Most of the music today either appeals to raw emotion or tells of a certain story; in this context, Lounna is exceptional as she incorporates the two elements with great skill. The singer-songwriter based in Pittsburg has managed to capture attention by perfectly mixing soft-rock and indie-folk while also engaging in the themes of love, loss, and hope with finesse.
For the most recent release “Alpenglow” of Lounna, her ability to make art out of what life throws at one’s way is evident. The female artist created a song that is named after the warm rosy glow one sees at the peaks of mountains just after sunset or before sunrise. It is also about the feeling of anticipation that starkly contrasts with the beauty and reality in the center of a great moment that everything has been leading up to.
Most of Lounna’s art is based on her life and personal experience, for example, the recent period of the struggle against cancer of her husband. She still acts as a motivational person though; in other words, she practices what she calls, “staying soft in a hard world.” as the hardships around her are still surmountable.
In the interview, Lounna spoke about the ideas that inspired the track “Alpenglow”, also the process of production in which she experimented, and the narrative element in her music. Before her next album “Garden For Winter,” Lounna hints at the emotional experience that the listeners should expect.
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“Alpenglow is a poetry that lays bare the deepest feelings that one encounters which comes with the fear of loosing a loved one. Banjo infused music and a touch of rock makes it magical.”
Alpenglow means the reddish glow that you see when the sun sets or rises in the summits of the mountains and that is exactly how the song will make you feel. Lounna is dealing with a harsh situation in life where in her husband has been diagnosed with cancer and in this song she tells us about how the fear of loosing a loved one creeps in and ruins one’s mental health. The soft-rock vibe soothes the soul and creates a very melancholic yet comforting vibe. The banjo work in the song stood out for me and sounds extremely good.
“Alpenglow” has such a unique atmosphere. What was the inspiration behind this track, and how did the idea for it come about?
I’m someone who is fascinated by words. A few years ago, I discovered the word “alpenglow”. Sometimes when I write songs or when I am looking for inspiration for them, a simple word or phrase gets stuck in my mind and then I usually end up writing a song around the concept. That’s how it was for ‘Alpenglow’.
The term *alpenglow* refers to a natural lighting effect on mountains at sunrise or sunset. How does this imagery connect with the song’s themes or emotions?
ANSWER It was actually the definition of “alpenglow” that fascinated me the most. I have a very imaginative mind, and I pictured this beautiful scene of standing atop a mountain at sunrise/sunset. I am always in awe of the beauty of life, of the sun, and of the nature of things, and to me the definition of “alpenglow” alone was inspiring. The themes in this song are quite beautiful yet bittersweet, and I wanted the imagery to properly embrace the story I wanted to tell.
Did you experiment with any new sounds or production techniques on *“Alpenglow”* that you haven’t used before?
The production of “Alpenglow” was actually very experimental for me. It was the first song that I really sat down with an electric guitar and found a way to incorporate it into my sound. I wrote this song years ago and perhaps didn’t have a real genre for it at the time, and so when it came time to produce it fully, it took shape somewhere between indie rock and my traditional folksy sound. I wanted it to stay relatively true to Lounna with the soft vocals and banjo, but also to be a breath of fresh air. At the time that we produced this, it was my heaviest produced song. (We have continued in this direction since.)
The lyrics in *“Alpenglow”* feel deeply personal. Can you share more about the story or message you’re conveying through the song?
“Alpenglow” is a story song about losing someone close to you and being unable to forget and heal from the loss. Even still, I wanted the lyrics to accurately represent the peacefulness of the mountaintop image that I was seeing in my mind, so the story was written in a dreamy, nostalgic rememberance of this lost love.
Being such a daydreamer also means that I am often left disappointed when things don’t go the way that I want. (At 28, I realize this happens quite often.) The bridge of the song, “I never went back home” is when the main character of the song proclaims that they don’t have the strength to grieve and to heal, that they are lost in the memories of better times.
In parallel, this part of the song is my personal aching to stay in my daydreams rather than face the hell that reality is sometimes. My husband recently underwent chemotherapy for lymphoma, and it is easy to want to flee from the responsibilities of life when everything seems to be going wrong.
There’s an ethereal quality to your voice in this track. How do you use your vocal delivery to enhance the song’s emotional impact?
Thank you for the compliment! This was one of the first moments where I sat to track the vocals in a fully relaxed, soft way. I wanted to tell the story gently, almost like a whisper on the wind. Because that’s what the story is – an ethereal, hazy moment in time that could be taken away by the breeze at any second.
Were there any challenges in translating the emotions you felt while creating the song into the final version we hear today?
The biggest challenge with the creation of “Alpenglow” was getting the vocals and the mix of genres just right. I suppose it’s a little ironic how this is one of Lounna’s heaviest songs but it about such a fragile, beautiful memory. I can only hope that it does portray the emotions in a justifying way.
What do you hope listeners will take away from *“Alpenglow”*? Is there a certain feeling or thought you aim to leave them with?
I want listeners to hear this song and feel a nostalgic warmth from it. I think that just about every human being on the planet knows how it feels to be loved by someone that they lost unexpectedly, whether by death or choice on the others’ part. It’s important that we all be gentle with eachother because you just might be surprised how much we all share our human experiences with each other.
Does *“Alpenglow”* have any accompanying visuals or music video planned? If so, how do you envision the visual representation of the song?
There are no music videos for “Alpenglow”, but that is because I saved all of my creativity and budget for the next single… which leads to your next question.
Can we expect *“Alpenglow”* to be part of a larger project, like an EP or album, or is it a standalone single?
“Alpenglow” is the first official single ahead of my sophomore record. The new record is titled “Garden For Winter” and will be released on January 31st, 2025. I have a small string of singles releasing between now and then, the next being “Under the Same Stars” ft. Reliable Child, which will be out (with a music video!) on October 18th.
What’s next for you creatively? Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you’re excited about following *“Alpenglow”*?
The next year or so will be dedicated to celebrating and promoting “Garden For Winter”. The record was intended to be released in spring of this year (2024) but needed to be postponed when my husband was diagnosed with his lymphoma.
Given everything, I have a lot of pent up energy and excitement for this record. The entire record is quite collaborative, especially compared to my debut (When I’m Home). There are two featured artists, one mentioned above, Reliable Child, for the next single release. It was a fun experience to write and record with other artists.
The album features a few guest musicians as well, and the full project was recorded and produced alongside Daniel Blake, an engineer/producer local to southwestern Pennsylvania. Additionally, I am about a dozen songs deep on writing my third record, which I am aiming for a late 2026 release.
