Jack Bromwich on the Release of His Debut EP, Poser, Freak, Journal-Like Lyrics and His Love of Pōneke
All photos provided by Jack Bromwich. Photo credit: Josh Stewart
Jack Bromwich is an upcoming artist raised in Pōneke who has just released his debut EP, Poser, Freak, out today. I caught up with him to talk all about the EP, how Aotearoa has a bit of tall poppy syndrome in terms of music, and how he has been able to change his own mind with feeling this way.
Hi Jack! Thanks so much for your time and a big congratulations on the release of your debut EP, Poser, Freak! How does it feel that the EP is now out in the world for all to enjoy?
Jack: Kia ora! It’s quite a surreal feeling to be honest. These songs have been in the works for a really long time, it nearly feels like letting go of them to release them which is a weirdly bittersweet feeling.
Poser, Freak was recorded across multiple Tāmaki Makaurau locations, including in your own living room. Do you think that being able to record in different spaces brings an element to Poser, Freak that otherwise might have not been as prominent?
Jack: I definitely believe that this is true. I feel that each song has its own di erent environment tied into it, with each room that it was recorded in weaved into it. I think the project thankfully stays cohesive and consistent, but also allows itself to have moments where each track can have it’s own individuality.
With quite impressively expressive lyricism in Poser, Freak it’s evident that you have experienced the figurative growing pains of being a young adult and transitioning forth into adulthood, a great base for what is now crafted into a wonderous body of work. When life gets a bit rocky, or you’re trying to ground yourself away from music, what helps you? Was music the thing that helped you transition from young adult to adulthood?
Jack: I definitely have times when things don’t feel amazing and it does weigh on me, as is the same with everyone. I think the most grounding thing to do when you feel like this is to own it and not try to brush it o . It’s something I’m still trying to learn how to do, but taking accountability of how you feel and being able to communicate that is so vital and important. Music has always been a thing that has transitioned me into adulthood. I have always been someone that tries to write music that’s authentic to how I feel and not try to lie or shrewd my words in mystery. I feel my writing is very journalistic, like each song is a diary entry. It makes it a bit awkward talking about songs because they tend to be about personal things that I have been through.
Photo credit: Jade Johnson
Do you have a favourite track from Poser, Freak that you feel your listeners and Welcome to the Gig readers need to immediately run and listen to?
Jack: I could say things I like about all of the tracks, I’m not biased I promise, but I think my favourite track would have to be He Waits Alone. There are very few times that I have listened back to a track and not nitpicked every little piece of it. He Waits Alone was written simply and without a great plan and I think this keeps it raw. I could not take all of the credit for this song. My amazing friends Alex Beattie and Max Hill (Slow Rage) contributed immeasurably to the recording of this song. As well as the amazing Oliver Hamer (The LAB Studios).
This is a question that I enjoy throwing out there in interviews, so it may seem a bit random, however, if you could liken your music to any place in the world, where would you liken it to and why?
Jack: I think the place I would liken the music to would probably be Pōneke. It’s where I grew up and the place where I learned how to write, record, and play music. So much beautiful music is weaved into the city.
Was music always a prominent part of your upbringing, or was it something that piqued your interest a little later down the line?
Jack: Music has always been something that I was raised around. My parents are obsessed with music and I owe so much of my musical interests to the music that they introduced me to as a kid. I am forever grateful for them for getting me lessons, which I initially disliked. I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. My interest in music definitely started to become more intense as I entered high school and especially when I started listening to local music from around Aotearoa around late high school. Something about seeing people that breathe the same air as you write such amazing works is so inspiring to me.
Photo credit: Ryo Nishikawa
You’ve played a fair few shows across the country. Do you have a standout city that you have performed in? If so, what made it the most special?
Jack: I have been lucky enough to play a number of gigs across Aotearoa. I always have to say that Pōneke is such a great time to play. The locals are so engrossed into the scene and it shows in their support for local music. I have also played a load of really fun gigs in Tāmaki as well.
Do you feel that as an upcoming musician here in Aotearoa, that there could be more support in terms of being able to integrate into the music scene a little easier?
