Being a woman is a fundamentally violent experience, both physically and psychologically. Pain must be hidden, individuality suppressed in favor of the feminine identity imposed by society. An unspoken refrain whispers "be smaller, be quieter, give your space to others."
Spanish-born and Scotland-raised pianist, singer, and songwriter Amaya Lopez-Carromero (healthyliving) explores this violence under alter-ego Maud the moth. Spinning narratives that haunt the gray space between song and sound, Lopez-Carromero reflects on identity, rootlessness, and trauma in deeply personal ways. Her latest album, The Distaff, delivers a surreal, somewhat autobiographical look at the constant negotiation between the feminine "ideal" and personal agency that all women must navigate throughout their lives.
Out tomorrow (February 21st) via The Larvarium and La Rubia Producciones, The Distaff is a testament to the unique talents and obsessions of Lopez-Carromero. Composed entirely on an acoustic piano with vocal pieces, The Distaff is grounded in the elegant simplicity of the singer-songwriter tradition, but swell into something bold and completely new with Maud the moth's experimental stylings. Lopez-Carromero embraces a bleak sonic palette, rife with noise and dissonance that are juxtaposed against her delicate vocals. Partially inspired by the Greek poet Erinna as she mourns the loss of her friend to marriage, The Distaff entangles beauty and violence in lush battles. But like the fraught nature of womanhood, it's impossible to decipher if the battles are for dominance or coexistence.
Seemingly tranquil, if mournful, piano melodies tread delicately into waves of sound. At times, The Distaff swells to doom metal heaviness, then morphs into soundscape walls of distortion and dissonance or symphonic grandeur. It's restless, yet determined. Ethereal yet stubbornly grounded. Grand and utterly distinct, The Distaff is a challenge to face the entirety of self and the forces that shape us, for better or worse.
Listen to The Distaff below before it drops on February 21st. Pre-order the album on Bandcamp and follow Maud the moth on Spotify, Instagram, or YouTube.
/html