Arlo Parks reveals inspiration behind new album Ambiguous Desire and how she trusts herself more than ever
ARLO PARKS’ third album is a reset, inspired by the nightlife, freedom and spontaneity she missed out on when she broke through as a teenager.
For Ambiguous Desire, the London-born singer-songwriter wanted to escape from way she had created songs in the past.
Arlo, 25, says: “I wanted this to be from ground zero and exactly how I feel now, while I’m really living.
“When I got to the end of the cycle for my second record, My Soft Machine, I was like, ‘OK, I want to see what it’s like when I DECIDE the path of my days’.
“I wanted to spend more time in nocturnal spaces, making friends with DJs, club organisers and people in different collectives, and getting inspired by exploring the subcultures and the history and the architecture of those spaces. That’s what was fascinating.”
Using voicenotes, journal entries and memories from nights out, the Mercury Prize winner’s intimate album is rooted in storytelling.
She says: “For this record, my mantra was to write it exactly how it felt.
“In the past, I was focused on making things as beautiful and poetic as possible, but this time I stripped it right back to the lean truth of it, and that felt more authentic.
“I also wanted to bring in those references exactly as I heard them, without softening the edges or maybe adding guitars to bring it into the indie world.
“I wanted it to be inspired by house and garage, the music I’ve been loving. It was just about being true to myself.”
This raw approach to songwriting runs through 12-track Ambiguous Desire.
Arlo, real name Anais Marinho, says: “I wanted to make the music feel exciting and dynamic, so the song Jetta is just a voicenote in an Uber with my friends from one of those nights.
“It’s the sound and the stories of people. Even the vinyl cover and the inserts are photos I took of my friends on nights out.”
I chat to Arlo at her London record label office the day before she flies back to LA, which has been her home for the past four years.
Arlo, who won the Brit Breakthrough Artist Award in 2021, following the success of her debut album Collapsed In Sunbeams, says: “LA does feel like home, but London will always BE home.
“When I moved to LA, I was coming into myself as an artist, so I see it as the place where I built my community and grew into my confidence. But London is where I grew up, where my roots are, where I wrote my first word and heard my first song.”
While London holds emotional ties — Arlo has been staying with friends and family while in the capital — LA has provided the creative community and space to push her sound.
She says: “It’s the place where I met a lot of the people that I make music with. And there’s something about the pace of life there, the nature and the sunshine that gives me this sense of peace, where I can just sit and write.
“My main collaborator, Baird, lives there and we made the whole record in the space he shares with his brother.
“It’s like a living-room studio with pianos, acrylic paints, sewing machines — it’s an amazing creative hub. The place has been really inspiring for me and given me the peace to experiment.”
Club culture became both creative research and a release from everyday worries.
She says: “In New York, we were going to clubs like Nowadays and Basement, which is more in the techno world, and then in LA there are nights like Midnight Lovers.
“The scene there feels much more DIY, more warehouses than big institutions like London’s Fabric.
“It was nice to have that as part of our week, like knowing on a Saturday we’d go out and experience it.
“And I love living in LA because so many artists pass through, so you can catch shows all the time. People like Jamie xx in those spaces were amazing.”
The euphoric dancefloor-inspired Heaven was the first song that Parks wrote and knew she was on to something special.
She recalls: “I’d been out with my friend Kelly [DJ Kelly Lee Owens], who was supporting Caribou and, the night after, I’d written all of these little fragments in my journal, like my friend wearing pink Adidas shoes. That’s in the song, which came together exactly like the night had felt.
“I was able to distil that experience into a song. It felt very cinematic.”
Clubbing helped Arlo reconsider how songwriting can be a collective experience rather than just a personal one.
That instinct carries into the brilliant 2Sided, the first track released from the album, which describes the heat and chaos of a night out with friends at a club.
She says: “It felt like the right song to start this era, and it came about really naturally.
“I felt it when I made it, and also a lot of my friends — my partner, everyone in my life — were like, ‘That’s the one’.”
