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In the world of gardening, “deadheading” means removing withered or dead flowers from plants, so the plant can use its energy to produce new, fresh flowers. For Thea Glenton Raknes, primary singer and songwriter of Thea & The Wild, this purgative action has powerful literal and figurative connotations. It speaks to something Thea has been doing since she cut the cord to her hometown of Oslo, and moved to the countryside. There, she created an oasis in her garden, and has spent her pandemic downtime, deadheading, reflecting back on her life, strumming her acoustic guitar, and patiently watching her prized tomatoes and strawberries ripen.

Her aptly-titled third album, Deadheading, out October 7th, was recorded in between tending to plants in her paradisal garden annex with her partner Cato “Salsa” Thomassen of Madrugada.

While basking in these lush surroundings, Thea sifted through her memories, her private fears and thoughts, and she also pondered the essence of her musicality. From this formative, self-reflective time, Thea crafted an organic and rurally-tinged rock album best described as “country gaze” or “nature-indie.” The resulting 10-song album will be preceded by the single and video “Rip Tide,” out August 26th.  

“The idea of leaving something old behind so something new can blossom really resonated with me,” Thea shares. “When I looked back at my life and my music, I realized to move forward I needed to grow new roots.  I was anxious about this—nervous about the future, and nostalgic about the past. The songs on this album are a result of these inner processes—they are about finding yourself and being an adult.”

Deadheading represents a rebirth for Thea—a return to a natural state of creativity, pruned of pop excesses, and outward ideals of perfection. She says: “I wanted to keep these songs homely and close to the demo, almost as if they were acoustic guitar and vocal performances. With that, I also wanted to preserve the humanness of my guitar playing. The world would be a dull place if people weren’t allowed to show their personality with all their flaws and scratches here and there.” 

Deadheading is a homespun effort tracked and produced in the couple’s old brewery house.

Thea’s guitar playing is prominent on the album in its purest state—confident and uniquely stylistic with a personal pulse. Cato supports her vocals and guitar playing with drums, percussion, bass, electric guitar, piano, and keyboard. The album puts forth a stripped-back but cinematic Americana and folk production aesthetic thoughtfully-embellished by gentle electronic soundscapes. Deadheading recalls the roots-with-hooks songwriting sensibilities put forth by Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Planxty and Bruce Springsteen. The album’s songs are further informed by the empowering poetics of PJ Harvey, Patti Smith, and Kate Bush.

Select highlights on this boldly vulnerable album include “Misery Mountain,” “Rip Tide,” “Poisoned Apple,” “Little Sister,” “Take Me Back,” and “How Could We.” “Misery Mountain” is lushly-layered, courageously-confessional folk. The song details the rocky inner emotional life of the artist as mood swings torment and inspire. “I have periods when I am really down, and I try to stay away from people so as to not annoy them with my misery,” Thea shares. She continues: “My neighbor gave me a porcelain mug from a place actually called Misery Mountain,” she giggles. “One day I said to myself, ‘I am in such a bad mood; I am on Misery Mountain!” The explosively emotive indie-rock track, “Rip Tide,” smolders with sensual nostalgia and a deep longing. This track also explores the rugged emotional terrain of the artist’s condition—the struggle to achieve a semblance of serenity during the intense ups and downs of a life in the arts.

On the previously released single, “Poisoned Apple,” a tenderly minimalistic folk-pop song, Thea reveals haunting private fears. She dips into retro-futuristic, 1950s girl-group sass on the cautionary-themed “Little Sister.”  Thea’s vocals flutter and soar with sweet childhood sentimentality on the plaintive electro-folk of “Take Me Back.” The seething indie-rocker “How Could We” is a burning missile aimed at politicians and environmental injustice.

Deadheading’s stunning artwork is based on the analog photography of Polish photographer Magdalena Malinowska who is a dear friend Thea has made in the neighborhood. Magdalena’s works add to the quaint and comfy feel of the project.

Thea is internationally known for emotive and sublimely melodic songwriting that burns itself into the listener’s imagination. Her 2014 self-titled debut received accolades and critical acclaim, and earned her a Spellemann (Norway’s Grammys) indie artist nomination. Her sophomore album, 2018’s Ikaros, prompted Rolling Stone to name it as one of the year’s Top 10 “Albums to Stream.”

Thea was born with a vibrantly creative DIY streak that courses through her career to this day. As a little girl, she would host homespun radio shows on her tape recorder. “I did everything, including the weather forecast and the commercial jingles,” she says laughing. “I was a bit of a geek.”

Her introduction to music was similarly brazenly individual. There weren’t accessible music classes in her purview, and she was inspired by the neighborhood boys forming a band. So, Thea and her friends signed up for a band class they heard about 30 minutes away via train. None of the girls had experience or owned instruments, so Thea borrowed equipment from her uncle. Undeterred by lack of resources or ability, Thea and her buddies did the next logical thing: they formed a band. The group debuted live with a repertoire consisting of two French punk songs and Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams.” Thea remembers: “We got asked to do an encore, and we didn’t have any extra songs, so we played our opening song again.” Her first band ended up winning a “Best New Live Norwegian Band” award, earning them a place on a national broadcast and a posh tour bus.

Fast forward to today, Thea remains on the path she carved out as a teen, and she’s embracing a whole new chapter of inspired creativity. Writing and recording Deadheading have been cathartic processes for Thea. The album has brought her artistic autonomy, life journey clarity, and it’s been a personal and artistic reset for Thea as she welcomes what is to come. She says: “I feel an ownership over this record that I haven’t felt with past records. Being surrounded by nature is helping me grow into myself in so many powerful ways. It’s a good life.”