Gillian Stone’s track titled"Shelf" was created with experimental cellist and multi-instrumentalist Michael Peter Olsen. Recording it was an exercise in building soundscapes. The music is the liminal space between horror and release, dissociation and belonging, that cushions reality after a time of trauma. It is a bargain for patience.

The track’s music video depicts an interpretation of a blót, a Norse pagan blood sacrifice and ritual of my ancestors. Created in collaboration with filmmaker John M. Hall, it was the most challenging aspect of the process. I came up with the concept of doing it in a single take, slowly zooming out, shortly after writing the song.

Toronto was in a full lockdown during pre-production, so all materials had to be sourced remotely. It was also filmed outside on a -10°C day in the dead of winter. We only had one shot to get it because my costume was a thin unitard and the fake blood was starting to freeze. We had to accept the inevitability of imperfection and chance. Despite limiting our time outside, my toes went blue and it took me hours to warm up.

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