Emma Hunter

The song Hide, for instance, was a late addition to the record. It sees Yolanda fall in love with a woman, because the record is a queer story at heart. “I’m probably still writing songs now that are a part of that world,” she added.  “But maybe that’s just my sound”. Bowie once perfected this method of using songs for world building and character development, meaning Yolanda could potentially make a return. Emma’s next record, which she has already been busily preparing, will tell her own story instead: “One of my flaws as a musician is that I say ‘I’m bored now, so let’s move on to the next thing!’ but you have to remember to promote where you are at the moment.

“This one is much more along the lines of Sharon Van Etten or PJ Harvey, exploring concepts of darkness and light: This means playing around with how you can have hope in a song without it sounding twee. It meant being really honest, and not hiding behind a character anymore. This one is just me”.

Emma’s textured and nuanced forays into the Southern Gothic have long been compared to Indie monarchs like Etten or Harvey.  Hearing Kate Bush’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ for the first time also marked a major turning point. As she starts to tell me why, Emma begins to wave her arms about in frolicking gestures.  “I remember hearing that when I was very young, and being like ‘what is this?’.

There’s something really interesting about how she is writing about a literary character.  “My mum and dad dressed up as Cathy and Heathcliff once and went out to a dinner party. They were those sorts of people. I saw a side of them that was really playful and my dad was pulling silly faces, so I was always intrigued.  “I sat in a coffee shop once and read the whole of Wuthering Heights in a day. I find the Gothic universe so immersive.”

Inspirations stem from all sorts of places. Emma’s obsession with films was equally fundamental in shaping Yolanda’s arc: “What I was really doing with this album was creating a soundtrack for a film. I didn’t even realise it at the time. So, if Steven Spielberg wants to turn this into a film, I would be delighted!”

The idea of crafting a song around a literary character was one Emma borrowed when she was in a band called Amber State. Their song ‘Stanley’ was based on the Tennesse Williams’ play ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’.

“It was actually about Blanche DuBois, her mental health, and how she really wanted this man in her life, but wasn’t in the right position to make an educated decision”. Emma also considers there to be some big similarities in her work to Anna Calvi and Imogen Heap, citing the latter’s revolutionary use of a loop pedal: “I take it as a compliment, particularly if they are saying ‘you’re not just like such and such’.” 

So, to answer the central question, what’s in an inspiration: “I suppose it depends who I’m compared to,” concludes Emma Hunter.  “Sonically, there are big similarities in my music to PJ Harvey or Sharon Van Etten, but there are big differences too."