Ana Luna on her Debut Album, Tainted Silhouettes

With her debut record, Ana Luna’s artistry combines into something more, a huge, cinematic sound with deeply personal lyrics and an evolving story. Sounding eerily reminiscent of the soundtrack to the next James Bond movie, the tracklist of Tainted Silhouettes reflects on the pain and renewal of breaking apart and becoming whole again. Luna’s haunting vocals in combination with the backing band blend to create an all encompassing sound filled with deep emotional depth. Ana sat down with Off The Record to talk more about the creation of Tainted Silhouettes. 

Congratulations on your debut album! The tracklist deals with some pretty vulnerable subject matter, how does it feel to put those more personal emotions out into the world?

It's pretty daunting! It feels like someone pushed send on my unsent letters, or like my therapy sessions are suddenly public. Haha. Of course I want to share this album with the world, but it also feels a little scary to put myself out there like that. It's much more daunting than I had initially expected it to be! 

What was the writing process from the album like? 

I didn't necessarily have a singular process. I was guided by the way I was feeling and thinking. It was a very introspective time for me. With this album, the lyrics typically came before the melodies, but there are some songs where they revealed themselves at the same time. The only song I really had to work to write was “Bleeding Pen.” I felt like something was missing from the album and from the story I was trying to tell, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was. Then one night, the song just came to me. I tried to tap into the past and revisit the guilt I’d felt around that situation. I’m glad I took the time to write “Bleeding Pen,” because I approached it from where I am now—reflecting on guilt and forgiveness, and realizing how necessary that experience was for me to become who I am today.

Each of the songs on the album was written individually rather than with a bigger project in mind, how did you decide to release them as a full length record? How did you pick which songs ended up on the tracklist? 

When I decided I would make an album, I looked at the songs I had already written and started to see a common thread. I was writing about the same people from a particular timeframe in my life and approaching it from a certain perspective and emotional place. I knew that putting those songs together—and adding a few more from the same perspective—would create the sort of storytelling album I wanted to make. I had more songs that I was working on that could've ended up on the album, but I knew timing wise I wanted to get something out there. Most importantly, I wanted the songs to explore different emotions and experiences to really complete the full story of the album.

You were originally pursuing acting before fully embracing music, do you think your experience in acting influences the way you tell stories through songwriting? 

I definitely think so. My acting background helps me tap into the emotions of my songs, no matter how much time has passed. It also helps me convey the story to an audience in a more genuine way. I think my songwriting structure might be influenced by acting too, even if I’m not consciously aware of it. I love scripts and storytelling, and I think my songs naturally follow a similar arc: setting the scene with the past, exploring the present, looking toward the future, and tying it all back to a central goal or theme.

For first time listeners, what three songs of yours would you want them to hear and why? 

"Daddy's Empire," "Bleeding Pen," and "Can We Pretend We Just Met At A Bar?" would be my picks. They are my favorite songs on Tainted Silhouettes and I think they're the most compelling both thematically and musically. I think they are songs that a lot of people will be able to relate to. 

Anything upcoming you’d like to tease? What can listeners expect in the future? 

I'm starting to work on new music, so I'm very excited to see how those songs turn out and how my sound evolves. There's one song I have called "Oh Cecilia" that a lot of my friends have been liking, so I'm excited to share that one in the future!

Stream Tainted Silhouettes, out now.