By ALANA MITCHELSON
An up-and-coming local electronic music producer will bring her dreamy beats to Geelong next weekend.
Under the name Alice Ivy, 22-year-old Annika Schmarsel has already toured England and Germany, only a year on from launching her label and having just graduated with a music production degree in November.
But Schmarsel is no stranger to live shows.
She once performed with the all-girl group the Sweethearts, a music program based at Matthew Flinders Girls Secondary College, and toured Europe at age 16.
The group played at Poretta Soul Festival in Italy and at Switzerland’s Montreux Jazz Festival alongside some of the best artists the genre has to offer, including Al Green and Mark Ronson.
Schmarsel is also heavily involved in industry events such as music festivals and interns at artist management companies. Alice Ivy’s sets have featured at both Face The Music and Melbourne Music Week. Her talent has also earned her support slots for Banoffee and rapper Remi.
Alice Ivy has released three singles, her latest track Touch featuring London-based blues singer Georgia Van Etten.
“I’m really inspired by Australian electronic music groups like The Avalanches. I like using film recordings and atmospheric sounds. I layered in original field recordings that I took from the streets of Melbourne with warm guitar lines,” Schmarsel said.
“For my new single, I wanted to create a dreamscape theme, which is why I decided to use film recordings from Alice in Wonderland.
“I’m busy with rehearsals at the moment. I’m always trying to think of creative ways to make a set more interesting and exciting for a live audience.
“I don’t want to give too much away but they’ll be live projections on the walls and I’ve been working with some other artists on these tracks.”
Schmarsel reflected on her experiences while touring Germany and England last year under her Alice Ivy label.
“It gave me the opportunity to understand what it’s like to tour as a solo musician. It’s pushed me to the limits. Touring is not all glamorous, it’s such hard work.
“One of my favourite experiences was playing at Loophole Artspace in Berlin. We arrived at the venue and there was smashed glass all over the floor from the party the night before and the bandroom looked like a dungeon with scratches on the walls.
“It was the true, grungy Berlin experience and it was just the best night.”
Schmarsel grew up in a vibrant, multicultural household in Geelong as the daughter of German migrants.
“The Geelong community has helped me so much, so I want to make an effort to play sets back in my hometown,” she said.
“Because I’m always working so hard at what I do, I kind of forget to look back and appreciate what I’ve already achieved.
“I’m pretty stoked about everything and I’m inspired to keep taking this further.”
Alice Ivy performs at Kubo Studios, Geelong, on 13 February.
Click below to listen to Alice Ivy’s latest single, Touch:
