Alice Ivy’s New Music Is Gorgeous with Organic Sounds

Alice Ivy is not one for social media. She certainly retweets links to her radio playlists, award nominations, and various interviews with PopMatters Over the years (hello), but rarely does she play the pop star game of being vulgar or posting wayward remarks. I have, on occasion, but you have to look to 2019 to find a personal and revealing post I got a tattoo Her family’s dog eats a bag of cookies.

However, for the native of Victoria, Australia, the lack of engagement with social media metrics may be part of a larger issue. Alice IvyExcellent first album, I’m dreamingIt was released in 2018, while it was released in the second year. Don’t sleephad the misfortune of being released during the pandemic. As such, it took some time before she dropped her third record. Do what makes you happymoving away from the sample-based dance music of her early works and toward more natural and organic sounds.

“I traveled a lot while making this album, and I was drawing inspiration from a lot of organic, upbeat, synthetic types of sounds and productions,” Ivy notes when speaking to PopMatters. “I think these natural themes just found their way into the lyrics organically.”

However, even with the new album featuring fewer DAW decks and more whistles and acoustic guitars, she hasn’t forgotten her roots and certainly remembers the unforgettable feeling of unleashing her first recording into the world.

“I was at a party recently and someone was there I’m dreaming “Play from start to finish,” she notes. “I honestly haven’t listened to it since like 2019! There are some songs where I’m like, ‘Okay, this still slaps.’ [laughs] It was my first album, and I made it during my first two years of producing music, so it captured a moment in time.

While switching between I’m dreaming and Don’t sleep It was relatively quick, it was a full four years ago Do what makes you happy He saw the light of day, and according to Ivy, it wasn’t for lack of trying. “Unfortunately, the main reason Do what makes you happy Took so long to write it was Covid! She explains. “Things were so tough in Melbourne, I couldn’t be in the same room with anyone to write, so as soon as I could get on a plane, I flew to LA!

“But despite that, I would say I’m a perfectionist, and that’s part of being an artist. I don’t think it’s ever possible for me to showcase something that I’m 100% happy with. As an artist, you’re constantly analyzing and reinterpreting things.” It can vary from small musical notes that only you can hear or even the beats per minute of a song.

“But what I’ve learned is that 99% of the time, these insecurities are internal to me and not everyone’s ears. Art is art, and sometimes, accepting that whatever you created that day is what it should be is best.” Much! In saying that, I think Do what makes you happy It’s my favorite album I’ve ever made, and I’m very proud of it.

Although collaborations are no stranger to Ivy, the new record features a series of notable guest stars that serve as a co-sign of her rise in the industry. Mayer Hawthorne, LapsleyBJ the Chicago Kid and Elohim are just a few of the many voices featured Do what makes you happy Its brilliance. However, for Alice Ivey, it is never about “securing” the guest; Her writing process is too organic for that to happen.

“I think it’s song by song,” she admits when asked about the process of choosing her guest spots. “I love collaborating and sharing song writing because you can create something really unique and wonderful! I have a little bit of a feeling when I know a song needs something else, so whether that means a different singer in a new section or opening up the arrangement, I try to keep as open a mind as possible.

One of these key links took a long time to come to life. “Do I Need to Know What Love Is?” with Josh Tisci took the longest [to create] “I would say,” notes Ivey. “That song had so many different forms; The original presentation was much slower, in fact! I ended up deleting all the original stems except for Josh’s vocals, the horns in the chorus and some of Juno’s parts, and completely rearranged the entire song. I had a feeling it wasn’t over yet, and it took a minute for everything to click. “

Another factor that plays a role is how the track was received live, especially after it toured the world and appeared on several festival bills. “When I write in the studio, especially for Alice Ivy, I have the thought of: ‘What would it feel like to do it live?’ running through the back of my head! But again, it depends on what you’re working on.”

One of these collaborations was with her old friend Mallrat, an alternative pop artist who Ivy had worked with before but had never appeared on one of her albums. “Sometimes these things take a while!” Ivy admits. “We wrote a bunch of stuff for her project and mine. We go back and forth between the US and Australia, so finding time and working around each other’s schedules is always a challenge! But I’m glad we finally made it happen!”

While other bonding tracks didn’t end up making the album cut (specifically the fun “Wave” with Daktyl), her encounter with the Australian pop legend Sam Sparrow She did, and listening to the two finally collaborate feels like a long-awaited, albeit virtual, meeting of the minds: “We were supposed to write in person on my first trip to the US, but I got sick so we did a Zoom session instead.” . We get along really well and I really hope I can spend time with him IRL someday!

While Ivy publicly admits that it would be a pleasure to see one of her new songs reach a wider audience via her Drag Race Down (“I’d probably die if I had my own song in the lip-sync battle, but I’d say something with a key change that could be hot, maybe ‘Dandelion’ or ‘Sticky Situations,'” she mused), while having a diegetic experience of hearing her songs In the real world it’s unbeatable. In the words of her Lapsley duet, “It makes her feel like a rock star, baby.”

“It’s the moments when I’m completely out of the music world that surprise me, like when I’m grocery shopping or when I’m too sleepy in the airport lounge at 6:00 a.m. Those are the times when I heard an Alice Ivy song and said, ‘Oh wow. !

If the reception is for Do what makes you happy Any indication that she’ll be hearing her music outside of store and car speakers for years to come.