Track-by-Track: Biita Houdei
Introduction by Tom Johnson
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In the early stages of making her debut album, Biita Houdei knew two things: that she wanted the recordings to feel distinctly and palpably warm, and that she would sew a unique patch for every song on the album. The first of those things is subjective, though brightness pours in from all corners of This Bed Was Made For Me. The second became a laborious task she undertook throughout the process, the completion of which is testament to the slow process of it all, to the physical commitment and patience required to make a full work of art.
The patches she crafted during the making of This Bed Was Made For Me became a full quilt, one that now adorns the album’s front cover. Beneath it sits a striking collection of Houdei’s stirring, signature folk songs, brought into fruition with the help of fellow songwriter Haley Heynderickx, in her first lead production role, and the album’s producer/engineer Sahil Ansari.
A close sense of comradery is ever-present on This Bed Was Made For Me. Light and laughter dance their way through the recordings, even when the subject matter veers towards darker corners. The album feels lived in and alive; dust swirls, seasons shift, sunshine appears and is held. Biita calls it ‘psychedelic’ and there is indeed a sense of that in the world building, in the way the bold colours swirl and dance.
Its intrigue is found in the cracks between though, the small moments and glimpses of some half-hidden magic. It's in those moments where the album seems to come flourishing into life; tender, gentle details, buoyed by a magic that feels wildly and beautifully untamed. From Biita's subtle but often astounding voice, we hear wild-hearted sentiments, shaped by the world around them, fascinated by the enchantment of it all.
Released just a few weeks ago, you can stream the album in full below, while reading Biita's written guide to each and every song here. Check it out below...
A guide to This Bed Was Made For Me
written by Biita Houdei
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The Ground Here - I had moved to Topanga, California, a landscape that is undeniably beautiful- where many people are happy to reside. I, however, being painfully aware of how strained the land had grown to be during years that I lived there, longed for natural bodies of water and the simple rainstorm. Growing up in Missouri, I was and continue to be more of a creek/river swimmer. I had missed winter for the first time in my life. I never thought I would long for winter more than I did when I lived in California. These seasonal shifts help me savor nature more deeply. The song begins in the driest part of the California summer, then ends in the lush rivers in the Ozark Mountains back home.
Fennel Knows - I wrote this song in a eucalyptus forest in Topanga sitting amongst the wild fennel that grows there. I loved sitting amongst the fennel. A theme emerges! I had left my Missouri home for the first time and I was writing about missing it. About treating those around you with love, taking changes, being okay with stepping into darkness. About making your bed and laying in it, happily.
Frog Song - Haley and I went on a writing retreat along the Oregon coast and I stayed in a tiny trailer. I had written the guitar part some 8 years prior and had found it in my voice notes while flying in the airplane to wherever we were before the retreat. Vignettes upon vignettes made up this song. A very simple song about my surroundings that day, as well as random thoughts and dreams of my future. I see a pond filled with singing frogs when I listen to this song. The woodwinds and strings in this song are so playful and joyful. They sound just like bugs and frogs hopping about.
Time Go, Time Gone - Just as the title suggests, this is about our precious time. This is a song about the cell phone. I was just pulled to write about our relationship with phones... How taking photos constantly removes meaning, how we are all addicts now, how children cannot concentrate anymore. How any quiet moment must be filled – how abstract thought has been destroyed. I am certain we will wake up soon, but it has been designed powerfully. Although we are enraged at the evils of the world through social media, there seems to be little we actually do. There is severe avolition at play. We are more numbed, controlled, and obedient than ever. Something to point out about the end is that it’s two people talking to one another. A call and response, if you will. The first person is asking the other how they are and how they’ve missed them. The person responding is distracted by their appearance and how they look instead of hearing the person that loves them.
Life Inside the Hourglass - This song is about outgrowing our old ways and the humble nature of being witnessed. The melody came to me. It was dropped into my mind from a ghost of sorts. I am not even sure I wrote this song. It’s so special to me — I wrote it in 20 minutes.
Burnin’ - I was living in Topanga and had to evacuate due to the Palisades fire. Graciously, a sweet little beachside condo was opened to us through a friend’s family, and I spent the mornings in denial as I stared into the ocean, which was on proud display from the balcony. The contrast between where I just fled from to where I was, was stark. I wasn’t used to wildfires, and I’m not sure anyone should be. Wildfires are almost always caused by people, and it deeply saddened me. I quietly sat on the floor of the bedroom and strummed an open tuning to the beat of my heart. And there it went.
Quiet & Warm-willed - This is an instrumental love song. A mostly easy journey, with small moments of doubt and contemplation.
Adelaide - I wrote this song from the point of view of a person that has attributes that I don’t have myself. It’s also about every dear friend I have, all combined into one made up “person” called Adelaide. It calls on all of my loved ones and their good qualities.
Night Fright - The crux of the album. It follows a troubled relationship blooming into a new, healthy one. The entire vision of the album fully presented itself after we built this song up to what it is. The artwork, quilt, music video, the entire meaning became more clear. The song moves from night fright to night light- I’d be more interested in hearing how others interpret it without giving too much away.
This Bed Was Made For Me - Haley began strumming an alternate rhythm of Night Fright, and we just repeated lyrics that were already in Night Fright. We then stepped into the recording booth together and sang. Sahil slowed down and sped up the tape, and it became the perfect, eerie accompaniment to Night Fright, and it also helped us highlight the album title.
Peach in the Briar - This song and singing style also came to me like a ghost. I wrote it in the Blue Ridge mountains of Georgia in a really large room during a residency. Writing in large, echoey spaces hadn’t been too common of an instance. It made a difference in how I sang the song, and I didn’t shy away from it.
Window in the Winter - Another song about seasons and the dread of winter coming. I wrote this song in 2017 after listening to Animal Collective albums on repeat all summer long. I feel this track was heavily influenced by them. I was glad that Haley and Sahil chose this song to include in the record. The percussion is outré and magical. José Medeles mastered the sounds of fluttering geese, wind chimes, water lapping… It feels like a different world.
Bud Worth Biting - The conclusion of the album - this was originally the end of Time Go, Time Gone. Haley, Sahil and I decided to sing it together to end the album in a contemplative, but sweet note. It says “When will we turn off the light? It’s far too blinding. When will we nip on the bud? The fruit’s worth biting. I want moments to be. I want moments to be… to whisk me away!” It’s a call and a wish to be present.
This Bed Was Made For Me is out now, via Father/Daughter Records and Basin Rock. Stream/purchase via on Bandcamp here
UK tour dates
10th Oct - Todmorden, UK - Natural Endings
13th Oct - Birmingham, UK - Hare & Hounds
14th Oct - London, UK - The Old Church Stoke Newington
Find tickets here
