Los Angeles-based songwriter Katie Schottland is bringing her intricate countrypolitan sound to Australia for the first time.
The first notes of Katie Schottland’s latest EP, Somnia, instantly soothe the ears. Shimmering keyboards and warm pedal steel twangs softly flutter beneath her gorgeous voice, transporting the listener to a stress-free place.
This healing concoction of cosy folk and dream pop has defined Swimming Bell since its inception in 2017. Initially bouncing between a solo and rotating band while in New York, Katie moved to Los Angeles in 2020, to another halt: the pandemic.
Keep up with the latest music news, features, festivals, interviews and reviews here.
As the world reopened, Katie built Swimming Bell into the six-piece “dream team” she says it is today. Everyone’s thrilled to perform the music down under.
Katie explains that her latest EP Somnia first came together after taking a break from live shows.
“I had a serious infection that I was dealing with, and after some less-than-fun shows, I just needed a break,” she says, “I still wanted to stay active though, so I was still writing and messing around with ideas.”
One idea was ditching live drums entirely, which catalysed the EP’s flowing feeling.
“I wanted to have everything based around percussion,” Katie explains. “Grooves and vibes, and not overly lyrical.”
That’s where Somnia deviates from her previous 2024 album, Charlie, which “had very little pedal steel and not a lot of big reverbs on it.” This was also a conscious departure from her 2019 debut, Wild Sight.
Simultaneously, the band’s live sound shifted: “I play more acoustic guitar now. It’s a softer sound, meant to relax you – and me,” Katie says, laughing.
She continues: “I wanted Charlie to be a bit rawer and closer. With Somnia, I just wanted to feel the groove. I also didn’t want to get hypercritical about my lyrics. That’s always the hardest part in my experience, so with this, I allowed them to be what they wanted to be.”
Her dismissal of self-criticism, letting her writing flow without second thought, led to Somnia’s inseparable aquatic theme. Not only is it felt in the music, with the sensation of suspension more pronounced, but it also emotionally feels like calmly floating on water.
This concept seemed too deliberate to be conceived by accident, but Katie reveals it organically found its way into the music while recording.
“I would gravitate towards certain sounds that ended up with this kind of floaty, watery feel. I guess that’s what my heart wanted.”
That theme made its way onto the EP’s sleeve: an eye-catching, atmospherically lit photograph of Katie submerged in a pool, with a bouquet of vibrant flowers in one hand and her eyes gazing at the viewer. It’s like she’s inviting the listener to sink into her tranquil underwater dreamworld.
The photo was taken by her “talented photographer friend” Lisa Bolden, who’d been playing with similar underwater photography with her friends.
“I thought they were remarkable, and it would look super sweet as the album cover, and also encapsulated the feel of the EP,” Katie says.
Recently, she covered Beck’s The Golden Age, the opening track from his melancholic 2002 acoustic-based album, Sea Change, which has become a live highlight for the band.
“I first heard Sea Change when I was in my early twenties, before I started playing music, and it had a huge impact on me. When I started recording my own music, I would always reference that Nigel Godrich production,” Katie says.
She adds: “I have a song that kind of starts similarly, so I was messing around at practice one day saying how we should play Golden Age sometime because it’s a great song.”
View this post on Instagram
Given the changes that’ve turned Swimming Bell into what it is today, I ask Katie how playing live in front of an audience compares to recording in the studio. She says she never thought about it until Somnia.
“Sometimes, you can’t let that dictate how you record. I think it’s much more important to get what you want in the studio because the options are endless, so why not shoot for the moon?”
Going with the flow and figuring it out later is what feels right to her. After all, that’s always been at the heart of Katie’s work.
Swimming Bell are playing at George Lane on 11 October, Lulie Tavern on 12 October and Barwon Club on 15 October. Tickets here.
