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Leeds-formed Drahla have de ned their own vital subset of art-rock with Useless Coordinates, a debut album that's as fearless as it is enthralling. Speaking from her current base in south-east London with bassist Rob Riggs, singer/guitarist Luciel Brown recounts the record's somewhat chaotic gestation. InchMost of last year was spent touring, so we were squeezing writing and recording in from the beginning of 2018 until end of August.Inch In-between a headline tour, support slots with Ought and METZ, and multiple festival appearances - including at Meltdown at the request of The Cure's Robert Smith - Brown, Riggs and Wakefield-based drummer Mike Ainsley managed 10 days in the studio in total. It was the unsettled nature of the period that part-inspired the album's title. Inch[Use- less Coordinates] summarised all of our situations,Inch Brown explains. The set's sharp angles, stark tones and claustrophobic textures are reflected in the album's artwork. Designed by Brown and Riggs - as per all previous record sleeves and promotional videos - the minimalist, mixed media creation takes inspiration from Talking Heads and Gang Of Four album art, the work of American artist Cy Twombly, and the economical, regimented aesthetic of the Bauhaus movement. InchDrahla came about off the back of needing an outlet for creative expression,Inch Brown explains. InchSo the whole aesthetic is hugely important. As important as the music.Inch Whatever the medium, Brown's interests lie in looking beyond the immediate to the abstract and indefinable. Her lyrics are developed from observations, notes and poems, and the fragmented imagery is spliced together to disorientating effect. On Gilded Cloud elegant snapshots from the golden age of Hollywood are juxtaposed with abrasive guitar textures, Pyramid Estate draws parallels between Ancient Egypt and the present day, and Serenity evokes the vio