Jack: I definitely think that things could be a great deal easier. I think, as we all know as creatives in Aotearoa, tall poppy syndrome is such a massive problem. I can’t say that I’ve always been perfect in my own ways with this, but learning the problems this has caused and starting to work more collaboratively has taught me how important it is to start supporting one another. I have definitely started to live by the ethos of supporting those around me because sharing art is a terrifying thing to do and those who listen should feel lucky and grateful that the artists that they are listening to are brave enough to share.
What are some things that readers should know about you, as a person, besides being a fantastic musician?
Jack: Thanks so much! Away from music, I’m completing my degree, working a desk job currently. I’ve been getting into house plants recently as well, that’s been cool. I think I’m quite a quiet person, I’ve had a lot of awkward interactions with people at my shows. I love talking to people, but I’m not always the best at it.
If you were able to curate an entire festival with all your favourite musicians, and you were also able to perform too, which other musicians would be on the line-up?
Jack: Amazing question. First up would 100% have to be Awning. They are probably my favourite band of all time. I would also have bands like Marlin’s Dreaming, Da odils, Salt Water Criminals, and Ringlets. Most importantly, my friends Slow Rage and Alex Beattie because playing with your mates is the best.
What other things should readers know about you or your music?
Jack: As much as I like to think my music is calculated, there are often nonsensical songs about nothing really. I find it fun to find my own interpretation of them and I encourage people who listen to them to do the same. If people can’t figure out what they’re about, don’t worry I can’t either.
Is there anything else you would like to add to the interview?
Jack: Thanks so much for taking the time for having me on. I love what you’re doing for the local music scene!
Thank you so much for your time, Jack! I cannot wait to keep listening to Poser, Freak and see what your next steps are.
Alyssa Callander on the Depths of Her Thoughts, Her New EP and Showing Up for Little Her
Alyssa Callander is a wholesome, talented singer-songwriter in the New Zealand music industry who always speaks her deepest feelings. All photos provided/Alyssa Callander
Recently, Welcome to the Gig got to sit down and send out some questions to the wonderful Alyssa Callander after her EP release.
We spoke about what it means to be a wallflower, her new EP to love & be loved, and her deep, overthinking brain.
Hi Alyssa! Thank you so much for sitting down and answering some questions for Welcome to the Gig today. You’ve had a big couple of months, with the release of your new EP, to love & be loved (a beautiful release!), as well as a release show, too. How have you found the reception to the EP so far?
Alyssa: Nothing but love! I’m so grateful that it has resonated with so many people and hearing from people both in person and online but also people I’ve never met before.
You’re a very forward thinker, with such depth to your words. It’s obvious that you spend a lot of time overthinking (just like me!), which comes across as being able to connect on different levels with your listeners that feel the same way. Is it easy for you to sit down and write with such power? How do you tap into the emotions that you bring to the table?
Alyssa: Haha yes, I’m a very good overthinker. It is easy and often the best time for me to write while I am overthinking something because that is when I am most anxious and inarticulate that it both gives me inspiration to write a song but also helps me to process my emotions and what is going on. I love using metaphors and symbolism in my songs as a way to try and describe the emotion I’m feeling rather than just labelling it, but at the same time I like to build a bit of a story within the song so listeners can relate and further grasp what I mean.
Do you have a favourite song off To Love & Be Loved? If so, which song and why is it your favourite song?
Alyssa: This is not a helpful answer, but I don’t have a favourite because I love each song for different reasons and it’s hard to compare them to choose a favourite. love always was written for my Grandad after he passed away so that song is particularly special to me. treat a girl right was written for my little brother when he got his first girlfriend as way of giving him some ‘sisterly advice’. friend zone I was most scared to release because it is quite a vulnerable song, but I also love how it’s the closest I’ve made it to an upbeat/happy song - definitely harder than it looks and the same with someone to me because it felt like I was exposing myself, but I like to think “what is the worst that will happen?” But if I had to choose, I would probably say that choice is my favourite.
If you were able to collaborate with any other artist who has ever lived (or is currently living), who would you choose and why?
Alyssa: Meghan Trainor. I absolutely admire her songwriting skills. I’ve always been a fan, but last year I discovered her podcast with her husband and brother, Ryan Trainor called the Workin On It podcast. She talks so openly about her experiences, good and bad, and I think it is so cool that she produces everything with her brother, Justin Trainor. I would want to write a song with her or even just be in the room when she writes a song because I know for collaborations, she never turns up empty-handed (and by that she pretty much turns up with a draft song or at least a chorus done). [I would just like] to see her process and learn from her.
