[Cover photo credit to Maf Lewis]
I Speak Machine, the experimental “music act and audio-visual project” of musician Tara Busch, has released a music video for “Santa Monica,” the latest single from their upcoming album WAR, arriving on the Friday, April 22nd. Following the release of singles “The Metal of My Hell,” and “WAR,” “Santa Monica” was inspired by a Judy Garland performance of “By Myself” from 1964. That led Busch to write about a Garland-esque star that “felt deep despair despite how loved she really was”.
Tara Busch comments on the character:
Everything became blurred and demented, addiction and delusion being a better place to exist than reality. All taking place in her mind — on the beaches of Santa Monica, full of beautiful people, shiny, numb and smiling, slightly melting. I’m not sure, but I think she loses it and walks into the ocean at the end. Perhaps that can be left up to the listener. It was also in this song that i brought in the superpowers of Kendra Frost’s vocals & vocal arrangement skills — we wanted a sort of ‘angel on your shoulder’/‘voice of reason’ approach to contrast all the delirium.
Created with filmmaker and collaborator Maf Lewis and co-produced with Dean Honer (Roísín Murphy, Add N To (X)), WAR is a collection of Busch’s work that took four years to complete. It pushed Busch to explore unfamiliar territories in her synth-based songwriting, while also “returning to the immediate, aggressive spirit of her past life in Rock”. Some of the darker inspirations for the album included the Trump presidency, emerging from an alcohol addiction, and battling trauma.
Exploring the world of music technology, vintage synthesizers and production for over a decade, the genesis of I Speak Machine was when musician Tara Busch produced a live score for filmmaker Maf Lewis’ debut short horror film, The Silence in 2013. From there, a personal and professional relationship developed, leading to the formation of the audio-visual project.
I Speak Machine is currently on the road supporting Electronic musician Gary Numan across North America:
APRIL
02 — Sacramento, CA — Ace of Spades
03 — Santa Cruz, CA — The Catalyst
04 — Petaluma, CA — Mystic Theater
05 — Ventura, CA — Ventura Music Hall
SEPTEMBER
03 — Portland, OR — Revolution Hall
05 — Vancouver, BC — Commodore
06 — Spokane, WA — Knitting Factory
07 — Boise, ID — Knitting Factory
08 — Salt Lake City, UT — Metro
09 — Denver, CO — Gothic
10 — Omaha, NE — Waiting Room
11 — Minneapolis, MN — First Avenue
