I have been a fan of Christine Ingaldson aka Flutter since the 2000's with her classic album Toys in Coin Machines. It's been awhile since she released any music, so I decided to reach out to her to do a deep dive. She had plenty to share.
K: How did you get your start in music?
F: I started piano just before I turned five years old and studied oboe in fifth grade throughout high school. Then I started private voice lessons and was in choir in college. That’s when I saw a flyer for a Shoegaze band looking for a vocalist. I ripped the phone number from the bottom of the announcement. Little did I know that would be the beginning of a decades-long experience as a front vocalist for various bands including my own.
K: What college did you attend?
F: I attended The University of Iowa in Iowa City, IA. That experience was one of the best times in my life.
K: How did your college education help develop your musicality/artistry/creativity?
F: I was studying Film & Video Production as well as Studio Art. It wasn't only the education that helped develop me as an artist. I was a part of countless art projects, everything from my peers' student films to dance performances. The video art classes I took were some of my favorites because I'd incorporate my music performance and visual art into pieces.
K: What was the name of the Shoegaze band you joined?
F: The Shoegaze band was first called Sissy Bar, but then we changed it to Judy's Baggage because my bandmate was in a record store out-of-state and found another band with that name. It's cool that someone archived a lot of the music from this period on the Iowa Basement Tapes Bandcamp page. That brings back awesome memories. I was good friends with many of those bands. Oh! I was also in the band Sugar Engine Red before I graduated. I'm sure there's a recording online of that somewhere, but I haven't searched for it.
K: Who/what did you grow up listening to?
F: My parents listened to a lot of Beatles records and Motown. I grew up in the Chicago area ('burbs mostly) where I’d tune into B96 “The Killer Bee” for House music in the mid to late ‘80s and ‘90s. I also loved Freestyle, which beats probably influenced me more than I realized. How I was exposed to new music was through local radio stations and friends. I remember the first time I heard “Pretty Hate Machine” on a classmate’s Walkman while on the bus to high school. I thought it was wild that a band would name themselves Nine Inch Nails.
K: Who are your primary influences musically, artistically, creatively?
F: It’s difficult to name them all. Maybe it’s easier if I mention styles of art and literature. I have always loved arthouse films, classic literature, fables, and philosophy. How someone communicates their unique point of view interests me no matter what medium.
At the end of 2019, I had an art show and music performance called “Who is this for?” in Racine based on my paintings of female vocalists who have influenced me over the years. It didn’t mean I was necessarily a fan of the artist. I explored how we view artists through a popular culture and social media lens.
K: Do you have formal musical training alongside your natural talent/gifts?
F: In addition to what I said earlier, music runs in my family. My grandfather toured Eastern Europe as a violinist, and my uncle was a one-man-band act in Detroit complete with MIDI-capable accordion. My dad also played the accordion, but he loves to sing more. I swear he knows every lyric to any song from the ‘60s.
K: You've been part of many (one-off) projects as well as different incarnations of Flutter. Please explain the Flutter concept to your new listeners, its evolution and overall vision/mission.
F: Despite all these different incarnations of Flutter, I think what ties everything together is my free-spirited nature and love of freedom. Since I was never beholden to a record label or company, I could explore different things. This gave me unique opportunities to learn from others and not get stuck. Conceptually I think of Flutter as a verb - how rippling out beauty into the world can inspire others to do the same.
K: How would you describe the Flutter sound?
F: Just like the different incarnations you mentioned, the Flutter sound has gone through many variations while staying within electronic genres. In the early aughts, I went electro with pop vocals. Other than that, my voice tends to remain in the ethereal realm.
No matter what project, I always end up singing an airy background riff. I love the mysterious mood that it provides. My last show was in February 2020 at Woodland Pattern Book Center in Milwaukee. The style was probably closest to my first album “Molting”, and I even played my oboe again for that. It was a rare performance as I haven’t played solo since.
K: Will there be another Flutter album?
