{"id":16239,"date":"2025-09-25T06:48:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T11:48:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=16239"},"modified":"2025-09-25T06:48:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T11:48:52","slug":"sophie-sirota-new-video-holding-tension-from-forthcoming-pressure-drop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=16239","title":{"rendered":"SOPHIE SIROTA  NEW VIDEO HOLDING TENSION from forthcoming &#8216;Pressure Drop&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16240\" style=\"width:537px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>SOPHIE SIROTA\u00a0<\/strong>|\u00a0<em>Pressure Drop<\/em>\u00a0album cover artwork (design by smelliott)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sophie Sirota&nbsp;is a classically trained violist, singer and composer. She began working as a session violist while studying at music college, forming The Wrecking Crew agency soon after. She has collaborated as a musician, live performer, arranger and composer with some of the most iconic and respected names in modern music, including Paul Weller, Kim Deal, Tindersticks, Beth Orton, Ed Harcourt, 4-Hero, D&#8217;Influence, Gabrielle and Robert Kirby, as well as the visual artists Jeremy Millar and Sadie Hennessy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This latest chapter in Sirota\u2019s musical journey began in early 2023; dusting off her electric viola (last used in mid-\u201890s trip-hop band Dust) and a few effects pedals, she performed at one of the monthly meet-up sessions hosted by Coastal Electronauts in Whitstable, Kent. This incentivised her to create a new piece to perform at every event, expanding both her pedalboard and creative output in the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Her debut album, \u2018Pressure Drop\u2019, is the result. A collection of sonic explorations shaped by two years of live performance and experimentation, both in Whitstable and at other events, she explains that&nbsp;\u201cevery piece has been created with the feel of a live performance in the recording process.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aside from the album\u2019s final track, \u2018glitch\u2019, all have been composed using just electric viola, her voice and effects pedals, creating atmospheric soundscapes with abrasive, noisy textures &#8211; an interplay that mirrors both internal chaos and meditative calm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"nv-iframe-embed\"><iframe title=\"Sophie Sirota - holding tension\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/4FxL_xDyxN8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A video for album opener \u2018holding tension\u2019 is available\u00a0aboveas the first in a collaborative trilogy with video artist @diz_qo created specifically to promote \u2018Pressure Drop\u2019. Explaining the track, Sirota ponders:\u00a0\u201cwith constant digital chatter in the background &#8211; wondering &#8216;Who are you? Who am I?\u2019 &#8211; life can feel like it\u2019s on the verge of snapping, like a taut wire.\u201d\u00a0As for the music, she adds:\u00a0\u201cprocessing my viola through a series of Chase Bliss pedals was instrumental in shaping this piece.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In regard to \u2018Pressure Drop\u2019 as a whole, she thinks of it as&nbsp;\u201can outpouring of ideas that have been swirling around in my head for the last two or three decades.&nbsp;I was lucky to have access to a wide range of music to inspire me from childhood, as my Dad\u2019s record collection ranged from Miles Davis, through Ravi Shankar ragas, Vaughn Williams (\u2018Fantasia on a theme of Thomas Tallis\u2019 is one of my earliest musical memories), Shostakovitch, Pink Floyd and John Adams. Special mention must also go to the Tomita album of Debussy piano music, \u2018Snowflakes Are Dancing\u2019, as I was fascinated by the range of sounds on it but had no idea what modular synths were or that they would come to play such a big part in my life!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As for her primary musical influences, Sirota states that&nbsp;\u201cthese include Bj\u00f6rk, PJ Harvey, Pixies, Massive Attack, Steve Reich, Aphex Twin and drum &amp; bass.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Following the success of a compilation album issued by Coastal Electronauts in late 2024, \u2018Pressure Drop&#8217; is the second in a series of releases that will feature regular performers at their popular monthly electronic music sessions in Whitstable, Kent.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1-1024x683.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-16242\" style=\"width:524px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1-1024x683.png 1024w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1-930x620.png 930w, https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/SOPHIE-2-1.png 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>SOPHIE SIROTA\u00a0<\/strong>| 2025 photo by Kit Foster<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">TRACK NOTES BY SOPHIE SIROTA<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>holding tension<br>With constant digital chatter in the background\u2014wondering \u201cWho are you? Who am I?\u201d\u2014life can feel like it\u2019s on the verge of snapping, like a taut wire. Processing my viola through a series of Chase Bliss pedals was instrumental in shaping this piece. The shifting metre, sparked by the glitching pattern from the Onward pedal, became the foundation for its creation.<br><br>mood<br>The shimmering reverb of the Mood MkII permeates this track. It was the first time I used this pedal on my board, so I explored as many settings as possible. Its dreamlike ambience steers the emotional tone of the piece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">50:50<br>Composed just before my 50th birthday in 2024, 50:50 captures the duality of reaching that milestone: terrifying and wonderful in equal measure, but inevitable all the same. The track starts in calm reflection and spirals into chaos. I used two pedals I\u2019ve had for half my life, the Boss Metalzone and DD-3, making their presence particularly meaningful.<br><br>i feel<br>This piece was inspired by a collaboration with Terry Lane (thecloserwearetodying), performed in tribute to our dear friend Graham Dowdall aka Gagarin, who died in June 2024. It marked the return of my voice in the creative process. The words poured out\u2014the need to feel, and to express that feeling, became overwhelming.<br><br>if i wrote a song would you like it?<br>A peaceful, lilting piece &#8211; almost a love song. It ebbs and flows like small waves on the shore, soft and questioning.<br><br>glitch<br>My first experiment with beats and software\u2014a direction I\u2019d long wanted to explore. When my viola went in for servicing, it gave me the perfect excuse. The viola and vocal were recorded live in a single take, initially as a rehearsal before the track\u2019s first performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\">debut album LP | CD | digital out 24th October 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/dmanalytics2.com\/click?u=https%3A%2F%2Fsophiesirota.bandcamp.com%2Falbum%2Fpressure-drop&amp;i=1&amp;d=DvRw2dixQyCE9KLOIGFx5Q&amp;e=alex%40mkultramagazine.com&amp;a=fKKYKE_nSaquEOr-Jeod8w&amp;s=QJb1PQsNBug\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Bandcamp<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SOPHIE SIROTA\u00a0|\u00a0Pressure Drop\u00a0album cover artwork (design by smelliott) Sophie Sirota&nbsp;is a classically trained violist, singer and composer. She began working as a session violist while studying at music college, forming The Wrecking Crew agency soon after. She has collaborated as a musician, live performer, arranger and composer with some of the most iconic and respected&hellip;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/?p=16239\" rel=\"bookmark\">Read More &raquo;<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">SOPHIE SIROTA  NEW VIDEO HOLDING TENSION from forthcoming &#8216;Pressure Drop&#8217;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16240,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16243,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16239\/revisions\/16243"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16240"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mkultramagazine.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}