KINA GRANNIS – Elements

Track-By-Track zum neuen Album der amerikanischen Folk-Pop-Sängerin…



Erst kürzlich erschien das fünfte Album von KINA GRANNIS. Hier sind exklusive Kommentare der Singer-Songwriterin zu den Songs von Elements – im Original und komplett ungebügelt…

DEAR RIVER

That’s one of the first songs I wrote for the album. It’s just about these kind of people that kind of comfort your life and leave again but always leave a lasting impact ‘cause they are just so full of life but they can’t stay in one place. And that’s what that one is about. I actually wrote it in Los Angeles. It’s one of the ones that have been written so early that I was still at home. But the rest of them have been written in a retreat out in the woods. I think I’ve been so frantic touring for so long that when I came home it was like I forgot how to write songs. So writing in a retreat really helped me like get inspired by nature and then have time with myself to just be quiet and kind of let it happen again. And also I had to deal with is this Youtube stigma. Before I started Youtube I have been writing and busking on the streets and playing in coffee shops and just sharing my original music all the time. And then Youtube came along and it was amazing because it found me a fanbase all over the world and it let me do what I love. But suddenly people think that you’re only a Youtube artist or that you’re only a cover artist. So this was really important for me: to make an album that I was really proud of and that defined me and wasn’t what I think people wanted or what would be successful. So it feels very good to have it out. Hopefully people will start to understand that you can be an artist and exist on Youtube and it’s not just one thing.

THE FIRE

For me, I’ve always been someone who’s really afraid of conflict and as a result I’ve been someone who doesn’t communicate very well ‘cause I liked it to be safe by not creating a problem. I think this song is of about that. It’s about being afraid of the conflict but also that it needs to happen. Kind of controlling it like not letting it become a fire that ruins everything. Just letting it come out. It definitely was the first song I wrote that was very different than what I’ve been doing and it felt really exciting. I think this song particularly made me want to experiment more with drums and big sounds and rhythmic things. I think the meaning of this song just helped to because it’s a powerful song to me.

MY DEAR

This song actually started as poem. It’s a poem I wrote in like ten minutes one morning. Just as an exercise. It was inspired by a quote that every time someone leaves you, they take a little part of you with them or you keep a part of them. And so I was just thinking about that when I wrote that sort of poem and then I kind of turned it into a song. Like “Oh, I think that’s a song!”. It’s the first time I’ve ever done that – starting with a poem. It’s just about keeping people with you.

WINTER

I wrote “Winter” on one of my retreats and it was inspired by a vase of dead flowers that I found. I was just thinking about them and thinking that at one point some time someone liked picked them and chose them and had them to admire. And then they died. It was kind of sad to me but it was also beautiful and so it made me start thinking about when things end and how do you really know. Like when is the point that you know that something is over!? And then the song just kind of started happening and then I was crying. So it became about this feeling that I’ve always been very afraid of: What happens when someone dies and goes away? That’s what “Winter” is all about.

OH FATHER

That one is about coming into my own as an adult and trying to be brave and independent on my own. I actually wrote it when I was going to one of these writing retreats. It was night time and very dark and I had to drive up this mountain and I almost drove off the mountain. It was very scary. I survived and I started thinking. As child you can always default to your parents and they can help you. And then at some point in your life you get to that point where you have to be that kind of person who does it for you.

LITTLE WORRIER

This one I wrote on a different retreat. It was my first one and I was all alone in this house. It was nighttime and I started getting afraid because I didn’t realize that I would be very scared of being alone in the woods. So I heard a sound downstairs and I thought someone was coming to kill me. So I was really scared and like “oh no, too young to die!”. Finally I faced it and it was a mouse the whole time. But the next day I was thinking about that and that I’ve always been someone who worries – whether it’s about the past or the future or about my family. I’ve just been starting to realize that there’s really no point to worry. That really doesn’t make it better. That really doesn’t change anything. So this song is kind of a reminder to me: be present and enjoy your life and don’t worry so much!

THROW IT AWAY

I guess it’s about not letting your past define you. I have a couple of friends in my life who come from very difficult pasts and have become some of the most incredible people I know. So it’s just the idea of make you chose what’s ahead of you and you’re not tied down by what has happened in the past.

FOREVER BLUE

As I child I always struggled with the idea that things come to an end. One of my biggest fears was the idea that I would lose my parents someday. That was very difficult for me. I never really had to face death until the last couple of years. My grandfather’s health was declining and then he passed away about a year ago. It was very difficult for us but when it hit me the hardest was when I realized that this is not just a grandfather but for my dad this is his parent. This is who he grew up with. Imagining myself in that position made it so much harder. So this song is about facing that.

MARYANNE

It’s kind of about coming to terms with the people who are in you life and who help you. They all help you to get to where you are.

RIGHT IN THE SKY

It’s about knowing who you are and what you want and to not be afraid to show that. I’ve always been a person who didn’t trust myself very much. I was questioning myself and trusting everyone else. And so instead of trusting myself I would ask everyone else like “Do you think this is okay?”. It’s that feeling and this song is just about being confident and not being afraid to show that.

MY OWN

It’s just about my family. I’m very close with them. I have two sisters and I kind of grew up singing with them all the time. And then there are my parents who have been so supportive and big role models for me. This song is just like a little ode to them.

THIS FAR

It’s about reflecting on where you come from. Every time things get hard or it’s feeling difficult you can still look back on all of your accomplishments and know that you get past this.

KINA GRANNIS
Elements
(One Haven)
VÖ: 06.06.2014

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