How Gordi Turned Chaos into 'Like Plasticine,' Her Most Resilient Album Yet"
Learning To Unlearn
Photo: Bianca Edwards
Gordi's New Album 'Like Plasticine' is a Pop-Shaped Masterpiece
Hailing from the rural Australian town of Canowindra, singer-songwriter Sophie Payten, known professionally as Gordi, has carved out a unique space in the music world with her brand of folktronica. Her career began to gain traction after releasing tracks online while still a student, leading to record deals in both the US and Australia. Her 2017 debut album, Reservoir, established her as a musician capable of crafting grand, emotional soundscapes. This was followed by the critically acclaimed Our Two Skins in 2020, which explored themes of identity and personal change.
Now, Gordi has released her third album, Like Plasticine, a record that chronicles the last few transformative years of her life. The album's title is inspired by the appearance of a person's skin after they've passed, which Payten observed while working as a doctor during the pandemic. She sees this as a metaphor for the many shapes we take in life. The album itself was born out of a period of deep introspection during the pandemic, with Payten stating that she tried to "stop thinking and just feel."
Like Plasticine is an emotionally complex and diverse album. It moves between sparse, atmospheric tracks like "Alien Cowboy" and upbeat, synth-pop anthems such as "Peripheral Lover" and "Head Rush." The song "Your Consolation Prize" is a powerful synth-pop track that grapples with the challenges faced by young queer people an the album's opening track, "GD (Goddamn)," was notably recorded entirely on an iPhone. The album also features collaborations with other notable artists, including a duet with Northern Irish folk artist SOAK on "Lunch At Dune" and a duet with Anaïs Mitchell on the track "PVC Divide." Co-produced by Brad Cook, the latter song is inspired by a heartbreaking scene Payten witnessed: a patient she was caring for was forced to say goodbye to his daughter over a video call.
Gordi has described the album's eclecticism as a reflection of her own diverse musical tastes. She aimed to preserve the rawness of the emotions that inspired the songs, resulting in a record that feels both intimate and expansive. Following the album's release, Gordi is embarking on a tour, with dates in Europe, the US, and Australia, including a special album launch show at the Sydney Opera House on October 17th. She played there in 2020 but it was during the pandemic so it was to an empty room where she streamed her set.
With the release of Like Plasticine and a world tour on the horizon, Gordi is poised for her most expansive chapter yet. We were thrilled to get some time with her to discuss the album's creation, the personal journey that inspired it, and what comes next.
GC: Hello! Congrats on the new album. Can you tell us a little about the record? We're currently playing "Cutting Room Floor" very loud! It's beautiful.
Gordi: Thanks! Like Plasticine is a record I largely wrote in 2 separate weeks in Sydney - I locked myself away in a place called Phoenix Central Park in Chippendale, and then 6 months later in an old restored church in Alexandria. I had a lot of material, emotions, thoughts and ideas building for a couple of years, and when I finally had the space to dig into them, this record came out. I finished it in Durham (North Carolina), Los Angeles, and Melbourne.
GC: How did the title Like Plasticine come about?
G: As my music career was kicking off, I was finishing medical school. One of the last things I learned at medical school was how to certify death. It is a relatively macabre point of inspiration, but it was a very moving experience. You have to see if the person responds to your voice; then you listen for the absence of a heartbeat and breath sounds. I was struck by how the skin appeared changed, really moments after death. It made me think of plasticine—a malleable, unbreakable, resilient substance. That is what we are, as people. That concept buried itself in my head for a number of years, and it felt like it encompassed the songs on this record perfectly.
GC: Do you hope listeners get a certain takeaway from the album?
G: This record is about the spectrum of life—from ecstasy to agony - and the moments that truly transform us. I guess I hope that someone listening to this thinks about what are those moments in their own life, and how they have been shaped by them.
GC: These lyrics for "Alien Cowboy" hit hard... "Won’t you blow up my universe, so that I can realize, we’ve been here the whole time". How do you translate personal experiences into your music?"
Gordi: I think that's the beauty of songwriting; I don't really know. It just happens. For “Alien Cowboy” I tried to deeply imagine really evocative visual scenes, and taking what felt like a small, personal story into a much larger scene was inspiring for the lyrical content of the song.
“I was struck by how the skin appeared changed, really moments after death. It made me think of plasticine - a malleable, unbreakable, resilient substance. That is what we are, as people.”
GC: We know you were a doctor during Covid. Are you still practicing today? Is that a career you can dip in and out of for music?
G: Yes, I am. I practice intermittently, but it is getting harder with my touring schedule.
GC: While getting your doctoral degree, were you making music during that time and did your studies find their way into your work?
G: I was halfway through my medical degree when my music career started happening. Until this record, I kept them very separate. It wasn't until the writing of Like Plasticine that my time, in the hospital started to creep into my writing, I think because the pandemic was just so all consuming.
GC: How did the meeting with Chris Martin come about? We heard your music brought him to tears. How did you feel in that moment?
G: Chris Martin likes to meet local artists when he tours around the world with Coldplay. So I got a message about coming to meet him along with 6-7 other local artists from Melbourne. We talked for a while, and then he said he wanted to hear a song. I was the only artist in the room that played the piano and so I sat down and played “Lunch at Dune” from my new record. He was very moved by it and said some beautiful things. I obviously felt like I was in some sort of dream or simulation. He's a very genuinely good guy.
GC: What was the biggest inspiration lyrically on this record?
G: My iPhone notes
GC: How has touring been for you? Was there a favorite city or venue? Did anything about touring America stand out to you?
G: Great! I love it. Few things beat playing in NYC, but I also love Minneapolis, Boston and, Eau Claire! Touring in America, everything is bigger—the cars, the roads, the candy bars, the beers. And that's cool with me.
GC: What are some of the biggest challenges you've faced as an artist, and how have you overcome them?
G: I think the biggest challenge as an artist is convincing yourself you're not crazy. It's so hard to survive financially. The internet, social media, and streaming have changed the way people interact with music so dramatically, as people around you grow up and their lives become more stable, the life of an artist is chronically unstable and unpredictable. But the way I overcome that is by being addicted to this—making music, playing shows - it may be an insane way to spend a life, but there's nothing better.
GC: Beyond music, what other art forms or experiences have been inspiring you?
G: My favorite book I've read this year has been “The Bee Sting”, favorite film that I finally watched is Y Tu Mamá También", and I went to The Broad in Los Angeles for the first time recently and saw a lot of Warhols that I'd never seen, which was truly special.
Follow Gordi on IG @gordimusic and check out all upcoming live show here
