{"title":"Shilpa Ray","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"shilpa-ray-paisley","title":"Shilpa Ray - Paisley","description":"\u003cp\u003eSIDE A: When Doves Cry\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=464065851\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/track=3167338915\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/paisley\"\u003ePaisley by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis was the track that got me. I was 4 years old when I heard this song. There was a story about him on the evening news and I told my mom I was gonna marry him. Why not? He looked like me. He had brown skin, black hair, big dark eyes and the longest lashes. Watching Purple Rain as an adult I was floored that I was allowed to watch it at all as a child. I didn’t remember it being so sexual. All my 4 year old self could absorb was that in the TV there was a world where you could get up on stage, wear glamorous clothes, and be surrounded by beautiful babes. I watched the older girls in my parent’s friend circle copping Appolonia’s style—big 80’s hair, purple shadow and bright red lips. She was a whole lot of woman, and Prince was the magic man from outer space. Those were good times. RIP\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSIDE B: Where Evil Grows\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=464065851\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/track=3347800726\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/paisley\"\u003ePaisley by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEver watch the video of this song on the Kenny Rogers show? It’s sublime. A wholesome white couple, seemingly Jesus loving hippies, singing a song about where evil grows. I first heard this track while working the door at Pianos this past winter. My friend, DJ Andy Haynes, a connoisseur of creepy music, was spinning that night and the lyrics to this grabbed me. “Evil grew. It’s part of you and now it seems to be that every time I look at you evil grows in me.” Like I said, really creepy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“When Doves Cry” is a collaboration with soul singer Deva Mahal.\u003cbr\u003e\nJeff Berner of Psychic TV engineered the tracks.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Limited Edition Lathe Cut Single + Digital","offer_id":44667156037855,"sku":null,"price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"Cassette + Digital","offer_id":44667155939551,"sku":"CS-NS-084","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667155972319,"sku":"","price":4.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667156005087,"sku":null,"price":3.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Screen-Shot-2017-03-06-at-2.21.01-PM.png?v=1703788706"},{"product_id":"shilpa-ray-last-years-savage","title":"Shilpa Ray - Last Year’s Savage","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=20785586\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/last-years-savage\"\u003eLast Year's Savage by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eNobody grows up wanting to be an artist’s artist. Appreciated by the sub sect of the sub sect is like being the beauty queen at the leper colony. Hell, anybody who claims they grew up wanting to even be an artist rather than an astronaut or a Cthulhu is probably lying or was a corny kid. Art is hard and degrading and generally bullshit. Your friends will find you irritating and your parents will certainly not throw you a parade. But if you’re an artist you’re an artist; the soul will fuck you every time, what can you do?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShilpa Ray is, through no fault of her own, one of our unsung great artists. Having made her bones with the gothic Sturm und Drang of Beat The Devil and moving forward to the blues erosion of “…and The Happy Hookers” Shilpa Ray has been, armed only with an incomparable voice and harmonium haunted by the ghosts of dead lovers, perpetually crying in the wind, hoisting both middle fingers in the general direction of god. It’s not a life a wise man would choose. Shilpa Ray kicks against the pricks but the pricks keep coming. But, again, what can you do?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWell, that’s been the narrative until now. With Last Year’s Savage (maybe a nod to Leonard Cohen maybe a nod to Barrence Whitfield) Shilpa Ray has taken the pain and dark funk of earlier sounds and made explicit the sublimity that was always there just below the surface. The conversation has become less a break up with doors ripped from their hinges and more the last pained pillow talk before parting. The obsessions with sex, death, bodily functions, and betrayal (not necessarily in that order) remain but Shilpa has expanded the palate to convey the resignation, the simmering discontent of an artist disenfranchised and held down. This is a quieter rage than the music Shilpa Ray has made before, more plaintive and considered, even if it’s the quiet of a hand gripped tight on the axe handle. The music remains gorgeous and stirring in its directness while Shilpa herself remains, thankfully, entirely and inappropriately threatening.