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Charlie Hilton, known up until now for her work in the band
Blouse, has now forged a new identity with her debut solo
album, Palana.

It should come as no surprise that many of the songs on
Palana are concerned with shifting characters, forms and
ideas. The albums title itself is a nod to Hiltons given Sanskrit
name, an identity she shed completely after high school in
favour of the androgynous Charlie and Palanas overarching
theme can be summed up by a quote from Hermen Hesses
Steppenwolf, a phrase Hilton cites as a personal mantra: Man
is not by any means of fixed and enduring form he is much
more an experiment and a transition

Enlisting Unknown Mortal Orchestras Jacob Portrait as
producer, Hilton freely experimented with diverse sounds and
moods – some minimal and some cacophonous – out of the
confines of a band structure. Funny Anyway is truly stark,
featuring only string accompaniments, with Hilton assuming a
role akin to a confessional French chanteuse, while Lets Go To
A Party is Hiltons cheeky take on an icy dance track with thick,
bouncing synths and a chorus that echoes Im only happy
when Im dancing. Alternatively, tracks like Pony harken back
to the psychedelic strengths of Blouse, saluting bands like
Broadcast and United States Of America and then theres 100
Million, the sole track produced by Woods Jarvis Taveniere that
rounds out the album in a soft, acoustic and light-hearted way
with labelmate Mac DeMarco lending his talents on percussion
and back-up vocals.

This wide range of moods on Palana recall several of Hiltons
key influences – the solemn beauty of Nico, the whimsical
nature of Marc Bolan and the navet of Jonathan Richman –
but the album is undeniably the work of one artist, perhaps
best summed up by the artist herself: The music on this record
is diverse, but so is the inside of a person. I feel like Im many
people.

Tracklisting
1.Palana
2.Something For Us All
3.Pony
4.Long Goodbye
5.Funny Anyway
6.WHY
7.Lets Go To A Party
8.Snow
9.The Young
10.No One Will
11.100 Million