Caroline Polachek | |
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Born | Caroline Elizabeth Polachek June 20, 1985 New York City, U.S. |
Other names |
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Education | University of Colorado Boulder New York University |
Occupations |
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Years active | 2005–present |
Works | Discography |
Spouse | Ian Drennan (m. 2015;div. 2017) |
Musical career | |
Genres | |
Labels |
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Formerly of | Chairlift |
Website | carolinepolachek |
Caroline Elizabeth Polachek [1] (born June 20, 1985) is an American singer, producer, and songwriter. Raised in Connecticut, Polachek cofounded the indie pop band Chairlift while studying at the University of Colorado. The duo emerged from the late-2000s Brooklyn music scene with the sleeper hit "Bruises". In 2014, she released her first solo project, Arcadia , as Ramona Lisa. Under CEP, she released Drawing the Target Around the Arrow in 2017.
Chairlift disbanded in 2017, and Polachek embarked on a career under her own name. Her 2019 album Pang featured an avant-pop sound and was released to critical acclaim, with the single "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings" receiving viral attention. In 2023, Polachek released Desire, I Want To Turn Into You , which became her first album to enter the charts in multiple territories. It was nominated for Best Engineered Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.
Polachek has worked extensively with other artists, collaborating with Blood Orange, Fischerspooner, Charli XCX, Oneohtrix Point Never and Flume, as well as writing material for Beyoncé ("No Angel").
Polachek was born in Manhattan, New York City, on June 20, 1985, [2] to James Montel Polachek (1944–2020), a scholar in Chinese history and trained classical musician, and Elizabeth Allan. [3] [4] Her family relocated to Tokyo, Japan, where she lived between the ages of one and six, [5] and later settled in Greenwich, Connecticut, where Polachek started singing choir in the third grade. She was a synthesizer player from a young age as her father gave her a Yamaha keyboard to dissuade her from being disruptive on the piano. [6] [7]
Polachek's parents divorced in 1994. [4] She describes herself as "a very hyperactive kid" and said that they would play Enya at their respective houses to calm her senses. [8] Polachek recounts her early exposure to traditional Japanese songs and anime themes as being influential on her musical education. She rode horses growing up. [6] [9] As a teenager, she began traveling to New York to attend concerts, which were a mix of post-hardcore emo, DIY punk and jazz shows. Mike Patton of Faith No More once personally walked her into a show at the Knitting Factory when her fake ID was rejected. She played in a couple of bands in high school and college. [5]
Polachek founded the band Chairlift with musician Aaron Pfenning after the pair met during her sophomore year at the University of Colorado. They relocated to New York, where Polachek studied art at New York University, and were joined by Patrick Wimberly in early 2007. That year, the band released their first EP, Daylight Savings, which was followed by their debut studio album Does You Inspire You in 2008.
Polachek and Wimberly went on as a duo to write and produce their second studio album Something (2012) alongside producers Dan Carey and Alan Moulder. In addition, she directed the album's music videos, including "Amanaemonesia", and "I Belong in Your Arms".
