Sky Vettel's 'Sin From a New Perspective'

New York electronic musician's "concept music"

By Sky VettelPublished 7 years ago • 4 min read

Sky Vettel

A Native New Yorker, electronic musician Sky Vettel is creating what she calls "concept music" - pieces which evoke imagery, emotions, new thoughts and feelings. "Isn't that pretty much all music? Unless it's what's being played on the radio," she says. To her, it's slightly hifalutin but it's to the point and something easy to comprehend upon hearing it. "I want people - all types - to be able to enjoy something. You can't make everybody happy. I don't want to make everybody happy. But I think there's something for everyone." The 26-year-old has a catalogue of over 30 songs - from soothing, relaxing, progressing ambient soundscapes, to gritty smoky, urban trip hop, to upbeat, disco house - and she's not slowing down. "I'm very busy writing new material right now. I'm really trying to create stuff that's improved from my last works... you can't rush organic improvement, but you can certainly work hard at it. I'm excited at the progress in this moment, as well as the anticipation of what's to come with this." What type of music styles would you expect to hear this time around? "There's a bit of hip hop, tech house, and maybe even doo wop, oddly enough," she says. "I've always loved doo wop and just the noodling around with the 50's chord progression on the keyboard made me extremely excited!" What else excites her? "Being in the moment, enjoying everything, and of course, people's response to my music and how they feel, that's great. I definitely want to keep impressing people and make more music that they love."

Another thing that strikes a chord for Sky is the importance of substance in music. "I'd like to inject intelligence and sophistication into music," she says. "There's just such a deficit of it and something needs to be done. Sure, when it comes to EDM, there's not exactly classical 18th century progressions at work here, but there still needs to be a fresh new creative spin on what's been done to death already in dance music." Sky's second collection (EP), Sin From a New Perspective, is an amalgam of upbeat dance (the track, which goes by the same title, brings early New Order to mind, as well as a pepper-in of early Madonna). Along with that is trip hop ("Yamakuza Sunrise" is gritty, urban, and slightly dangerous sounding), to name just two on the EP.

Aesthetics, styles and moods are a part of what concept music conjures up. What kind of aesthetics appeal to Sky? On any given day, she could be wearing pink eye shadow, glitter all over; a kimono, or military jacket, or a pink furry coat. "My aesthetic is basically a conglomeration of different things, different points in time which fascinate me," she says. "I've always been a glitter kid, ever since high school." Glitter rock/glam rock, harkening back to the early 1970's - think Brian Eno-era Roxy Music, David Bowie as Ziggy Stardust, T-Rex, the list goes on. "I've always loved disco too, so there's some disco going on as well. It's not just, 'oh, that's pretty, let me slap on some lip gloss and sparkles', it's really me taking the complete campiness from both looks and having fun with it. You absolutely have to be camp and have a sense of humor, that's so important."

With the glitter and occasional heavy-handed eyeshadow aside, there's also an even earlier example of history-cum-art thrown in for good measure. "You can't detect it immediately in my music, but I love Victorian things, I mean late Victorian things... and one of my ambitions is to do something that sounds like a wax cylinder recording, as well as working with a choir, or gospel group. I've already done one [a wax cylinder-sound recording], but I really want to do more. I could go on and on about the importance of those early paraffin cylinders in the beginning of the music industry." From early Edison tinniness, to "fashion house" (the type of sounds you hear while models strut down the runway), Sky is endlessly inspired. "It truly is like an invisible force that takes you a hold." While there's no current date for when the new album to come out, it's coming very soon, and we shall see what kind of new phase her distinctive electronic music and all its subgenres will sound with it. While there's no current date for when the new album will come out, it's coming very soon, and we shall see what kind of new phase her distinctive electronic music and all its subgenres will sound with it. You can get Sky's Sin From a New Perspective on her site (listed below), as well as her Bandcamp.