(((O))) : Spektral Quartet & Julia Holter & Alex Temple – Behind The Wallpaper!

Behind The Wallpaper! by Spektral Quartet & Julia Holter & Alex Temple can be labeled as a strange beast that works and that you can easily invite into your personal space.

This is a meeting of like-minded artists who actually have quite diverse musical interests that on some other hands might have collided and fallen apart.

Yet, the multi-Grammy-nominated ensemble, that is Spektral Quartet, incredible vocalist and composer herself that is Julia Holter, and composer Alex Temple whose gender transition inspired this set of compositions have found the actual meeting point here combining everything from pre-second World War II cabaret, 19th century classical music Romanticism, modern pop and quite a few other things into a coherent musical presentation.

According to Temple, “The piece tells the tale of someone undergoing a mysterious transformation and ultimately finding a home in another world, superimposed on our own but invisible to the uninitiated. Many of the dreamlike images in the songs were inspired by my experience with gender transition. But my hope is that the story will feel familiar to anyone who has ever felt alienated from the broader culture.”

Quite heady stuff, but it is the heady staff that along with its head has a tail too, making complete sense when listened to.