A Future Through The Looking Glass

Canadian electro-punk Alice Glass (aka Margaret Osborn) speaks with an unusually resonant voice. This may surprise those fans of Osborn's anarchic former group Crystal Castles who remember her singing as either distorted or disembodied. It's also a voice that, for years, was rarely heard off-stage, with Crystal Castles' producer Ethan Kath (Claudio Palmieri) handling interviews. But things are different for Osborn now that she's a solo artist. She's no longer contained. And she's talking.

Osborn unexpectedly quit Crystal Castles in 2014. Last October, galvanised by the #MeToo movement, the singer-songwriter posted a statement online alleging that the older Palmieri had subjected her to sexual, physical and psychological abuse, beginning from when she was around 15. Palmieri, denying the accusations, sued for defamation - but his case was dismissed.

Come winter, Osborn will return to Australia under her own name - co-headlining the Snowblood tour with Zola Jesus. The pair are among the most anticipated draws at Hobart's Dark Mofo carnival. "I'm really looking forward to it," Osborn enthuses. "I've never been to Tasmania before. We're gonna try to stay a couple of extra days and be Tasmanian tourists." She's familiar with the Tasmanian devil from cartoons. "I guess that's the best Looney Tunes character!" she chuckles. "I'm sure people are sick of that joke, though."

Currently on the road Stateside with Jesus, Osborn apologises profusely for delaying the call due to stormy weather and gridlocked traffic in New York. Though she worries about being "rambly", Osborn is responsive - and funny.

Finding an empathetic ally in ex-HEALTH muso Jupiter Keyes, the Los Angeles-based Osborn premiered with 2015's viscerally ominous STILLBIRTH. Last year she presented her eponymous EP, clearly emoting about a toxic relationship over glitchy - rather than ravey or industrial - beats. "At first, one of the general themes was overcoming this idea of worthlessness," Osborn reveals, referencing the lyrics to the lead single Without Love. "I'm trying to ultimately make more traditional songwriting structures with these kind of more controversial - like not controversial - but themes that I have tried to shy away from before in my career. The more confrontational, personal subject matter."

Fulfilling the Alice Glass EP afforded Osborn greater self-confidence. "It's actually been something that I've been working on for a couple of years - when I wasn't even sure if I was gonna be continuing with making music again. But I learned to trust myself and my capabilities and just realise that art is all about expression of yourself and your ideas and, in that world, nothing else matters. That's just something that I want to make sure that I can apply in the future, forever, until I die!"

Osborn's roots lie in the punk scene. Pre-Crystal Castles, she played guitar in an all-girl band, Fetus Fatale. Still, her mode is pop - if transgressively so. "I think my pop sensibility has come from my interest in punk rock," she ponders. "It's kind of like the most simplistic way to get melodies." Osborn digs post-IDM and "modern SoundCloud hip hop". "I'm really inspired by Arca. He is testing the boundaries of music and aesthetic sensibilities."

In fact, Osborn DJs on the down low - again sourcing tracks from SoundCloud. "It's fun," she admits. "I don't think I look cool when I'm DJing - some people can pull it off!" Mind, Osborn is unlikely to follow that tradition of DJs concealing themselves behind helmets, masks or screens. "I think that might be a little bit played out at this point!" she quips. "Like a whole dead rat or a live rat - nah."

Osborn recently supported Marilyn Manson, but, when some of his dates were rescheduled, she declined to rejoin him. Instead Osborn teamed with Jesus - a contrasting "goth lady". Jesus previously probed her for Interview mag - and has remixed STILLBIRTH. "After the Manson tour ended, I definitely wanted to tour with female peers for a while," she notes.

Live, Osborn performs both solo material and Crystal Castles songs, having determined to "reclaim ownership" of them. She's accompanied by Keyes on guitar and synths and "an amazing female drummer" in Jess Bowen. "It's somewhat traditional, in that sense, and I almost do it how Nirvana would do it on stage, and bands like that, yet it's an electronic project." Above all, the combo have "energy". "I like it when people dance and people mosh," Osborn says playfully. "I get personally offended if people just stand there!"