Last month, Kelly Lee Owens announced she would be releasing what she’s labeled her “eighth album,” (which will really be her third, if we’re counting) LP.8 on April 29 (via Smalltown Supersound). She initially shared singles “Sonic 8” and “Olga” with the announcement, and now, she’s shared a third single, “One.” The track arrives with a black-and-white visualizer created by Zeynep Agcabay.
Following the release of her sophomore album Inner Song, Owens traveled to Oslo immediately before Norway closed its borders due to Covid concerns, leaving her to create what a press release refers to as her “blank page project” in the city with producer Lasse Marhaug (Merzbow, Sunn O))), Jenny Hval). What the pair created together bridged a slew of influences, including Enya, Throbbing Gristle and Celtic mysticism, to express the full range of emotions one might feel about an uncertain time like the one we live in. That wide range is exhibited in the previews we’ve received, with “One” feeling like a slightly more hopeful expression of self-belief compared to the warning call of closer “Sonic 8.”
“You are the one you’ve been waiting for,” Owens asserts on a loop as the booming drums and bursts of electronic static grow behind her, and her voice speaks to itself as it pans between each far right or left channel. Each statement encourages the listener, or perhaps Owens herself, to tear everything down and rebuild what they have to if that’s the only way they can restart. She observes that there’s “hot ash where nothing grows,” as her voices echo in either ear before countering herself with, “Yeah, but everything is possible.” Amidst the occasional chaos of the instrumental backing, she conveys a clear desire to defy any obstacle thrown in her path, even if it’s something as monumental as the world shutting down.
Owens is set to play a handful of festival dates throughout the summer across Europe and the U.K., including Roskilde Festival in Denmark, Magnolia Festival in Milan and South Facing in London. You can find a full list of her tour dates here.
Check out the visualizer for “One” below. You can pre-order LP.8 here.