Up We Go: Lights and the Rising Star

Everyone here is ready to go
It’s been a hard year, and I only know
From down this low
It’s only up we go, up we go

The refrain from the first single released off of Lights’ newest cd “Little Machines” is something that reflects an intimate image of how this album was made and what it means for Lights as she continues her rise in the music world. After her second album “Siberia” was met with critical acclaim and rose to as high as #3 on the Canadian charts, Lights’ newest effort is on pace to match the success with a very different quality that was not as apparent in “Siberia”.

Lights is currently touring the world, about to stop in Dallas on Friday, February 20th as she promotes “Little Machines”. This record and this tour stand for something that Lights herself found during the conception of this album, to live the moment and enjoy every minute of that moment.

“Little Machines” took time to get off the ground, as Lights struggled to find the inspiration that was behind the quick production of her first two albums. This resulted in a change of scenery, moving from Canada to New Mexico for six months in order to write.

Lights recalls New Mexico  as a place that, “Provided me a space where I was able to get away from all of the distractions and really focus on the songs, the music, and the goals that I was trying to accomplish with the Little Machines.”

This adventure allowed Lights to search for various forms of inspiration in order to complete the project. She turned to poetry, the landscape of the New Mexico desert, and musical heroes who she looked up to such as Patti Smith and Kate Bush in order to compose the songs for her album.

The result is something much more intimate and nostalgic. “Little Machines” brings a balance of forward thinking and reflective contemplation to her music that is indicative of a greater message.

“I want to remind people that you don’t have to try to be somebody else and inspire them to find comfort in being an individual.”

This is something that Lights has been perfecting for years. Since her early days as a musician, she has constantly kicked normality to the side in order to pursue her individual passions. Her unique personality is what charges this album, and brings the audience closer to her as an artist. The idea of being comfortable in your own skin is something that rings loud in the song “Running With the Boys”.

“That song for me was about the nostalgia of what it is like to be a young girl and being confident enough in yourself that you can accomplish anything. It stands for the idea that you can run with the boys and be strong enough to do whatever you want to.”

The opening lyrics describe this empowering feeling in detail:

We were kind of feral, wicked little machines
Captains and Cavalries forming empires in the shade of the trees
Without hesitation, kings of the forest town
Holding the ocean down
We were half this heavy and twice this loud

Captains and Cavalries, capturing the true essence of the empowering feelings that confidence can bring you. This is what Lights and her album “Little Machines” is all about. This is the greater message that makes the cd definitive of the artistry that she has captured.