In 2008, Polachek formed Girl Crisis choir with twelve other female singers, including members of Au Revoir Simone and Class Actress. The modular group arranged and recorded two cover versions a year from 2008 to 2013, including songs by Black Sabbath, Nirvana, Leonard Cohen, the Bangles, and Ace of Base. [10]
In 2010, Polachek joined Jorge Elbrecht of Brooklyn-based Violens to record a "sgin" of Justin Bieber's "Never Let You Go": "We went on YouTube to find a video among the highest ranks of hits, and came across 'Never Let You Go'. We went on to make what we call a 'sgin' (anagram of the word 'sing')—an original song written specifically to synch into someone else's video on mute". [11] The same year, she also recorded a duet with Violens, "Violent Sensation Descends (French Duet Version)". [12] She later shot and directed the music video for the band's song "It Couldn't Be Perceived" in 2011. [13] She collaborated with Elbrecht again on the EP Gloss Coma 001 in 2013, [14] which includes the single "I.V. Aided Dreams". [15]
In 2012, Polachek featured on the song "Everything Is Spoilt by Use" by Ice Choir, a solo project by Kurt Feldman of the Pains of Being Pure at Heart; [16] she also directed and edited the song's music video. [17] Polachek collaborated with Blood Orange on the tracks "Chamakay" in 2013 [18] and "Holy Will" in 2018. [19] In 2013, she co-wrote and co-produced "No Angel", which was featured on Beyoncé's critically acclaimed fifth studio album Beyoncé . [20] Due to her production and engineering work on the song, Beyoncé's nomination for the Grammy Award for Album of the Year at the 57th ceremony included Polachek. [21] In 2013, she also contributed vocals to "Unhold" by the Spanish alternative-dance band Delorean. [22]
Polachek began performing sets under the moniker Ramona Lisa in 2013. [23] The name originates from a former pseudonym Polachek used on Facebook. [24] She announced her debut self-produced studio album as Ramona Lisa, entitled Arcadia , in February 2014. [23] [25] Polachek described the album as "pastoral electronic music". [26] [27] [28]
Polachek began writing the album during an artistic residency at the Villa Medici in Rome, Italy. [29] In an interview with Pitchfork, she described how her time in Rome inspired the sounds of Arcadia, stating: "When I was looking out the window in Rome, I wanted this type of electronic music to feel as organic as what I was seeing. I don't think any of the tools that I'm using are particularly new—a lot of the MIDI instruments have been around for 15 years—but the compositions make them sound less electronic, more mysterious." [29] The record was made entirely on Polachek's laptop without instruments or external microphones, except to capture field recordings of the sounds she heard in her surroundings. [30] She sang vocals directly into her computer's built in microphone, making use of hotel closets, quiet airport gates, and spare dressing rooms during Chairlift's world tour. [29] The album artwork was shot by New York photographer Tim Barber. [24]
In early 2014, Polachek composed and produced instrumental scores for designers Proenza Schouler and Tess Giberson to be featured on runways and promotional videos. [31] In April, she scored a live performance piece by artists India Menuez and Hayden Dunham at SIGNAL gallery in Brooklyn. [32] In October, Polachek scored "HappyOkay", a ballet performance video directed by Elena Parasco and produced by House of Makers and Last Hour. The performance was choreographed by Peter Lueng of the Dutch National Ballet, the largest dance company in the Netherlands, and performed by New York City Ballet's Harrison Ball, Joseph Gordon, and Megan LeCrone. [33] [34]
On January 22, 2016, Chairlift released their third and final studio album, Moth . In December of the same year, the band announced that they would be breaking up, with a final tour in the spring of 2017. [35]
In January 2017, Polachek released her second solo studio album, Drawing the Target Around the Arrow , under her initials, CEP. [36] She was scheduled to perform at Moogfest 2018, but pulled out in December 2017 when the festival advertised a list of female artists performing that year, despite the festival line-up being predominantly male. She followed up with a statement on Twitter saying: "This speaks not to the artists or their music, but to the politics of the festival and self-congratulatory PR. To do this without permission from the artists on display is exploitative and unprofessional", adding "Moogfest, and all other festivals, simply have a responsibility to position inclusivity as normal". [37]
Polachek featured on Danny L Harle's single "Ashes of Love" in 2016. [38] In 2017, she appeared on two songs from Charli XCX's mixtape Pop 2 : as a featured artist on "Tears" and as a backing vocalist on "Delicious", the latter of which features Tommy Cash. [39] In 2018, Polachek featured on Felicita's version of the traditional Polish song "Był sobie król", released on their debut studio album Hej! under the title "Marzipan". [40]
