New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Rock artist IVA TORIC has shared a music sampler video allowing listeners to hear snippets taken from singles off her debut album THE DEVIL'S MARK (2020) and the new single "Wasting Water" featured on her anticipated Fall 2022 release DEAD RECKONING. IVA's distinctive sound is shaped by her bond to nature through pagan imagery while lyrically tackling intense emotions surrounding mental health and self-esteem issues. Watch the sampler and read below a Q&A with IVA on the inspiration behind her music.
IVA announced plans for DEAD RECKONING when she revealed its debut single "Wasting Water" with a music video premiere via
Ghost Cult Magazine on
September 23. Listen to IVA describe the meaning behind the track in this audio clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLYOO6LIhuw.
She also adds, "The takeaway message is don't waste your water. Don't waste your energy on people that don't respect you and love you for who you are. You are strong enough to break free of toxic people and to turn off that faucet and save your time and your tears from falling down the drain."
DEAD RECKONING was recorded with producer/engineer Jim Kaufman (Dee Snider,
Danny Worsnop) and assistant producer Ryan Molder while being mastered by Grammy-Award winning engineer Ted Jensen (Evanescence, Alice In Chains, Green Day). IVA enlisted a backing band consisting of Gregg Cash (guitars, bass, arrangement) and Dylan
Howard (drums), both of which previously worked on her debut album.
Q&A with IVA TORIC
- You've stated before that your music is inspired by nature and pagan symbolism. Can you explain how you utilize these elements in your sound?
- "I like my sound to be as raw and authentic as it can be. I add my own touch to rock while honoring what came before me. Just like nature, my sound is both powerful and subtle. Picture deep rooted and gnarled old trees with delicate new blossoms on its branches. I play with contrast: light and darkness, personal and anthemic."
"The band and I use a lot of vintage equipment in our production and recording because we want to strike a harmonious balance between old school garage rock and roll and modern sounds. The old is new again like the cycles of nature and the ancient cultures who revered and worshiped them."
- The lyrics of your songs are quite emotional and stirring, alluding to topics like depression, anxiety and self-esteem issues. Do these stem from real life experiences? What do you think people going through those same issues and emotions might be able to take away from listening to your music?
- "All of my songs are based on my own lived experiences. My struggles and my realizations. I tend to gravitate toward the emotional and dark, but my music has an uplifting and relatable thread running through it: without the darkness there is no light.
When you, the listener, hear my music, you may hear heartbreaking honesty. You may hear parts of your own story echoed back to you in my voice. You may feel like you aren't alone, and somebody understands. I hope you hear me-my heart and mind reaching out to join you on your journey through this life."
- Can you share any progressions you've made on your upcoming album, musically and/or lyrically and how you developed those? Did the pandemic have any influence on your writing? If so, please elaborate.
- "I wrote and recorded a new album during the pandemic, and I named it 'Dead Reckoning' because I felt like I was searching for something within the deep depression the pandemic brought me. It opened thoughts that may have been closed to me in other circumstances and when I wrote it, I was very much alone. The music is even darker and has a sense of solitude. The lyrics explore my relationships with myself and others. There is more raw honesty. More nature imagery. More vintage rock sounds. And more pleading angelic vocals that will reach in and pluck a string deep inside your heart."
- Describe 'Iva Toric' in 5 words
- "Authentic, Emotional, Witchy, Powerful and Haunting."
