Fuelled by a desire to experiment sonically and to capture the “kind of harsh mundanity that life can carry”, LA–based composer and multi-instrumentalist Amelia Baker aka Cinder Well carefully crafted her latest album, A Blooming Body. Released in July via Hen House Studios, it’s a disarming collection of tender keys, clear vocals, emotive lyrics and considered instrumentation; through which she evokes a similarly eerie atmosphere associated with louder, heavier music.
We think one of the best ways to get to know an artist is by asking what music inspired them to write in the first place. We caught up with Amelia to ask about her “Five Favourites” and she picked five albums by an eclectic range of artists who have inspired her songwriting techniques. Check out her choices below and scroll down to watch the official video for Cinder Well’s latest single ‘Of Nettles and Roses’ too…
1. Mount Eerie – Lost Wisdom
This record was my introduction to the world of Phil Elverum, who continues to be an influence for me. I loved this record and I still do, it is so sparse yet atmospheric, beautiful songwriting, raw harmonies with Julie Doiron. It feels very focused on the loss of a relationship and you just inhabit that for a while when you listen to it. This must have come out during my first year at college and I remember taking the bus to see Mount Eerie play in a small restaurant venue. He played solo and it was great, a strong memory.
2. Cat Power – You Are Free
I listened to so much Cat Power in high school but this record had a good concentration of my favourite songs on it. I think I took more from Cat Power in my early songwriting than I realized at the time or was willing to admit. The first song I ever recorded (my friend recorded me in his bedroom in high school) was ‘Maybe Not’ from this record, and it absolutely blew my mind to realize that we could just do what these seemingly otherworldly people did – write and record music. The songs on this album have such simple chords and that was really encouraging when I started writing. I still feel the same way listening to this record now as I did when I was 16.
3. Elliott Smith – XO
The day Elliott Smith died my mom was driving me home from Junior High and we had the local radio station on. This song that I’d never heard came on, ‘Waltz #2’, and I was stunned throughout its entirety. As it was back then, I was hoping the radio presenter would announce what we just listened to. And then they did, saying “that was Elliott Smith, who died today”. So I went through an intense Elliott Smith phase at the age of 13, hiding my iPod headphones under my hoodie during class absorbing his entire discography. This maybe explains why I tend to write sad songs…
4. Ulver – Bergatt
This record (and Kveldssanger, also by Ulver) was my gateway drug from folk into metal and it was introduced to me by my bandmates in Blackbird Raum, who were older and cooler than me. I loved the atmospheric black-metal which felt entirely new to my brain but the acoustic interludes and clean vocals with strong melodies were also sitting in a familiar world. The harmonic movements of the chords started to seep in to my songwriting pretty immediately when I started writing for Cinder Well.
5. Ali Farke Touré, Ry Cooder – Talking Timbuktu
I found this CD in my dad’s collection as a teenager and have been a big fan of Ali Farke Toure ever since. The melodies on this album are infectious and it has such a sense of atmosphere – the dueting guitars make the production feel full and lush. I love Ali Farke Toure’s guitar playing, it’s so meditative and circular. I have learned a lot from his playing and try to channel this by playing in open tunings with circular finger picking patterns.
Thanks to Amelia for sharing her favourites with us!
Watch the video for Cinder Well’s latest single ‘Of Nettles and Roses’ below.
Follow Cinder Well: website, bandcamp, TIDAL, Instagram & Facebook
Photo Credit: Chelsea “Cheech” Moosekian
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