“Special Instructions is an archival project exploring the intersections of music, memory, and preservation. Inspired by an inherited cd collection from her late father, which host, DJ and librarian Ella Hussle then expanded into the art of archiving, the craft of librarianship and collecting books. Special Instructions gives a platform for nostalgia but with a twist. The listening sessions are a combinations of all of these under one umbrella: Sound, memory, and literature. For the next session, join us as we take a closer listen to Kelela's album Take Me Apart on Head HiFi's vintage Klipsch La Scala speakers.
Kelela’s debut studio album, Take Me Apart, was released on October 6, 2017. It landed with a sonic sophistication and emotional precision that felt thoroughly futuristic, yet perfectly captured the timelessly relatable, messy complexities of intimacy and heartbreak. Influenced by the boundary-pushing spirits of Janet Jackson and Björk, she crafted tracks that feel both deeply sensual and meticulously avant-garde. Working alongside producers Arca and Jam City, reuniting after their collaborations on Cut 4 Me and Hallucinogen. The album is a genre-blending journey of glitchy electronic production, sultry layered vocals, and cathartic lyrics that explore desire, vulnerability, autonomy, and self-reclamation. Its standout singles, "LMK" and "Frontline," revealed an artist unafraid of emotional exposure and confrontation.
Take Me Apart established Kelela as a singular visionary whose radical honesty and audible innovation continue to reshape the landscape of alternative R&B. Speaking directly to the historic tradition of Black female R&B and jazz vocalists in America, the album stands as an ode to wearing your heart on your sleeve despite a world that resists your humanity. A radical act of disarming others and making them feel vulnerability over everything. We welcome you to come, learn more, and listen with others!”