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Eskimeaux
Eskimeaux performing at NU Afterhours on February 11, 2016.
Background information
Birth nameGabrielle Smith
OriginBrooklyn, New York
GenresIndie pop, Indie rock, Folk, Bedroom pop
Occupation(s)Singer-Songwriter, Musician
Years active2007–present
LabelsDouble Double Whammy
Websitewww.eskimeaux.com

Eskimeaux is the recording project of Gabrielle Smith, an American singer-songwriter and producer from Brooklyn.[1] Smith began making and releasing experimental ambient music in 2007. Since then, the solo project has turned into a four-piece indie pop band made up of Oliver Kalb, Told Slant’s Felix Walworth, Jack Greenleaf and Smith herself.[2][3]

Early life

Smith was adopted at a young age and to this day knows little about her family history except for the fact that her father is of Tlingit Eskimo descent. She disclosed in a Tumblr post how her heritage influenced her decision to release music under the name Eskimeaux: "I chose this moniker as a teenager, in a time when I felt like I had been denied an identity — my Tlingit heritage was the only thing I could hold onto about my cultural history that was real. Eskimeaux is basically me: it’s an empowered persona that has brought me warmth and fulfillment in times of isolation and confusion about my origins."[4] Smith spent her youth singing in choir and playing violin but did not start writing and performing her own songs until her late teens.[5] Growing up in Manhattan, Smith also spent many of her teens years going to DIY shows in Brooklyn.[4]

Career

In 2008, Smith enrolled in the University of the Arts (Philadelphia) but dropped out in early 2009. During these two years, Smith met many of her current collaborators and friends of The Epoch, an artist collective based in Brooklyn that Smith later co-founded. The artists that she met during this time opened up her eyes to new music stylings and influenced much of her work.[6] Her early recordings from around this time were more electronic and synth heavy than her more recent releases.[4]

In 2011, Smith released Two Mountains and co-founded the Epoch with friends as a way to support each other and release art under one umbrella.[7] A year later, she released her self-titled album, which was almost entirely made up of re-recorded songs from a series of demos called, Ixsixán. It was with inspiration from her fellow Epoch members and Frankie Cosmos, that Smith overcame her writing block and began to write and record new material through her song-a-day project. Many of the songs written during this time appear on O.K.[4]

By 2014, Eskimeaux's line up was cemented, and the band's sound began to resemble the indie pop sensibility it has now.[4] While trying to put together O.K., the band worked on old songs already written by Smith, adding dimensions and layers that would make the songs more suitable to play live.[2] O.K. was released on May 12, 2015 on Double Double Whammy Records and received favorable reviews from Pitchfork, NPR, and Stereogum.[3][8][9]

Smith is set to release Year of the Rabbit on April 15, 2016. This six-song mini album is a collection of songs recorded live, which are less produced and manipulated with.[10]

Discography

  • iglu songs (2008)
  • Doubt (2010)
  • I Am a Spiral (2010)
  • Ixsixán (2010)
  • Grain of Sand (2010)
  • Two Mountains (2011 and reissued in 2015)
  • Eskimeaux (2012)
  • Arms Apart (2013)
  • Walk Away From Me (2013)
  • Ingluenza (2013)
  • O.K. (2015)
  • Year of the Rabbit (2016) [11]

Live Band

  • Gabrielle Smith – guitar, vocals
  • Oliver Kalb – keys
  • Felix Walworth – drums
  • Jack Greenleaf – bass [2]

References

  1. ^ Mohenu, Max (26 March 2015). "Eskimeaux: "Broken Necks"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 26 January 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Rettig, James (10 March 2015). "Q&A: Eskimeaux's Gabrielle Smith On The Road To O.K. + "Broken Necks" (Stereogum Premiere)". Stereogum. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  3. ^ a b Duncan, Tess (11 May 2015). "Eskimeaux". Pitchfork. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e Moreland, Quinn. "Is it O.K.?". Impose Magazine. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  5. ^ Rohinsky, Rachel. "DCMD Interview: Eskimeaux". DCMD. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  6. ^ Moreland, Quinn (22 September 2014). "An Oral History of The Epoch". Impose. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  7. ^ Diamond, Peter (5 October 2015). "Q&A: Eskimeaux". The Wake. Retrieved 18 February 2016.
  8. ^ James (5 June 2015). "The 50 Best Albums of 2015 So Far". Stereogum. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  9. ^ Boilen, Bob (11 December 2015). "Bob Boilen's Top 10 Albums of 2015". All Songs Considered. NPR. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  10. ^ "Eskimeaux: Year of the Rabbit". Double Double Whammy. Retrieved 17 February 2016.
  11. ^ "Eskimeaux: Albums". Last FM. Retrieved 18 April 2016.
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