F: My husband and I had created a showcase event called REACT (Racine Electronic Arts Collective Takeover) where we invited artists locally and from around the globe to collaborate, experiment, and express themselves through music, video, and technology. Unfortunately, it lost its momentum, which is true of many of my music-related endeavors post-Covid-19. I haven't given up music, but it'll be a while before another Flutter album.
K: Please talk about the Zetsumetsu project. What does it mean? What's the concept and sound?
F: The translation of "zetsumetsu" from Japanese to English means "extinction", like the total annihilation of a species. We viewed it as a way to say the death of something, perhaps even a part of oneself. Meaning often gets lost in translation so I'm sure that I'm missing something about the word.
After moving to Racine in 2015, my husband and I discovered a modular community in Milwaukee. We became obsessed with modular because it allows music creation to be even more experimental. This keeps the process fresh and enjoyable. Add N to (X), Plaid, iamamiwhoami, and Fever Ray’s debut album (Fever Ray) are big influences. Overall, Zetsumetsu has quite a raw feel. We wanted our souls to show through the sound rather than perfecting something marketable.
Soon we began restoring a 1986 Road Rescue ambulance lovingly called the “Synthbulance.” At first, the project was “MOTR” (Modular on the Rescue), but friends kept calling it “the Synthbulance” because it has synths built inside for on-the-spot performances while projecting light art. Location-based entertainment (LBE) was a huge interest at the time and still is. We only had a couple of performances before Covid-19 hit, not to mention the countless repairs it has needed, and still requires.
K: Is there another Zetsumetsu album on the horizon?
F: We wanted to create an ambient album next but that'll probably change. My husband is constantly working on music which is nice to hear at home. It keeps me inspired about music creation. The holdup for a new album is due to me. I've been busy with VR (Virtual Reality) which is a wild ride right now.
K: Why the move from Oak Park (Illinois) to Racine (Wisconsin)?
F: My parents moved here a while back and it’s nice to be closer to them. Big city life was great when I was younger but it’s not something I crave anymore. When my Chicago co-workers asked me why I was moving, my short answer was “Trees!” because I’m lucky enough to be surrounded by them now.
K: What's the vibe in Racine? Does it nurture your muse or inform your sound?
F: I love it! The vibe is chill yet urban. It’s right between Chicago and Milwaukee with access to gorgeous Lake Michigan minus the crowds. When I need to rejuvenate myself, I take walks along the Lake with my artist friend who also writes music and does puppetry. There are a lot of open mics and a cute art museum downtown - so much that I wish I had time for and often turn down invites.
K: Are there any other projects our readers should know about that you can expound upon?
F: During Covid-19, I left my corporate job to become a VR designer & developer. I absolutely love it even though it doesn’t give me much time for music. Earlier this month my VR story game "Shadow Mend" had its world premiere at FIVARS (Festival of International Virtual and Augmented Reality Stories) in Toronto. Fans of Flutter might like the story because it originated from my memories as a musician in Chicago frequenting Neo. Of course, it has original music to further the darkwave vibes. This VR experience will be available on SideQuest for the Meta Quest 3 headset at the end of the month.
K: What's your take on the current state of trip-hop (if any)?
F: I’ll admit that I don’t know what the current state of trip-hop is or most genres these days. Lana Del Rey and FKA Twigs are probably the last artists that I recall creating tracks with a trip-hop sound. I don’t hear about new music unless I actively seek it out. Not sure if that’s a sign of the times or my age. I lived through many changes in music. Even when I was more active in it, I felt that it was hard to keep up and now the industry is often unrecognizable to me.
K: Is there anything that you want our readers to know about you that we have not covered?
F: Thank you so much for reaching out to me after all these years. It’s funny how life is. An instrumentalist I knew from the MP3.com days also contacted me recently, which made me reflect. It’s easy to feel discouraged when art and music don’t always provide a steady income, but the joy of creating has always been worth it. When someone tells me they still listen to Flutter, I’m reminded that art has a lasting impact, even if it’s just for a few. If creating music brings you happiness, keep going—it’s meaningful.
