Graftician

Photo and words by Maddy Cristall

Roxanne Nesbitt is an artist in every sense of the word. Nesbitt is an unreasonably talented young woman having completed degrees in both architecture and classical contrabass. If that isn’t enough she also sings like a raspy angel and makes visuals that drape across her during her mesmerizing performances. That’s enough right? Nope, she also plays the piano and makes percussion instruments. Her exquisite musical project is called Graftician.

Her experimental, dream-pop music is refreshingly superlative. Her sound is a collage of jazz, electronica, and folk. It blends the resounding nature of drum machines and the comforting sounds of intricate field recordings.

Her voice is packed with depth as she belts out her clever and sometimes heartbreaking lyrics. Her music features a rare dichotomy of self-aware hilarity and perceptive narrative. The common thread is that her sound, and personality is notably sincere.  Nesbitt isn’t trying to be this wildly gifted yet impossibly quirky artist; she just is. It is clear upon any time spent with her that she makes art of what she finds interesting in this world, including herself.

Nesbitt is about to release her third body of work-Mandarins. The EP celebrates her voice, instrumental ability and poetic songwriting. Nesbitt is reminiscent of the likes of other great female songwriters such as Neko Case, and Fiona Apple however, her musical execution remains entirely fresh. Her performances are notoriously mesmerizing. The visuals she projects during concerts are her handiwork and sometimes feature collaborations with visual artists. The provocative images start with hand sketches and finish with a rich visual tapestry timed and paired well with her songs. The process is complicated; but her multidisciplinary grasp of art should be appreciated, not dissected.

Roxanne will celebrate the release of Mandarins this Friday, June 14th at the historic Cultch Theatre in East Vancouver. She will be joined by queer Filipinx soul singer rapper Kimmortal. The two recently collaborated on the addictive track ‘Feel Alright’ that highlights their respective talents. The beautiful vintage venue is the ideal place to take in the music of these two rising stars.

Get your tickets here