Last year, Danish Singer and Songwriter Ida Wenøe released her third studio album, Undersea, written and recorded in two weary old summer houses on the North Sea coast of Jutland. In his KLOF review, Mike Davies described it as a musical Reiki for the soul. To celebrate the start of her autumn UK tour with Samantha Whates (more on below), Ida is releasing her new single ‘Walking Mantra’ next week (18th October). The song, which appears on Undersea, is inspired by the practice of walking as a form of meditation.
“My walking mantra is a challenge to that awful sensation of physical, mental & emotional paralysis, where you feel so ‘stuck’ that even the smallest thing seems like a mountain to climb. It’s a reminder to be gentle, to do something without any special purpose other than putting one foot in front of the other and simply walking. No set time, no set tempo, no set length. Walking as a meditation – a way to get out of your head and into your body again.”
Here she is, performing Walking Mantra live with acclaimed Scottish artist Samantha Whates. The duo’s previous co-headline UK tours in 2020 and 2022 were very popular, and you can see why from the video below. Starting this month (details below), the pair will be joining each other again on stage to perform new arrangements of songs from their individual catalogues and collaborative EPs.
In Walking Mantra, both Ida and Samantha perfectly capture the nuance of a moment–an everyday action that suddenly becomes vital to your well-being.
The video was filmed at Raspberry Lane by Thomas Jensen (Off Grid Media).
Ida Wenøe & Samantha Whates Co-headline UK Tour
Ida plays a live session for the BBC 6 Music Riley & Coe show on Wednesday 23rd October then …
Thurs 24th Oct – The Hideaway, Frome
Fri 25th Oct – Boia Festival (Tabernacl), St Davids, Wales
Sat 26th Oct – Fisherman’s Chapel, Leigh on Sea
Sun 27th Oct – Hair & Hound (Fell & Folk), Hastings
Tues 29th Oct – Paper Dress Vintage, London
Wed 30th Oct – Cafe9, Sheffield
Thurs 31st Oct – Chapel Arts, Bath
Fri 1st Nov – The Lost Ark, Rhayader, Wales (w/ The Gentle Good) Sun 3rd Nov – Acapela Studios, Pentyrch, Wales (w/ The Gentle Good)
Thurs 7th Nov – Railway Inn, Winchester
Fri 8th Nov – Thimblemill Library, Birmingham
https://www.samanthawhates.me/