By Craig Chapman
The moment I was introduced to the artist Dessa I was engaged and intrigued. It was her music that first made me a fan. Then the more I learned and read about her life, goals, and accomplishments the more I knew she was doing something extraordinary. I was psyched when I sent her a request for an interview and her reply was a simple ‘yes’. Melodic, organic, moody, patient are all perfect words to describe Dessa’s comforting voice, sharing her knowledge with the subtle excitement of children’s storybook. Dessa draws on everyday life when writing her poetic lyrics, “During bus rides, walks, or conversation I'll often write down scraps of lyrics. But I only piece together complete songs while listening to the music that I'll be singing or rapping over.” “When the Doomtree crew assembled in their living room to ask me to join the collective, I could have exploded with pride. I was, and still am, a fan of what those guys represent.” Dessa recalls.
Musically, Dessa collaborates with fellow Doomtree label mates, “Almost all of my production comes from Doomtree producers. My most recent album, A Badly Broken Code, was shaped by the production of Paper Tiger and MK Larada in particular. They both have a penchant for melodic, organic sound palettes, and moody, patient arrangements.” Outside of her flowing musical poetry, Dessa does much much more. She considers one her greatest accomplishments a book she wrote called ‘Spiral Bound’, “More recently, the publication of Spiral Bound was a significant land mark for me. Professional writers seemed like the most romantic creatures on the planet when I was a little girl, like unicorns. Publishing my own little volume was a long-time dream come true.” We continued our conversation with a few more questions about Dessa music, inspiration, accomplishments, hope, and dreams…
Where did the majority of the inspiration come from for your new album?
I wrote the lyrics for the album over several years. While listening to the beat for Momento Mori, the inspiration was a pattern of sound--I could imagine exactly the staccato 3/4 time signatures that I wanted my lyrics to have. I scatted aloud, trying to think of words that could fit into the rhythms that I liked. Other songs started with a turn of phrase, narrative, or an image that fascinated me. The song Mineshaft 2 is written from the perspective of a young woman who visits her childhood self. The woman is struggling to forgive a man who's mistreated her and she finds that her heart is a little too sore to indulge the request. So, for the span of one evening, she trades hearts with her ten-year old self. She then accepts the apology from her old flame.
You do a lot of things: spoken word, music, teaching... what haven't you done yet that you are really working for next?
I want to learn to play piano. I'm daunted and frustrated by the task, but I'm determined to be a decent amateur player.
What first got you interested in spoken word and poetry? What about the medium attracted you to it so much?
My aspirations were literary at first. Every avenue I've pursued since then has stemmed from that interest. I went from essays to slam poetry to rap music and then back to essays. My first book was published in 2009. It's called Spiral Bound and it's a collection of short pieces that center on the themes of seasickness, love, sparrows, and morphine.
Check out Dessa and the Doomtree Collective at www.doomtree.net
