FLORA Kicks off Asian Tour in Seoul

Liron Meshulam, whose stage name is Flora, kicks off her Spring 2014 Asian Tour in Seoul with gigs at Mudaeruk, Studio Zemi and Jebidabang.

Flora brings passionate, tingling and lyric-driven music from her hometown scene of Tel Aviv, Israel. Chincha chatted with Flora to hear more about her singular sound and what she’s excited to experience.

What got you interested in music and what drove you to make your own?

I guess the presence of my dad, who is a classical guitar player, opened my mind to all kinds of music. I started composing weird little pieces of music when I was 8 years old, for myself and sometimes as presents for birthdays and special occasions.

You started out your career in Tel Aviv. Tell us a bit about the music scene there.

The music scene in Tel Aviv is very diverse — from indie alternative to Middle Eastern music to electronic to pop — there’s a lot of things going on, a lot of inspiration and a lot of talent. The music scene in Tel Aviv is very much alive.

You are about to put out a new EP. How would you describe its sound versus your past sound? Are there any new themes you wanted to explore?

On the first album it was mainly acoustic instruments with a little wink towards the electronic realm, In the new EP, “Everything is Here”, I went deeper into the electronic world of vintage keyboards and drum machines, exploring and creating my world of sounds.

A critic described you as a kind of electronic Joni Mitchell. What do you think of that comparison? Who are your influences?

I love this comparison because I love Joni Mitchell. I’m influenced from a lot of music. For example: Björk, Portishead, Hauschka, Debussy, Jose Gonzales, Radiohead, Kate Bush and many more.

What are you looking forward to about performing in Seoul?

Meeting and playing with local artists, Trampauline and Sogyumo Accacia Band.

I am very very much excited about Seoul just because I am of so little knowledge of it. I am looking forward to meeting people and local artists and musicians. From what I heard it should be amazing.

Most of what I know about South Korea is from [Korean] movies … hopefully it will be as freaky.

Does travel inspire your music? If so, how?

F: Yes it’s very inspiring to travel, especially if it’s to new places and if you have some time to explore them, sometimes you just go to a city to perform there and the next day you are in a new city. But for me, playing shows in all different places and to meeting new people is very inspiring. It makes you take a wider look at the world. When you are far from home, from your family and friends, you discover new things about yourself again and again.

When you perform, you seem very much wrapped up and inward-looking. I feel like I am watching someone pour out their own diary in song. Is that what you are aiming for? What do you think about when performing or preparing to perform?

F: I guess it’s kinda like that. But “diary” makes it sounds childish to my ears, so I would prefer to say personal thoughts. I try to be as honest as I can with my songs. When I perform them, I try not to think. If I’m thinking it’s a bad sign for me. I try to be a channel of energy that is driven from emotion. I get very emotional on stage.