Habits EP by NOIA

NOIA (Gisela Fulla-Silvestre) was born and raised in Barcelona, the only daughter of her activist and intellectual parents. Her father was part of a clandestine Communist party that fought against the Franco dictatorship, often spending time in prison as a result. Her mother was a pioneer in the field of child psychology. Together they fought for democracy in Spain, instilling in Gisela a deep reverence for community along the way. In addition to revolutionary discourse, music was a constant in her home – Traditional Catalan, Rumba, Flamenco and French artists were regularly heard. Her young mind grew fixated on philosophy while her heart became obsessed with music.

Having completed a degree in film scoring & sound design at Berklee, NOIA is now based in New York where she's developed a community of other obsessives who have pushed her to be as serious with her art as she is about her career. She took their advice and doubled-down on a body of work that captures her point-of-view on pop music.

The four tracks on Habits reflect NOIA’s myriad musical and cultural influences. Everything from Dancehall to Tropicalia music to leftfield R&B are present, while the literature and cultural theory of Cavafy, Olaf Stapledon and Byung Chul Han are referenced in the lyrics, which are sung in a mix of Spanish and English. NOIA also incorporates her work as a sound designer for film, creating a range of custom percussive sounds – her snares are stacks of assorted foley items, while her hi-hats are comprised of digital distortion trash. “My music is maximalist or baroque in the way I have layers upon layers of sounds at work in the material,” she explained.

Although NOIA writes from a dense creative place, her music is accessible on the surface. Both casual listeners looking for a headphone jam and serious fans demanding a deeper experience with pop music will find much to appreciate in NOIA’s productions.