boiMAG.com "TUNING IN: Interview with Norisette"

by Nicky Roland

I hear a lot of people these days saying that music is dead, that there’s no creativity and expression, but they’re wrong. Yes, it’s harder to find the gems amongst the hoards of bedroom producers vying for attention, attention that the majors choke out with a never ending stream of overly produced, synthetic drivel devoid of soul. But…If you dig around on social media a little, there are true gems. The queer electro scene is thriving online, with a plethora of extremely talented and interconnected artists. One such artist is the incredible Norisette, arguably one of the most promising up and coming talents on the scene. With this in mind, I decided introduce you all to her, and give you some insight into her music, art, and her beautiful mind.

Q: As a starting point could you tell our listeners a bit about where you’re from and the significance of your home town to the UK and global music scene.

A: Thanks so much for having me, Nicky! I’m based in Stockport, Manchester, in the UK and I’m originally from Newcastle Upon Tyne. I moved to Manchester for the music scene here: it’s got such a huge reputation. For example: New Order, Joy Division, Lisa Stansfield, Oasis, The Stone Roses, The Chemical Brothers, Mr. Scruff, Cleopatra... the list goes on. There are some killer venues here as well, my favorites are Deaf Institute and Albert Hall.

Q: You got into music at an incredibly early age (5), what piqued your interest and got started?

A: My mum and dad played a lot of folk music and they loved all kinds of things like jazz, classical, church music, pop... I was fascinated by the record player and used to play the same LPs over and over again, putting the needle down soooo carefully and lying on the floor next to the player or dancing around the room.

Q: You’re a classically trained pianist, and I love the fact that your mom gave you your first lessons, could you tell us a bit about your musical journey and how you got to where you are now?

A: When I was little we were lucky enough to have a piano - really I started playing piano because I copied literally everything that my big sister did and she was really good at the piano! I used to drive her crazy. My mum taught us both and I just got totally obsessed with it and ended up having piano lessons for about twelve years of my life growing up, with several different teachers. I also played the oboe for a while in an orchestra but injured my shoulder from bad technique and was heartbroken. I couldn’t play any instruments at all for a whole year. That was the point at which I started writing music to fill the void and ended up applying to uni for a music degree. Having studied music for five years I went freelance and wrote commissions for all kinds of people. I love working with dancers and opera singers especially. Then the plague struck everyone in 2020 and all my shows got cancelled. Really it was devastating, but I knew how lucky and privileged I was that this was the only disaster in my life. That was the point at which I turned to really focusing on electronic music production and songwriting to have an outlet for all these ideas. For years I had been too shy to get on stage, sending my music to other performers and channeling through them. Norrisette was born that year and she has given me so much confidence as my alter ego.

Q: In your bio you mention influences ranging from Kate Bush to Bjork. Who would you say are your top three, what inspires you about them, and how does it impact your own work?

A: My number one at the moment is Rina Sawayama: she is so fierce, intelligent, resilient, funny, original, motivated by justice and equality, and I have a big ol’ crush on her. Her album SAWAYAMA contains the whole world and every emotion somehow. I saw her live in concert at Albert Hall in Manchester last year with one of my best friends. We went totally wild! She inspires me that I can succeed and not compromise my vision or beliefs.

Number two is Kate Bush, she is so unafraid to just drive a message home. The art is everything. It becomes all-encompassing and she’ll do anything to make the song sound right. It’s an unearthly sound to many because people aren’t used to this completely feminine energy: to me it sounds like home. It helps me sing how I really want to sing and in my natural voice. Hounds of Love is a masterpiece.

Number three is TOKiMONSTA: her music opened my mind when I was a teenager. I had never heard anything like it before. Her production signatures are unmistakable and so original. Like with Rina and Kate Bush, I can sit and listen to an entire TOKi album and love every second. My favorite is Lune Rouge. TOKi made me believe in myself that I could be an electronic music producer.

Q: How would you describe your style of music?

A: I would say that there are two Norrisettes: a sociable and dance-obsessed electronic pop diva and a gremlin hiding in your attic. They kind of go together, the most Norrisette track there could be is probably ‘Prometheus’ because it has my weird little voice and eccentric lyrics and lo-fi inspired homemade drum sounds but has a driving beat and energy and is quite lighthearted and tongue-in-cheek.

Q: While you may be fairly new to the scene, you have an incredibly polished image with a touch of androgyny and ton of glamour. Are there any specific influences that helped shape your visual style? Bowie meets Gucci springs to mind, but that’s a wild guess.

