Rosa Anschütz - Votive (2020)

A votive. An object as an offering. An intention. A spell in physical form. Music as a form of invocation. Sound as clay. Moulded, sculpted, manipulated to embody said intention. Magick. Chaos. Turning sound into clay. Clay into earthenware. Literally.

Making use of the term Votive opened a large room for interpretation for me. There is so much that I could argue with, which would be about me (atheism, queerness or feminism ) in order to prevent misinterpretation. But I don’t want to limit the interpretation of it by explaining my own personal view. – Rosa Anschütz

The debut LP from transmedia artist / vocalist / producer Rosa Anschütz is a collection of nine votives presented in sonic and ceramic form (every song has its sculptural equivalent). It’s the result of several years of daily rituals: word collages as incantations, audio sigils created by shaping electric voltages and casting sound into clay. Votive is also a highly charged space full of spirit/emotion, a religious experience distilled from the ecstasies of an agnostic.

I sang in choirs for a very long time and enjoy hearing multiple voices. I also love the reverb effect you get in a Church, I emulate this using effect pedals and plug-ins. I also use vocal loops like mantras. I can enter into self-hypnosis through singing. – Rosa Anschütz

Votive was produced by Jan Wagner. It took three years for the initial sketches to punctuate in finished songs. The basis for the music was created using Rosa’s self-built modular synthesizer, which she describes as an entity full of personality that “reacts on my mood of the day.” The lyrics were distilled from her growing collection of decontextualised phrases, loose poems – often written on the move – and diary-like entries, obsessively collected over the years. During the production, these word-formations were intuitively combined with the modular soundscapes, and sculpted till they became holistic, well-balanced micro-universes.

A synthesizer can literally absorb you. It not only has a range of sounds, but also its own personality. I’m constantly changing how I make use of it. – Rosa Anschütz

Like the material found on last year’s Rigid EP, these songs are a curious alloy crafted from a range of sonic vernaculars: experimental / noise, cold wave, techno and avant-pop. The space they evoke remains cool and dusky, both airless and cathedral vast. Spoken word pieces are woven in between spectral choral arrangements, the effect is that of hypnotic mantras. Votive is far from a neutral experience and there is a clear before and after, once you hear it.