Erica Mulkey is a beacon in the dark for would-be DIY musicians. With seven self-produced albums out under the auspices of her Unwoman project, Mulkey’s career has blossomed to a point where the Kickstarter for her recent LP The Fires I Started more than tripled its goal based purely on the support of the devoted fanbase she’s grown via playing shows, attending Steampunk conventions and collaborating with musicians as diverse as Caustic and Voltaire.
ID:UD: You have a background in classical music, yet you also have an element of electronic in your music. Can you comment on how you make them blend together so well?
Erica: Practice, I guess? I really think the mixing on my first two albums was pretty rough. It’s not easy to blend those aspects but I had this vision early on of cello with electronics – inspired by everything from synthpop to experimental industrial to, obviously, classical – with pop-ish vocals. I kept to more-or-less the same aim over the years and I feel I finally hit my stride on Casualties. One thing that helped was working in more organic sounds in my sequenced tracks. And having worked as a ringtone producer for a few years was really helpful for honing my production skills, too, because that medium had such strict limitations.
ID:UD: From the looks of live videos your shows sometimes include a belly dancer; how does this add to your show and compare to your shows without one?
Erica: Well, I like to think, and I’ve been told, that I can command an audience with just myself and my cello. But adding a more visual element can be very powerful especially when I’m sitting down with my cello and can’t really move around. I’ve recently started playing electric cello standing up so now most of my live sets have the vibe of solo rockstar, which is better than seated cellist, but still not as visually compelling as a full band. I love when I play local shows and dancers come to dance with me; it’s because they want to, because they really like my music, which is such a powerful connection to me, to interpret my songs into movement. And even though a lot of my songs are about physical things like sex, they’re usually a pretty analytical view of them, so it’s wonderful to bring the songs back into the body for those shows.
ID:UD: You’ve worked with some radical circles such as Graceless and had a strong tone of radical themes in your early work. How have you keep these ideals in your music?
Erica: I basically feel like I do so little to be politically active – I only participate in demonstrations every few months or so – the least I can do is speak truth to power in the voice that I feel comfortable using. My tone has changed a lot, though, since songs like “Freedom From Religion” and “In Gilead.” I took a few steps back from the brash, harsh stance – though I am still proud of those works coming from an outspoken young woman – and try to sing more from a personal perspective rather than grand overgeneralized statements. An early review once held “Freedom From Religion” up to “Strange Fruit.” Of course it didn’t compare favorably to possibly the greatest protest song ever! But I took their point – maybe I was capable of more compelling subtlety.
My biggest struggle over the last few years has been to live by what Albert Camus said: “The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” And, similarly, Orwell: “In a time of deceit telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” So my goal is to be honest, and free, in my songs and my life. My song “For The Killers” is especially about this.
From: https://www.idieyoudie.com/2012/10/05/an-interview-with-erica-mulkey-of-unwoman/