A: Thank you - that really means a lot to hear. I think that was pretty much what I was going for!! I also looove Annie Lennox and Grace Jones and their sharp looks, and the wild visual aesthetics of Bjork. Drag influences me all of the time, and I guess Norrisette is my drag. I can’t pick a favorite drag artist, but Tayce is one of my favorite British ones. And of course Manchester has a fantastic drag scene, including legends such as Cheddar Gorgeous. Working with dancers has freed me up in terms of visual expression too.

Q: Speaking of visual style, you have an artistic streak a mile wide. Did you study the arts or are you self taught? Please also tell our readers a bit about your process and how you incorporate your art into everything you do.

A: I’m really influenced by the visual arts a lot, so sometimes I use clothes and makeup to express something I might have seen in a painting or a film or an exhibition. Sometimes images just come to me out of nowhere. Since I could talk I’ve been drawing. Often I got into trouble at school for drawing in lessons. I drew on the bus, on my lunch break, at home, on the phone... Drawing used to help me cope and concentrate in situations that I found difficult. As life has got more within my control, the nice part of being an adult, I’ve drawn less, but I’ve never stopped making stuff. I guess making stuff is my identity. I don’t have any strong core identity sometimes except that I make things, and when I make things everything seems better. I’m self-taught in many ways at many skills because I have many obsessions, but I’ve been privileged to have a good and varied education and many mentors and role models and people who encouraged me. Music has been more of a formal education for me, but art comes out of my pores. Not necessarily good art! But it’s everywhere. If I can’t draw or paint something I take photos of it. Photography has become my ‘grown-up drawing’ I guess. Often an album or song starts with something visual and I go from there.

Q: Do you have any gigs lined up in the coming year (I know it’s challenging with the ongoing pandemic), or online events we should be aware of?

A: Look out for FLUFF which is a queer electronic music night I set up with Industries Mcr. We wanted to make a space for queer electronic music producers to perform and express and experiment in Manchester. Markus (Industries) has Fluff #2 coming up in February and there will be many more!

Q: If you could collaborate with any artist, from across time, who would it be and why?

A: Last year I had my debut gig supporting the wonderful Sylvette at Deaf Institute in Manchester. Honestly there is rarely a band that I feel so passionate about, everything they make sounds like a work of art. It would be amazing to work with them one day on a song but really I might be too frightened of ruining the thing I love! I’m torn when I think about working with artists I really admire because I want to be part of what they do but I also want to stay away from it and leave it in its pristine state...

Q: Do you have any up and coming releases or collaborations that you can talk about, and if so where can we go to listen to/buy them?

A: I am currently working on my next ‘concept EP’. It is too soon to tell you much about it, but it will have something in common with my past 4 concept EPs in that it will explore a single idea or mood and have some kind of inner journey. You can hear all of my EPs on Bandcamp (https://norrisette.bandcamp.com/) and some of them on Spotify. I love collaborating and there are two collaborations coming up soon with some music producers who I really respect and I’m so excited to see where it takes us.

Q: On that subject, where can we find you on social media/online?

A: My Instagram is @norrisette_official, Twitter and Facebook are @norrisette and all of my links are on my website (www.norrisette. com)

Q: What are some of the things that motivate you the most, or that you feel especially passionate about?

A: The feeling of putting absolutely everything, every ounce of energy and every idea and feeling from a particular time, into an EP or piece of music, is wonderful and terrifying. I love people and I’m fascinated by them, I’m motivated by love and this feeling of connection to everyone and everything. I’m passionately angry about injustice in the world and music is the way I communicate.

Q: And last, but not least…If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?

A: If everyone could connect to art and music instead of needing stuff, I think maybe we’d be better off in terms of empathy and in terms of the environment. We’re not in competition with each other, we need to work together better to survive as a species... but it’s a huge question!

So there you have it. If you’re looking for something new, something exciting, something different form the norm, be sure to check out her work and give yourself a treat.

Speaking of electro, my next track, Tower of Babel comes out on Feb 11th. This is a departure from my normal Classic/Chicago House sound. While there’s still a strong House element, it pulls heavily from Classic Electro and tells the story of a young robot salvaged from a post apocalyptic world. Brought back to life, confused, and trying to make sense of what he’s hearing and seeing, he begins an emotional and spiritual journey as he tries to find acceptance.

Big love to all, and special thank you to Norisette.

Nicky Roland is a house music producer originally from the UK, now based in Denver, CO

Find me on Spotify and on Twitter @nickyrolandmusic

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