Asha Wells
“Water Words” is the debut album from San Francisco Bay Area based non-binary artist Asha Wells. Musically inclined since childhood, Wells’ journey started with classical vocal performance and musical theater before moving on to riot grrrl punk and jazzy folk. Born in California, Wells relocated to Salt Lake City with their family, finding a home in the city’s all ages underground music scene.
Arriving back in San Francisco after a stint traveling in Central and South America, their sound took a genre-expanding turn that reflects their colorful music history. Inspired by the likes of Kate Bush, Joni Mitchell, and Jeff Buckley, Wells found themselves experimenting with open guitar tunings and atmospheric textures paired with thought provoking imagery.
Working with co-producer Jason Kick at his Tunnel Vision studio in Oakland, the pair recorded 1-2 songs a week at the height of the pandemic. Kick brought his knack for arrangement, synthesis, and drum programming, helping to create a supportive environment for Wells’ atmospheric guitars and haunting melodies. The resulting album pairs textured sounds with tender harmonies, calling to mind the work of contemporary art forward singer-songwriters like Aldous Harding, Hand Habits, and Cate Le Bon as much as torchbearers like Patti Smith, Cat Power, and Fiona Apple. Later on, David Glasebrook mixed and mastered the album at his studio, working with Wells to create an immersive experience for the listener.
Most of the songs on “Water Words” were written during a particularly tumultuous stretch of time at the beginning of a new relationship, and those circumstances are reflected in the sound of the album–atmospheric album opener “At Night” sounds like it drifted in on some Lynch-ian dream, performed at the Roadhouse in Twin Peaks, while lead single “Mood Indigo” explores jazz-folk melodies and experimental percussion; album centerpiece “Blue Angels” and “Drugstore Perfume” explore the liminal space of a burgeoning relationship, while closing track “Motorbike” sees the narrator taking off down the road for destinations unknown, like whispers in the night.