Her other standout tracks explore different themes.
The dreamy Beams includes the line “I know it’s not a way to treat people you love”, and Parks says: “I think that sentiment is really simple.
“There’s a moment where you’re in a situation or a relationship and you’ve become used to being treated a certain way and then you realise, ‘Wait, that’s not actually how you treat people. You should be softer, kinder’.
“It’s about that realisation of what you actually deserve.”
Luck Of Life is another brilliant track, which explores grief. Arlo says: “That started just me on my computer at the kitchen table.
“It’s about loss, something we’ve all experienced whether it’s someone passing away or a break-up, but the impact those people had on our lives and, hopefully, bringing comfort to people who are hurting.”
On Senses, a collaboration with Sampha, she says: “It’s soothing. I think a lot of that comes from Sampha, as he’s just such a soulful person.
“He’s always tried out lots of different genres in his career, which is really inspiring to me.”
For her forthcoming live shows in the UK, US and Europe, Arlo has made some changes.
She says: “It makes sense to shift the set-up as well for these shows. For a long time, it’s been kind of indie — I had a guitar band — but I want to bring the samplers and the drum machines in.
“I’ve been inspired by how Massive Attack are touring now and bringing those Nineties sounds into more contemporary spaces.
“With the smaller shows we did at the end of last year, I had this idea of a light box above with a blue wash, and the stage being in the round with all my samplers and equipment in the middle.
“I wanted to feel like those nights. Even the imagery came from that.
“We went back to some of those clubs and did this kind of guerilla-style photography with my friends.
“It was about staying true to what really happened and trying to recapture that.”
In 2022, Arlo cancelled some US tour dates due to “debilitating” mental health issues. She has since learned to slow down to avoid another burnout.
She says: “Music is what I love most in the world, so if I ever feel anything negative, I know it’s because I’m feeling overworked, not because of the music itself.
“It’s my passion, it’s very much at the centre of who I am.” It is why she also took her time making Ambiguous Desire.
She says: “I didn’t really want it to be this sprint where I would then have a crash, I want to do this for the rest of my life.”
Arlo, who became a Unicef UK Ambassador in 2024, to advocate for child mental health, adds: “I’ve always wanted to be a career artist and be making music forever. I knew that I had to pace myself a bit. And, looking back, I’ve had some amazing times.
“Thinking back to Glastonbury and winning the Mercury Album Of The Year [for Collapsed In Sunbeams] as well, I couldn’t believe it.
“There’s something really specific about the Mercury because it’s just one winner and it was at the Hammersmith Apollo, which I used to cycle past on the way to school, which made it surreal.”
Parks has previously been hailed a “voice of her generation”, but that must come with pressure.
She says: “I felt like I was speaking to collective experiences we were going through, rather than being some kind of spokesperson. I never really saw myself as that, so I didn’t feel pressure to be a certain way.
“I was just telling stories about what I was seeing and living, and that happened to connect with teenagers at that time.
“But, anyway, my fan base is broad — I love it when I see whole families at a gig and I’ve seen grandparents with grandkids as well as groups of friends. It really is a bit of everything. And I love that. That makes me feel really happy.”
Ambiguous Desire concludes with track Floette, which she describes as “a note of hope”.
Arlo says: “I wanted to embrace the fact that change is inevitable and part of life, and we’re all growing and trying our best.
“ ‘We’re blossoming’ as it says in that song.
“Looking at myself, I’m more confident and I feel happier than ever.
“I’ve made something I’m really proud of, which colours the lens that I’m looking at things through.
“It’s the start of something new, and in the future, I’d love to write a book and a screenplay and be part of a soundtrack for a film.
“It’s like I’m coming of age. Maybe it’s just growing up.
“While I’m proud of the music that I made before, this feels a little bit more different.
“I feel like I’ve finally arrived, after years of making music. I’ve found the confidence to step away and do things my way, take a risk and witness it pay off.
“I trust myself and my intuition more than ever.”
- Ambiguous Desire is out today.