gem-K - Swan, Lover’s Knot, Dagger (2021)

Baby, let me in your arms tonight if only for this one last time.

gem-K is the femme fatale alter-ego of Maria Korkeila, a Finnish multidisciplinary artist working at the intersection of fashion, graphics, textiles, photography and music. Super Utu and Korkeila first crossed paths in 2017 at The Community, a small independent art gallery then located in Paris’s 10th arrondissement run by a group of Finnish expats. It was from then we learnt that Korkeila’s artistry is influenced not by any one discipline but by praxis itself. This can be observed through her myriad creative explorations: In My Room - a site specific installation at Kämp Garden, Helsinki; Her Aalto University grad collection - a junction of photography and textile design through a feminist lens; and Fiskars by Maria Korkeila - a gender-neutral gardening and urban exploration clothing collection.

After trying her hand at music production and following a few years of sharing demos over the internet, we are humbled to finally offer gem-K’s debut album, ‘Swan, Lover’s Knot, Dagger’.

A tragic tale which journeys the stages of heartbreak, gem-K explores grief through Classical Greek mythology, the Finnish Epic Kalevala and contemporary romantic tropes. Her lyrics are clear and forthright, leaving no room for assumptions, the raw simplicity of which is also apparent in the album’s sonic aesthetics. From a compositional perspective, gem-K employs only the sounds required to create a balance between her Goldfrapp-esque vocal style and her moody minimal-wave electronics. Using just a laptop and a microphone, gem-K’s approach to music production epitomises DIY culture: self-taught and self-directed. This too is evident in her choice of collaborators, friends J. Essel (vocals on Autumn, guitar on Dogmatist) and soft yakka (cello on Tread Lightly).

Behind the alter-ego, Maria Korkeila has designed merchandise and graphics for Solstice Festival and Post Bar as well as on stage outfits for the singer New Ro. Her dance music project emkay has recently celebrated a debut solo EP on Post Bar’s Post Sonics record label. She also hosts Tête-à-Tête. a monthly radio show on Ida Helsinki.