Leila

Country of origin:

Citizen of England but born in Iran

Type of music generally:

Ambient, experimental

Status:

Most recent release, U&I (2016)

See also:

Wikipedia's entry on Leila

Comparisons:

Björk, Tricky

Covers/own material:

Original material

General comments:

Leila got her start as Björk's live mixer, and has now put out an intense album of her own. Comparisons can be made to Tricky, Björk, and Massive Attack, but Leila's style is completely unique. It's completely computer and keyboard based, but still manages to sound organic and alive. Leila never sings, seeming to prefer to build landscapes for her friends to sing on top of. Most memorably, Leila and Björk performed "Enjoy" together on Björk's Post tour, Leila deconstructing it to its barest core. Leila is an extremely talented musician, capable of soundscapes one would never think possible. (sketches@earthlink.net)

Recommended first album:

Either

Recordings:

• Like Weather (1998)
• Courtesy of Choice (c. 1999)
• blood, looms and blooms (2008)
• U&I (2016)

Like Weather

Release info:

1998—Rephlex Records—CAT 056

Availability:

Available in U.K. only or in import section in other countries. Also available at online stores.

Ecto priority:

Highly recommended

Group members:

Leila Arab—songwriter, musician, producer

Guest artists:

Luca Santucci—sings, co-writes
Donna Paul—sings, co-writes
Roya Arab—sings, co-writes

Produced by:

Leila Arab

Comments:

About a third of this album is composed of instrumentals, the rest has guest vocals. Leila does not sing on this album, but does all of the writing, recording, engineering, and performing. The album swings from a jazzy, Tom Jones-inspired song to a classical piano song. The album seems to have multiple personalities as it goes from very dark and depressive to lustful to lighthearted and giddy. There has never been an album like it before. The three vocalists on this album are all extremely talented and different from each other. There's an R&B female singer (Donna), a saucy, growling female singer (Roya), and a single male vocalist whose voice is incredibly versatile and beautiful (Luca). (sketches@earthlink.net)

Thanks to Jessica Crispin for work on this entry.