In June 2019, Polachek released her debut single under her full name titled "Door". In a press release for the single, [41] Polachek announced that the single was the beginning of a new project, made mostly in collaboration with PC Music member Danny L Harle. Later in July, Polachek released two singles off of the project, titled "Ocean of Tears" and "Parachute", and began to detail her then upcoming studio album Pang which was released on October 18, along with the fourth single "So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings". [42] The album received critical acclaim and placed on many critics' end of the year lists. A remix album titled Standing at the Gate: Remix Collection was released on vinyl on April 16, 2021. In promotion, Polachek released five of the album's remixes as singles, as well as a cover of the Corrs' "Breathless". [43]
In 2019, Polachek was a songwriter, along with Yung Jake, on the single "RIP Harambe" released by entrepreneur Elon Musk about the captive gorilla killed in 2016. [44] In 2020, Polachek featured on "La vita nuova" by Christine and the Queens and made a guest appearance in the short film around the EP of the same name. [45] [46] The song was later remixed by various producers including PC Music founder A. G. Cook. [47]
In September 2021, Polachek was announced as one of the opening acts on Dua Lipa's Future Nostalgia Tour. [48] The tour began on February 9, 2022. [49] On November 4, 2021, Charli XCX released "New Shapes" featuring Christine and the Queens and Polachek as the second single from her studio album Crash (2022). [50]
On July 14, 2021, Polachek released the single "Bunny Is a Rider", another collaboration with Harle; she told Crack magazine that the song was part of a future project. [51] In December, Pitchfork ranked "Bunny Is a Rider" at the top of their list of "The 100 Best Songs of 2021". [52] On February 9, 2022, Polachek released the single "Billions". [53] In March, she was featured on Australian electronic music producer Flume's single "Sirens", [54] released ahead of his upcoming studio album Palaces. In June, Polachek confirmed that she was working on her fourth studio album, posting a picture of herself in studio with Danny L Harle on Instagram. [55] She recorded a cover version of "Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)" for the Minions: The Rise of Gru soundtrack album, released on July 1, 2022. [56] On October 17, her flamenco-inspired single "Sunset", a co-production with Sega Bodega, was released. [57]
On December 5, 2022, Polachek released the single "Welcome to My Island" [58] and announced her second studio album under her full name, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You , for release on February 14, 2023. [59] The album received critical acclaim and includes "Bunny Is a Rider", "Billions", "Sunset", and "Welcome to My Island". [60] [61] After the release, she embarked on the Spiraling Tour through Europe and North America.
Her song "Sunset" from Desire, I Want To Turn Into You is featured in the 2023 film After Everything . [62]
On October 17, 2023, Polachek released the single "Dang". [63] Months later on February 7, 2024, she released a remix of her song "Butterfly Net" with Weyes Blood. [64] The two tracks were later included in the reissue of Desire, named the Everasking Edition, which released just a week later. [65] On May 2, 2024, Polachek released her new single "Starburned And Unkissed" featured on the movie "I Saw The TV Glow". [66]
Polachek's musical style has been described as mainly alternative pop, [3] [67] [68] along with art pop, [69] indie pop, [70] experimental pop, [71] and avant-pop. [72] [73] [74] [75] Shaad D'Souza of The Guardian wrote: "Before 'Running Up That Hill' returned to the charts, Polachek was shaping up to be something like Gen Z's Kate Bush – a producer and vocalist interested in music that's formally eccentric and unapologetic about her own too much-ness." [76]
Polachek's influences have been described as "eclectic" by music critics. [3] When asked about her earliest musical influence by Interview , she responded that it was "probably Enya". [8] Growing up in Japan until the age of six, she was exposed to traditional Japanese songs and anime themes, which she says were influential on her musical education; she stated that Japanese singing consists of "a lot of minor and pentatonic [tonality], with really angular melodies that I think really stuck in my subconscious". [5] She named Mishio Ogawa in particular as "one of [her] biggest influences". [77] Other vocal influences include Celine Dion and Matia Bazar's song "Ti Sento". [59] She also credits riding horses as a child with helping her "[learn] a lot about rhythm and about voice". [6]
