guitar), Laurie Jenkins (drums) and Nadia Lanman (cello
and keyboards), went out on another gruelling world tour, starting with
some European club dates, moving onto a US club tour and some dates on
the Lillth Fair festival.
A live album was recorded during a
further sell-out European tour (due for release late summer) in
Germany, where the sales of 'Siren' passed the 100,000 mark as the
second single 'Heart and Shoulder' was released.
Currently
taking a break to write, she will be doing an acoustic promo trip in
Australia and New Zealand through April/May before embarking on a
summer of festivals throughout Europe - see gigs section for dates.
© Copyright Koolmag Ltd 2000
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