SIKADE - “bloody moon”
Photo by Tuva Holms
Oslo, Norway-based singer songwriter Linnea Vestre, aka SIKADE, has just released the ethereal indie folk track, “bloody moon.”
“bloody moon” is an enchanting ambient piece of music. At the heart of the composition is a captivating harp arpeggio that dances throughout the arrangement. The tones are delicate, crystalline, and strikingly meditative. Tenderly enveloping this repeating pattern are otherworldly ambient layers that are breathy, immersive, and haunting.
Layered with effects, such as reverb and delay, the soundscape feels beautifully spacious. In places, subtle elements, such as strings, elegantly emerge from this cathedral ambiance to warmly surround the harp and vocal. The music feels timeless and genreless and could easily be a track from an album by the electronically driven The Chemical Brothers, dream pop Grimes, new age Enya or ambient Brain Eno.
Full of lush harmonies, the breathy and intimate vocal performance effortlessly floats over the tranquil musical layers. During the verses, the vocal reflectively delivers descending melodies, while in the chorus sections, it shifts to an ascending pattern. This contrast creates a pleasing sense of ebb and flow, in which it is hard not to lose yourself.
Lyrically, SIKADE delves into themes of fate and fertility through esoteric imagery. The song portrays a woman encountering her future daughter, with a bleeding moon suspended in the sky, creating a sense of timelessness and otherworldliness. Beautiful, melodic, and shimmering, “bloody moon” feels like a blissful dreamscape.