If you enter Spiral Studios while Shauna Burns is recording, the first thing you might notice is the scent of a "Blue Volcano" candle from Anthropologie wafting through the air. Shauna surrounds herself in the studio with the familiar scents and sights of home, where she composes most of her music. In front of the Yamaha C7 grand piano at Spiral she places photos of loved ones, pets and places. Shauna believes that every song has its own unique frequency...a frequency that is partially formed through her own creative process and partially transmitted through her, as a property that belongs to the song itself. She explains, "Songs are real in the sense that they come and visit and then they leave. The pictures I bring to the studio transport me. I'm putting the frequency of the song into the photo and then carrying it with me to the studio."
Listening to Shauna describe her creative process is fascinating. She says that she often feels a bit like a messenger as she composes a particular piece of music. "Sometimes it's a subconscious energy of something that happened to myself or someone else in the past," she says, "and if I try to control it, then it's gone, like a ghost of some sort. But if I'm true to the song, then it always feels so honest...it is always somebody's truth that is being expressed. Each song is openly vulnerable."
Shauna Burns' newest EP is titled "Anamnesis" which means "recollection" or "remembrance." "Music is a trigger for things we remember," Shauna explains. "Each of the songs on 'Anamnesis' represents one of the senses." The first song on her EP is titled "Smell"...its reference is obvious. "A Letter" embraces the gift of sight, "Wind" references touch, "Driving Far" taste, and "So Tell Me" our sense of hearing.
Shauna views "Anamnesis" as an extension of sorts to her last full length album "The Moon and the Fire Circle," also recorded and produced at Spiral. Compared to her first two releases, "Every Thought" and "Desert Tune," Shauna feels that her last two offerings are tighter, with more depth and layers to the sound. Utilizing all of Spiral's capabilities has enabled Shauna to develop a more structured and contemplative sound, complete with various other instruments added during recording and electronic loops added by producer Steve Lemmon.
When I asked Shauna how she began with the piano, she told me that she couldn't remember a time when she wasn't playing. Her mother was her teacher and Shauna always loved making music. When she moved to Salt Lake City as a young adult she began playing in coffee houses...her own compositions as well as covers. She relates that when she started performing in 1999 she was too nervous to sing. "I had to kick my own ass a little bit" she jokes, "to get over the fear."
Shauna met James Clark in 2001 and moved to the UK shortly after. James, who later became both Burns' drummer and her husband, helped inspire Shauna to take her music to the next level. When they both returned to the US they started looking for a studio. Somewhat by coincidence they stumbled upon Steve Lemmon and Spiral Studios. Within weeks of meeting they were in the studio recording and they loved the experience. "In every other studio we tried," Shauna says, "everyone was so controlling...they were so L.A. Spiral was totally different. I like to do the piano and the vocals together...I like the mix, the crackle. Steve let me record the way I wanted to record. With Spiral there was so much respect...love...and confidence in the artist's ability. It really is the perfect environment. It's a family. It's a give and take."
Shauna tells us that all the songs for her next full length album are already written and she expects to be back in the studio late next year for a 2010 release. She provides a preview for her next record, saying that the feel will be quite different and we can expect a more Celtic vibe...a wandering feeling...perhaps using more eclectic instruments like accordion and hurdy gurdy.
We can't wait.
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