Hologram Imparatorluğu

Gaye Su Akyol hails from the cultural scene on Turkey's Black Sea coast, a melting pot for the arts where the painter-turned-singer fashioned her first album, Develerle Yașiyorum, in 2014. Its follow-up, Hologram Imparatorluğu, is steeped in Turkish culture, but with plenty of outside influences – surf guitar, electronics, psychedelic riffs, Turkish classical forms and more. Musicians include guitarist Ali Güçlü Şimşek, the Istanbul Strings, oud player Selim Boyaci and violinist Ahmet Ayzit.

The focus of the songs is on liberation of the self through love, free thought, cosmic meditation or music, and equally on the forces lined up against liberation. From the opening rush of strings and Turkish dance beats on the title-track, the album is a cry for freedom on all levels, contemporary but with more than a nod to its traditions, and eclectic in its global influences from pop, rock and underground music. This is music beyond borders, from one singular vision.