An Interview at the Crossroads of Confession and Cosmic Noise –

In an exclusive A&R Factory Interview, Gamilla opens up about the world behind Catholic School Girl with a steadiness that makes the album feel even more intentional. She explains how a class assignment grew into a full record shaped by personal history, pressure, and the small shocks of adolescence that stay lodged in the mind long after you leave the classroom.

Her technical background folds into the conversation, showing how control over production lets her move between roles as songwriter, guitarist, bassist, and vocalist without losing momentum. She also talks about the risks woven into her lyrics, the sci-fi threads she keeps returning to, and what it means to step forward as a Puerto Rican woman in rock. The bigger picture, though, is her commitment to recognition and authenticity, which sets the tone for everything she plans next.

Catholic School Girl feels loaded with feeling and intent, what was the moment you knew this concept needed to exist as a full album rather than just a handful of tracks?

Catholic School Girl started as an EP I had to make for a class, and I even though I always have themes I want to express through my songs, I wanted my first project to also introduce me as a person. What better way than to make it about something that was part of me growing up. When I finished the EP for my class and I had a sound palate, I realized I had more ideas to finish it and turn into an album. I started writing more songs and mixing the EP.

You’ve just come out of Berklee with a background in Recording and Independent Production. How has having that technical control changed the way you approach writing and finishing new material?

It helps me to create the album in any order I want that works for me. Most of the time there is an order of writing, recording, mixing the mastering. Sometimes, I would get stuck mixing a song, or reording the bass part, but intead of staying stuck I would continue with a different song.

You move between songwriter, guitarist, bassist and vocalist with ease. When a new song starts forming, which role usually speaks first?

Usually either lyrics or the guitar riff. When I come up with lyrics I try to add a riff or a chord progression.

The record captures the frustration and pressure of teenage and college life in a way that feels very lived-in. Were there any lines or songs that felt especially risky or exposing to put out into the world?

All my art is mostly personal, so I felt that way about finally releasing a debut album. However, I think the one that felt mostly risky was Your Son Is A Sinner because I also added friend’s experiences as well to help with the storytelling, so it blurs the lines between their reality and my reality. Either way, it’s always a very vulnerable thing to release a personal project and this one is very personal.

Grunge influences from the 90s sit alongside these alien and otherworldly themes. What is it about that sci-fi edge that keeps pulling you back creatively?

I always loved aliens, so I thougt it was a good idea to incorpotate their imagine and themes into my projects. It’s mostly relatable with the theme of being misunderstood and unique. I also love space inspired sounds and effects like reverb, phaser, flanger, and synth pads.

Now that the debut album is out and breathing on its own, how are you thinking about what comes next? Do you feel pulled towards expanding the concept or tearing it up entirely for the next release?

I want to make a transition project between Catholic School Girl and the next album to incorporate both of their sounds. I want to expand in instrumentation, themes, and even make it more experimental with different time signatures and song forms.

Being a Puerto Rican woman working in rock music still comes with its own set of assumptions and expectations. How have you navigated carving out space that actually feels like yours?

I just ignore what everyone else is doing and focus on my project. I know that there is people out there that has always loved Rock and would probably like it once they find my music. The current music scene is definitely not Rock music, but it is a small underground community which leads to people knowing each other. I try to focus on finding my demographic and not tyring to insert myself somewhere I don’t belong.

When listeners press play on your upcoming releases, what do you hope sticks with them long after the final track fades out: an emotion, a question, or a sense of recognition?

I want people to mostly feel a sense of recognition because that is something music has made me feel before and that’s one of the reasons I love Rock music. It celebrates authenticity, self-expression, and uniqueness. Zoot (my alien) and I want people to feel comfortable being different.

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Interview by Amelia Vandergast