Singer, composer and actress Sabina Sciubba, founder of the Grammy-nominated Brazilian Girls, confirms and unveils the title of her upcoming third solo album Sleeping Dragon set for release June 23, along with new single and video “Paris Tropical,” watch HERE.
“Paris Tropical” is the second single out ahead of the record, following “Adam”–watch HERE. Sciubba invited pianist Jason Lindner (David Bowie’s Blackstar) to play synth on the track, which she says “illustrates a walk through Paris… a sequence of metaphors describing my impressions of Paris.”
“I had been working on this song for some time, but never had recorded a version I was happy with. I had almost lost hope, but something pulled me to it, I wanted to give it another chance, so I asked Jason Lindner to play synth on it,” says Sciubba. “We recorded late night at Officina Sonora Bigallo studios in Florence. It was magical: in that moment, Jason incorporated exactly what I had tried to say in the lyrics: an odd juxtaposition of cultural elements which fuse into something new.”
The accompanying video, directed by GOLDKIND, illustrates that contrast, with Sciubba dancing through neon-bright renderings of the city’s historic sites, accompanied by tropical animals.
“Renaissance paintings, gray zinc roof, etiquette and aloofness, sophistication and classical culture clash with the bright mix of colors and languages, youth, nightlife, social unrest, rage and effervescence,” Sciubba recounts. “The tension between an antique society and their more recent colonial past, the energy and friction which is generated by different cultures cohabiting has always fascinated me. There seems to be an abyss between the one and the other, but somehow it melts into one chaotic abstract painting.”
In addition to Lindner, Sciubba gathered a host of collaborators for Sleeping Dragon, including Grammy winning singer and composer Dhani Harrison (The Traveling Wilburys), cowriter Barry Reynolds (Marianne Faithfull, Grace Jones, Brazilian Girls), singer-songwriter Albin de la Simone, and renowned clarinetist Nico Gori.
“I own a book of oracle verses, written by a famous Chinese military statesman and philosopher called Zhughe Liang. Sleeping dragon is his nickname. It’s given me some insights over the years,” says Sciubba. “Writing music is like painting… you don’t know what it’s going to be like until it’s done. You may have a plan of what you want it to sound like, but it takes on its own life and usually becomes something quite different.”
Sciubba found both critical acclaim and a loyal following as founder and lead vocalist/producer of the group Brazilian Girls, a genre-bending, multi-lingual (Sciubba is of German and Italian descent) and internationally beloved outfit that received a Grammy nomination for Best Electronic Record for their 2008 album New York City. Sciubba went on to release two full-length solo records, Toujours and Force Majeure, in addition to acting alongside Zach Galifianakis in the critically acclaimed series Baskets. “I’m an explorer by nature,” Sciubba says. “So after each record, I’m ready to try something new.”
