Music meets mysticism in the creations of electronic producer and performer Deya Dova, who plays Earth Frequency Festival (SE QLD) this weekend.
Hailing from the plains of the Nullarbor and now living in Byron Bay, Deya has forged a musical identity that draws from teaching herself to sing in the landscape and recording in nature.
Deya pulls inspiration from the mystical and the mythical, capturing natural sounds and weaving them into cutting-edge global bass music that seeks to uplift and enlighten.
Before she delights the universe of Earth Frequency, we track down Deya to discuss her work and what to expect from her live shows.
How have your origins in the Nullarbor shaped your musical identity?
I grew up in a small, country town on the edge of the Nullarbor desert region, Ceduna.
My childhood was full of days spent in expansive landscapes: out at the dog fence having fires, climbing in caves and wombat holes, playing in white sand dunes, watching the whales from the cliffs or out on boats in the Great Australian Bight. It was all about vast, horizon lines and 360-degree star-scapes.
The freedom and wild, raw energy of that land is etched into me. Since I was small, I felt at home in nature and that relationship has shaped me musically. It was in the desert I taught myself to sing and play guitar.
What are some of the natural sounds you've captured to use in your productions?
I really dig field recording in the natural environment and love working these textures into my sound design.
Thunderstorms and insects, bird song, the sound of rocks hitting each other, footsteps on desert stone and earth, grasses blowing, branches, wind, water and breaking sticks. Sometimes I use these sounds raw, other times I produce them to work in a beat or as a sound effect.
I think the craziest to date was me blowing my nose in the middle of a vocal take (that's natural right), and reversing and effecting it to create a very cool build-up effect in an electronic production.
Where are some of the more exotic or unusual locations you've travelled to create your music?
Sonoran Desert (US), Teotihuacan’s Pyramid of the Sun and Moon (Mexico), Rocky Mountains (Canada), Avebury stone circle (UK), Tikal Temple (Guatemala) are a few.
The last four years, we have been on four international tours and in between festivals I have been recording live on location in the landscape. Other unusual locations include singing and recording with a live volcano, an ancient glacier, a bottomless water cave, desert canyons, petroglyphs, on top of a mountain in an electrical storm and in the snow.
One of my favourite recordings is from inside a 3,000-year-old sequoia tree in Northern California. At these places I come to listen to and connect with the unique, signature frequency of each place and imbibe that energy into the recording.
Tell us about your Planetary Grid Music Collection, featuring latest release 'The Electrical Biome'?
Over the last 4 years, I’ve recorded over 50 songs at 33 locations across the planet.
In my exploration of sound in the environment, I have come to track the Earth’s energy lines and the planetary grid, referencing the most contemporary mapping of the Earth’s energy field, the Unified Vector Geometry (UVG) complied by Professor Bethe Hagens and Professor William Becker.
This is an energetic architecture that our ancestors were well aware of. Many megalithic temples and structures around the world are found on these energy lines including the Maya civilisation in Guatemala where we have just been.
This music recorded, from being in deep reverence and stillness with the land, is incredibly unique. And with so much material recorded over the last four years we decided to do something special and release the music as a twelve mini-album collection, over twelve months with each album coming from a different region.
The 'Electrical Biome' is the third mini-album from the collection and was recorded in the Sonoran Desert region on the border of Mexico and the US. It carries the transcendental, healing energy of those enigmatic desert landscapes.
We’ve created a really cool way to receIve the entire music collection and get an album each month; with a bunch of bonus material in which I share more about the locations, the geomancy and consciousness. A percentage of profits goes to land-care projects that help protect these beautiful places.
How does this project differ to 'Myth Of The Cave'?
'Myth Of The Cave' is our latest global bass album with full, electronic production for our festival performances. It is full of juicy bass, organic beats, and a mythic, high vibe produced for the ecstatic dancefloor.
I co-produce this music with Hamilton Barnett and delight in exploring songwriting as a medium for weaving new myths, to help shift the old paradigm. While a lot of inspiration comes from our travels the music, 'Myth Of The Cave' is mostly recorded in the studio and has a more layered production.
Whereas the music from the Planetary Grid Music Collection are all recorded live in the natural landscape, have a simplistic production and are focused on the morpheogenic sonic memory imprinted in the songs from being in reverence and connection with the Earth.
What is the significance to you of being born 'behind the veil'?
I understand that the way we are birthed into the world is a template or blueprint for our journey in life.
I was born inside my intact water membrane, inside a bubble of water. Traditionally, in folklore this is seen as an auspicious sign of connection between the worlds. It is significant to me because it has given me a greater understanding of why I am drawn to the mythic side of artistic creation and my role in the world as an intermediary.
It has inspired me to develop my intuitive, sixth sense and learn to get out of the way to bring ‘messages of remembrance from the otherworld’ for the people.
What can we expect from your set at Earth Frequency Festival, particularly visually?
Sonically, we’re bringing the full dancefloor set we’ve been touring overseas; a blend of high energy, live performance with totemic bass production, with live versions of music from our last two albums as well as some awesome new remixes.
Visually, I’m excited about my new intergalactic laser cut mirrored costumes I recently designed, which the Earth Freq fam haven’t seen yet. As well as five stunning performing artists who’ll be bringing theses archetypal blue-star beings to life. It will be a trip to another dimension for sure.
What else have you got planned for the rest of 2019?
After Earth Frequency we head to Costa Rica to play Envision Festival and then back to the ancient Mayan lands, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. We play Bali Spirit Festival in March and have plans for Europe later in the year.
Much of my time will be in the studio. Each month I’ll be preparing and producing the next mini album from the Planetary Grid Music Collection. The next release comes out end of the month from UVG 16 Hawaii.