Polachek says that she "grew up kneeling at the altar of alternative music" and that Björk, Kate Bush, and Fiona Apple were her "absolute heroes" when she was a teenager. [78] Her alter ego Ramona Lisa was inspired by "artists whose looks were inseparable from their music", such as Nirvana, Marilyn Manson, and David Bowie. [6] She named those artists, along with Björk and Busta Rhymes, as influences for her visual identity. [51] She called Paddy McAloon of Prefab Sprout her "favorite lyricist" [77] and stated that she is "very inspired by contemporary artists like Rosalía or Doja Cat, who play with sounds". [79] She also finds inspiration in "more abstract" domains beyond music, such as landscapes; [79] in a 2024 interview with Out , she named swallows as her musical soulmates. [80]
Polachek also named Kittie as one her influences for her 'straight-up grunge' song, 'Starburned and Unkissed'. [81]
Polachek's 2015 wedding to artist Ian Drennan was extensively photographed by Vogue magazine. [82] [83] They divorced in 2017. [3] [84] [85] As of December 2022 [update] , she is in a relationship with Matt Copson, an artist. [59] Her father died in 2020. [3] In October 2023, Polachek co-signed a publicized open letter to President Joe Biden urging to call for a ceasefire amidst the ongoing Israel–Hamas war. [86]
Award | Year | Nominated work | Category | Result | Ref. |
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Brit Awards | 2024 | Herself | International Artist of the Year | Nominated | [90] |
Grammy Awards | 2014 | Beyoncé | Album of the Year (as a songwriter and producer) | Nominated | [91] |
2024 | Desire, I Want to Turn Into You | Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical (as an engineer) | Nominated | ||
Libera Awards | 2024 | Record of the Year | Pending | [92] | |
Best Alternative Rock Record | Pending | ||||
Self-Released Record of the Year | Pending | ||||
Resonator Awards | 2024 | Herself | Golden Trifecta Award | Won | [93] |
Devonté Hynes, also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, Hynes was a member of the band Test Icicles, playing guitar, synth, and occasionally performing vocals. They released one full-length album in 2005. Hynes went on to release two solo studio albums as Lightspeed Champion and subsequently five more as Blood Orange, between 2008 and 2019.
Chairlift was an American synth-pop band formed by Caroline Polachek and Aaron Pfenning. They formed the band in 2005 while living in Boulder, Colorado, and Patrick Wimberly joined them when they moved to Brooklyn, New York, in 2007. The three released their debut album Does You Inspire You in 2008. Pfenning left the band in 2010, and the new duo released two more albums—2012's Something and 2016's Moth—before announcing the end of Chairlift in December 2016.
Claire Elise Boucher, known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her early work has been described as extending from "lo-fi R&B" to futuristic dance-pop, and has incorporated influences from electronic music, hip hop, and rock. Her lyrics often touch on science fiction and feminist themes. The visuals in her videos are elaborate and sometimes have fantasy themes. She has released five studio albums.
Charlotte Emma Aitchison, known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery by a promoter who invited her to perform at warehouse raves. In 2010, she signed a recording contract with Asylum Records, releasing a series of singles and mixtapes throughout 2011 and 2012.
Héloïse Adélaïde Letissier, known professionally as Christine and the Queens and Redcar, or occasionally simply Chris, is a French singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Nantes, he started learning piano at the age of four and found inspiration in one of London's clubs while studying. Letissier released a series of extended plays (EPs) throughout 2011–2013.
Jonathan Patrick Wimberly is an American record producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer and mixing engineer best known as being one-half of the synth-pop duo Chairlift. The band parted ways in 2017 so Wimberly and former bandmate Caroline Polachek could focus on their careers as producers/songwriters.
Daniel Jack Eisner Harle is a British music producer and composer who records under the name Danny L Harle. He was formerly signed to the London-based PC Music label and is a member of Dux Content with A. G. Cook. He has produced, composed, and remixed music for a number of artists; most prominently, he executive produced Caroline Polachek's 2019 album Pang and 2023 album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You. He released his debut album Harlecore (2021) through the label Mad Decent, featuring collaborations with Polachek, Hudson Mohawke, and Lil Data.
