All Kinds of Light is out now!
Image: Bri Horne.
Melbourne-based indie folk singer, songwriter and producer Hayden Calnin has released his new EP, All Kinds of Light. To celebrate the release, the musician is taking us through the collection of songs track-by-track.
“This whole body of work distils the way light affected me and inspired the record. There’s an important mystery to light, but that’s the beauty of the whole thing,” Calnin says. “The whole journey gave me this batch of songs. We were meeting all of these people and enjoying such amazing experiences. Every song has a sample that represents the place or subject it’s about.”
GREETINGS AT MAJUY
This opening instrumental track is here to set the mood for what’s to follow. This song is a reflection and ode to Majuy, a mountain I spent some time on in Colombia. It’s an eyes closed, cup of tea kind of song, and leads into the next track where the storytelling begins.
MAJUY
Again, referring to the mountain Majuy. I felt a very special connection with this place and have taken my experience on that mountain home with me. Over a year later, I still think about this place every day. It has helped me grow as an individual, feel more connected to the world, to myself, and the bigger picture. It’s a song that is reflecting on a very transformative experience in my life.
ALL THESE KINDS OF LIGHT
One thing I noticed while travelling through Colombia was just how different the light felt in that part of the world. I know that sounds a little silly, but it truly felt different. Whether it be through the leaves of the forests, the glow and haze around the moon and stars, the flames of the fires burning different at such high altitudes, the dark and intense storms brewing over mountains, and the lightning strikes showing glimpses of the landscape when it would flash. It really affected me, and in turn inspired this whole EP.
AS ABOVE, SO BELOW
Much like the phrase’s origin, it’s somewhat a paraphrase from the Emerald Tablet (late 8th, early 9th century Hermetic Text). This statement and title of song is about the relationship and reflection in that what you do in the physical world will reflect in the spiritual. As I’ve gotten older, and as I experience more and more of life, I’ve become much more spiritual and deeper connected to exploring that. I’ve moved from letting science and textbooks explain things to me to quite the opposite. I seek knowledge for myself rather than be fed it, and I’ve learned so much more from taking that approach to life and its realities. I’m much more a believer of magical thinking and the metaphysical nowadays than what I had been when I was fed textbooks telling me what’s what in my western education in schools in Australia. It never sat right with me.
LA PEÑA DE JUAICA
A mountain, and the main reason I was travelling to Colombia in the first place. It’s a mountain with a thousand stories and full of mystery, mythology and magic. I was lucky enough to get to climb this mountain, and it was one of the most memorable moments of my life to date. I couldn’t not write a song about it; however it remained instrumental because I just couldn’t find the words to justify the respect and positivity I took home from this place and overall experience.
LAKE TOTA
Referring to the beautiful Lake Tota in Colombia, this is a song about watching the sunrise and sunsets by the lake. Starting the day and finishing it. All with gratitude, big smiles, and pinching myself that I was so lucky to be there in such a stunning part of the globe.
MORNINGS IN TABIO
Tabio is a little pocket of Colombia I spent the most time in while being there. It’s a small community full of stories and mythology. It is surrounded by mountains, tucked away in the valleys, and at quite a high altitude. I met some friends that I’ll have for life there and it’s really a thank you to that place and the memories I’ll always have.
MORNINGS IN TABIO PT. II
This is an extension of feeling from the previous track Mornings in Tabio.
All Kinds of Light is out now!
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