Mela Femmina - Hello Chic

Emilia Estall, otherwise known as Mela Femmina, is a vocalist and keyboard player from South East London. The idea for Hello Chic was born whilst Emilia was living in the rich musical context of Bologna in Northern Italy in 2018. Whilst there, she was given a cassette by an eccentric older friend - Marco Cigarini - filled with unreleased demos by a band he was part of in the early 80s called the Audiocompany. When listening to this music, and discussing with the original members how it was made, she was inspired to remake the band’s demos that had had such a profound effect on her, and lay vocals over the top to mark the conjunction of her two worlds, Bologna and London. The result was a research-based project into the synthesisers and drum machines used on the record at the time, mainly Prophets, Moogs, Jupiters, Junos and many more, dialling up the sounds by ear to recreate this cosmic journey into Italo Disco, whilst contemporarily veering off into other realms. She was helped by two friends and producers - initially Miles James, who helped her start the project, and Steve Pringle, who helped her finish it. The EP contains five tracks, that go from upbeat to melancholy, with comedic and atmospheric skits in between, taking influence from a mix of worlds loved by both Emilia and the producers, from Gaznevada to Weather Report, from Herbie Hancock to Isao Tomita. Lyrics-wise, the project is about Emilia’s emancipation from a 6-year relationship she was in at the time she lived in Bologna and her longing for independence and emotional stability.