Two planets
Natasha Khan adapts her cosmic sense to the city
Once upon a time there was a princess named Natasha Khan who applied glitter to her cheeks, wore a crown of gold headbands and drew inspiration from ’80s childhood nostalgia — watching “The Goonies” at slumber parties, wearing hoodies for protection like the gang in “E.T.”, and, of course, getting lost in fairytales. She wrote songs under the name Bat for Lashes and enchanted the likes of just about everyone with her Mercury Prize-nominated debut album “Fur and Gold.” There were magazine spreads, Björk comparisons and a very magical invitation from Radiohead to tour with them.
Then one day her relationship with Will Lemon, her art rocker Prince Charming, unraveled.
It’s at this point in the story we reunite with Khan on “Two Suns,” her excellent sophomore album that trades in the haunting ballads of “Fur and Gold” for a drum heavy, electro-dance vibe.
“This record came as a result of touring all over the world, and having a long distance relationship and losing yourself constantly," says Khan in her hushed, bedtime story voice.
One way the 29-year-old lost herself was by dressing up as Pearl, a “subterranean nighttime stalker” that appears on the album and is the exact antithesis of the artist. As Pearl, Khan wore a blonde wig, blue eye shadow and red lipstick to roam the streets of New York, and was photographed by her then-boyfriend. This “visual escapade,” or art project, led to one of the album’s biggest themes: duality.
“I wanted to make myself up in that theatrical way and see how it felt to kind of embody someone else ... perhaps part of my subconscious,” says the singer-songwriter.
While Pearl helped Khan — a British native of Pakistani descent — fit in with a harsh, sometimes-seedy New York, her bohemian heart remained in another world. Khan’s ability to tap into her wild, cosmic imagination (she collects dictionaries of symbolism and nature books) may be what’s most alluring about her.
“I consciously keep a channel open with things I enjoyed as a child, like walking in nature or looking at butterflies,” she says. “It’s maintaining a sense of perspective, remembering to stop and look at the sky for a minute. It sounds really cheesy, but if you’re running down a city street looking at the pavement, there’s that lack of nature’s feminine energy, which is all about cycles and seasons, and day and night. A lot of this record is about natural orbits and things that we tend to miss when we’re just rushing through life. And because I know how important that is to me, I keep it sacred in my life.”
And so it seems Khan is on her way to a happily ever after.
Wednesday, 9
The Paradise
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