MOTHICA Shares New Album 'Kissing Death'
Blending the tough subjects of death, depression, addiction and suicidal ideations with catchy melodies and heart-thumping guitars – Oklahoma-born artist MOTHICA opens the curtains to her new album ‘Kissing Death’.
Taking the listener on an emotional and rhythmic trip through subjects most of us try so hard to not think about, MOTHICA lets them take center stage. “For my whole life, I’ve romanticized death” she says “In the back of my mind, suicide seemed like a natural and easy solution. When my thoughts get dark, I remind myself that we have an infinite amount of time to ‘not exist.’ For the small sliver I’m here, it’s important to soak up every second and make the most of it. It’s scary to surrender to the unknown, but it’s powerful to not give into my toxic vices anymore’.”
MOTHICA started releasing music independently in 2015. Utilizing her background as an illustrator and graphic designer she opted to design her own merch and creatively direct her music videos in a full-on DIY approach. In her previous albums she has masterfully jumped between all genres from electronic music and left-of-center pop, and now recently incorporating more heavier rock influences.
‘Kissing Death’ is a captivating blend of dark and emotional. A visual album – the story covering the 12 tracks only further develops in the, as of now, eight music videos. Following the artist throughout is the reaper as her stalking love interest. MOTHICA states she “[…] decided to make the Grim Reaper a love interest in a dark rom-com-style tale. […] The videos unfold a surrealist version of my life story. I thought, ‘How do I cope with the fact I embrace life so much now that I have a fear of losing it?’ There’s a bit of dark humor, because I wanted to artistically portray what it’s like to live with this shadow following me.” The imagery only further extenuates the vulnerable, dark and uncomfortable topics the album deals with in a way that really immerses the listener into the world.
Opening the track list, The Void directly gives us a taste of what’s to come. With clear electronic influences, heavy bass and nods to 80s nostalgia, the atmospheric track really sets the mood. Following that is a plethora of catchy tunes with deep lyricism. Songs such as ‘Another High’ and ‘Doomed’ master the blend skillfully. Throughout the album the lyrics seem to really come from the heart and that is mirrored in the overall feel of the album. The lyrics, the instrumentals, the imagery all have purpose and behind them are a lot of thought that really shines through.
Ending it all with the track ‘Kissing Death’ was a great choice. The rhythmic strumming of the guitar gives it a feeling reminiscent of an outro to a coming-of-age film. The song wraps up the album beautifully with lyrics such as “I’m sick of kissing death” contrasting with the previous metaphoric relationship with the reaper – an image that was present throughout the album. It shows the artist has grown and now closes that chapter of her life. A perfect end to the album.
MOTHICA is set to headline her own tour, the first leg starting this September in Antwerp, Belgium and ending in Glasgow, UK. The second leg starts in Phoenix, AZ this November and ends in San Fransisco, CA. Find more information here.
Written by: Tove Hellmalm