Sofia Isella is covered with praise and plastered in filth. On stage during her visceral live performances, the dirt is real. She seethes with leashed rage, vocalising the female experience. Earth, the decomposing mulch of memory and life force of regeneration, suits her.
The habit began when Isella played a muddy festival and her pants got dirty.
“I started snow-angeling in the mud and then I went on stage . I loved how it looked and felt, so now I purchase garden mud and hope it doesn’t have fertiliser in it as I rub my face in it .”
Isella’s fans don’t need to buy a t-shirt to belong, they can do the same, and no-one's mud is better than anyone else’s. As Andy Warhol said in The Philosophy of Andy Warhol about Coca-Cola, whether it’s the President’s, Elizabeth Taylor’s or the bum on the corner’s.
Hailing from Los Angeles, Isella is a homeschooled prodigy and classically trained violinist – with a fondness for Nine Inch Nails. She is marking her third self-released EP, titled Something is a shell ., following 2024's I Can Be Your Mother and last year’s I’m camera . The punctuation is intentional, she always leaves space before a full-stop. Period.
My favourite moment on the record is at 01:45 on ‘Star v’, when her voice spirals into a possessed echo. The drums – the drums sound incredible. Listen to ‘Above the Neck’. And go some place else during ‘Evergreen Soldier’.
Says Isella: “Everything is related to a shell . A shell of a body, a shell of a relationship, a shell of a human with something evil inside, the shell of religion and how it is empty of a god, the women are sexualised into a shell, and a shell of a man .
“And then I walk into this shoot, and there, right in front of my raw eyes: a basket of eggs . I must smell like cat food .”
What’s your favourite lyric from Something is a shell .?
Curiosity’s instilled, I’m the cat and I got killed .
Goodbye evergreen soldier dew, all the strangers are singing about you .
I’m not trying to seduce you, fuckface .
What do we need to know about the record? You have the sound of crickets on ‘Out in the Garden’ and chickens on ‘The Chicken is Naked and Afraid’…
I am not sure what to tell you . I was in a pitch dark room, and I would repeat the same lyric 500 times while laughing to myself . A never ending party, I will tell you that .
Typical action I take is I write lyrics with no melody, just words and words and words . I write constantly, I love lyrics . Then I will take those lyrics, and either I will do the production entirely alone, or I will call on one of my co-producers, for this project it was only Ben Hudson, and we will find random sonics together for me to go arrange later . If I do it alone, I am in a dark room and I am layering and layering and painting . ‘The Doll People’ was entirely alone, so was ‘Everybody Supports Women’, ‘I Can Be Your Mother’, ‘The Well’, ‘Numbers’ and ‘Above the Neck’ (last two I had Ben give me a background distortion and a guitar .) But I’m big on control, every song I do, I know what I want production wise, I refuse to not be in the driver’s seat .
If I do it with Ben, (love Ben) we will find a long bass drone, we will find a 20 minute long drum loop, we will find a screaming guitar or a cow or whatever and I will take that session and bring it home and produce it out, arrange it, write the whole song, melody and lyrics, figure out the structure, and I will call on Ben if I need a sonic I can’t figure out how to find . I will send him a voice note of me making the most abhorrent sounds hoping he can find what I’m looking for . He usually can . He knows me well .
I won’t even talk about mixing . Mixers hate me, I have a very specific ear and do so many rounds of notes . Thank you Rich Costey and Jason LaRocca for dealing with me .
You grew up playing violin and love industrial music – polarities that make what you do so special. Are there any black holes in your pop culture knowledge that you’d like to explore?
There are many black holes . I didn’t know who Ariana Grande was until I was 14 . I was mind blown by the concept of an autograph when I heard about it . I did not understand the desire for a scribble . I stay in my basement of shame and I do not know much .
What's the best thing about being a musician/performer?
Your ego being stroked . Your ego being killed .
What would you be if you weren’t a musician?
Dead . Just kidding . Something in fitness .
Skinny Puppy or Ministry?
Great question . I have no beef with either .
What’s your favourite piece of classical music?
Big fan of Lalo, big fan of Scherzo Tarantelle . I grew up playing them . Nostalgic . I still practice but not as often, my life has taken over me now . I used to practice 3-5 hours as a kid . If I got in trouble, mom wouldn’t let me practice violin . I would cry . I would practice even if I was horribly sick, playing violin over the puke bowl . I’ve always been a work horse, it’s everything I breathe .
Who are your idols?
My first idol was my preschool teacher Rosie . I was extremely obsessed with her, I’m not sure why . She was just so gentle and kind and soft . I would buy merch that said her name on it and show up to preschool and then be too scared to sit in her lap . Wherever she would stand, I would sit at her feet with her “merch” on . I must’ve scared the shit out of her .
What's your favourite place in the world?
Cuddling people, sleeping on top of a human . It feels like straight oxygen .
What's the best phrase you've picked up in another language?
Je n'ai peur de rien, et je n'ai certainement pas peur d'une machine à café .
What's your favourite book?
Bunny by Mona Awad . The writing is poetry . It’s about girly cult-ish women who take bunnies and explode them into fake men so they can try to have sex with them . As far as I understand .
What's the last thing you think about before you go to sleep?
Either a human or my career . And they are constantly in battle with each other for my attention .
Where do you go in your dreams?
The most recent dream I remember is I was in bed with someone I know and we were holding each other and sweating so hard because we were boiling (not sexual) but we didn’t remove the covers and we just suffered and didn’t let go .
What do you worry about?
How fast I can pick up a banjo . If it’s not at lightning speed, there’s gonna be problems .
What’s your favourite scent?
Rain . Flour . And anything that gives me nostalgia .
Tell us a secret…
I didn’t know people lied until a month ago . I thought lying was like death, happens to other people but it’s far removed . But no, people lie, Re-Edition . What a novel concept .
What came first: the chicken or the egg?
I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO ASK ME THIS QUESTION .
SOFIA ISELLA
TEXT DEAN MAYO DAVIES
PHOTOGRAPHY BETTINA PITTALUGA
FASHION JULIE RAGOLIA
RE-EDITION #25, SPRING/SUMMER 2026
COVER STORY