Creases is a creation of Matilda Rowe and tells a story through two separate EP’s that come together as a singular project. Where Creases – Act One goes between the changing mind of a girl, Creases – Act Two is the reckoning of a woman discovering an identity that was overshadowed by a relationship. Through a variety of genres such as jazz, folk and indie, Creases is an expansive project whose vivid emotion is transmitted through all the intentional elements of production and songwriting.
In Act Two, the narrator learns to give herself grace and rediscovers her path as a person. With highly emotional vocals and cinematic instrumentals, she builds a sonic and thematic universe that feels tangible in its impressiveness.
Although Rowe is a fairly new artist, she used to sing from a young age. “I come from quite a performing family, so music and performing has just been around. I started writing music when I was 14, and then I stopped because I felt I needed to focus on one thing.” However, she began writing music again around 24. “I was so sick of hearing stuff that didn’t feel real.” She mentions her inspirations being Fiona Apple, Nina Simone and Lauryn Hill. “I was like, “This feels real.” I want to make music like that. I started the process of trying to make [Creases], which is my first project.”
Act One is described by the artist herself as ‘the happening’. The closing track of the first act ends that part of the story with the lyrics “I pray I get away from you,” a transition into Act Two, as it is ‘the reckoning’. “Act One is so up and down. Being thrown through all of these emotions, so much love and happiness, and then sadness. The end of Act One is feet on the ground [as you realize] “This isn’t good for me”. Act One is all about someone else, and Act Two is all about you. That transition of external focus and basing your life around what someone else feels. It is the need to get away from someone. When you do that, there’s a depth of pain, but also catharsis and understanding that comes after.”
This process of unearthing forgotten parts begins with the opening track, “Fat Chance,” where she retreats from the world to focus on herself, retracing steps as she distances herself from the pain and oncoming potential heartache. Rowe describes the process of rediscovering self identity as “a lot of ugly stuff.” She remarks that the tough moments expressed throughout the project lead to a reward in the end. “I used to think that a light switch would just go off and I’d be like… I’ve been ignoring myself. This is who I am. It’s not like that at all.” She points out how Creases – Act Two is the process of expelling emotion and finding herself through that process.
The universe she built around Creases is cinematic—as much in the sonic atmosphere as in the visual one. The title track has vivid imagery that feels taken out of an independent film. It shows the painful journey of returning to being a singular person. The suffocation of someone else’s presence is represented through a rope that keeps tightening around her body, pulling her back as she tries to escape. Visible damage left by the fight is highlighted through open wounds.
Since the imagery is a remarkable aspect of Creases, I was curious about what stands out to her when she pictures the project. She revealed how the cinema is stripped to its original art form of theatre. “It is very theatrical to me, especially “Fat Chance” which feels like a dark room and a jazz bar where no one’s talking and someone’s just screaming. Weirdly, and I don’t know why, it feels like a darkened room. That sounds so morbid, and I don’t mean it to but there is an emergence that happens in Act Two.” She classifies Creases as “wildly depressing,” though she points out how it’s interpreted by her collaborators who see it as a rather hopeful track. She says, “Creases ends with “Bring the future into view.” There’s a commitment and a mission statement to like moving forward.”
The second track “Forget” deals with confusion around self identity. Through the lyrics, she goes back and forth to the question “Who am I?” which turns into a cathartic mantra that affirms her new position as a confident being. I wondered how creating this song helped her in discovering her own self, since the emotional nature of the song seemed to reflect her experience. “That’s such a good question,” she replied, “I wrote that song whilst I was in a really confusing, difficult and bad relationship. I didn’t realize how obvious that was in that song until after I’d left the relationship. When I wrote it, I was trying to finish a different song and I couldn’t do it, so I started playing this guitar riff over and over again, and then these words started coming out. It feels now like a part of myself was speaking to myself.”
