The Evocative Fourth Album by SPELLLING, ‘Portrait of My Heart’
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The widely recognized Bay Area artist Chrystia Cabral, known under the moniker SPELLLING, released her fourth album, ‘Portrait of My Heart,’ in 2025. This album transforms the acclaimed SPELLLING from an avant-pop project into a mirror reflecting her deepest sentiments. Featuring songs that explore themes such as intimacy, anxiety, and alienation, the album is Cabral’s most poignant work to date. Moving away from the allegorical style of her past albums, Cabral’s songwriting in this album becomes more autobiographical.
Correlating with its themes, the arrangements in ‘Portrait of My Heart’ cater to a more direct approach, exhibiting the most explicit manifestations of SPELLLING’s uniqueness. The music journey Cabral offers to her listeners evolves across her discography – from the eerily minimalist tunes marking her early career to the heavily orchestrated prog-pop in her 2021 opus ‘The Turning Wheel,’ and eventually towards this dynamic iteration of her creative spirit.
The pivotal song, the title track, reveals a change in artistic direction for SPELLLING, characterized by a new sense of emotional immediacy. This song, steered by a compelling drum rhythm and an anthemic chorus, became a tool for Cabral to cope with her fears and anxieties around the performance aspect of her career. This shift towards urgency and vitality is mirrored throughout the album, with contributions from her core backing band including Wyatt Overson on the guitar, Patrick Shelley on the drums, and Giulio Xavier Cetto on the bass.
Interestingly, the album ‘Portrait of My Heart’ was a collaboration with a team of three producers – The Turning Wheel’s mixing engineer Drew Vandenberg, SZA collaborator Rob Bisel, and producer of Yves Tumor, Psymun. Cabral still prefers writing and creating demos in solitude; however, these collaborators and her bandmates have indeed helped her in the evolution of the live, organic form of the album’s songs.
Guest appearances from other artists also gave character to the album. Collaboration with Chaz Bear of Toro y Moi on the track ‘Mount Analogue’ brought about SPELLLING’s first duet. Turnstile guitarist Pat McCrory transformed Cabral’s original piano demo for ‘Alibi’ into a riff-rich version that became a part of the album. Zulu’s Braxton Marcellous pumped a hefty dose of sludge into the track ‘Drain.’ These external contributions seamlessly integrated into SPELLLING’s established sound, enhancing the completeness of the album.
As an artist, Chrystia Cabral – SPELLLING – expanded her creativity beyond her initial recognition with her debut album, ‘Pantheon of Me,’ in 2017. Turning into a legitimate visionary of experimental pop, she expanded her sound with subsequent releases, including the ambitious 2021 project ‘The Turning Wheel.’ This record is a testimony to Cabral’s self-sufficiency as she managed to produce an orchestration featuring 31 collaborating musicians. However, with ‘Portrait of My Heart,’ Cabral takes her introspection to the next level, opening her feelings of alienation and her guarded nature. It’s an emotional logbook of her vivid experiences, revealing the depth of her character and artistic journey.
While capturing hearts and minds with her hypnotic soundscapes and stage charisma, SPELLLING evolved as a one-of-a-kind artist. Her fiery passion reflected in her intimate relationships, her lunar cool-offs, and her struggle with feeling like an outsider serve as the beating heart of her music. Other relatable artists who continue to redefine pop landscapes, such as SZA and Yves Tumor, emphasize SPELLLING’s significance as a groundbreaking songwriter, ultimately magnifying the magnificence of her introspective ‘Portrait of My Heart.’
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