Mabe Fratti

Mabe Fratti is an experimental cellist and composer. Originally from Guatemala, Fratti is now based in Mexico City. She uses cello, voice and synthesizers to present sound in the form of installation, composition & free improvisation. Mabeʼs music takes us to sensible sounding boards: through a hypnotic and captivating performance, she sews contemporary elements like shoegaze and dream pop with ancestral influences that go from Gregorian chants to Sephardi music, transforming them in ingredients of a potent sonic ritual that causes a profound emotional impact. Her 2019 debut LP, Pies Sobre la Tierra, introduced the world to Frattiʼs lush & hypnotic cello compositions. Her recent albumS erá que ahora podremos entendernos, earning acclaim from Pitchfork, NPR, BBC, The Wire, The Guardian, XLR8R, Bandcamp, and more, finds a space for lyrical invention, elevating her otherworldly creations to new heights. The albumʼs title translates as Will we be able to understand each other now? Mabeʼs Cello is still a prominent aspect of the work here but it comes draped in vintage synths, guitars, field recordings, and gentle drone.

If Sing Leafʼs new album feels like itʼs caught between worlds itʼs because itʼs intended to be just that. As its title suggests, this is music for another place, existing as its own cosmos, a colourful work of strange sounds and visions, pulled from the mind and movements of its signature creator, David Como. Released this year via Comoʼs Tin Angel Records home, the new Sing Leaf album offers a spellbinding journey through eight inspired and beautifully idiosyncratic tracks. A persistent and prolific songwriter, Not Earth was written in Comoʼs home, in the living during the quiet of the day, in the bedroom while his wife watched TV; brave new worlds created from the quiet and comfort of his own domestic life. As always, Como plays every instrument on the record, recording, mixing, editing all the work himself before sending the songs to frequent musical confidant Sandro Perri, who also mastered the record. Initially built around the idea of a “disney, sci-fi, alien landscape vision”, ʻNot Earthʼ also finds a balance in its more meditative moments; for every jagged moment of inspired eccentricity, a stretch of measured stillness. “Music for me has never been about crafting the best sounding song, or even the most appealing song,” Como says. “Itʼs more about honouring the spark. If I can block out the other noise and not think about where a song will end up, or who will hear it, then I can follow that and it's like the song is just coming through me.”