Track By Track: Nailah’s ‘Lovegaze’ as Fragrances

To bring Lovegaze to life, Hunter retreated to a small coastal town along the English Channel, crafting demos with a borrowed Celtic harp. Her collaboration with London-based producer Cicely Goulder a year later further shaped the album’s ethereal sound. The result is a mesmerizing collection that celebrates the resilience and beauty of the natural world. Praised by critics for its enchanting forest-like ambiance, Lovegaze has been described by Bandcamp as “one of the most wholeheartedly beautiful records” and by Uncut as “uniquely intoxicating.” This debut album not only highlights Hunter’s extraordinary talent but also establishes her as a significant voice in contemporary ambient and folk music.

We asked Nailah to breakdown the album track by track with fragrances for each…

Strange Delights :
This track was conceived in a dark, smoke filled room. It is a meditation on the murk surrounding our everyday lives and the way it inevitably obscures our intrinsic connection to the natural world.

Through the Din :
This track is about nature’s resilience in spite of humanity’s obsession with destruction. I was drawing upon pastoral visions of early human civilization, before overconsumption led the way – a ratio of thousands of trees per person.
Notes of vetiver, sandalwood, wet clay.

Finding Mirrors :
This track is essentially about a witch who’s fallen out with her own power. Think broken circles, overturned goblets, and more questions than answers. A well intentioned spell gone wrong.
Notes of Malbec, benzoin, cetalox.

000 :
When I think of this track, I imagine a steady, masculine energy, exploring the confines of time and space.
Notes of oud, tobacco, neroli.

Lovegaze :
This track is about devotion, divine connection, and intimacy experienced in the midst of summer rain.
Notes of orange blossom, rosemary, wet earth.

Bleed :
This track feels like a moment of intentional mourning and release, facilitated by the sea. I gave into all of the most obvious emotional tropes in search of the monstrous essence of my misery only to find a delicate, but still very much intact flower at the heart of it all.
Notes of amber, star anise, rose.

Adorned :
This track represents the open passageway between the realm of the living and the realm that lies beyond. It is a meditation on the notion that we are all just souls moving upwards and onwards when we can detach from our self imposed tethers to what we think we know.
Notes of copal, charcoal, juniper.

Cloudbreath :
I’d say this track is the most buoyant and ephemeral piece on the whole record. It is bright, light, and crackling with the breath of life. Especially coming after the dirge of Adorned, it feels like a laugh and a kiss on the cheek.
Notes of pink pepper, geranium, oakmoss.

Garden :
This track is about the deep breaths that you take in solitude and stillness – subtle, reverent, and revitalizing.
Notes of sea salt, lavender, cedarwood.

Into the Sun :
This track is about the hope of life after full on combustion, a warm lamentation.
Notes of burnt wood, cinnamon, clove.

Vinyl of this beauty of an album lovegaze over here