Sobriety journey leads Wolfe to relinquish control making album
Often in popular culture, witchcraft is associated with a kind of feminist reclamation of power and spite-fueled revenge.
And although Chelsea Wolfe’s recently released album is arguably her most spiritual yet — dripping with poetic lyricism about tarot, underworlds and bathing in blood — the process of making it has been marked by a time of healing, joy and relinquishing control.
“Over the years, as I’ve embraced a path of witchcraft and following the cycles of the seasons and the cycles of the moon, I put that into my writing process a lot, and I’ve started to share that more because this has been such a positive, wonderful thing in my life,” Wolfe explains.
Witchcraft’s influence has meant an increased attentiveness to letting each record “be what it wants to be,” the singer, songwriter and musician says — which can sometimes be overtly mystical, like pulling a tarot card for “clarity and guidance” on what she is about to write, or more ostensibly mundane.
Take, for example, her songwriting process for her new album, “She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She.” Although Wolfe frequently brings nearly finished demos to the studio to be fine-tuned and recorded, this time around she decided to work with producer Dave Sitek, who heavily transformed her rock-sounding songs.
“This one felt like it wanted to lean more electronic, a little bit more of that trip-hop influence that I’ve dabbled with over the years,” she says of her embrace of the genre that blends hip-hop and electronica.
Part of what informed this idea of letting go and shedding exoskeletons — “a spectral reminder of all that we’ve become,” she sings in one song — was beginning a journey of sobriety.
“I got sober from alcohol in early 2021, and I had already started this record. It’s interesting to kind of hear the songs that I
started before that and the way that they changed,” she recalls. “That created a lot of openness and clarity in my life and my creativity that I just was then naturally channeling into this music. It became a lot about rebirth.”
Wolfe’s music is hard to categorize, but she is known for her tendency to blend folk music with heavier subgenres like gothic rock and doom metal. She’s aware of the specific taste required for people to enjoy it — “It’s not party music,” she laughs — but has never been afraid to stand her creative ground.
“There’s been collaborations that I’ve been asked to do that I felt like they just weren’t right for me. And maybe it would have given me a lot of exposure or more payment down the line,” she says. “I try to live simply and not have to do things that I don’t feel like I’m aligned with just for money. I know that’s a privilege.”
But she has found resourceful ways, in addition to touring, to make a living with which she feels artistically comfortable, such as collaborating with composer Tyler Bates on the soundtrack for the 2022 slasher film, “X,” which stars Mia Goth.
They continued to work together on the score for “Maxxxine,” the highly anticipated final film of the trilogy, which stars Elizabeth Debicki and singer Halsey alongside Goth.
Between working on the “Maxxxine” score and gearing up for her album release and tour, Wolfe has been particularly intentional about taking time for self-reflection and being present amid a busy schedule. That has, of course, involved witchcraft, though, like her music, she resists attempts to put walls around what that means.
“Witchcraft in itself isn’t a religion. It’s not like we all gather somewhere,” she says. “Just because someone practices witchcraft doesn’t mean that they’re going to resonate with everybody else who does.”