From her instagram account, @zolajesus

Walking outside the Sinclair Friday night, one may have believed there to be a rave going on inside. The thick bass notes shook the building from top to bottom- though didn’t seem to shake up the sleepy crowd. Following an eclectic, muted set from locals Skinny Bones, Zola Jesus wreathed Cambridge in an ethereal soundscape.

Fast-walking down Church Street seeking the welcoming warmth of the Sinclair, my breath exhaling in clouds, I thought, It’s winter. It’s definitely winter. Finally inside, I’m escorted to Zola herself and the first thing I take notice of is the thick, fluffy black jacket she’s wearing. Standing just as short as me, Nika Danilova, a Wisconsin native, is no stranger to the cold, and looks ten times better than me combating it. She also happens to draw inspiration from the season.

“So much of Taiga is about how I grew up, and what feels natural to you,” the Russian songstress said, gracefully draped over the dingy couch tucked into the closet of a room we’re in. Growing up in a remote part of northern Wisconsin surrounded by forests, Danilova feels most at home in similar places. “When I recorded the album, I recorded on a small island in Washington. It reminded me of my home and it just felt like this lineage that was following the record.”

Skinny Bones kept the wintry vibes going, commenting on how cold it was up on stage- the addition of blue lighting enhancing the chill. Hailing from Jamaica Plain, the duo pull local pride. Releasing their second full length earlier this year, they played through a short but sweet set, featuring their signature quirky sound. Cuing up shrieks of recognition from the audience upon mentioning Jamaica Plain in a song, small smiles spread across the pair’s otherwise mellow faces. They brought a unique energy to a sleepy sound- they masterfully blend mellow with a sort of soft, relentless energy underneath. Singer Jacob Rosati pulled out a curious little instrument about halfway through, he explained he’d constructed it out of the bristles from a street sweeper he’d found and cleaned up. Plucking a string (bristle?) on it, letting it resonate and hum, he smirked. You just want to pinch his cheeks. They finished off their sleepy set with a new tune, welcomed with tired cheers from the audience.

Emerging onstage in dim lighting, Zola Jesus began belting out the title track from Taiga, each line incredibly drawn out and labored. She contorted her body to the beat, in a twitchy sort of interpretive dance a la Lorde. Then the beat picked up, and she was launched into a dancing frenzy, channeling the music’s dark energy. Being classically trained vocally, her operatic voice filled the Sinclair. Playing through the first six songs of her latest release chronologically, she completely immersed herself in the music, at times making it more of an intimate interaction between the microphone and herself.

Zola Jesus seamlessly blends classical sound with contemporary. The classical influence is evident in the brass and string instrumentals, and the contemporary finds its way in the vocals. “A lot of the brass was inspired by people like Wagner and Moller, and the way they use brass- in a very brazen, maximalist way,” she said. “The beats were inspired by modern hip hop, and [I was] just trying to play with swing, and different beats.”

With such a heavily religious affiliation in her name, the question of ego is raised. Explaining how she grew up in a heavily Christian community, she said she chose a name to intentionally shock people. “It’s important to always important to question if what you’re doing is in some way allowing people to question their lives,” she added. She borrowed the former half, Zola, from French writer Emile Zola. She said she enjoyed the juxtaposition of Zola, a naturalist and a realist, with Jesus, someone rooted in faith and believing in the intangible.

With artists like The Beatles being considered “bigger than Jesus”, and artists like Kanye West inflating their own egos to godlike status, artists have to be cautious. However, Danilova believes it’s also an essential aspect of being an artist. “I like Kanye,” she said, adjusting the oversized rings adorning her delicate fingers. “He believes so much in the power of himself. It’s a little misguided sometimes, though.” She laughed.

Towards the end of her set, she gently lowered herself into the crowd and began winding her way through the audience, up the singular staircase, and out onto the balcony. Gingerly bumping a fan’s fist, she interacted with everyone she passed, breaking the ethereal barrier she’d built with her unique, mysterious sound. She made her way back down to the ground level, struggling to get back up on stage. “Someone give me a boost,” her husky voice called out. Fans lifted her up as she climbed back onstage, assuming her spot under a singular spotlight.

Appropriately closing out her set with “It’s Not Over”, she snuck offstage before returning for a two song encore. Sadly, a large portion of the crowd had filtered out at this point. Their loss.

“I’m looking forward to a sense of renewal in the new year,” Danilova said. “At the end of the year, there’s always this sort of heaviness of everything that went on that year.”

Her favorite releases of 2014 include the new Run The Jewels album, the newest release from Ben Frost, and the latest from Pharmakon.