GUNAKADEIT

Gunakadeit, khm, goo-na-ka-date (named after a sea monster in Tlingt mythology) is a project by San Diego's Natasha Kozaily. She finds 'romance in dystopia'. She's also found a sound of her own, which she labels as alternative pop. It sounds so experimental as folk pop can be, but you can't really put your finger on what makes it stand out. She's done what it takes to make us remember her name, though. - The 405

Natasha Kozaily’s new pop project Gunakadeit (pronounced Goo-na’-ka-date) is named after a Tlingit legend about a sea monster that brought prosperity and good luck to a village in crisis.
Natasha was raised by a Lebanese father and a native Islander mother on the small island of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean. She studied ethnomusicology in Wales and now lives in San Diego, California.
Her choice in moniker and worldly, nomadic upbringing are all insights into Natasha’s exotic, ethereal influences and sound, evident in Gunakadeit’s new single, “South”.
“South” begins with minimal instrumentation, primarily a tickling electric guitar sound playing behind Natasha’s piercing vocals building up to a catchy drum beat.
Her swooning, melodic voice sings of a lover that has grown cold towards her. She no longer knows what to say or do where she lives now – her dreams are escaping her, and the town is dead. There is nagging voice telling her to escape, and, of course, for Natasha that means moving away to a happier, warmer place.
As the song progresses into the chorus, it becomes more electronic-pop influenced, with layered drumbeats and vocals, up-tempo cymbals and a deep bass pulse.
Gunakadeit’s first single,“South” bodes well for Natasha Kozaily, as her voice leaves a sense of mystery and intrigue, enticing us to listen to her tell more of her stories.
Sounds like: St. Vincent, Tune-Yards.
- See more at: http://vinylmag.org/2014/05/16/gunakadeit-south/#sthash.DeuftNNH.dpuf -

Hailing from Ocean Beach, singer-songwriter Natasha Kozaily took her moniker, Gunakadeit, from a mythical Tlingit Sea Monster who saves a village from starving to death.

There’s something of the mystical and mythical abut her new track , South. There’s also a little bit of the Bjork and Kate Bush, those doyens of female individuality about Gunakadeit as well, not in sound, Kozaily makes this sort of folk inspired rippling electro-pop, but more in approach, this refusal to adapt to what’s expected.

With so many artists out there just willing to tow the line, and produce what’s expected, its no wonder Gunakadeit has, today anyway, saved me from musically starving to death. - Backseat Mafia

Gunakadeit is the new pop project of Ocean Beach denizen Natasha Kozaily. The reason she chose her moniker after a sea monster in Tlingit mythology is the first hint of her unique ingenuity. Her new leaked single, “South,” is an edgy track laden with experimental pop intrigue from a cautious build-up to piercing layered vocals: - Free Bike Valet

What better way to introduce a new artist to the Indie Shuffle audience than by means of a premiere? Fortunately that's what we've got for you today...

GUNAKADEIT (pronounced goo-naka-date) is a fresh, new, wordly-artist, with roots in the Caribbean, Europe, The Middle East and America.

The myriad of influences on her life are clearly present in "South," an experimental folk-pop tune that hits all the right notes for my eardrums.

If you're digging what you hear, be sure to follow her on SoundCloud for more choons. -

We talk a lot about new artists whose music is a blend of varying genres, like electro-r&b or synth-pop. But GUNAKADEIT’s sound is a cultural melting pot, influenced by all the different places she’s traveled to and lived in. The singer (real name Natasha Kozaily) has roots in the Caribbean, Europe, The Middle East and America and her wild, new-age pop gem “South,” is a perfect reflection of this. Says Kozaily of the track:

The song ‘South’ is about finding solitude and comfort in your life when everything is overwhelming and following your intuition. It’s so easy to get swept away in it all, in all the ideas being thrown our way. But deep down, we all have a direction we truly want and need to go in. We just have to find the strength to listen.

I’ve always loved traditional music from around the world. The music of Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and the Balkans are especially fascinating to me. Different scales, odd time meters, polyrhythms, so different from Western Music but no less grooving and moving. It’s refreshing to understand and hear music from a unique perspective. And taking elements of the traditional and mixing it into a pop context is so much fun. That’s what GUNAKADEIT is all about. - Pigeons and Planes