UNLOCKED: Go inside Abi Reimold’s creative process in a short doc on Wriggling

Abi Reimold | photo by Haley Richter | haleyrichterphoto.com | courtesy of the artist

All week we’ve been exploring Philly singer-songwriter Abi Reimold‘s remarkable new album Wriggling on Unlocked – The Key’s recurring spotlight on new and significant releases from Philadelphia artists. Today, we step back a little bit to let Reimold tell a little bit of her own story.

While she was in the studio working on Wriggling in 2014 and 2015, Reimold teamed up with local filmmaker Jay Miller to document the recording sessions. In the process, Miller wound up providing a candid window into Reimold’s creative process and imaginative spirit, from his video of her performing “Vessel” on a rooftop to the short documentary we’re thrilled to give you a first look at today.

We see Reimold in the woods along the Wissahickon Creek, discussing the album and its release. Miller also follows her in the studio, where she works out parts with bassist Nick Morrison (also of Mumblr), and at her home, feeding a guinea pig while a to-do list for her punk band Fake Boyfriend looks in the background. We see her setting up on stage for a gig at Johnny Brenda’s – the same location she’ll celebrate the album’s release with a headlining show on April 28th – and we see her in her kitchen, cracking open a can of worms to shoot the photograph for the album cover.

In the interview, Reimold contrasts her visual art and musical art:

Taking photos for me, artistically, is an appreciation of something that already is. And that I can see and capture. Obviously it’s about how I see something, but it’s not about me, it’s about that thing. And my songs are kind of about me and me as a person and how I’m feeling. But I would hope they share some aesthetic because I’m doing it.

She also reflects on the heavy themes of the album, which we explored in our review yesterday:

I feel like I’ve had this inside me for a while, to really unpack…everything. My existence, why am I hear. I went through this weird existential crisis last year.

Watch Jay Miller’s documentary on Abi Reimold’s Wriggling below, pick up a copy of the record at Bandcamp and watch for more in the series later this week.

Abi Reimold’s Wrigging is the featured album in this week’s edition of Unlocked. Listen to the track “Machine” in Monday’s post, read Tuesday’s album review and check back later this week for an interview and more.