What are the feelings that follow a loss? Olivia Font uses Invictam as a study of aftermath. Although the subject matter is grief, the LP’s trajectory leans toward recovery and triumph, personified in the cover image and title, which means invincible or unconquered.
Multiple guest stars flesh out Font’s vision, most notably Ana San Martín, who contributes soprano voice. Opening track “Redemption” seems to begin with the loss itself, plunging one into the feeling of a funeral service, loss and hope intermingled. Soaring notes imitate the purpose of a choir: to lift one from grief, however momentarily, to fill the emotional gap with a vision. The tenderness of Font’s piano on the subsequent piece brings the listener back to earth, as distant bells continue the heavenly reference.
The specific nature of the loss is unclear, although the remnants of spiritual struggle remain. Oliver Coates contributes cello to “I see you,” Eduard Torné violins to “Boiling over into fierce,” increasing the level of drama. Pedro Vian (last reviewed here in a collaboration with Merzbow) graces “Visions.” San Martin’s voice is the thread that keeps appearing and disappearing, woven into the compositions as a reminder of the upward path. In the longest and most experimental track, “Something hides in every night,” Font travels into the heart of darkness, facing demons down with moody synth and spare, ritualistic percussion.
According to the composer, Invictam is not only about transience, but the cyclical nature of the seasons: a time to be born, a time to die. The timing of the release is apt, as Font brings listeners from spiritual autumn through spiritual winter, finally touching the edge of spiritual spring. The incandescent “Visions” is the turning point, when one realizes that the light has been returning in increments since the winter solstice. Suddenly there is a jump; the piano notes of “Amorphic” are noticeably brighter than those of “Dividing the line.” The feeling of holiness returns.
The word invincible does not mean that one cannot be hurt; instead it means “too powerful to be defeated or overcome.” Olivia Font personifies this resilience, translating it into music. She is not defined by her losses; she integrates them into a tapestry of color and sound. (Richard Allen)
