MALKA and Inge Thomson – The Bliss (Tantrum Records)
Electronic musician MALKA teams up with songwriter and composer Inge Thomson for this wonky electro-pop single ahead of a compilation amplifying the talent of female and non-binary songwriters and producers in Scotland.
Artist: MALKA and Inge Thomson
Track: The Bliss
Label: Tantrum Records
Released: 29 September 2021
Find it: Spotify | Soundcloud
If you like your electro-pop a little wonky, and your songwriting a little quirky then The Bliss, a collaborative single between MALKA (aka Tamara Schlesinger, once of alt-folk collective 6 Day Riot) and Inge Thomson, is going to ring you great joy.
Exactly the sort of hook-filled electro-pop track we’ve come to expect from MALKA there is a dreamlike quality melodically and lyrically. You’re flying free and then jolted before the impact of a fall. There is skittering and delicate beauty suddenly overcast by shadow. There is something sinister lurking just beyond the limits of what you see, what you understand.
There are gentle flourishes of melody which are halted by by harder edged beats and vocally vulnerability and acceptance ring through the pace changes, an underlying exploration of trust and the constraints placed upon us taken through a slightly supernatural tale. It’s a track feeling full of action despite a somewhat claustrophobic lyrical tilt, layers of instrumentation and voice working in movements to create a complex sound delivered without burdening the listener with challenge.
“Wilful wilderness / It’s clear you’re harming me/ When can I go home?”
Tamara said of working together on the track, “Inge and I brought out the best in each other, the track came together fairly quickly as we both clicked straight away and had a dear vision for where to take it”
Inge continues, “We sent each other lyric ideas and snippets of audio before we settled on a vibe for the song, it was very exciting to be working with a new collaborator”.
This is the second single to be released from the Hen Hoose project, set up during lockdown by Schlesinger as a response to gender inequality in the music industry. Bringing together female and non-binary songwriters and producers from Scotland the compilation, Equaliser, features Amandah Wilkinson, Beldina Odenyo, Carla J Easton, Elisabeth Elektra, Emma Pollock, Inge Thomson, Jay Puren, Karine Polwart, Pippa Murphy, Suse Bear, Sarah Hayes and Tamara Schlesinger.
The Bliss by MALKA and Inge Thomson is out digitally now via Tantrum Records. It is taken from Hen Hoose compilation album Equaliser, out 5 November and available for pre-order.
Find MALKA: Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Spotify
Find Inge Thomson: Twitter | Facebook | Spotify
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Sarah Lay
A long-standing music journalist she's also co-founder of independent record label Reckless Yes, an author of novels, and when not messing around with words and music, a digital strategist.
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