Artist DIY: Maral

Artist DIY is a series of videos made by artists in collaboration with Fact in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last month, LA-based artist Maral released her second album, Push, a collection of electronic tracks that combine Iranian classical and folk samples with influences from noise, post-punk and dub.

“For this record I really wanted to push myself to go beyond the sound I had created for [her 2019 record] Mahur Club,” Maral tells Fact. “I really like live shows, and I was trying to figure out a way to interpret the Mahur Club sound in to a live band sound.”

Maral made Push without the help of a band, instead choosing to make it alone. She describes the process as “me being in a band with my samples,” and remotely collaborated with Crass co-founder Penny Rimbaud and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, who both contributed vocals to the record.

In this episode of Artist DIY, Maral discusses the inspirations and process behind Push, her work with visual collaborator Annapurna Kumar, and the part that her Iranian heritage and living in LA plays in creating her art.

Push is available now on Leaving Records. Find more of Maral’s music at Bandcamp.