Photo: Danger Collective
The idea of NZ musicians achieving fame in other countries while staying unknown here is not a new one. It’s also not new for certain artists to become very well known in certain places on the internet, but not others. In fact it’s a trend that continues even as some of those places, like Tumblr, drastically change.
Eleven years ago, a NZ musician using the name Salvia Palth uploaded his album Melanchole to Bandcamp, and after it circulated on Tumblr and elsewhere, accrued a huge following. Palth was practically deified by an audience of young people, who identified with the particular strain of ennui that the musician - aged just fifteen - had bottled so successfully.
When a followup never emerged, the lore surrounding Palth only increased. He released an album of electronic music under a different name, a few years after Melanchole, then stayed quiet until recently, when a new Salvia Palth album called Last Chance to See appeared in full.
About a year ago the person behind the pseudonym - Daniel Johann Lines - gave an interview to the American digital magazine Paste. To mark the release of the new album, he had one with another American site, Stereogum.
To give some idea of his success, his monthly listeners on Spotify are nowhere near, say, Taylor Swift levels… but some of his songs do have comparable play counts to hers. It’s worth remembering how unlikely that is for an album made by a teenager and uploaded on a whim.
Reddit threads and YouTube videos speak about the work reverently. They trace the links between Lines’ work and the poet Sylvia Plath, or the ecosystem of bedroom recording, or influence of emo music.
But mostly they’re people who heard the music at a similar age to its creator, and identified with it completely. Melanchole wasn’t entirely hopeless, but it was the sound of someone going through it. On the new release, songs like ‘I’m Gonna Find Out’ feel like a rejoinder from someone who’s now in their mid-20s.
There’s real magic in the collision of lo-fi texture and natural talent, and primarily, Lines’ ability to bottle a very specific vibe, smudgy and churning. The conversational nature to his vocals can feel laissez-faire, but it’s more accurate to say he’s in dialogue with other lo-fi practitioners.
After Melanchole he studied music production, and according to his interview with Stereogum, spent seven years writing, recording, and re-recording this follow up.
I don’t think the song ‘How Many Will I Make’ is about his output, but it could be given that title. One lyric goes “it’s not perfect”, which sums up part of the appeal.
As someone who found success in a relatively unique way with the first Salvia Palth release, Daniel Johann Lines is positioned to help other young artists find their way, and according to his Stereogum interview he’s doing just that, helping with gear and DIY recording.
The final track on Last Chance to See is called ‘Still I Struggle’. There's another called ‘Always Freaking Out’, but for someone with a lot of international ears on his work, Lines seems firmly in control.
