Young Magic are unequivocally one of the most intriguing artists in modern music right now.

Now Brooklyn natives, the duo comprises of Indonesian-born Melati Malay and Aussie local Isaac Emmanuel, two beautiful artists who produce electronica-based beats that twist and turn from dizzying sonic experiments of kaleidoscopic psychedelica trips, star-gazing dream-pop and earthy triphop.

We were first introduced to Young Magic’s eclectic, worldly palette back in 2012 when their debut record Melt, was released.

Now, in 2014, the pair have returned with a much more rootsy, engulfing record, Breathing Statues, that was recorded in various exotic places around the world.

We were lucky to catch up with Melati Malay as she revealed the turmoil and pain that went into the lyrics penned for Breathing Statues, the band’s experience recording in various places around the world and the visual importance of their live shows.

Detailing her lyrical work on Breathing Statues she said, “We lost someone in our family and I was going through a gauntlet of grief. I forced myself to stand on the edge of the world and be completely vulnerable to all of these sensations, no matter how fucked up I felt, and attempt to make something beautiful out of a really intense situation.”

On this, she continued, “It’s part of the process being a more mature and growing up, face your fears, and that’s what I was trying to do”, pausing, she then wisely cemented “I think music is the most perfect way to do that.”

With Malay taking creative control of the lyrical component of Breathing Statues, Isaac Emmanuel focused primarily on the entrancing and mysterious sonics.

Malay explained the process of piecing together vocals and instrumentation, noting that Emmanuel would provide her with a piece of music first, and from there, the words would flow. “A lot of the lyrics were a stream of consciousness, I think the both of us are really interested in freedom and allowing things to flow naturally.”

Freedom and natural are two words that emphatically resonate with Young Magic’s aesthetic. Despite being “based” in New York City, the duo are travel fanatics, seeking off-the-beaten track experiences in foreign lands, then laying their experiences to vinyl.

“It’s really sporadic, most of it [travel] is tours. We find ourselves in interesting places and try and see as much as possible when we have the opportunity. We understand all the traveling we get to do is a temporary gift so we try and make the most of it.”

“No matter how fucked up I felt, and attempt to make something beautiful out of a really intense situation.”

Breathing Statues is a shining example of the Malati and Emmanuel’s intrepid feet, having been written and recorded in a myriad of locations around the globe.

“We recorded most of it on the road and during little spontaneous trips between shows, Morocco, Paris, wherever we had some downtime, and then finished it in upstate New York in the dead of winter. We were definitely feeling the simplicity of the landscape around; it was very crystalline, completely blanketed in snow. I think it came across in our music, a much more minimal approach, in comparison to the first record.”

“Waiting For The Ground To Open’ was recorded in Iceland. We wandered into this little music store one day and came across a beautifully tuned mbira and took turns secretly recording them. If you listen closely, you can hear whispers of the shopkeeper’s conversation in the background and the creak of a door.”

“Most of it was finished in New York in the dead of winter, we were feeling the harshness of that. The simplicity of the landscape around, it was very clean, completely covered in snow, it comes across in our music too, a much more minimal approach to the music, in comparison to the first record anyway.”

Music is not Young Magic’s only creative outlet, the two-piece placing a heavy emphasis on their video production.

If you’re yet to see one of Young Magic’s inspiring videos, give yourself five minutes to journey through lush landscapes with the band.

Malay speaking of the eerie ‘Fall In’ film clip, “We shot the video with Angus Borsos in Xilitla, Mexico.”

“It’s a tiny town famous for a surrealist garden that an English patron of the arts, started building in the remote mountains 50 years ago. I read somewhere that he sold his life’s collection of Dali’s and Ernst’s to fund it then spent 30 years making his dream a reality. It’s a kind of looming, disorientating series of structures that stretches over a fantastic amount of jungle. It sits up there alone, rarely poking it’s spires through a constant low-hanging fog. Seven days up there with the locals felt like a year had just passed in a waking dream. We had a few particular locations in mind but a lot of what we ended up using we happened to stumbled upon throughout the journey, just jumping into the moment.”

From haunting music videos to a hypnotic live shows, the band ensure that a Young Magic gig is not only sonically perfect, but aesthetically enticing.

“I think that as many senses need to be interacted with, played with and touched upon. The relationship between image and sound is such an important one and with just the right combination it can take the show to another level. One where focus isn’t always directed us as individuals and more towards a collective experience.”

Shifting focus to their forthcoming Australian tour, Malay let us know what we can expect from their mind-bending live show, “It’ll be the whole shebang, that’s a horrible word ha! But anyway, it will be the whole audio/visual experience.”

Leaving us with the final words, “come to the show and don’t expect anything, you may thoroughly enjoy yourself or cry yourself to sleep for many moons, who knows?”

These jokes aside, we know the Young Magic live experience will be like no other.

Young Magic Tour Dates

21st – Oxford Art Factory – Sydney, Australia
22nd – Shebeen – Melbourne, Australia
27th – Black Bear Lodge – Brisbane, Australia
28th – Elsewhere – Gold Coast, Australia
For tickets and info visit www.strangeyonder.com

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine