Lights Joins Forces With Holy F--- and New Sound Scares Off Her U.S. Major Label

Siberia is a frozen wasteland in eastern Russia where criminals and political prisoners once endured years of hard labour in Gulag prison camps. It's also the title of the suprisingly edgy new album from Canadian electro-pop star Lights, which is also making people uncomfortable -- but in a good way.

'Siberia' is more sonically adventurous than its predecessor, 2009's 'The Listening,' which went Gold in her native Canada and won accolades around the world. Lights' new sound comes from collaborating with Holy F---, the Toronto-based duo who create electro music using analog equipment without the aid of computers or sequencers. Their signature distorted bleeps, thundering saw-tooth bass lines and strange noise-rock soundscapes helped Lights break out of the pop mold. But not everyone is in on the celebration

"We made a record we were incredibly proud of, but the U.S. label didn't feel the same way," she tells Spinner.

The label bosses at Sire records couldn't wrap their heads around the shift in direction. They seemed to wish her artistic evolution resulted in more homogenized pop music and a stage show that saw Lights flouncing about in a push-up bra like so many Katy Perry clones.

"It pisses me off that if you are a girl with a moderately pretty face you are supposed to sound a certain way. They try to flatter you and say you have the potential to be this massive star, but that's not what it's all about. It is offensive when people try to take away your artistic integrity, but you gotta fight for it."


Watch Lights' Video for New Single 'Toes'

That's just what she did. When her stateside label balked, Lights walked. 'Siberia' is backed by Universal in Canada and released independently through Last Gang Records south of the border.

"When it comes to making music that I have to play for the rest of my life, I'm going to make something that I'm really proud of," she says.

As for naysayers lurking on online message boards and Twitter, well, the Juno-Award-winning artist tries to look on the bright side, proud of flipping the script and having Canadian rapper Shad guest on single 'Everybody Breaks a Glass.'

"It's freaking people out, but at least people are talking about it, " she says. "I would be freaked out if everybody just went with it. It would be like, 'What did I do wrong?'"