Figure8 Studios Previews Claire Dickson's New Album, The Beholder, at Intimate Listening Party
The Beholder is Claire Dickson's debut solo album, released today via New Amsterdam Records.
Claire Dickson, the experimental vocalist, composer, and sound artist, released her debut solo album, The Beholder, today via New Amsterdam Records. Having said that, a selected few (15 people, to be exact) got the first listen of the finalized record at the Figure 8 Listening Room in Brooklyn, New York, on March 9th. Guests included Grammy-winning composer and producer William Brittelle, who also released his studio album, Alive in the Electric Snow Dream, under the label this past January, and Camila Ortiz, her ongoing collaborator on the “dream-pop duo” myrtle.
Dickson had previously released two singles of The Beholder, “Throw My Desire” and “In The Night.” According to her, this work was “created over the course of about a year (Summer 2021-2022)” between her studio in Brooklyn and an artist residency in Toffia, Italy. “I cast myself as the beholder, an archetype I formulated during the songwriting process. The beholder radiates outward and forward. They observe, they love, they dream. Their sense of self becomes fractured and dreamlike, defined by their surroundings and the person they love. Without reliable patterns or repetition, the beholder feels both free and unencumbered and lost and undefined. Their desire gives them a feeling of expansiveness and freedom, although they also feel trapped by it because a part of their self is dictated by someone else.”
The listening experience was private, personal, and familiar, thanks to the welcoming atmosphere in Figure 8. The studio manager, Shahzad Ismaily, encouraged guests to take their shoes off in the lounge before entering the studio, sit around their Neve console, and enjoy the company and the music. Brittelle shares that “it was deeply satisfying to communally experience and celebrate the recorded album itself on one of the best sound systems in the city.”
“It was an inspiring night”, says Claire. “It set the perfect tone for everyone to receive the music.” While surrounded by vintage grand pianos, guitars, and drum kits, the songs felt like they were written decades ago yet relatable and made for this time.
You can check out The Beholder by Claire Dickson by clicking the link below.
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Congrats, Claire!