The production of the track is a reflection of how she felt at the time as well. The guitar strings are the most prominent part of the instrumental. “I’m not that proficient in guitar, I don’t know music theory, so I don’t know where songs are supposed to go. Everything was on these same two chords. As a result, I kept coming back to the same thing and that’s what was happening in myself and in my relationship. I’d have these weird tangential thoughts like, “Hang on, am I going insane? I don’t even know what I want to eat.” We go back to this same thing. It interestingly works in terms of the music.”
“Reframe” is a spoken word interlude with an instrumental accompanying Rowe’s mother’s voice who shares wisdom about the cycle of trees. I was intrigued by the insight yet I was caught off guard when the words “I love you” were spoken at the end. I was imagining the excerpt being from a TED talk, so the personal dimension sparked the question of how it all came to be. “When I recorded all of the music for everything, the relationship I was thinking about was breaking down. The relationship had been very bad for a while, but I hadn’t ever reached out to my mum. You don’t ever speak to anyone, but it got to the point where I ended up calling my mum. She was away working and she sent me that voice note. As soon as she sent me that, I knew this needed to be part of this story, because that’s what it’s about.”
She mentions her mother’s impact on reframing situations, and she felt the need to share that with people to help those in a similar situation. “I think it is such an important thing to remember that all of these things that happen to us make us stronger. It’s a time old thing, but I thought the way she said was so beautiful. Even the ‘I love you so much’ at the end. There are no other voices on the track and the fact that it’s my mom’s is really important.”
The wisdom of “Reframe” leads into the narrative of the title track “Creases”, where she portrays an ancestral version of herself in the visual. While the cinematic creativity stands out, I was confused as to what the storytelling of the video was expressing. To explain, Rowe returned to the point when she wrote it in isolation and admitted she hadn’t imagined the video as it is now. “[The directors] came up with the idea about the rope. I wanted there to be this feeling of tension all the time. Ropes are wringing things out, something’s about to snap, and then when it happens it’s very cathartic. We got into conversations about her relationship with the rope, being some kind of intimacy and safety. Then it turns and there’s a real effort and work to get away from the rope.”
While there is a clear personal dimension to the project, I sensed a need for separation in the greater message it’s sending about protecting your own self. Matilda confirmed my hypothesis as she mused on the character represented. “We called her Florence. I don’t think it was conducive for it to be me. She feels like [she existed] ages ago. It’s finding strength through your body and the ancestors that come with that.”
When it comes to her artistry, Rowe wants people to feel seen and feel no shame. For her, that comes through radical honesty. “It pushes me to try and be as non-judgmental in my process as possible. I write to try and understand how I feel, but also to try and help other people understand how they feel. If I can be really honest about the complications and the contradictions of everything.”
I asked her whether she finds inspiration outside of music, and if so where. She hesitated for a bit, but it was because one answer didn’t seem to be enough. In the end, it was nature that prevailed. “It’s a great projection. It always projects what you feel in some way.” However, she insists on her passion for all kinds of art. “When people have committed to a story or a vision, I find that really inspiring. Also little things, when you read one little line and you’re like, ‘Whoa, that speaks to me.’ Art is always people’s choices and that is fascinating to me. That’s why I love thoughtful things.”
If Rowe or her music would be a person, it would be purple. “I’m a purple person. I love lilac, but I don’t think my music is lilac. There’s such a range.” As for the Karma! Magazine playlist, she immediately jumps onto the occasion of recommending a Fiona Apple song. She takes a while as she goes through her playlist, but decides to go with “Under The Table.”
Now that both acts of Creases are released, I excitedly inquired about what she looks forward to the most. Her answer was decisive: make more fun music. “This has taught me a lot about taking myself really seriously, which actually has limited me in certain ways by trying to prove myself. I’m really excited to make fun music and express myself fully. I don’t really believe in genres. I want to explore different styles and express myself in a different way.”
Throughout the interview, Rowe was comfortable and developed her answers in detail, prompting a real conversation about her creative process. Her passion was palpable through the screen as well as her pride towards this project. With her wide imagination and versatile creativity, it sparked a curiosity about what her next steps will be when it comes to her artistry. Alas, she is a promising new artist that has done more than prove the extent of her talent. Her future in music is guaranteed to be exciting.
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