Having collaborated with the likes of Gotye, Janelle Monae, Mark Foster of Foster the People and David Byrne of Talking Heads, it’s clear Johnson is a performer that excites other creatives. Now armed with her most ambitious collaboration to date, Johnson will be bringing a brand new musical ensemble to Melbourne as part of Supersense.
“I always think of my musical spirit being like an inner child,” Johnson explains during some down time on her Japanese tour. “I want to keep exposing it to exciting things and for me, that’s where improvisation comes in. I usually come to Australia with a full band but for the Supersense show, I’m bringing more of an electronic setup. I have two other members of the band but I’m controlling all the beats and doing more of the electronic manipulation.”
Improvisation forms an integral part of Johnson’s upcoming show with the Exotech collective, born out of improvised nights spearheaded by Johnson and Supersense curator Sophia Brous, initially sparking this shift in musical production. “Me and Sophia are very interested in live improvisation which is how these nights that I call ‘space jams’ started,” Johnson says. “I’d invite anyone who was a friend of mine to come and jam. We’re talking members of Battles and my friend Thundercat, even the singer Miguel came down for a night.”
The collective initially started as a chance for musicians to play improvised sets among friends, but quickly evolved into an exciting musical project in its own right. “It was a mini-experiment,” Johnson says. “Everyone is on an equal playing field and brings ideas to the table. It’s a beautiful experience to both perform and watch. You have to listen so deeply and take risks when you jump in with an idea.”
Soon buzz started to generate around these gatherings, along with a number of exciting opportunities. “We got offered a music residency at the Red Bull studios in New York and got the chance to invite more people down. David Byrne, Questlove who’s a good friend of mine from The Roots, Sean Lennon, Caroline Polachek from Chairlift. It was really this hub of creatives coming together and given the chance to be free and not be chained to a musical idea.”
With the project morphing into something of a musical sensation, Johnson is excited to be playing in Melbourne with a renewed focus, particularly so given that the city represents an important part of her career. “Melbourne’s where I wrote my first album Vows and where I got my feet off the ground. I think the crowds will be really expressive at the show because so many of them have probably followed my career from a very early point.
“I want it to be a way for people to step into new ways of experiencing the songs that they know, but also showcasing new material that I’ve been working on,” Johnson says. “I’ve always breathed improvisation into my music when it’s live, if I think of Settle Down, it’s almost like I do a new version every time I play it. I get bored of arrangements really quickly so I want to feel like I’m taking things to new places.”
Given that Johnson will be entirely in control when it comes to the sounds heard on stage, there’s clearly very little room for hesitation. “I always need a bit of danger with what I do,” says Johnson. “If it’s completely foolproof then I don’t think I’m as engaged as a performer. I need to feel that things could collapse at any point. You still want to find ways where it can go somewhere you never expected.”
Reflecting on the incredible experiences she’s had as a performer, Kimbra is unreservedly humble. “You don’t imagine, especially being a kid from New Zealand, that you would ever see people singing the words. In countries like Japan, they don’t even speak English. That never really wears off, even at this stage of my career.”
