Does anybody ever really feel the alternative of butterflies of their abdomen? Lullanas, the singer-songwriter twin sister duo of Atisha and Nishita Lulla from close to Philadelphia, attempt to sum that up of their twinkling music “Butterflies In Reverse.”
Speaking to Rolling Stone India over a video name, Atisha says it’s certainly one of her favourite songs off their not too long ago launched debut album Pretty Lies and Time Machines, which got here out on Jun. 14 by way of Nettwerk. She explains the crux of it, “Like the person or situation that once gave you the good, happy kind of butterflies, no longer give you that feeling.”
The 11-track album follows their breakout songs like “Don’t Say” (2016, recorded in Mumbai) in addition to their 2020 EP Before Everything Got Real and the music “Queen of Disaster” from 2021. Working with producer Keith Goodwin at his studio in Pennsylvania, Lullanas unpack their emotions over sonic influences that vary from Americana to country-pop and folk-rock between the duo. Atisha says, “We wanted it to be a soothing listen, but also feel like you were a part of the process. Kind of like, you were sitting in the room, so it was very ASMR-oriented.”
If that was a time period you weren’t aware of, it’s the sort of sonic immersion that goals to appease the ears, typically with whispered speaking, chicken sounds and tapping. When you’re a singer-songwriter duo like Lullanas, it meant being as intimate as attainable. Nishita provides in regards to the album, “It’s very vocal and lyric-driven.”
What’s modified over time is that they’re now “the ones fully steering the ship” as a substitute of essentially deferring to others. Sure, there are songwriters, collaborators and producers concerned. Nishita says about producer Goodwin, “He was open to letting us try our crazy and not so crazy ideas to get it to a place all collectively were proud of.”
There’s an idyllic but modern-day sheen to the manufacturing and lyricism on songs like “Pretty Lies and Time Machines,” co-written with Jake Etheridge. It comes with a visualizer through which Lullanas make their very own time machine out of a pal’s dryer. They put in every part from a disco ball to their outdated teddy bears, keys, a clock, handwritten lyric notes and extra, all representing nostalgia for childhood and “going places.” They even poured glitter in there in some unspecified time in the future within the visualizer footage. “That was just a disaster. We poured it right into our friend’s dryer we borrowed and he was like, ‘There’s glitter all over my clothes.’ We’re like, ‘Yeah, now you can sparkle,’” Atisha says with fun.
The title observe was amongst a complete of six singles that they launched earlier than Pretty Lies and Time Machines got here out in full earlier this month. Nishita feedback on the present route of releasing as many songs off the album as singles earlier than the total assortment of 11 tracks. “We’re about the single release life. Because of attention spans right now, does anyone listen fully through? We made the album to flow nicely front to back. We know there are people who listen fully through, but it’s definitely not as common as it used to be,” she says.
Lullanas workforce up with Scottish singer-songwriter Tommy Ashby for 2 songs on this album, “24/7” and “Press Play,” the latter being obtained fairly effectively earlier than it got here out. The lyrics go: “Fast forward to the parts you like/’Til it’s over and I’m far behind.”
They drummed up a little bit of help for the music once they had been touring with Australian indie trio Sons of the East within the Fall of final 12 months. It was when their bakeshop – Lullanas Bakes – was closed briefly. Nishita says, “You know, it’s crazy. It always happens when we are on the road or away writing or recording – that’s when we get the most orders. And I’m like, ‘Who’s telling these people?’” While the sisters preserve that baking is certainly their facet hustle, they get intrigued on the suggestion that they might open a meals truck as they take their tunes on the street. Atisha says, “Wait, that’s actually a really good tour idea. Like, a food truck instead of a tour bus in each town. That would make touring financially feasible for sure.”
In the meantime, Lullanas are planning a household go to to India in September. Nishita says, “We’re going to try and book some shows or get something together for that.”