Last year we got to know Verdigrls' Anna and Catherine Wolk with their single “Jason“, that combined their classically-trained composition with the holiday keyboard bell glow. The sisters formerly known as Velveteen have fused their traditional music education with the nü-modern platforms of performance, featured on the just released Verdigrls, Heartbreak Hour EP, available now from Manimal and streaming here. Honing what is their richest sound yet, the digitized simulations sync seamlessly into the Anna and Catherine's orchestral notes, and embody the essence of what happens internally upon the initial impact of sudden departures.
In the wake, “Long Gone” adorns the open door that sends out memories of the absent, while the lingering sentiment looms in the air with recitations of “the meaning is always lost on me,” and coping quandary of, “I'm not good at these kinds of things”, while the Wolk's strings and synths create spaces of sleepless dreams. The recovery and reckoning continues, on “Take It Easy” that works to get over it, through harpsichord emulations, nursing wounds, chorus chants of “I don't care,” searching for understanding, and somber strings. The questions in a world of blue continue, with Verdigrls channeling their style of electronic choral pop to heal the heart of hurt on “Think In Blue”, which features one of the best 'getting over it' lyrics around with, “dyed my hair to erase you.” The “you never had a hold on me” statements of separation sink deep into the tear-stained seas, as the title track of “Heartbreak Hour” leaves with a haunting blend of traditional instrumentation, and current atmospheric amplifications of heartsick overtures. The EP concludes with the classically minded Wolk sisters melding the subtle, yet symphonic, approaches to synthesized instruments that string together the composition of songs with a sensitive heart.
We caught up again with Verdigrls to learn the inside secrets behind their new, Heartbreak Hour EP.
Anticipatory energy permeates the Heartbreak Hour EP, what worlds of blue lent inspiration to these songs?
A birthday party without cake, long hours spent on the toilet reading shampoo bottles, sunburn that doesn't lead to a tan, stray cats that don't like me, having blue hair.
How do you both begin to convey in musical orchestration the feelings surrounding the very hour a heartbreak split occurs?
A pause. A penny falls to the floor. Building side up. I hate pennies.
From the textures of vocal harmonies and keyboards, how do you go about incorporating the baroque chamber strings that comprise much of the EP?
If it's not baroque don't fix it.
Cello, we got a bass.
Fingering the g string.
The orchestral components also cause things to soar, like even the melancholy of “Long Gone” gets to soar on a pair of wings. Do you both try to balance expressions of the personal with a fluttering mix of sound that takes flight like butterflies and doves being released from a cage?
“Icarus don't fly too close to the sun, you have but only wax wings.”
What can you both share about the future prospects for Verdigrls album?
Verdigrls' Heartbreak Hour EP is available now from Manimal Vinyl.
