Your take on “Doll Parts” transforms the original’s grungy intensity into a lush blend of trip-hop and jazzy pop. When did you realize the song wanted to live in this entirely new sonic world?
It was stuck in my head one day last spring, and I just started playing with some chords, liking the more minor vibe that I was hearing. Then the sections of the song started to really move in this different way. Rhythmically, the feel was always in the Stevie Wonder kind of funk-jazz vibe, and then it made sense to slow it down.
You’ve described Courtney Love’s lyrics as “perfectly sparse” and passing your personal “Norwegian Wood” test. How did that lyrical economy influence your phrasing and emotional delivery?
Literally every line in the song has multiple layers of meaning. There’s the surface angst of a situationship; she’s wondering if this guy is a player and if she is good enough in his eyes. But under that, everyone knows that this vulnerability is coming from a pretty strong woman, but there’s still so much bs that comes from the patriarchal world we must navigate. All that was on my mind when I was recording it. It was almost like a blues in that respect.
From the vibey breakbeats to vintage keys and baritone sax, the production feels immersive and cinematic. What were the key sonic ingredients that defined the track’s atmosphere?
The keys and the baritone sax really place this in a weird film noir.
Your solo work leans darker and more theatrical than Plaid Lion. What creative instincts or themes surfaced here that might not have fit within the duo format?
I just didn’t see Plaid Lion covering a Courtney Love song! Plaid Lion is more about romantic adventure rather than trying to challenge the listener so much. There is space for everything.
Covering such an iconic vocal performance is a bold move. How did you balance honoring the emotional core of the original while making the performance unmistakably yours?
When I’m arranging, writing and recording, I take care to set any direct influences aside (other than the lyrics themselves if it’s a cover). I need to hear my own voice in it. I spent a lot of time just deeply reflecting on the lyrics, communicating them as opposed to just singing them.
You’ve described your solo universe as “haunted houses, feminist rants, David Lynch references, and Tacoma sadgirl vibes.” Which of those energies feels most present on this release?
Oh, I’d have to say the feminist rants and the Tacoma sadgirl vibes. The deal with being a Tacoma sadgirl is that she is never fragile in her sadness. This is Grit City, after all.
You co-produced the track with Sam Welch. Were there any unexpected moments during production where the arrangement or mood shifted in a surprising direction?
I was initially wanting a very big dramatic sound along the lines of Florence + The Machine’s Dance Fever album, but my arrangement of “Doll Parts” didn’t want to go in that sort of baroque pop direction. It was like a current that kept bringing me home to jazz. Deciding to stay in my own lane — jazz, trip-hop — was a powerful creative decision for me, and Sam was there to support. Then I started hearing the baritone sax needed to be there, and that gave it a film noir feel. It’s exciting to build a track like this. It’s just as difficult, if not more difficult, than working with one’s original tunes. And then in the end, it was cinematic and dramatic in its own way.
If you could collaborate with any artist, alive or dead, who would it be? What’s on the horizon next for your solo work or projects beyond?
I would love to work with Baz Luhrmann!
What’s up next for me is “Laura Palmer,” which releases 2/13. Plaid Lion also has some new releases coming up.
