Perla Batalla

The Argotist Online

Home Articles Interviews Poetry Features Ebooks Submissions Links

Perla Batalla

Grammy-nominated vocalist Perla Batalla first gained international attention as a backup singer for Leonard Cohen. Her critically acclaimed debut album Perla Batalla was released on the Warner/Discovery label in 1994. She released her second album Mestiza in 1998 on her own Mechuda Music label. An immediate favorite on Public Radio shows throughout the U.S., Mestiza was selected as Best Independent Release of the Year by Amazon. com. In 2000 she released Heaven and Earth and was named Amazon's Emerging Artist of the Year. Perla's follow-up Discoteca Batalla contained original compositions interspersed with traditional Spanish language classics arranged to reflect Perla's rich bicultural personal and musical heritage. Discoteca Batalla has appeared on "Best Of" lists throughout the country. Perla's latest release Bird on the Wire is a tribute to Leonard Cohen and includes special guest David Hidalgo (of Los Lobos), among many other fine musicians.

Q: Do you think of your lyrics as poetry?

A: I think of all lyrics as poetry.

Q: Do you think it is important that songs rhyme and if so why?

A: In my opinion lyrics don't have to rhyme as long as the melody has a clever way of carrying the poem.

Q: Do you think song lyrics must conform to recognised song structures such as clear rhyming schemes, choruses, refrains, hooks and bridges or that songs can also be like free verse?

A: In these times when everything seems to have been done before it is always exciting for me to hear a song that has its own style and form differing from what we is considered the norm.

Q: When you read poetry in school or elsewhere did you recognize any connection to the music you enjoyed?

A: To me poetry IS music. I cannot separate the two.

Q: Was there anything about poetry in books that influenced your songwriting?

A: Poetry has always been a huge influence in my life right alongside music. Walt Whitman and anything in Spanish always offers inspiration. I have over the years recognized how many popular songwriters would refer to great books or poetry in their songs.

Q: Why do you think songs are more popular with people than poetry is?

A: I can't say why a song is more popular than a poem. I think it is because music provides a foundation that gives the poem deeper meaning. A chordal structure under a poem can make you feel a certain way, which in turn gives a poetic thought wings. The topic of music and poetry and how they work together could take pages and pages to examine. I assure you that there are people out there far more qualified than me to examine it.