Dot Allison- Having taken time out to raise a family, Dot Allison returns with Heart-Shaped Scars, her most realized and illuminating album – and there have been several significant predecessors to compare it to.
Interview conducted on July 27, 2021
By Dan Locke
Although sounding like a natural pairing, folk is somewhat of a new direction for Dot whose previous works have been more in the electronic music spectrum as you may recall her debut into the music world as One Dove. The trio launched her long-time collaboration with the late and great Andrew Weatherall (Primal Scream, The Orb, My Bloody Valentine), who still remains her biggest inspiration and who she dedicates this album to the memory of.
On the album Allison plays ukulele, piano, 12 string guitar, mellotron, keyboards, Hubble kalimba & Phone-Home Xylophone, Treated Keys & Harmonium, found field recordings, and oversaw vocal arrangements. The album is produced by Allison alongside Fiona Cruickshank and on four songs, her imaginative lyrics are accompanied by string arrangements by buzzworthy artist Hannah Peel (who was just nominated for a Mercury Prize). Other collaborations include singer-songwriters Amy Bowman in “The Haunted” and Zoë Bestel, on the second single “Can You Hear Nature Sing?“
What was your upbringing like?
I guess it was normal to me as it’s the only one I know. but I am a twin and so shared everything from the air-space to bunk beds & music so that will have affected me. I think I am good at being a team player in the studio and being open to critique etc and I wonder if that is partly due to having a twin. My Dad was a botanist and my Mum is a musician, so I guess they influenced me and these interests were in my childhood DNA if that makes sense. I recall my dad referring to plants in the Latin genus and species often and we had two slightly duff pianos in the house, a guitar, recorders, percussion and a drum kit at one point. so, these aspects of my childhood probably shaped me to a degree, I guess.
This is your first album in 12 years. Why now?
Only because my children are bigger now and don’t need my energy quite so much. I just literally got depressed if I spent time away from them before, so I just stopped making music except for a few rare writing days for a few years as I couldn’t do it anyway for that reason.
How was it to perform on Jools Holland back in 2000?
Nerve-wracking… I’m actually painfully shy under that kind of pressure so I kind of get through it rather than loving the limelight in that sense.
Tell me the backstory of “Can You Hear Nature Sing”?
Oh, I didn’t, that was my own poem I wrote about Autumn that I had called ‘emblems’ as a working title, that I pulled out in the writing session and we plundered it heavily to find the lyrics of the song. we both wrote the melody together and Zoë played the Uke on that song. I had written a poem looking out at the landscape around where I live and much of my poem became the lyrical part of the song.
How was it to work with Fiona Cruickshank who is known for her sound engineering of films?
Amazing… Fi is so so talented and the loveliest person to have around so we had a giggle whilst she sculpted away at the sound and we discussed the balance and the mix and arrangements too… I asked her if she would like to co-produce with me so we both arranged the sessions and she was the grown up in the room when need be… making sure the recordings were captured in the time we had etc… It was lovely having her mind on everything too as it’s a lot to hold in your head when you get to coordinating a project that size so all round, I really appreciated having Fi Both engineer and co-produce.
How was this album different than your debut solo album “Afterglow”?
I think my writing has matured massively as you would hope and my process of ‘mining’ for ideas, melodies, arrangements, and the concept is on a different level I would say… I am also far more aware of my sound, my style how to articulate what I want verbally and sonically and I feel my voice is kind of perfectly battered at the point. I said I’d like to freeze it at this stage of being ‘lived in’ 🙂
With the outbreak of the virus going down, any plans to do a tour to support the album?
I haven’t planned to yet. I may do a live stream but I’ll wait and see how things go.
