Georgia Mooney: “Music is a Fresco painting”
We spoke to the musician about her stunning debut album.
Photo: Press
Following the release of Georgia Mooney’s Full of Moon, I wanted to get the lowdown on what went into the creation of such an emotional album. The release, an ode to human connection and how it feels to be alive, is Mooney’s debut album and was recorded over the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite the world being in lockdown, Georgia Mooney decided to focus on what brings us together rather than what was separating us. Co-produced with Grammy Award winner Noah Georgeson, Full of Moon was recorded remotely over eighteen months and features musicians from around the globe.
Hi Georgia, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me and congratulations on the release of your debut album ‘Full of Moon’! The title immediately brings up images of sort of soft sorcery and dreaminess. I’d love to know the images you had in your head while writing the songs.
Hi! Thank you! Ooh, that’s a lovely association. The title comes from a line in Joni Mitchell’s song ‘The Last Time I Saw Richard’. It says, “Go look at your eyes, they’re full of moon” and it describes her as being naively romantic. I’ve always loved that line and it feels right for the record. This is music that is at times, naively romantic. I wanted the album to have a feeling of drama and whimsy, so imagery-wise I’d say I was inspired by the romanticism movement of art and literature, by golden era Hollywood films, Art Nouveau and Art Deco design, and, as the title might suggest, by moongazing. I like the idea that the music is a sonic fresco painting; rich in colour and intricate detail, and only visible by looking up.
This album was recorded over lockdown yet the themes are all about human connection. How did you find that process?
Allow me to be the first to say it was a very strange time. Like many people, musicians were swiftly out of a job. Making music is a very social thing. Normally we would record in a studio over a couple of weeks or so and have musicians come in and out to collaborate and play in a group. Suddenly life was very solitary, and music-making had to become that way too. This was my first time recording remotely and I’m grateful that we found a way to do it in the circumstances. Despite sounding very un-romantic, I discovered that making music can be just as intimate and productive over email. The internet is a powerful tool. Who knew?
Did you find that you could tune into how much we need that human connection more?
Yes, I think the pandemic brought home the need for human connection. I suspect we’ll still be quietly reeling from that period for some time. I felt very lucky to be able to connect to musicians around the world in piecing this album together. It was deeply cathartic, and it linked us together in a way that felt purposeful and meaningful. And undeniably the context affected my writing and recording. Certain songs had more weight to them than ever.
What is it about those connections that inspired you to write?
The songs examine intimate human relationships and their quiet and concealed parts. Often I think the more specific a story, the more universal it feels. But I like to write in a way that leaves much to interpretation. There are details in these songs that are very personal to me and possibly will stay secret to anyone but me. That’s the funny thing about songwriting, it’s such a private thing in many ways, but then it is shared very publicly. That period, which will quite possibly be the strangest in most of our lives, certainly highlighted to me that people are all that matter, and I just want to make music that makes people feel good and gives them a chance to daydream.
Did you feel differently about your relationships during lockdown? And did writing the album work as an outlet for some of those feelings?
Like everyone I imagine, I valued my friends and family more than ever. I think there were shifts, it was interesting to see who you feel drawn to in a time of crisis, and who falls back a little. I think that partnerships that got through lockdown are that much more unbreakable than they were before. And of course, it drove people apart too. It was a very revealing time. We were forced to face ourselves and our failings head-on, and the differences in values that people held suddenly came to the fore. Apart from a couple of songs (Some of Us and Soothe You), the album was written before the pandemic. But it was very much arranged and orchestrated in lockdown. And I think it became all the more lush and cinematic as a result. Making music with people is a very exposing and intimate thing. Doing it remotely allowed us the privacy to experiment more, and I think you can hear the boldness in the parts. The band was based across four countries over three continents. I felt like I gained a beautiful bunch of pen pals during that time.
How did working remotely alter your approach to ‘Full of Moon’? Do you think the album would have turned out differently had the world been open?
There were positives and negatives of course. It’s quite a strange thing to have never been in the same room as my producer Noah! We’ve never met and only had long phone calls across dramatically different timezones. But I think, as I mentioned, recording remotely allowed us space and privacy which can foster bolder ideas. Sometimes being in the studio is magical, but sometimes it is stressful being on the clock and being watched the whole time. I enjoyed the freedom to play and make mistakes at home alone. We also had the gift of time and took almost 18 months to do it all. I would never have been able to get that group of musicians in the same room together had the world been open. I would have loved to have witnessed their playing and hugged them for it, but I couldn’t be happier with the way the album turned out.
Tell me about the instrumentation on the album. Was there anything you experimented with that was new to you?
This album was written half on piano and half on a dulcimer which I won in a raffle. A raffle! Of all things! I am besotted with it. It is a beautiful wooden stringed instrument that is surprisingly rare, considering how lovely it is to sing over and how relatively simple it is to play. This was my first time recording the dulcimer and pairing it with instruments like synths and electric guitars. It slotted in beautifully. The dulcimer is more twangy than an acoustic guitar and it rings out for longer. The tunings allow you to play in unusual modes and scales and utilise drones a lot. My favourite elements of the album are the layers and layers of atmospheric synth sounds played by Marcus Hamblett, combined with Rob Moose’s sublime string arrangements. We also added horns, guitars, some very melodic bass parts and drums that are inventive and characterful. Lastly, I recorded mountains of backing vocals from my bedroom. I wanted it to sound lush and cinematic, so we took a maximalist approach, full of ornate details that reveal themselves on repeat listens.
When listening to the album, you can hear the Joni Mitchell and Kate Bush influences. Both of which I am a huge fan of and who have done so much for women in the industry. Do you feel connected to them, and other women, who err on the eccentric?
Yes, they are two of my favourites. Kate and Joni are both artists who I will always return to. They are for life. They are very different but both are distinctly musical. I love the way Kate’s music transports you to another world. There is a theatre to it that is fantastical and imaginative. I love music that throws you curveballs. I wanted this album to reach for beauty, but take unexpected turns. Joni is also a master of inventive melody. Her tunings and chord progressions are unpredictable and her voice dances like a ribbon on the breeze. Their fragility is often their strength, and you’re right, they have paved the way for so many female artists. It can at times be hard not to become distracted by the mainstream and the pressure to fit with musical trends, but in those moments I will always return to artists like Kate and Joni (and Nina Simone and Rufus Wainwright and Gillian Welch and so many more), whose eccentricities are what makes them timeless.
Full of Moon is out now via Nettwerk Music Group.