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShilpa Ray has, up till this, point, yes, been an “artist’s artist.” Just about every musician in New York City, who doesn’t hate her, loves her. Nick Cave sings her praises to all with the ears to listen (he brought her along a European tour as an opener and as a backup singer in the States). Obviously there are some who will always prefer lesser versions of the Shilpa Rays of the world (as if there could be more than one), preferably with blue eyes and On Brand Waifishness, but the truth will, eventually out. Talent this big can only be kept down for so long before the sky cracks and we all drown in the blood of angels. Either way, this is Shilpa Ray’s year.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667158331615,"sku":"LP-NS-064","price":18.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667158397151,"sku":"CD-NS-064","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667158364383,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667158429919,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Shilpa-Ray-Last-Years-Savage-Cover-hi-res-e1646851866906.jpg?v=1703788823"},{"product_id":"shilpa-ray-make-up","title":"Shilpa Ray - Make Up","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1417455414\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/make-up-ep\"\u003eMake Up EP by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe former backup singer for Nick Cave steps out from his shadow to release the Make Up EP, a pair of imaginatively adapted covers. On Lou Reed’s quirky “Makeup,” described by Rolling Stone as an “image of the…sissy traipsing around and lisping about effeminacy,” Shilpa Ray filters the story through the antithetical lenses of explosive noise and charming cabaret. Next, Dinah Washington’s legendary “What A Diff’rence A Day Makes” is given a seventies soft-rock makeover, and you find yourself completely bewitched by Shilpa’s captivating vocals and dreamy wurlitzer piano. Only a brief taste of what’s in store on her brilliant upcoming LP, Last Year’s Savage (\u003cspan class=\"aBn\" tabindex=\"0\" data-term=\"goog_798515051\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"aQJ\"\u003eMay 19th\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e on Northern Spy), these songs are sure to whet the appetites of long time fans and new ones alike.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Shilpa Ray’s words:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eI had an epiphany about “Make Up” (written by Lou Reed) when I was in Palermo around Christmas time after the Bad Seeds tour. Lou had died late October. I found out 10 minutes before I had to play solo before a sold out crowd at the Hammersmith Apollo in London. Needless to say, his passing had a massive effect on me. He was my childhood hero. Europe was hard to grasp for me in a lot of ways. The culture, language barriers,the overload of dairy and ghettos of freshly placed refugees from countries, some I had never heard of before. I was exhausted and getting drunk outside a bar where you can get Marsala for a Euro, basically all I could afford. There were tons of kids dancing in the streets getting high and happy, when this stray yellow lab walked up to me and starts swaying back and forth. The song Make Up came blaring through the stereo and I started swaying with the dog. It was one of those rare moments I felt alright.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShilpa’s thoughts on “What A Diff’rence A Day Makes” (written By María Grever with English lyrics written by Stanley Adams)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe had decided to go to the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame during a tour stop in Cleveland. I was pretty cynical about the whole thing and tour hadn’t been smooth. I had to send a dude home for being a brat in Kansas City among other places and was feeling pretty exposed as the bad guy. It was a stressful situation and trying to justify my actions in the passive aggressive world of music where no one’s making any money felt daunting. I separated myself from the group, the costumes, the Katy Perry and the Beyonce and hung out in the listening booth for hours. Dinah Washington came on and put every wannabe singer, myself included, to shame. What a voice! She draws her breath so long and never loses the listener. I had to challenge myself with this one. I hope I can sing like her someday.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Make Up” and “What A Diff’rence A Day Makes” performed by:\u003cbr\u003e\nShilpa Ray – vocals and keys\u003cbr\u003e\nJon “Catfish” Delorme – Pedal Steel\u003cbr\u003e\nAlistair Paxton – Bass\u003cbr\u003e\nRuss Lemkin – Drums\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded in January 2015 by Jason LaFarge at Seizures Palace\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Cassette + Digital","offer_id":44667158724831,"sku":"CS-NS-065","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667158692063,"sku":"","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667158757599,"sku":null,"price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Shilpa-Ray-Make-Up-cover_web.jpg?v=1703788831"},{"product_id":"door-girl","title":"Shilpa Ray - Door Girl","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=262799965\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/door-girl\"\u003eDoor Girl by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGirls Are Free.