Track By Tracks: Krave - Self Exposure (2021)

1. Purgatory:

Siana: 'I tapped my psyche into a moment of my past where pain was the ruler of my life during the lyric writing of 'Purgatory'. This song acknowledges the realisation that the darkness was the cause of your own hurt and starvation of light, and that the individual doesn't have to keep hurting in their darkness anymore. You are not what your pain says you are. So what's left is the darkness trying to regain its power by reminding the individual it's still there, and you wonder when you will be imprisoned again by your own pain in its purgatorial life. 'Purgatory' beckons the question, to be or not to be defeated. It's up to the individual to decide.'

Krave: 'The band were thrilled when we made a date to record 'Purgatory' since it was everyone's favourite song to play! And we were all eager as hell to hear that fast instrumental riff in the editing room! Recorded at Airlock Studios, the atmosphere and recording time was enjoyed by all. We all live tracked together in the same room to immerse ourselves in the song and bond as a group. We firstly focused on drums and bass, trying to be very immaculate in the precision of takes. Then the dual guitars and lead were layered into the song, (everyone had smiles on their faces at this stage). And lastly, the vocals were the cherry on the cake since Siana managed to get her powerhouse vocal melody spot on in one take captured on film! Overall, a superb day with big smiles and big wins!'

2. Walk Of Atonement:

Siana: 'I engaged into a provocative and metaphorical lyric process for 'Walk Of Atonement'. A particular Game Of Thrones episode inspired my writing process when one of the characters was forced to take a "walk of atonement". I was influenced by this concept and wrote an autobiographical version relating to my shame, loneliness and invisibility in the world. This feeling of being 'undone' in the song was derived from the scenario when feelings and thoughts overflow out and can no longer be bottled up. The instrumentation is very melodic and has a sense of rising and falling with angry guitars, big drums and harmony.'

Krave: Krave were lucky enough to record 'Walk Of Atonement' at Airlock Studios located in the beautiful woodlands of Samford Valley. The whole band was in their element as we recorded this song, lots of excited looks around the studio and plenty of fun layering harmony after harmony. It was a great experience, and the outcome of the recording was really tight. Big team vibes!

3. Alchemy:

Siana: 'I conceived the lyrics of 'Alchemy' from a particular night full of disturbance and disconnection that was led on through substance abuse. This track acknowledges the dangers of losing yourself in a fixation and haze of feeling warm, numb and high off self medicating. The fallout of craving an escape can be catastrophic the further you commit to being intoxicated and this is what 'Alchemy' indicates. The lyrics verbalise the dependency substance abuse has on users, and that its grip can be so strong you can be trapped in a terrible psychosis - which I portrayed as "alchemy" metaphorically.'

Ryan: 'The big heavy riff for 'Alchemy' was actually written in 2016 when I was sick of playing lighter rock in my cover band previously. It came from a place of wanting to write the angriest riff ever with a hell of a lot of groove. 'Alchemy' felt like a rebellion song for me at the time, and I'm stoked it rose back from the dead with Krave because the song kicks! As we developed the song further, I wrote on the spot a mean breakdown that portrays the oomph of Siana's lyrics regarding the pits of substance abuse'

Krave: Our recording for Alchemy was done in late 2019 at Airlock Studios alongside 'Purgatory' and 'Walk Of Atonement'. This song was the most badass riffy song we recorded that day and everyone felt very cool playing such a catchy song with loads of angst and aggression. It was considered our heaviest song and our engineers were envisioning a music video with heaps of motorbikes and danger stunts because of how down and dirty the riff of 'Alchemy' was. In hindsight, it was an amazing idea but none of us had the budget or insurance for motorbikes at the time haha so we decided to be more experimental. 

4. Outta Control:

Siana:'I consider 'Outta Control' to be written from an undeniably honest, raw and deep issue of self control lyrically. It is the most exposing song autobiographically that confronts the cycle of addiction. This song embarks on a sad journey of becoming programmed by bad habits to self soothe oneself just to keep control over intense emotional outbursts when life gets too hard. The lyrics confront the torcher of feeling so bad that a person succumbs to resolving their suffering, sadness, anger and pain through old habits of self infliction and booze that it leads to so much destruction it becomes out of control.'

Krave: 'Outta Control' was a perfect collaboration between all three of us that started off with drums, then the guitar and bass layerings and lastly melody from the vocals. It was very primal rhythmically and melodically the guitars came off as very progressive and moved theoretically in unexpected progressions which gave it a sense of not being in control even though the riff was so catchy and intriguing'

On this EP, 'Outta Control' was the black sheep when we recorded this one. This track was engineered and recorded at Lush Studios with our current lineup and was conducted very precisely with carefully crafted drum parts and applaudable accuracy of instrumentation. We were all very close as a team while recording this track as we felt 'Outta Control' was our best songwriting achievement yet so everyone was excited and cheery through the whole process. There was lots of positivity, friendliness and not to forget we all were cracking funny jokes and delivering great compliments to one another.

5. Running:

Siana: 'I reinforced the feelings of powerlessness and paranoia that an individual can twist themselves up in due to their mind making up stories about what other people think of them. Lyrically, this song is about a girl who is very angry and beaten up by her mind and inner demons that constantly resurface insecurities and assumptions of what people say about her, and the belief that everyone is out to hurt her so she runs away from her own hate and self loathing by blaming everyone else for projecting onto her. The main riff has an urgency of movement portrayed through distorted guitars, fast paced rhythms and heavy bass that the listener is feels as if they are moving with the song'

Krave: 'Running' was the first track that Krave recorded together as a band! It was done at Airlock Studios in Samford Valley, and the process was very fun and new to all of us since we had never officially recorded in such a professional environment before. It was a great learning experience and we were taught that drums and bass were layered together first and then guitars were tracked second and lastly the vocal melody polished off the day and the best takes were comped together to take home. We were all proud of our big day of recording together and were overwhelmed by the execution of our recording for 'Running'. The final product production was so good for our first session of recording we were itching to release it we were that excited.

6. White Walls:

Siana: 'I dedicated my lyrics and song writing for 'White Walls' to someone dearly loved who is a part of my family that was suffering through some very hard times with mental health and ended up hospitalized. I felt so empathic of their pain and suffering that I prayed for them and wished for a way to reach out to them and help but there was no response. I wrote 'White Walls' to let them know that I understood the pain of mental health and the darkness that can swallow you whole and eat you up from the inside. It's a song to tell them that they do have the strength to keep fighting and that they are worth something in this world. The chorus acknowledged that in that moment they were stuck in an illusion behind the white walls of their hospital ward that became their chamber and residence of suffering for so long, but also their recovery.'

Krave: Krave was so ready to track 'White Walls' during our time at Airlock Studios! The day after 'Running' was tracked, Krave began layering 'White Walls' with ambient drums, smooth low bass, layered guitar harmonies and beautiful stripped-back vulnerable vocals that sent shivers down every person in the studio. This song was so real and touching that a few of the people in the studio cried during the recording. 'White Walls' is a powerful ballad and anthem to the people who battle mental health.

We knew we had recorded something very special and it resonates with our listeners very much. They tell us how moving the lyrics and music feel to them and it gets stuck in their head on repeat which is a very powerful exchange and we appreciate helping people understand and relate with our music to help them process their demons and hopefully have the courage to move through the fight of mental health.