I discovered Marina Herlop on YouTube, in a recording from years ago where she explains, in tears, when she was a teenager, and after a failed piano audition: "music is not made for that, you know, music is not made for auditions, nor to get nervous, nor to feel shitty.... If I had known this, I wouldn't have done music".
Well, luckily she kept going, because Marina has managed to create a strong, original and surprising work, wrapped in a disturbing, delicate and beautiful aesthetic.
I photograph her on a torrid August afternoon, at her place in the Guinardó neighborhood, where she has her recording studio. While we were moving keyboards and chairs to make some space, two rabbits strolled quietly around the room, adding a surreal touch to the scene.
Marina Herlop has released two solo albums, Nanook and Babasha and she is the vocalist and keyboard player of the band Myōboku. She stands out for her style of fusion between classicism and avant-garde, and for using an invented language in the lyrics of her songs.
Herlop is part of the musical project Myōboku together with Oscar Garrobé. The group's style has been defined as unusual and unclassifiable, with influences ranging from space-funk to psychedelic jazz, avant-garde, art-pop or afro-beat.