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat’s what it says on a makeshift sign on the wall above Shilpa Ray’s head on her latest record, Door Girl. Sometimes in life it helps to take the signs one encounters literally. Girls are free to make mistakes. Girls are free to come and go. Girls are free of all those preconceived notions attached to what it is to be a girl. Gazing with a mixture of serenity and weary imperiousness beneath that sign is Shilpa Ray. Door Girl takes as its titular inspiration her time working the door at Lower East Side bar Pianos, its reputation one of hard-scrabble survival and the inspiration of desperation. Shilpa Ray has seen it all.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGirls are free to bear witness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“Shilpa Ray Stars as Door Girl” beckons from the cover of Door Girl in pink neon - reminiscent of nothing less than the pink lipstick that spells out New York Dolls on the cover of their similarly explosive record. The seething frenzy of a feeding frenzy - the hallmark of closing time desperation - whirls around her on the cover, people moving past so quickly that they become a smear of obscurity even as she watches everything by the door. Or is it merely normal life, speeding across her hemisphere in that blasé and banal way that yields few treasures except those that only the most perceptive of all possible artists can dig out? Her song titles are gems that glitter with scorn - “Shilpa Ray’s Got a Heart Full of Dirt,” “You’re Fucking No One,” and “Morning Terrors Nights of Dread,” to name a few - and underscore how extortionately rare good song titles truly are.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGirls are freed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHer voice - singular in modern popular music because of its radiant imperfection - takes neither prisoners nor guff as it offers up continuous caustic commentary on the human condition. Hers are observations gleaned from endless nights watching people in their natural habitat. These arenot pretty pictures, shot through as they are with violence in the obvious and menace in the failures. Alternately dreamlike and lifelike, Door Girl carves out its portraits of nightlife with reverberation and feedback, unveiling an expansive level of production quality through which even the perfectly-recorded snare drum is as present and as crisp as the bad breath of the drunk falling asleep at your elbow. Each instrument is so clearly defined in the presentation as to become one of those selfsame dive bar habitués on which Shilpa Ray shines a stark Klieg light of absolute truth. It is the story of a city as it lives and breathes at its most basic levels, as told by an artist who is equal parts musician and magician and for whom each song is a different life she has lived and breathed and experienced like few others have.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e- David Cotner\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/www.wnyc.org\/widgets\/ondemand_player\/wnyc\/#file=\/audio\/json\/794355\/\u0026amp;share=1\" width=\"100%\" height=\"130\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667173437663,"sku":"LP-NS-093","price":24.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667173470431,"sku":"CD-NS-093","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667173503199,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667173535967,"sku":null,"price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/Shilpa_Ray_Door_Girl_cover-e1646850959270.jpg?v=1703789400"},{"product_id":"nihilism-ep","title":"Shilpa Ray - Nihilism EP","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=4292959126\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/nihilism-ep\"\u003eNihilism EP by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShilpa Ray’s Nihilism EP comes hot on the heels of 2017’s critically acclaimed LP Door Girl. Inspired by and written after binge watching the Grateful Dead documentary series Long Strange Trip, her original song “Shoot This Dying Horse” is a rainy day waltz about how bad things can happen to anyone, at any time in the most random and meaningless ways. More specifically, it’s about getting dumped at a bar two days before Christmas. No horses were harmed during the writing and recording of this track.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAdditionally, Shilpa decided to cover Alice Cooper’s “Is It My Body” after spinning a lot of Cooper in the tour van while on tour in support of 'Door Girl.' She explains, “When I paid closer attention to the lyrics, I realized if sung by a woman this song could be a feminist anthem. Who knew Alice Cooper wrote feminist anthems?”