L'Rain

Pitchfork on fata morgana:

bleak and blissful, dark and playful... a knitted blanket of light: warm, lucent, slightly unreal

Brooklyn-born and based songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Taja Cheek, aka L’Rain, has quickly become an acclaimed and sought-after figure in New York experimental music. Her songs are equally rooted in r&b, jazz, noise, and pop, at once visceral, spiritual, ethereal, and urgent. Since the release of her self-titled debut LP, Cheek and her band have become lauded for their magnetic live show performing at numerous clubs, festivals, and arts institutions across the United States.

On her second album, Fatigue, Cheek maps the enormity of how to change, demanding introspection from ready ears with an array of keyboards, synths, and hauntingly delicate vocals that create a genre entirely her own. Released in June 2021 via Brooklyn label Mexican Summer, Fatigue was received to wide critical acclaim, earning high praise from publications such as The New York Times, The New Yorker, NPR, Pitchfork, Stereogum, The Wire, and many others.

Cheek has dipped her toes in every corner of the arts, through her work at some of the most prestigious art institutions in NYC and collaborations with the likes of Naama Tsabar, Kevin Beasley, Justin Allen, and others in contemporary arts. She also regularly performs with other contemporaries such as Helado Negro, Vagabon, and Anna Wise.

selected releases:: fata morgana, Mexican Summer (2026)
I Killed Your Dog, Mexican Summer (2023)
Fatigue, Mexican Summer (2021)
L'Rain, Astro Nauticio (2017); Full Discography

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This is L'Rain

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two face

L'Rain | Warp Publishing

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L'Rain