Qobuzissime

Looking at the tracks on the playlist she has concocted exclusively for Qobuz, you can quickly see the DNA of Margaret Sohn aka Miss Grit. Björk rubs shoulders with Laurie Anderson, FKA Twigs, Angel Olsen, Yaeji and Black Midi. Names that obviously come to mind after listening to Follow the Cyborg, the first Qobuzissime album of the American-Korean living in New York and published on Mute, a label that has always pointed towards the future and the sounds that go with it...

As you listen to the album, you too may be struck by the similarities between her sound and that of Annie Clark’s St. Vincent, an influence more than claimed by Miss Grit: “If I bought an electric guitar, it was because of St. Vincent!” The guitars on “Like You” and the title track “Follow the Cyborg” had me double-checking the album cover to make sure it wasn’t St. Vincent’s name on there. However, Miss Grit quickly proved herself to be a unique artist with her own distinctive style.

What sets Miss Grit apart from her illustrious elder is her fictional and sci-fi approach to her music. Drawing inspiration from films like Spike Jonze’s “Her,” Alex Garland’s “Ex Machina,” Wong Kar-wai’s “Fallen Angels,” and Rupert Sanders’ “Ghost in the Shell,” as well as written works like Jia Tolentino’s “Mirror Games: Reflections on Our Illusions” and Donna Haraway’s “Cyborg Manifesto,” she created an album that places her body in the cyber world, allowing the different variations of her ghost to move freely.

What is particularly intriguing about this album is Miss Grit’s exploration of identity, not just that of humans but of all beings. Through her fascinating prose, she asks thought-provoking questions about what it means to exist in this world, and how our perceptions of ourselves and others are shaped by our surroundings. “I wanted to place my body in the cyberworld, allowing the different variations of my ghost to move freely. I wanted to look a bit weird, unrecognisable to avoid my instinctive filtration.” These words fit perfectly with the synthetic sounds that run through Follow the Cyborg - half new wave, half indus’ light - and the fascinating/unnerving cover photo. But it’s not all synthetic and plastic, and this album is also inhabited by the real humanity of a singer who delivers her questions of identity - and not only human ones - in her disturbing lyrics.

As someone who grew up in suburban Michigan before studying music technology at NYU, Miss Grit has a unique perspective on the intersection between guitars and synthesizers. She blends these two elements together to great effect on Follow the Cyborg, creating a sound that is reminiscent of new wave and industrial music.

With the help of friends like Stella Mozgawa from Warpaint, Aron Kobayashi Ritch from Momma, and the singer Pearla, Miss Grit has created a record that is deserving of the Qobuzissime label. Follow the Cyborg is an album that only gets more compelling with every listen, as you discover new layers of meaning and complexity in the music and lyrics.