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Shoot This Dying Horse\" written by Shilpa Ray 2018\u003cbr\u003e\n\"Is It My Body\" written by Alice Cooper, Dennis Dunaway, Michael Bruce, Neal Smith + Glen Buxton 1971\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMusic performed by\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eShilpa Ray\u003cbr\u003e\nVocals, Wurlitzer, Rhodes, Farfisa\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlistair Paxton\u003cbr\u003e\nGuitar\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTurner Stough\u003cbr\u003e\nBass\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRichard Hutchins\u003cbr\u003e\nDrums, Percussion\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eChristian Lee Buss\u003cbr\u003e\nBacking vocals, Farfisa, Synth\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEngineered by Jeff Berner at Studio G\u003cbr\u003e\nAssistant Engineer - Alexis Berthelot\u003cbr\u003e\nMastered by Alex DeTurk at Strange Weather\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eArtwork by Russell Hymowitz\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"Cassette + Digital","offer_id":44667175043295,"sku":"CS-NS-102","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667175076063,"sku":"","price":3.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667175108831,"sku":null,"price":2.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a1349547931_10.jpg?v=1703789480"},{"product_id":"bootlickers-of-the-patriarchy","title":"Shilpa Ray - Bootlickers of the Patriarchy","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=1275045839\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/bootlickers-of-the-patriarchy\"\u003eBootlickers of the Patriarchy by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"'Bootlickers of the Patriarchy' was written about Senator Susan Collins and her infamous press conference after the Kavanaugh\/Blasey Ford hearings. It’s about women who succeed from undermining the success of other women or choose to gain success from exploiting the oppression of other women. This is a character who has taken many forms throughout history, the kind of woman who seems perfectly content playing Gamma to the Alpha male. \"Bootlicker\" is my direct challenge to the notion of “women supporting other women,” and the falsehoods and unrealistic expectations that comes with a statement like that.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"I wrote the song to be played in two different arrangement styles, the first half being slow and haunting and the second going balls-to-the-wall rage. I was re exploring a lot industrial\/proto industrial music I had listened to as a teenager in the 90s and used some elements of synth\/drum machine sounds to convey all that anger, panic and darkness.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\/\/\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"Well, why not do a cover of your influences as a B-side? I was obsessed w\/ the Ministry album 'With Sympathy' when writing tracks for my upcoming album. It is the record Al Jourgenson has stated multiple times that he’s ashamed of most, which is saying a lot considering this man’s autobiography. I teamed up with my friend Heather Elle of Flossing, formerly of post punk bands Bodega and The Wants for this collaboration. It’s my first official recorded track where I’m playing guitar, so as the saying goes, it’s never too late to pick up a new instrument and get totally lost in it.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e-- Shilpa Ray\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" Vinyl","offer_id":44667189100767,"sku":"SI-NS-145","price":13.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667189133535,"sku":"","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667189166303,"sku":"","price":1.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/bootlickers-cream-cover-FINAL-1-scaled-e1646413520892.jpg?v=1703789937"},{"product_id":"portrait-of-a-lady","title":"Shilpa Ray - Portrait of a Lady","description":"\u003ciframe style=\"border: 0; width: 100%; height: 42px;\" src=\"https:\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/album=157144298\/size=small\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/artwork=none\/transparent=true\/\" seamless\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/shilparay.bandcamp.com\/album\/portrait-of-a-lady\"\u003ePortrait of a Lady by Shilpa Ray\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith her raging new album Portrait of a Lady, New York punk rock\/art pop songwriter Shilpa Ray has created her most searing and personal album to date. Written in the wake of the #metoo movement and the weathering years of the Trump Administration, the record finds Ray processing her own experiences with abuse, layering autobiographical detail with ferocious bon mots and surrealistic rock \u0026amp; roll gloss. Featuring singles like the Stooges-styled “Manic Pixie Dream Cunt,” the reverb soaked dream pop of “Heteronormative Horseshit Blues,” and the hard-charging “Bootlickers of the Patriarchy,” the album draws from a stylistic palette of synths, electronic beats, and hard rock guitars, inspired by artists like Ministry, Billy Idol, Pat Benetar, and the glittery, jagged but still pop guitars of Los Angeles hair metal. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe idea for  Portrait of a Lady Ray stretches back Ray’s experience with photos from Nan Goldin’s The Ballad of Sexual Dependency, a personal expose of the photographer’s time in the No Wave scene of New York in the late ‘70s. “It shook me to my core and made me reflect on my own experiences with sexual assault and abuse,” Ray says. She couldn’t shake the idea of a concept album—a full-throated rock album about being a survivor—but found herself hesitating until 2019, when she began to approach the concept in earnest. “I kept asking, ‘How do you do this?’ But Goldin’s work—as well as the writings of music journalist and musician Jes Skolnik—inspired Ray to throw herself into the difficult work. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo match her personal and fearless lyrics, which range from darkly funny to harrowing, Ray and her co-producer\/collaborator Jeff Berner gather a wide batch of sounds, from unhinged garage rock to soul ballads. The songs shimmer with neon gloss, from the electronic piano and harmony-packed excoriation of privilege “Straight Man’s Dream” to the heartbreaking showstopper “Cry For the Camera,” and from the noise interlude of “No” to the leather clad strut of “Lawsuits \u0026amp; Suicide,” a tale of manipulation set to ‘80s hard rock-inspired new wave, drawn from Ray’s childhood memories of MTV. “In the ‘80s, everything looked like candy, but it was sharp—there’s an anger to it,” she says. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThat anger is present on the record, but it shares space with acceptance, gallows humor, and strength. “No survivor has a set way of dealing with what they had to survive. There’s no homogenized experience or interpretation of it,” Ray says. Portrait Of A Lady isn't a political record so much as a personal one, dedicated to “showing the good, the bad, and the ugly as well as the power one can ultimately hold being a survivor. \u003cem\u003e- Jason Woodbury\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"LP + Digital","offer_id":44667190575327,"sku":"LP-NS-146","price":21.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD + Digital","offer_id":44667190608095,"sku":"CD-NS-146","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":44667190640863,"sku":"","price":9.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":44667190673631,"sku":"","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/portrait-of-a-lady-cover-FINAL-1-scaled-e1646411828390.jpg?v=1703789990"},{"product_id":"shilpa-ray-im-a-ghost","title":"Shilpa Ray - Portrait of a Cat Lady \/ I'm a Ghost","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePortrait Of A Cat Lady, released January 20, 2025, is the first single from a collection of post pandemic\/post hysterectomy songs written by Shilpa Ray. The lyrics tell a coming of middle age story from a writer who refuses to disappear and is set against a musical backdrop of what Americana could sound like from a second generation immigrant perspective.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eI'm A Ghost, released May 20, 2025,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is the second release in Ray's explorations with Americana and aging. The song incorporates inflections of soul, garage and easy listening with vocal stylings in the vein of Linda Ronstadt and Karen Carpenter. Lyrically it deals with friendship fallouts in adulthood as experienced by many during the pandemic. Although the act of ghosting is seen negatively by most, it is heard here as an act or lack of acting to bring peace of mind.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eAll Songs Written and Arranged by Shilpa Ray\u003cbr\u003eProduced by Shilpa Ray and Jeff Berner\u003cbr\u003eEngineered @ Studio G by Jeff Berner\u003cbr\u003eMastered by Sara Register\u003cbr\u003ePublisher - SESAC 2025\u003cbr\u003eArtwork\/Photography by Ebru Yildiz\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Northern Spy Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" LP + Digital","offer_id":49072313204959,"sku":null,"price":12.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false},{"title":"FLAC Download","offer_id":49072313270495,"sku":null,"price":5.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"MP3 Download","offer_id":49072313303263,"sku":null,"price":3.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0677\/9256\/8543\/files\/a1508402690_1x1_700_9f8313ee-ea7a-43e9-a71f-0fc7d642e8ea.avif?v=1778004522"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.northern-spy.com\/collections\/shilpa-ray.oembed","provider":"Northern Spy Label Group","version":"1.0","type":"link"}