Alexandra Drewchin, known professionally as Eartheater, is an American multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer and vocalist. Born in Pennsylvania to a Russian father and an English mother, she is currently based in Queens and has been performing since 2009. Her music has been released on independent labels Hausu Mountain and PAN.
Arcadia is the debut album by American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek, her only one under the name Ramona Lisa. It was released on April 15, 2014 through Terrible Records in North America, Bella Union imprint Pannonica in Europe and Japan, and Mistletone in Australia and New Zealand. The album was promoted by the singles "Arcadia", "Backwards and Upwards", and "Dominic".
Natalie Laura Mering, known professionally as Weyes Blood, is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. She was primarily raised in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. She has been performing her own material under variations of the name Weyes Blood since 2003.
"Door" is a song by American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek from her third studio and major-label debut album Pang. It was released as the lead single from the album on June 19, 2019. Polachek's imprint label under The Orchard is called Perpetual Novice after a line in "Door". The song is the first release by Polachek under her own name, having previously released music under "Ramona Lisa", "CEP", and as part of the band "Chairlift". The song was written and produced by Polachek, Dan Nigro and Jim-E Stack and Danny L Harle. "Door" was released alongside a psychedelic-inspired music video.
Harriette Pilbeam, known professionally as Hatchie, is an Australian singer-songwriter and musician. She has released an EP, Sugar & Spice (2018) and two studio albums: Keepsake (2019) and Giving the World Away (2022).
Pang is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek, the first under her own name. It was released by Sony Music, The Orchard, and Polachek's imprint Perpetual Novice on October 18, 2019. The album received critical acclaim from and was placed on several critics' year-end lists, topping Dazed's list. Commercially, Pang peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart and number 40 on the Independent Albums chart, making it Polachek's first charting solo album.
"Ocean of Tears" is a song by American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek from her third studio album Pang. It was released as the second single from the album on July 24, 2019, the same day as "Parachute".
"So Hot You're Hurting My Feelings" is a song by American singer Caroline Polachek from her third studio album Pang (2019). The song was released on September 16, 2019 through Perpetual Novice. It has been described as a new wave and indie pop track. While it did not chart at the time of its release, the song became a sleeper hit after it went viral on TikTok in early 2022.
The discography of American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek consists of four studio albums, one remix album, one instrumental album, two extended plays, 13 singles, and seven promotional singles. Polachek previously released music under the names Ramona Lisa and CEP, before releasing her debut album under her real name in 2019. She also issued three albums as a member of the band Chairlift, from 2008 to 2016.
"Bunny Is a Rider" is a song by American singer Caroline Polachek, released on July 14, 2021, through Perpetual Novice. It is the lead single from her fourth studio album Desire, I Want to Turn Into You. Written and co-produced by Polachek, it features production by frequent collaborator Danny L Harle. The song received critical acclaim and was named the best song of 2021 by Pitchfork.
"Billions" is a song by American singer-songwriter and record producer Caroline Polachek. It was released on February 9, 2022 as the second single from Polachek's fourth album, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You (2023).
Clearing is the debut studio album of multidisciplinary artist Hayden Dunham, under their musical alias Hyd. It was released on November 11, 2022, via PC Music. The album was many years in the making, with songs being premiered live as far back as 2018. Material from the album was recorded on Spanish island Lanzarote, which Hyd has stated served as strong inspiration for the album's natural and environmental themes and soundscapes. The album features contributions from the late Sophie, as well as A. G. Cook, Jónsi, and Caroline Polachek, among others.
Desire, I Want to Turn Into You is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter and producer Caroline Polachek, her second under her own name. It was released on February 14, 2023, by Sony Music, The Orchard, and Polachek's imprint Perpetual Novice. Polachek produced most of the album alongside Danny L Harle.
Although Gloss Coma – 002 is technically the follow-up to last year's Here Lies solo album, its title marks it as the sequel to Gloss Coma – 001, Elbrecht's collaborative 2013 EP with Chairlift's Caroline Polachek.
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