W/Rachel June

We spoke to Ioana, who makes beautifully enchanting music. Her soothing vocals journey through a build-up of indie rock sounds, immediately reminding me of The Last Dinner Party or Florence and The Machine with her folky play on the genre. Her lyrics are inspired by her life, as she celebrates what it means to be her through song.

Who is Iona?

I’m a 29-year-old Scottish woman living in London, feeling good about being nearly 30 and trying to make lots of beautiful & also chaotic noise. I’ve just released my first album, BANG which is a dark indie-folk celebration of womanhood & its complexities. When I’m not doing that I play the harp and sing with the legendary Pogues.

For someone that is yet to discover you, how would you describe your music? 

Dark indie folk with grumbles of pop. A dark gravelly tunnel with bright warm light at the end.

What inspired you as an artist? 

Closely observing people’s ordinary & extraordinary everyday experience. Reading poetry of Hannah Sullivan, Alice Oswald, Maya Angelou. Feeling retrospective rage about young womanhood and wanting to explore & represent it through music. 

What Is Your Pre-Show Routine?

Avoiding people who want to chat, two 10 minute singers warm-up videos on YouTube. 1 banana, maybe one non-bubbly pint. Suck lots of lozenges. 

Where do you feel you fit into the music landscape?

I’d say I fit most obviously with the indie-folk-pop girlies like Julia Jacklin, Angel Olsen & Sharon Van-Etten, but then my music has a real heaviness to it, which is maybe less palatable. I’m not sure, really. I’ve supported so many bands spanning the likes of Ye Vagabonds to Arab Strap and all genres in-between, so maybe the landscape is broad and wide and also uncertain.

What are your favourite musical genres, and are there any you dislike? 

Like: Eastern European choral singing, Gaelic choirs, folk ballads, stripped back nylon string & indie shoe-gaze.

Dislike: I went to an 8 day psytrance festival when I was 18 in rural Portugal without really knowing what psytrance was and I can now say firmly that I do not like psytrance. 

Song on repeat right now?

Two songs! Bury Me Not, Poor Creature & Little Lost Love, Dove Ellis. Both amazing and more some.

What would you say is your greatest strength as an artist? 

Switching on my observing brain, it means I disappear into my own world and sometimes amn’t very good in a conversation, but if I’m in that mode, I pick up my words from what I see, and they go into my songs. Also If I start writing a song, I make myself finish it in that sitting.

What would you say is your greatest weakness as an artist? 

Getting too bogged down by the social media stuff. Also would like to improve my guitar playing.

What music artists would you say have influenced your work?

Lankum, PJ Harvey, Sibylle Baier, Portishead, the Warsaw Village Band.

Who would you most like to collaborate with artistically?

PJ Harvey, Dove Ellis, Cate le Bon.

Biggest obstacle & how did you overcome it? 

Thinking Instagram likes reflected how good I was at music. How silly is that? Managing how much time to give it is a constant battle, and I haven’t cracked it yet.

What advice would you give to aspiring artists?

No phones in bed. An audience of any size is a gift.

What is your creative process when making music? Do you work with others or is it just you?

It’s always just been me, and I work best when the day has stopped for most people. I find the idea of collaborating and sharing my process with someone scary/potentially embarrassing, but I think it would be a great challenge for me. And what’s better than one mind! 

This year and beyond, what can we expect?

Good question. More touring with the Pogues and *hopefully* lots of Iona Zajac gigs.. I’ll be working on what’s next for your ears.