[Cover photo credit to John Hancock]
On August 15th, 2024, singer/songwriter Ashley E. Norton released Call of The Void, an 11-song solo album which was recorded in Nashville by Producer and lead guitar player for Garth Brooks/Trisha Yearwod, Johnny Garcia. Ashley describes the album as “true Americana,” with elements of Country, Folk, Rock and Blues.
Norton wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on the new album but one, the Led Zeppelin cover, “Going To California.” Johnny Garcia acted as guitarist and multi-instrumentalist on the album, Norton contributed vocals and acoustic guitar, and cello and violin were provided by Jimmy Mattingly, who also plays fiddle for Garth Brooks.
We’re thrilled today to premier the video for the title track, “Call of the Void”, here on Wildfire Music + News today. It was directed by Travis MacKenzie Music Production and filmed at The Ramona Town Hall in Ramona, California.
“Call of The Void” was an excellent track from the album to pick for a video because it has epic narrative potential that’s well dramatized with shadowy locations to move between and a sense of waiting for resolution. Even without visuals, Norton’s song conjures a sensory world through imagery and metaphors that convey the gist of something hard to describe–a compulsion that defies all reason. It may be love, it could even be hate, but it’s just as clearly steeped in fascination when we encounter this feeling in our own lives. But it’s a fascination that we know could have a harmful outcome. This relatable idea is taken to poetic extremes by Norton, who conjures up a compulsion so expansive that it seems to partake of every allure we face in life, whether it’s silky chocolate, or the wild thought of jumping off a precipice. There’s a tinge of humor to the presentation of the lyrics on “Call of the Void”, a certain awareness of the traditions of love songs and film noir, but that only makes the underlying truths more approachable. The music of the track dances with Latin rhythms and Western dramatic charm, casting this opposition in filmic terms.
Norton’s video, interestingly, casts her as a sort of femme fatale as she tracks down a Western mystery, making sure we’re never quite certain who’s to blame and who’s to be praised in this back and forth struggle. The dream-like story of the song receives compelling texture through the use of light and shadow in the video, as well as ambiguously empty structures, and of course, the mysterious black old-school telephone which Norton approaches to track down the “call of the void.” The video’s commitment to the drama of the struggle preserves a similar tone as we find in the song, toeing the line between deadly seriousness and exuberant humor. The introduction of a second version of the central character also poses new avenues for interpretation–who, after all, is on the other end of the line? Could it be oneself? While several images in the song are quite haunting, the video creates still more to fill out the psychological territory that Norton has sketched out. It’s as thought-provoking and memorable as the song, a well-constructed match for a central idea on Norton’s new album.
Ashley E. Norton shares:
“Call Of The Void,” although open to interpretation, follows two versions of the same character in different timelines. Our lead Victorian damsel answers an old telephone found in an abandoned building and obsessively begins to search for the person on the other line. She becomes more frantic and gives into the insanity planted by the other caller. Will she ever find “the void” or will it lead to her doom?
The album cover art for Call of The Void was created by Ramona, California photographer John Hancock, who Norton took a road-trip with to Bombay Beach, along with Steampunk acessories. The cover shot ended up seeming like a “metaphor for how she feels about life sometimes. Just screaming into a phone from the 90s in the middle of the desert in a fancy dress Sort of thing.”
Ashley E. Norton usually releases albums with her band, Lady Psychiatrist’s Booth, and this solo album had an unexpected origin. With extra airline miles to use after a cancelled trip, she decided to go to Nashville and work with friend Johnny Garcia to make further recordings. In the end, the new collection of songs spans several years of material that had been waiting for an outlet.
Ashley E. Norton is also co-founder of the Ramona Music Alliance, concert producer of Songbirds of Ramona Ranch.
