Nashville-based musician Logan Hornyak, who records under the moniker Melaina Kol, enters a strikingly different creative chapter with the release of their new album, Okay that’s a great idea because if I do that then, available now through Julia’s War Recordings.
Spanning nine tracks, the album finds Hornyak stepping away from the guitar and pedal approach that has defined much of their work and instead building an expansive sonic palette around cello, harp, and piano all instruments they taught themselves specifically while creating the record.
The change in instrumentation is only one part of what makes the album so unconventional. Rather than constructing the songs around programmed samples, Hornyak recorded live performances and manipulated those takes through looping, chopping, and layering. Vocals become another instrument within that process, with much of the album incorporating fragments of Olivia O of Lowertown, whose voice is cut apart and rearranged into atmospheric textures that often blur the line between words and sound.
A diverse group of collaborators also helped shape the record, including Cory Halterman on piano, Husam Suboh and Zach Tittel on percussion and bass, Luna Kupper of Total Wife on guitar, Alex Dunn on bass, and Ash Richter of Total Wife, who contributes additional vocals to album opener “Bleater.”
Hornyak describes the album through an intentionally surreal image, saying:
“‘Okay that’s a great idea because if do that then’ to me is about looking through a looking glass towards the shore on both toes while someone from the other room is yelling violently at an inanimate object that is impervious to the person yelling at it because it is an inanimate object.”
That strange, dreamlike description feels fitting for a record that constantly shifts perspective. Okay that’s a great idea because if I do that then isn’t built around one obvious genre or formula. Instead, Hornyak allows delicate instrumentation, fractured vocals, experimental production, and unconventional arrangements to occupy the same space.
The album’s development began publicly in May with “Lifeheart,” a sprawling introduction to the project’s new musical language. Layered guitars, harp, and fragmented vocals create an otherworldly atmosphere, establishing the record’s balance between intimacy and experimentation.
Parallel – WATCH
Lifeheart – WATCH
Idola – WATCH
Minuet
Okay that’s a great idea
Eng
Vai
Ili
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