Sometimes, if you want to come home to yourself, you have to shake off everything you once thought was real. Human Human, the debut album from Chicago singer, songwriter, and producer Carlile, shines a beacon from that seat of transformation. A full-hearted and inexhaustibly generous pop treasure, Human Human radiates with the joy of unfettered self-acceptance - and all the awkward, terrifying moments of surrender it takes to get to a place where you can finally fall in love with your own beautiful mess.
Carlile is the middle name and performance alias of Emily Nichols, a longtime figure in Chicago's thriving underground music ecosystem. Over the past decade, she's issued a streak of glossy synthpop EPs while performing at storied venues and opening for big name indie artists. In that time, she meticulously laid the groundwork for her debut LP Human Human, an unselfconsciously playful and thrilling work of synth-pop recalling the warmth of Robyn and the luster of MUNA in it's bold, sweeping arcs. This is an album that savors the pleasure of splashing a full rainbow of feeling against the wall. On Human Human Nichols also focused on expanding her production skills, a step that allowed her the freedom to realize her songs from spark to execution, down to the last details. "Prior to this album, I took a back seat role for production. These were the first songs where I was leading the charge," she says. Nichols worked with longtime collaborator Noam Wallenberg to crystallize the demos she had been recording. Together, Nichols and Wallenberg drew out the brightness that rings across Human Human, spangling songs like "Illusion" with delicate vocal accents and sowing layers upon layers of freewheeling harmonies into "Fake Nice." The album features production contributions from a noteworthy list of Chicago artists including Neal Francis, Luke Titus, Macie Stewart (of Finom), and Cocojoey.