Te Whanganui-A-Tara artist Bailey Talamasina will be releasing her debut album in early 2024, bringing her growing audience more of the psychedelic electronica that’s found a place on Spotify’s New Music Daily playlist and the Hot NZ Singles music chart.

“I came from a musical family, both of my parents are musicians, so I grew up around gigs and soundchecks. Music was always a big part of my life and I started writing my own music when I was 16.”

Originally from Manawatū, Bailey quickly discovered the importance of creating music that is authentic to her, inviting her listeners into an ethereal soundscape of synths and layered vocal textures that act as a refuge for her audience.

“I like creating a whole different world through my music, somewhere dreamy that people can stop by. I guess what they get from it is up to them. I don’t have any predetermined ideas or concepts about what I want to make – I just let my creativity go crazy and follow it wherever it goes. I write the songs when it feels like they want to be written.”

Although creating alternative and experimental electronic music, Bailey says her biggest influences remain classic rock artists like The Beatles, The Doors, Hendrix and Fleetwood Mac. Utilising her self-taught skills with music technology, she crafts intricate and magical atmospheres that rely entirely on her own creativity.

“I didn’t have a producer and I didn’t want to wait on anyone to be able to release the songs that I was already writing. I’m really glad I didn’t have a producer because I love it, I’ve discovered a new passion. It’s really important to me because I don’t have to depend on anyone, I have complete control over what I make. Producing is like a different kind of singing voice – every single thing you hear in my music is a part of me.”

The song elements come naturally to Bailey, allowing each step in the process to inspire what comes next. Through listening to the world she’s spontaneously created, she can decide how to continue the sonic journey, using this to shape lyrics and melody.

“I usually write the music first and then the lyrics just come, and it feels like they write themselves. It’s kind of an interesting spiritual thing – you kind of feel like you’re pulling the song out from the ether. It sometimes feels like I’m in a hidden forest and then I tie my songs up and deliver them by raven.”