Premiere – Dol Ikara ‘White Queen’
Back Story – Dol Ikara is the musical project of Claire Roddy, inspired by paganism and rooted in the divine feminine. Bringing much-needed themes to this day and age of mythological goddess worship, non-violence, and gentle strength, Dol Ikara is timely, yet harkens back to the organic unfolding of music made decades ago. Musical influences include Mazzy Star, Sonic Youth, Broadcast, Cocteau Twins, Timber Timbre, Radiohead, and classic rock bands such as Led Zeppelin.
A poet, as well, Claire is very driven by the beauty of phonetics in her composition of lyrics, which ultimately brought about the birth of her moniker for this project. The name Dol Ikara is a neologism — something simply phonetically beautiful, holding no other meaning prior to its conception. The moniker acts as a blank canvas to hold the innate essence of the project without any preconceived notions or associations.
We got Dol Ikara to weigh in on her new project and more!
From the outside looking in, who is Dol Ikara the alter ego so to speak of Claire Roddy?
I’m not sure if it is so much of an alter ego as it is an extension of some of my very distilled interests and passions. This being said, I wanted to separate the project from myself, so I assigned it a moniker. Dol Ikara goes beyond me, drawing upon so many influences and inspired by many people in my life who I’ve crossed paths with. The array of musical influences includes but is not limited to Mazzy Star, Sonic Youth, Broadcast, Cocteau Twins, Radiohead, Timber Timbre, Led Zeppelin, The Velvet Underground, and Fleetwood Mac.
If we are speaking in images, I would say Dol Ikara conjures the images and textures of gothic architecture and castles, fragile and stunning creatures like the moth, chandeliers, winter, forests, misty grey skies, ravens, lace, velvet, and sparkly glimmery glittery touches. Dark, old-timey, haunting, feminine,
What is the motivation for the Dol Ikara persona and the “White Queen” track?
The music I write serves as my attempt to recreate the aforementioned images into sound. Also, it helps me better understand my own internal workings, inclinations, and blocks.
My first single “White Queen” touches on a relationship from years ago — a seemingly insignificant relationship, but significant to me. A relationship that had me stuck for a while in the midst of ephemerality. The lyrics are veiled in some obscurity because it was an obscure time. But it is essentially a “coming into self” type of song.
What do you want people to get from your music?
I always intend to cultivate organic music… music that is not trying to appease any particular demographic or sell x amount of records. Music that just flows and is. I think learning about Taoism when I was living in Scotland a few years back really instilled this value. So, hopefully, this organic creation comes across.
Tell us about your current project and how it stands benchmark-wise on your musical journey
I have spent years refining what is now manifesting as this project. I have recorded a lot throughout these past years, but have been waiting until the vision and sound aligned. I didn’t want to throw just anything up on SoundCloud that I wasn’t wholly invested in because that would have diminished the sacred quality of song formation for me.
With “White Queen” as your debut track, does this portend more music in the vein of celestial type offerings or do you see more of a mashup with mainstream joints?
I am very open to where this project will lead me. My most important elements are remaining authentic, and of course, continuing to weave the threads of these celestial type offerings. I am open to collaboration where there is a connection. A happy medium between the two musical spheres you mentioned could be satisfying but would take finesse.
Tell us a bit about your work and passions OUTSIDE of music…
I am a student right now at UCLA, majoring in English. I have six more classes left until I graduate, but they feel impossible to complete… especially with the debut of this project. A huge passion of mine is also rescuing animals. I am vegan and foster neonatal orphan kittens when I am able to. I rescued one of my own cats, Daedalus, from the center divider of the 110 freeway in downtown Los Angeles at nighttime in June of 2017, with the help of some other good samaritans. I’d love to be an animal advocate down the line.
About the Author
Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.
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