Meet Gold Coast's Ella Fence, and her smooth new single Cocaine

Header photo by Stuart Chapman.

Taken from her forthcoming second EP, Cocaine is a delicate and smooth new slice of electro-pop from Gold Coast's Ella Fence, an emerging singer-songwriter/producer/multi-instrumentalist who's quickly becoming one of Australia's best. Listing influences in BANKS, Lorde and James Blake, her dark and oozing electronic vibe has a hint of all of these names, pairing some fragile vocals with a perfectly-matching, piano-driven production which is incredibly effective, despite its simplicity. It's got quite a mysterious, smokey touch, particularly through the whispering vocals, that has us begging for more with every minute - so much so that we sent Ella Fence a couple of questions to get to know her and her sound, which you can check out below whilst you're in enticed in the dizzy spell that Cocaine creates.

Tell us about yourself?

I used to slay dragons and make music. Now I just make music.

What’s the vibe music-wise?

I love to explore and experiment with music; the vibe is ever changing. The last two singles (Dancer and Cocaine) from the upcoming EP release, a collaboration with Vinnie LaDuce, are dark-electro-pop, but my debut EP in 2015, Wanderlust, was very cinematic with quite classical instrumentation. I’m really happy with the sounds that were created for both EPs – who knows what next.

What are your production and writing processes like?

I am constantly writing words and tend to have several notebooks going at once. These words turn into lyrics. I’ve been told by other songwriters that this is backwards to their process, as my songs always start with the lyrics and then I create music and melody around that. If I’m writing solo I’ll usually then workshop a lyrical melody along with some chords either on guitar or keyboard.

When I’m collaborating with other people (like Vinnie LaDuce or Christian Patey), one of the main processes we’ve used is to start with a general song/ musical idea, and then get in and program a guide beat to get the song in shape that way.

Can you tell us about your new track, Cocaine?

This is not a song about drugs.

This is not a song about love.

This is a song experience overshadowed by venom.

What’s the rest of your year have in store?

I’m super keen to go to Japan on a musical adventure. I’ve never been and would love to immerse music in a culture that is so different to my own, get writing and play some shows.

Where can we find more of your music?

All the regular places (iTunes, Spotify etc.). If you come to a gig you’ll get music as well as a high five. Christian Patey and I are playing a show together in Brisbane at Milk Factory Saturday 19 August.

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Additionally, we've been treated to a little exclusive from Ella Fence in the form of a teaser clip of Cocaine's forthcoming music video, which you can check out below:

Follow Ella Fence: FACEBOOK