Q&A: Lenka Kripac

Through music and art, Australian artist Lenka Kripac has successfully given shape to her own little world. Besides making uplifting music, Lenka designs sets for her video shoots and also wears the video editor hat often. The artist, who is in India this week for two shows that will take place in Mumbai and Chennai, talks to us about her creative process.

You tweeted saying you’re sick of pop radio sounding like you’re at the gym in the Nineties. What were you listening to then?

I found myself thinking that when I heard one of the new Katy Perry songs. A lot of mainstream pop nowadays has that EDM trend that I personally don’t like. I like organic sounding things. Her song “Roar” on the other hand is great, as it has more instruments. I just hope pop moves on from that trend, and I hope it moves on soon. That is not to say I don’t like all electronic music. I do like some electronic pop, but it has to be more experimental and interesting sounding.

What do you like most about being a songwriter?

I like the power that a song can have. Music is a very powerful medium and it can greatly affect our lives. I know, from personal experience, how much a song can help me, change my mood, or change my perspective on things. I like that the lyrics I create can do that for other people. It’s amazing when I can make someone feel good through my songs.

You have quite a remarkable mix of uplifting songs and melancholic songs. Is it easier for you to compose one over the other?

When I first started out I found it challenging to create happy songs, but at the same time I didn’t want to put out depressing music, so I had to work really hard at creating happy songs. Eventually, I got really good at it, and right now, I find it more difficult to do melancholic songs.

Do you have any influences outside of music?

There are many things. I love art, I love nature and I love the combination of the two. Anything that combines those two worlds, like folk art or crafts, is fascinating to me. I also find inspiration from children’s books and fairy tales. I feel like this is all very similar to the world that I am trying to create with my music. I am in a whimsical fantasyland, and anything that is aligned with that inspires me.

Watch “After The Winter”: Animations by Lenka and James Gulliver Hancock

 

You have a background in fine arts and you are also given to visual expression. For you, how do the visual and musical align?

The two are linked and both play an equally important part, particularly in this day and age when everyone watches music videos. As an artist, I have always poured my heart over the album artwork. I actually like doing the artwork as much as making music. And of course, I try to keep that childlike, homemade feel to the visuals ”“ we do things like model-making. Thinking about how I would like to incorporate my fans into my work, we have also compiled fan footage into our videos.

Your husband James Gulliver Hancock works with you on the videos you produce. What is the creative process behind them like?

It is really very natural for us both. We love having that creative discourse, as it is a big part of our relationship. We love working together, even though it is really the only time we have a fight. But what’s more, I feel like we have grown together as artists through the work that we do together, him with is illustrations and I with my music.

Can you talk to me about your new video “Nothing Here But Love” ?

James had actually come up with the idea of the body into a landscape a while ago. So the link is somewhat vague and poetic. The song has this Utopian fantasy view of Mother Nature to it. The world isn’t really like that song. But all of those good feelings and all that love, that is me wishing the world was like that. We thought James’ idea fit perfectly into this message. If you watch it, you will see me making all the objects fall in love, everyone is united, everything comes together slowly to create this little world where there is nothing but love.

Watch  “Nothing Here But Love”

 

You started your career as an actress. When did the musical Lenka take over the actor Lenka, and how do you still incorporate acting into what you do?

I started my acting career when I was 13. And I studied acting all the way through high school and well into my Twenties. But I eventually got dissatisfied with that career path and felt like I needed to do something more. So I started to meet all of these musicians, I joined a band, I wrote songs, and eventually I embarked on a solo career.

 I now realize acting has been a really useful experience because when you are a singer you have to do a lot of work in front of cameras. When I perform on live TV shows, like the Conan O’Brian show, there is an audience, but there are also cameras, and I only have one shot to get it perfect. This can actually be nerve wrecking, but at the same time, I have that acting foundation to draw from. And you know, when you perform a song you have to recreate the moment from where the song came from, the story, the emotions. In that way, I feel like I am still acting. I am not exactly playing a character; I am just playing a part of myself.

It seems like your latest album Shadows is a gentler album compared to your previous albums. What was the creative process like and was it different?

This album was recorded while I was pregnant and had a little baby. I had moved back to Australia as I was taking a break, and was having some quiet family time, singing lullabies to my baby. So in a way, the album is a reflection of that mood. And this is actually something I always wanted to do, just create that album that you can relax to, go to sleep and have it not wake you up. In my own listening, I found those albums really special. As an artist, I wanted to contribute to that kind of album.

You have said that you wish to keep your inner child very strong. What do you do to keep it strong?

I love nature, going to the beach and taking walks in forests. Of course, I do adult things like going to the movies, or hanging out with friends. But my taste falls towards the whimsical side of things. I love making craft for example. I just had an experience where I was weaving baskets with some friends, and it was really enjoyable. I just don’t want to get too heavy in this life. I want to keep things light and enjoy this present moment, just enjoy life.

What do you want to say through your music?

I want to let people know that things will be OK, and I want to make them feel better. I want my music to be soothing therapy.  I fill my music with lots of little secret messages. Initially, I put them in there for myself, but if they can do the same for my listeners, that is an amazing bonus for me. I just want people to feel special, to feel like their lives are good.

You’ve been on the road a lot this year. What would you pick up if you went to an airport bookstore? How To Be A Dinosaur Hunter last caught your fancy, didn’t it?

That is actually my husband’s book. He illustrated it, and I was really happy to see them in the bookstore at the airport. On the other hand, I am a voracious reader for young adult adventure fictions, like The Hunger Games. But I actually try to read everything on my Kindle because books can get heavy with all the traveling I do.

Lenka Kripac will be playing at Blue Frog, Mumbai on November 23 at 10:30 pm. Rs 1000,

And at the Taj Clubhouse in Chennai on November 24 at 7:30 pm. Rs 1299. Available here.