Live Haugejorden Schau

• Schau, Live Haugejorden (2026). Composing an Immaterial Body: Deconstructing and Reconnecting Vocal Expressions in SOPHIE's “Immaterial”. In Andersen, Claus Sohn; Gullö, Jan-Olof; Hepworth-Sawyer, Russ; Marrington, Mark; Paterson, Justin & Toulson, Rob (Ed.), Innovation in Music: Innovative Creative Practice - 1st Edition. Routledge. ISSN 9781032757834. doi: 10.4324/9781003475644. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This chapter dives into a musical example from the internet-bound genre “hyperpop” by the producer and artist SOPHIE, who has brought new and experimental sounds to the popular music scene while making music reflecting upon her identity as a trans woman. It includes close analyses of three sections of her song “Immaterial”: the chorus, the first verse, and the bridge. These analyses concentrate on the song’s vocal expressions as an auditory expression of SOPHIE’s identity, and especially how the use of the effects of formant shift, panned delay, hardtune, and compression mediate the song’s message by appearing to liberate SOPHIE from any physical limitations. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion of the vocal expressions as a collective representation of SOPHIE’s immaterial body and further reflection on how the song introduces a compelling form of diversity into popular music.

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• Schau, Live Haugejorden (2026). Sounds, Functions, and Interplay Between Vocal Expressions in Electronic Popular Music. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Contemporary music production practices facilitate a high degree of processing and experimentation, allowing artists to sculpt vocal timbres and integrate their vocal expressions in several different ways into broader sonic landscapes. Producers and self-producing artists increasingly act as auteurs, infusing their work with distinctive stylistic signatures, creative visions, and technical approaches. As a result, new vocal aesthetics continue to emerge within popular music. Voices are not stable entities with fixed meanings, but rather capable of communicating in several different ways, giving them a rich interpretive potential in music. Exaggeratedly manipulated voices could further highlight this, evoking both imaginative and critical interpretations. They can challenge stereotypes and serve different functions in tracks, affecting the mediation of a track´s narrative and overall sonic environment. In my presentation I will examine variously manipulated voices´ different roles and functions in one specific track. I will present an analysis of the vocal expressions in ‘Kepko’ by Sega Bodega, an artist and producer within contemporary electronic popular music. From a primarily listening perspective I will investigate how the sound of, and the interplay between, the various vocal expressions affect the mediation of the track. I will delve into questions regarding how the vocals take on various instrumental functions and vocal roles, why I perceive them that way, and the significance it has for the overall sonic environment.

• Schau, Live Haugejorden (2024). Deconstructing and reconnecting vocal expressions in SOPHIE´s 'Immaterial'. Full text in Research Archive
• Schau, Live Haugejorden (2023). Empowerment in 'Immaterial' by SOPHIE. Full text in Research Archive

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