Ivana XL The Deli's reviews and interviews

Ivana XL's music sounds like it&rsquod perfectly complement a Tim Burton landscape, as it conjures shadowy forests, stretching fog fingers and creaking attics in Antebellum mansions. Her breathy, beautiful voice floats atop the complex arrangements like a chilly breeze sneaking into the room through a drafty window. The sparse, almost haunted songs sound like something Joanna Newsom might produce if she spent an entire winter in the house from "The Shining" taking Xanax and staring into the snow-blanketed landscape. Though IvanaXL is essentially just one woman with an acoustic guitar, her music brilliantly defies the tones and tropes so often associated with that set-up. The term "singer-songwriter" couldn't be more misleading than in the case of this promising young Brooklynite. While her contemporaries enchant audiences with rich orchestration and professorial literary allusions, Ivana manages to transport the listener to equally mythical places simply by strumming her guitar with soft, careful brushes complemented by perfectly measured exhales. After releasing two well-received EP's in 2008, IvanaXL is gigging around the city and working in a Manhattan studio for her next release. I caught up with IvanaXL via email:

According to your bio, you grew up on the road traveling with your mother. Did she encourage your musical inclinations, or did this unusual childhood inspire you to take up playing?

My mother thought I should become a mathmetician/chemist for NASA, but that dream was shattered. She totally digs my music, though.. so it worked out. I think the frequent change in schools made me shy and kind of a (huge) hermit, but a lot of that &quotalone time" was spent teaching myself how to play guitar and sing. Can't be sure, but I think that if I'd grown up in a home with 2 parents, a brother/sister, with like a lawn and a golden retriever, I'd still be playing and singing about some love gone wrong.

You have 2 EPs that were both released in 2008. How long were those in the works, and why did you release them separately?

The first EP was the result of someone saying &quotHey, you need to release an official CD&quot.. because before that I was releasing one song at a time. The second EP was just the next 7 songs that were written and recorded. Honestly, though, I think it boils down to impatience/a short attention span. 7 songs at a time has a nice ring. One song at a time has an even lovelier ring, but I'm trying not to be confusing.

Your current schedule includes several NYC dates. Do you plan to do any touring anytime soon?

I don't actually have it planned, but I plan on touring in the near future. Right now I'm busy recording, sleeping, watching serial killer documentaries on youtube, and talking about those three things.. but I feel a tour is right around the corner.

The instrumentation on your recordings is sparse, but the songwriting is quite sophisticated. Do you have plans to incorporate additional orchestration to bring out those complexities?

Yes. I've actually recorded 7 songs with Producer Dan Chen this summer that we are planning a release for. Two of the songs include &quotHappy Birthday" and &quotStars", which are on my Myspace page. They have a lot of orchestration.. and we are continuing to record with more instrumentation. I�m also finding people to accompany me for live shows. Lots of new sounds sounding from all angles.

Well. In a couple weeks I'm going to release �Old Swans� which is 10 songs that were recorded when I first started writing my own stuff in 2006, and that I now love. I have a funny fear my house will burn down, so I�m releasing it on the internet, which will NEVER BURN DOWN. Also looking to adopt a kitten.