"[W]hen I was little I was obsessed by churches - by how they were built and how someone had created them because they believed in it so much, and it's beautiful. When I heard the way my voice sounded in a church I was like 'Oh my God, this is so cool'. I want it have that religious thing, and when you're watching it I want it to feel like a film - so you're watching a show, as well as hearing music. I want it to be a performance: instead of just hearing it, I want you to believe it."
-Charlotte OC, gigwise.com
Charlotte Mary O'Connor, aka Charlotte OC, is a British singer-songwriter of mixed race heritage (Irish, Malawi and Indian) that may remind you of Bat for Lashes' Natasha Khan. While Charlotte OC has received some critical acclaim in the UK (from the BBC and Digital Spy), her work has yet to catch the attention of the rest of the world.
O'Connor has noted that she draws from gospel, soul, electronic and house music, and Kim Taylor Bennett of Noisey UK has observed that "She blends Bat for Lashes' cosmic mystic pop, Stevie Nicks' breathless vulnerability, and possesses the vocal chops to keep up with Adele." Her cross-genre influences can certainly be heard on 'Strange', a single she released in August 2014.
The track's lyrics come across as being simple, but there's something ominous and cryptic lurking below the surface:
'I've been acting strange
Now you're in my brain
You're something I've been dying for
Even in your arms, I can feel the harm
Of the love I've been craving for
Pictures out the frame
There's nothing left to blame
You're the one I'm waiting for
Cause you've been acting strange
Now I'm in your veins
You don't know what you're running from'
They seemed to be addressed to a desired other, with undercurrents of a powerful, (perhaps even mystical) obsessive hunger. I'm still unsure of what to make of the repeated refrain 'Don't waste your love/ Don't waste your love/ Don't waste your love away'. The track isn't an attempt at a dialogue, but a fleshing out of an internal psychic turmoil against a minimalist backdrop of subtle beats and melodies.
O'Connor apparents drew some initial musical inspiration by "dressing up as a witch when she was younger" (Hungertv.com, 2013), and the music video certainly plays up the her occultist leanings, complete with what seems to be a suburban Pagan fire ritual and a dramatic priestess-esque outfit (also note the kohl-rimmed eyes and scorpion tattoos on her palms). Its this spiritual mysticism that makes the track (and the artist) stand out, and it certainly complements the song's lyrics. I'm hoping that O'Connor can take that understatedly grand occultist/spiritualist element in her music to a more interesting level in her future work, and cast a lasting spell on music listeners worldwide.
