Ammonite is the new project from songwriter and producer Amy Spencer. Her debut mini-album, Blueprints, explores two opposing sound worlds, voice and technology. Where layers of improvised vocals meet electronic processing and flow like a glorious, glitchy blue river.
Although she was a competent singer-songwriter and guest vocalist for Bicep (who wrote two songs on her debut album), TVAM, DC Gore and Motsa, like many women in music, she experienced "imposter syndrome" in male-dominated environments and preferred to leave others to produce. But with Ammonite, Spencer decided to try something new: creating fragments of self-reflective lyrics, droning vowels and staccato repetitive words, she constructed this debut 7-track sonic manifesto, with her voice at the forefront.
Throughout Blueprints, Spencer displays vulnerability and strength. Her music is close and intimate, but distant and reflective, as if from another time, floating in the atmosphere between space and earth. It is both organic and artificial. Neither good nor bad; human or machine; male or female.
We have had the pleasure of speaking with Amy, and this has been the result.
What aspect of music does Amy Spencer explore on the song "ARP"?
ARP was one of the last tracks I wrote for my new record Blueprints. Before this, most of the compositions had been moodier and melancholy. But I wanted to explore some more rhythmic elements so started playing around with my voice and arpeggiators, and it just came out of nowhere.
How does Spencer describe the process of creating "ARP" in comparison to her previous compositions? What role does Spencer's voice play in the song "ARP"?
ARP doesn’t have a lyrical vocal line which is a different approach to all of the other compositions from Blueprints. But it does have some effected voice notes where I’m talking through my process, and trying to understand what this music represents. These were initially much clearer voice notes – you could hear me say things like “I want to find the perfect ways to utilise my voice, but I think part of my approach has to be trying to escape this need for perfectionism, and just letting what happens be…” but Calum Duncan (who helped me finish the music) and I ended up making these a lot blurrier and intense so they fit better with the track. I think the sentiment is still there though, and this is really underlying throughout all of the tracks on Blueprints.
How does Yasmin Vardi describe the visual representation of the voice?
When Yasmi heard ARP, she said that she imagined my vocals as “jolts of electricity”. They carry quite a lot of energy as they travel through the track, so she wanted a way to showcase this throughout the visuals. The visuals are really intense but are even more impactful on a big screen while I perform live.
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