HEARTS OF PALM UK
ELECTRICITY WORKS IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS
By Jackie Miehls; photo by Ian Broyles
“I think I do have a tendency to get electrocuted,” says Hearts of Palm UK’s Erica Elektra (hence the last name). Undeterred by the helicopters and sirens wailing through her Echo Park neighborhood, she tells the story of when electricity almost got the best of her onstage.
“My mouth was full of blue, it was crazy! I saw everyone was still looking at me so I had to come back [and finish the set]. Then I burst into tears when the show was over. I thought I was going to die.”
“It was the first show I played with them and it was a little embarrassing because I didn’t know how to handle it,” says Jamie Kaye (AKA Billy Kaye).
Posting a bulletin on MySpace about the experience, Elektra received a heap of responses from other musicians with similar stories. “Electricity works in mysterious ways,” she sums up.
Electricity has worked in mysterious ways for Hearts of Palm UK. In addition to being electro-cute, it becomes quickly apparent amidst the inside jokes and giggles that these three women are more than just bandmates.
It all began two years ago when Elektra moved to L.A. and grew frustrated with the Craigslist method, never finding the right vibe with random musicians. She soon realized the answer was staring her right in the face all along – her best friend, Sonia Powell (AKA Frankie Rose). “I was like, ‘I wish I could be in a band with you,’ and I just kept talking about it and then was like, ‘We are going to be in a band,” Elektra explains. Next up was Jamie Kaye, a friend who came onboard after helping the two with recording. “I had just started playing the cello and Erica basically told me, ‘In a year you are going to be playing with us.’ I sort of rolled my eyes, but it ended up working out that way,” Jamie Kaye says.
With Elektra’s stellar recruiting skills and good friends at her side, Hearts of Palm UK’s music developed into a fun electro-pop sound that has earned comparisons to Camera Obscura, Stars, Metric and The Postal Service. Do not be deceived by the pretty vocals and optimistic twitchy beats, however – the majority of HOPUK’s songs are thick with heartfelt lyrics about lost loves and the hope and renewal that come with them, instilling their music with a potent and affecting humanness often absent in the electronic genre. “Whenever I have an overwhelming emotion, like something really bad or sad or happy, I just feel like writing songs,” Elektra says. “The music is relatable because it speaks to you, but it’s wrapped up in cotton candy. Like a happy melancholy.”
Coining the term “femtronipop” (translation: girls making electronic pop) to describe their sound, HOPUK’s live shows are equally femtronipoptastic. They’re known to consist of fancy dresses, synchronized dance moves (in heels) and a stage full of instruments (three keyboards, omnichord, glockenspiel, cowbell, autoharp … the list goes on).
While it’s clear that Hearts of Palm UK like to play, their track sheet shows that they can also mean business. They won a $20,000 prize and the title of “Best Undiscovered Female Music Talent” in a contest sponsored by GenArt and Biore Skin Care. The prize money enabled them to record their forthcoming album and the title landed them an unexpected appearance on E! News. Elektra has also enjoyed the perks of being for hire, writing a song for Super Tuesday, 2008, which included every state and candidate, some of the issues – and a paycheck.
With their full-length debut, For Life, set for release through Hypnote Recording Concern on October 14, a mini-tour of California to follow in its support and a European tour in the works for next year, Hearts of Palm UK are making it happen while keeping it real – and fun – in both their friendships and songs.
www.heartsofpalmuk.com |
