We previously featured Karen Salicath Jamali for blending her ethereal vocals and cosmic consciousness on Seeds of God, so when we heard that the visionary, multi-disciplinary artist was back with Only In Love We Are, poignantly released on the Gemini new moon, we couldn’t wait to listen.
Only In Love We Are opens with an atmospheric, acoustic guitar soundscape tapping into a high spiritual quotient. We appreciate the cosmic whistle tones that emerge and imagine the piece in an Ayahuasca ceremony.
The opus expands with warm and delicate vocals from Karen as she shares poetic prose and celestial harmonies. There is an organic and raw sentiment to the energy that Karen exudes. It feels like she is channelling the divine with her message.
In essence, the song is about oneness and the concept of love energy. It serves as a spiritual reflection on the idea that love is the most fundamental and enduring force of human existence. This was inspired by her near-death experience after a traumatic injury in 2012, something that has been a big part of Karen’s artistry and compositions in the past.
Only In Love We Are expresses her realization that beyond the physical world, love, connection, and a shared universal consciousness remain, despite turmoil and temporary struggles. We could imagine this in a trippy TV show like Nine Perfect Strangers, which sees a group of people coming to enlightenment through plant medicine, reflective of the song. It would also make for a sublime performance at Medicine Festival.
Through the stripped-back arrangement of vocals, guitar and drums, it is intentionally designed to feel like an intimate prayer, and it certainly manifests in this way. Karen says, “During my near-death experience, I understood that only love truly exists. Everything else fades away. In love, we are alive, connected, and part of the greater consciousness of creation. This song is my attempt to share that feeling through music.”
For some background, Karen Salicath Jamali is a Danish-born, New York-based award-winning composer, pianist, producer, and visual artist. She is a Carnegie Hall performer with nine albums, 2,500+ compositions, and over 20 million streams, and has received international recognition including induction into the Akademia Music Award Hall of Fame and multiple Global Music Awards.
We are always in awe of what she creates, and have added the psychedelic and intentional Only In Love We Are to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of Karen Salicath Jamali including Seeds of God.