Aruba Red has shared her new song “Candle Magic,” the latest track to be taken from her forthcoming album Latent Echo.
Released to coincide with the full moon, “Candle Magic” is inspired by personal torment, alchemy and the healing that follows. The track appears on Latent Echo, which will be released physically on October 30, with its digital release following on December 24.
“Candle Magic” pairs Aruba Red’s ethereal vocal with warm live instrumentation rooted in jazz, alongside a marching beat and dub bass. Like recent singles “Kalliope” and “Lilac Glycerine,” the song explores how spirituality helped her through a gruelling family court case.
Speaking about the track, Aruba Red says: “During the early stages of the court case I was gripped with fear. A decade of abuse and coercive control, from which I’d managed to escape with my baby, had come back to haunt me. I was distraught. The nature of my constant duality in this life meant I needed to actively protect myself and my son in every way I possibly could. This resulted in me administratively preparing my case diligently as well as calling upon support from the beyond.
“My friend Saara taught me the art of candle magic. On a full moon I created my sigil, a unique symbol similar to a rune, a visual translation of intention that would be ‘activated’ by the flame of the candle it was carved into. The word I chose to inspire my sigil was ‘triumphant’. This song is one stream of consciousness telling the story of triumph and justice — a dedication to the support of angels, maidens, mothers, wise crones, ancestors and my sweet husband. Justice, sweet justice!”
Latent Echo marks both a musical return and a spiritual reawakening for Aruba Red. Her work has previously been praised by figures including Nitin Sawhney, Riz Ahmed and Phil Manzanera, but her creative path was interrupted by a series of personal challenges, including an abusive relationship, the loss of her father, motherhood, endometriosis, POTS and chronic pain.
During recovery, she committed to a project that would push her creatively while drawing directly from vulnerable experience. Working with Ivor Novello winner Renell Shaw and Camilo Tirado, she set out to create eight songs in eight days during sessions in Somerset. The process became a source of catharsis and renewal.
Following the Buck Moon, Aruba Red will release new music on each full moon through to December’s Cold Moon. She will launch Latent Echo with a special show at London’s World Heart Beat Embassy Gardens on October 14, where she will perform the album in full for the first time alongside Renell Shaw and Camilo Tirado.
A feature-length documentary film exploring Aruba Red’s story and the making of Latent Echo is also in production.
Beyond music, Aruba Red runs the organic apparel brand Aruba Red Treasured, is trained as a radical birth keeper, and has released a guided meditation series for pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
