Sparkling and echoing in a stylish digital universe is the music of Irish-Malaysian DJ and producer yunè pinku behind the genius EP BABYLON IX. It exists in a parallel world with its own avatars, that we discuss. With something of Genesis by Grimes in its DNA, each song takes us on a journey that thrills like a fast drive at night through your favourite city with the streetlights flashing past you. Electronic and experimental, she takes a limber jump through hyper-pop to UKG in just one song, Night Light – genre boundaries be dammed.
Part city-sound, part nature-sound there exists the mystic in yunè pinku. As she references the symbolism and sounds that coloured her dreams as a child, such as her bedtime listening, Flook. Runes cover the album artwork and “the cage that religious shame teachings can create in one’s mind were part of the inspiration on this EP”, perhaps offering mysticism as an alternative to this. As for the world this alternate reality exists in, well, it displays “Silver seas with banshees and robot birds flying around. I think a crossover of nature’s dramatic sights of huge cliffs and crashing tides, and the kind of swallowing void that the digital world is, all mashed up into one.” Yunè pinku explained to DIY. Immerse yourself in the tides of her lyricism and the towering cliffs of electronica in this very special 360 live experience exclusively on METAL and join The Blessed Madonna, Joy Orbison and Giles Peterson as a fan. Yunè pinku also performs at Dot to Dot, Primavera and Sziget festival.
If Bluff was “music for introverted ravers” then BABYLON IX is music for…
Banshees in da club.
A 360 live session gives us a glimpse into your world. Thanks for sharing your special performance exclusively on METAL today! What are the rules at a yunè pinku show?
Bit random but since I’m a bit shorter I’ve always wanted a gig that was arranged in height so everyone could see, but also— no shoving or pushing and just generally being wary of others! I get so tired of the aggression in crowds sometimes, definitely has the ability to ruin a whole show unfortunately.
Your sound is like a soft fluffy hug from a sparkling alien. If yunè pinku had its own avatar family who else would be part of the gang?
That’s the most amazing thing anyone’s ever said about my music. I don’t know why but I had these three fictional characters that came to be in the EP, one was Oracle who’s like sultry and naïve but has a giant spinning ribbon around her all the times, and then Ivy who is like the goddess, idol self who I envisioned as crazy tall, like 8ft with sparkling skin and lastly, this character Red who’s always in PE class clothes and dripping wet for some reason. So I guess them?
Surrounding your avatar on your latest EP cover there are silver crosses and markings that seem simultaneously ancient and futuristic. What do the symbols on your BABYLON IX EP mean?
Well they’re kind of drawn from traditional runes, I’ve got a strange fascination with old symbols though, whether they be celtic, hindu or go beyond religion and just have random meanings. But I’ve always loved this idea that you could draw a circle of symbols and summon a world or even a creature, so for me it was on all these artworks because it was summoning the Face of Babylon.
Can you tell us more about the ancient Celtic references in the EP and your work?
Irish culture, and by turn Celtic traditions and stories, were a bit part of my childhood, and I always loved the magic and myth side of Irish culture, but also just the symbols and their meanings, again! The trinity symbol was one I always found beautiful because it’s perfect symbol for balance. Also, the cage that religious shame teachings can create in one’s mind were part of the inspiration on this EP, so having these symbols scattered throughout was also relevant due to that kind of idea.
Your music transports us to another world that has huge cliffs and crashing tides, is it inspired by any physical places?
Yes very much! Whenever I make a song, I can only really listen or hear it if the location kind of fits, so it can be a few days from making to hearing (laughs). But the songs Trinity and Fai Fighter I definitely envisioned on a crashing coastline wailing from the top of a mountain.
Exploring new places whilst touring is a great love of yours, but where is your favourite destination that you have visited so far?
That’s pretty hard, it kind of comes and goes depending how much time you get there too. I definitely always enjoy going back to France, I think the pace and quality of life is pretty good there. But, Amsterdam and Glasgow and so many other places just surprised me and I really loved them in ways I didn’t expect either, so I feel like there’s something great wherever you are.
Apparently, skiing is the ideal thing to do whilst listening to your music, along with dancing of course, are there any other extreme sports or interesting activities your latest EP should soundtrack?
I mean I started writing the EP when I went skiing for the first time last year, so I’d be pretty dead set on skiing. But maybe hiking or rock climbing, though I don’t know if you should be listening to music during any of these.
If you could soundtrack any film, what would it be?
Charlie’s Angels (2000).
Catch her in America June 15 in New York at Elsewhere Zone One and June 22 in Los Angeles at El Cid.
