Forgive the armchair diagnosis, but it kinda sounds like Canadian musician Lindi Ortega has Imposter Syndrome – that unwelcome affliction many talented people have that makes them feel like they don’t belong in their particular field of expertise. Like at any minute someone is going to tap them on the shoulder and say “Uh… how’d you get in here?”
The irony, of course, is that it’s a feeling that is usually expressed by very talented people – like Ortega – whereas the true imposters never seem to realise they’re bluffing their way through. Ortega is the real deal, even if songs like ‘Faded Gloryville’ or her recent EP Til The Going Gets Gone create the impression of an artist struggling with feelings of ‘Do I belong in this crazy business?’
“A lot of change had happened in my life and it was very hard for me to focus on the muse and making a record or even thinking about it,” Ortega says.
The EP was recorded in a manor in Eastern Nashville, rather than in a conventional studio, and the environment seemed to inspire something pretty unique. “It was recorded at this place called East Side Manor. It’s a mansion that was converted into a studio but it doesn’t have any sort of clinical studio feel whatsoever. There were horses on the property, and it’s just outside of the city centre but you felt like you were on the countryside,” Ortega says.
“They had a vocal booth that I could record in but I discovered when I was going to the loo that there was lovely acoustics in there, so I straight-up recorded my entire EP from the toilet. It sounds strange but I’m told I’m not the only artist to have recorded in a toilet. And it had a high ceiling with this great natural reverb. I thought it would be cool to capture that natural reverb instead of putting heavy effected reverb on this EP. The whole idea was to strip it down to basics and keep it really organic.”
Ortega recently mentioned on social media that she had just hit a particularly inspired patch and had written four songs in a day. “I’m having such a creative outburst right now. I’ve been totally inspired,” she says. “I was in a writing rut for a while. I had so many changes in my life. I had left my label and my former management company and even my agent. Then I acquired new management and a new agent, I got engaged, I left Nashville, I moved back to Canada, and then I had a very busy summer, so my brain has been dealing with all this change.
“I was really nervous for a minute because I didn’t know what I was going to do. I have a record due next year so the heat was on and I knew I had to start figuring this thing out. But luckily, sometimes writing one song changes something for you. I wrote a song with a friend of mine in Nashville and it was sort of the catalyst for where I wanted to take the next record, and it was this grand epiphany that inspired me beyond belief,” Ortega says.
She is returning to Australia this month for a series of shows, including an appearance at Queenscliff Music Festival. “I’ve always had a great time in Australia which is the reason I keep wanting to go back,” she says. “I’m really looking forward to it. Really, it’s the Tim Tams. I’m doing the tour with my guitar player and last time we were there, I don’t know if you can overdose on Tim Tams but we might have. We bought so many and kept doing the Tim Tam slam. And I know my guitar player is a huge fan of Australian coffee. And I love your wildlife and your accents.”
