Somebody you ought to know

Known for lending her voice to ‘Somebody That I Used to Know’, Kiwi singer Kimbra stops by Manila to prove that she’s got a sound worth listening to.

MANILA, Philippines - At first glance, it’s easy to assume that singer Kimbra might fall between the cracks of stardom. Best known for being featured on the multiplatinum single Somebody That I Used to Know by singer Gotye, the New Zealand-born performer is a dead ringer for a number of female recording artists in the music industry. With big doe eyes and dark hair set against blunt bangs, Kimbra could easily be mistaken for actress/singer Zooey Deschanel or even pop star Carly Rae Jepsen.

It’s that kind of scrutiny, the kind found in celebrity culture that measures famous people by any means but their craft, that Kimbra prefers to ignore. She believes that’s why it was easy for her to step out of the spotlight following her Grammy win to produce her latest album The Golden Echo.

Far from the flighty, electro-pop mood of her debut opus “Vows,” “Echo” features a deeper vibe that hits you right in the gut. Even bouncier tracks such as 90’s Music underscore a sense of melancholy, with lyrics like “Though the feeling’s gone, the love ain’t disappeared.”

There’s clearly a lot more to her than meets the eye, and Kimbra’s thankfully made a Manila pit stop on “The Golden Echo Tour” to show local music fans just what that is. Before performing at the Jack TV Mad Fest today, Kimbra spares Young STAR a few minutes to talk about drawing inspiration from sheep, carving out her own sound, and subsequently proving that you may not be so familiar with her music yet, but you should definitely start listening.

YOUNG STAR: Hey, Kimbra! So you’ve mentioned before that your latest album was inspired by your time at a farm in Los Angeles. How is that influence apparent in your work?

KIMBRA: I think the album is really about imagination and adventure, and kind of about a tapestry of sounds you can live inside. And because I spent so much time listening to the world around me — I woke up with a rooster, I had sheep around — it was very still, and I was practicing meditation, and things that really make me pay attention to the world around me. So when I created the music, in the same way, I wanted to put that same attention into every detail. And make that same thing that inspired people get them to listen deeper.

That was also around the time of your Grammy win for Somebody that I Used to Know. Was it hard to remove yourself from all that attention?

I’ve never been in music for that life. I’ve been in it to create inspiring music. So you know, the party scene and all of that, that was never why I got into music. But it’s fun to be in it, but it’s also great to remove yourself sometimes, and just to be like, yeah. Spend time on your own for a bit.

You started making this album right after being known as Gotye’s collaborator. Was there a need to assert your own sound?

I think that was part of it as well. I wanted to work out what I really wanted to say, and what kind of sounds I wanted to play with. I set up this little bedroom studio in this little farm, and spent so much time experimenting and meeting musicians and having them come over. Yeah, removing myself was part of creating a world that I was going to create from, rather than being immersed in other people’s worlds. I wanted to create my own space. Does that make sense?

Yeah, it does. So what you would say is your sound, then? What do you think makes people say, “Oh, this is Kimbra’s music.”

Uh, I mean, my music always has a strong rhythmic aspect to it. I’ve always enjoyed creating rhythms with the voice. And on this record, I used a lot more live instrumentation. I think melodies that are nostalgic in some ways are important to me. And a kind of sense of surprise is always in my music. I like to set up an idea and then when people think they know where the song is going, I like to bring in a new idea because it keeps people engaged. I like the idea of leading people into a state of transcendence, and having a bit of a high when they listen to music.

Speaking of nostalgia, your new single ‘90s Music is quite different. It’s very upbeat but the lyrics are a bit sad. Was that juxtaposition intentional?

Yeah, what I’m very interested in playing is a song that has layered emotions to it. The bitter and sweet. (Laughs) Yeah, ‘90s Music is a collage of so many things that I love. It’s always a celebration of music that I’ve been interested in, and it’s a lot heavier than the first record. It’s got a lot of hip-hop elements in some parts that’s really been a big influence to me as well.

Can you recall any songs from the ‘90s that really meant a lot to you?

Oh, there’s so much. I mentioned in the song artists like Aaliyah and TLC, who were big for me when I was very young. But also bands like Silverchair and Nirvana, I listened to so much of that music. I wanted it to be a song that like, yeah, was an ode to that. But I didn’t want it to sound like the ‘90s, I wanted to make it almost futuristic.

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Catch Kimbra today at the Jack TV Mad Fest, from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m. at the Mall of Asia Concert Grounds.