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Alexandra Riorden – Angel City Radio
Alexandra Riorden’s debut LP Angel City Radio is an abstract chronicle of the tumultuous healing process one endures after experiencing trauma, wrapped in a smoke-scented velvet curtain of shimmering indie-rock. Progressing like a Lynchian dream sequence, each song on the record takes the listener down a different hallway in the labyrinth that is recovery; some dark & menacing, others somber & reflective, but all moving towards empowerment and self-reliance. “The process of healing is not linear, it’s cyclical,” says Riorden. “You experience a trauma and then a lot of different things come up and you hopefully make progress, but it’s not just like it’s over and you’re done. Things come up again and again, but every time they do you’re getting stronger and making strides towards healing.”
Riorden began recording Angel City Radio in 2019 after relocating to Santa Barbara from Los Angeles, though she continued to work in LA with her co-producer Max Collier Goldenstein at his home studio. The informal tracking sessions allowed Riorden to experiment with different sounds and arrangements, free from the time and budget constraints of a professional studio. The extra time spent on experimentation, paired with their production techniques, resulted in an expansive set of songs that sound infinitely larger than the space in which they were created.
Though Riorden and Goldenstein were the primary creative forces behind the record, they tapped Shane Graham to play drums throughout the album and featured Brandon Graham (guitar), Brendy Hale (synthesizer), Annaliese Kowert (violin), Laura Epling (violin), Bobby Chase (viola), and Austin Hoke (cello) on select tracks, with string arrangements by Nashville’s Raymond Joseph. After tracking, Riorden teamed up with mixing engineer Jason Quever (Beach House, Mikael Cronin, Cass McCombs) and mastering engineer Timothy Stollenwerk (Kevin Morby, Haley Heynderickx, Grouper) to smooth the edges and shape Angel City Radio into an ethereal psych-pop masterpiece.
With twinkling guitars and and ambling rhythm section supporting Riorden’s expressive vocals, “Animals” kicks off Angel City Radio as a direct response to a terrifying home invasion that Riorden experienced in Los Angeles which shocked her into a state of hypervigilance and distrust. “I’m torn by these conflicting desires to protect myself & hide away, and also wanting to connect with people and be open & romantic,” she says. “I had been pretty open and free-spirited before and all of a sudden I felt scared all the time and had a hard time trusting anyone. It spiraled out into so many different aspects of my life.”
Over the course of the album, Riorden explores the repercussions of trauma and the complexities of healing through independent but loosely connected vignettes. The dark blend of chamber-pop and alternative rock on standout track “Tenderness” supports Riorden’s depiction of inward criticism while searching for self-love. “I think at some point everyone feels they’re not good enough, and that can be such a block to expression,” she says. “This is me reminding myself that my voice is valid and that I’m allowed to vocalize my feelings and express myself and that I deserve to be heard.”
Elsewhere on the LP, “The Barrier,” written in the wake of her uncle’s passing, finds Riorden reckoning with the discomfort of being human and the temptation towards self-destruction, ultimately seeking comfort and strength in the simple beauty of the world. Meanwhile, the hazy art-pop ballad “Dirty Mirror” blends indie-pop sensibility with sweeping orchestral arrangements akin to a James Bond theme, while mining the experience of heartbreak and finding freedom in self-reliance. “It’s about realizing that you don’t gain freedom from the person you’re with, but that you create it for yourself,” says Riorden. “When that person is removed from the equation, you’re able to look inward and realize, ‘Now it’s just me looking out for myself and taking responsibility for my happiness,’ and it’s really freeing to realize that you can do that for yourself.”
The album’s closer, “Angel City Radio (Outro),” takes the record back to the beginning, repurposing the lyrics from “Animals” atop a new, spacious string arrangement that allows listeners to reflect on the progression of the record and the healing process itself. “I wanted to bring the record full-circle,” says Riorden. “Revisiting ‘Animals,’ which kicks off the record from such a painful place, then bringing it back with the new arrangement, it feels more open—like I’m reopening myself to the world.”
While healing inherently stems from a place of darkness, Riorden navigates the process with an air of hopefulness throughout Angel City Radio, never lingering in the dark too long and always moving towards something more empowering. The album is less despairing and more a journey of self-love, reassurance, and finding trust in the world. “I never want to leave a song in a place of suffering or darkness,” says Riorden. “Singing is one of the deepest ways in which I regulate my nervous system, so it’s also important for me to never leave a song in an abysmally heavy place. Through my expression, I’m transcending that tough experience and coming back to self.”
Angel City Radio is at once thematically challenging, emotionally rewarding, and sonically memorable, and it’s largely due to Riorden’s newly regained confidence both in life and as a singer/songwriter. “So much of this record was born from the healing process,” she says. “Being able to listen and look back and realize that I made it through that makes me feel like I can make it through anything. I hope this sense of resilience will comfort and inspire whoever listens to the album, through whatever healing process they may be going through.”