female:pressure, a worldwide collaboration of female artists specialising in electronic music and digital arts, have created a benefit compilation in support of women in Northern Syria.
Twelve artists, including the likes of Sky Deep and Olivia Louvell, feature on a mixtape titled Music, Awareness & Solidarity w/ Rojava Revolution, which you can hear above right now. All proceeds go to The Village Project, a collective effort by women in Rojava to build a village on location.
The compilation is part of a bid by female:pressure to raise awareness about the 7000 women of Rojava, also known as the YPJ, or Women’s Protection Unit, who are fighting Daesh as well as trying to create a new society.
Asked about her contribution, Olivia Louvell explained: ‘‘’Afraid of Women’ is an audio-visual cut-up produced using sampled sounds and re-fragmented images sourced from the internet. It is an attempt to highlight the formidable solidarity and courage of these women fighting on the frontline against IS/Daesh.
‘When they hear female voices, they get very scared. They are afraid of us, afraid of women," she added.
Other highlights include the bubbling, sparse electronics of ‘Ishtar’ by Zoe McPherson, aka Empty Taxi, and the brooding ‘Warrior’ by Ksenia Kamikaza, which also features excerpts from Martin Luther King’s famous ‘I have a dream’ speech. Founded in 1998 by Electric Indigo, female:pressure’s database includes over 1600 female artists from 66 countries. You can find out more information on female:pressure here and buy the compilation here.
