Yoshika Colwell - On The Wing

Life, for us all, comes in seasons: the bitter frosts and balmy awakenings that herald the literal passing of time, but also the periods of retreat and re-emergence that bookmark our own individual paths along this mortal coil. For Yoshika, the last decade has found her existing at both ends of the spectrum. Following a period of complete dislocation fuelled by a move to a new town, lockdown and a traumatic break-up all striking in quick succession, it would take a stretch of restorative isolation to bring her back to full creative and personal health. Now, however, all of that sadness and pain, acceptance and slow-dawning hope has been channeled into ‘On The Wing’.  Speaking about the album, she says:

“This album is a bit of a shrine I suppose to all of the pivotal experiences that shaped me during my twenties and it’s also, I feel, a tentative lean towards hopefulness for the future. It is, at its core, an album about acceptance and release, and freedom from old binds. It was an extremely emotional and cathartic record to make.  It was a challenge to put all of the things I was scared to say into these songs, to finally let them out of my head without shying away from the ugly or unpalatable emotions, but it felt like the only thing to do.

The process felt quite ritualistic, akin to writing down the things you know you need to let go of on a piece of paper and burning it.”