You affectionately refer to your fanbase as Wallflowers, which is the most wholesome thing I’ve ever heard. What does it mean to be a Wallflower?
Alyssa: I like to think of it in two ways. The first is like a brick wall that is clean except for a beautiful flower which, despite all odds, has managed to bloom from the brick wall. The other way I like to think about in terms of people is when you are in a crowd and you observe everyone else around you in a rush going about their lives and realise that you are just one person in this big world. During high school, I was a wallflower, someone that was always there but never seen - for my fanbase I wanted my wallflowers to be a safe place to be seen, be heard, and feel loved no matter who we are.
What motivated you to become a singer-songwriter?
Alyssa: Well, it started with my band Mishka in high school, we had been to Band Quest in 2018 and noticed how only one band wrote and performed an original song, so they won all the awards for original music. We went back to school and decided we would start writing our own songs as a band and somewhere during that process I fell in love with songwriting, I practically lived at the music department at school and haven’t stopped songwriting since.
Have you always seen yourself in the musical field, or did the love you have for music deepen over time?
Alyssa: I’ve always loved singing and music but never considered it as a “job” because it always seemed more like a dream than a reality, it was unachievable. But the more time I spent writing, playing, performing the more I realised that I can’t imagine my life doing anything else. I was in denial for a long time because I didn’t want to admit to people that this is what I wanted to do because of the stigma of being ‘delusional’ thinking I could be in the music industry. But I am so glad that I chose to pursue this path.
You have said that you are showing up for little you, which is amazing. If you could go back in time and give little Alyssa life advice, what would that advice be?
Alyssa: As hard as it is, don’t believe everything you hear - actions are worth so much more than words. I was bullied a lot when I was younger and I didn’t know any better, so I believed everything that was said to me, or done to me, was deserving. Unfortunately, because of this it does mean I have struggled with my mental health in many capacities. Showing up for little me is a promise to chase the dream that little me always had (singing around the house, forcing my Barbie dolls to be singers even if they were dressed as doctors) to prove that I am more than what those bullies said/ did to me.
If you could liken your music to a colour, which colour would you choose?
Alyssa: Ooooh I like this question. I’ve always loved the colour blue and I think a dark blue represents my music nicely - but I am also biased seeing as navy blue is my favourite colour haha.
If you were able to go back in time and relive a moment, or even a day, in your life, what moment/day would you choose?
Alyssa: I think it depends if I could change what I did in that moment or just to experience everything as it was. If I couldn’t change anything, I would like to go back to a Wednesday in Year 10, it was always my busiest day, but it was filled with music, so I loved it. I would walk to school with my sister and go straight to a practice room to play/write songs, then at morning tea I would have band practice, lunchtime I would have another band practice, then after school I would have my songwriting class, piano lesson, then my singing lesson. I always remember staying at school so late for my lessons that when I left the cleaners would be the only ones in the building. Bonus if it was the day that the band and I tried writing a song, but were all so tired we lay in a pile on the floor together and played the theme songs to shows we used to watch when we were little (think Dora the Explorer, Backyardigans, Jake and the Neverland Pirates, etc.)
What is a part of yourself that you feel that people misunderstand?
Alyssa: I think people misunderstand how much I mask in public, I very much read the room and match the energy (I can be loud or quiet), it also depends how bad my anxiety is in the moment - before I perform I always get a lot of energy and talk a 1000 miles an hour, but if you see me in class at Uni, there are times where you’re lucky if I say a word at all. I always appreciate the love and support, but sometimes I don’t express it as well in person as I do online because I have the time and space to articulate my thoughts whereas in person, I have the feeling, but not the words to leave my tongue. No matter how I present though, I want everyone to know that I am grateful for the love and support and that it is there, it just may not be obvious.
If you asked your friends or family to describe you right now, what kind of things do you think that they would say?
Alyssa: They would say I am very creative and organised. I am always working on random projects or getting distracted/procrastinating by cleaning/organising something. Just yesterday, my best friend knew I was feeling stressed about Uni, so we organised for me to clean her car. Two hours later I was feeling so much better, weird I know, but hey, it works.
What kind of things are you working on now that your EP is out?
Alyssa: I’m working on all sorts, my creative brain has been going wild, so I have a massive list of projects I want to start including my next EP and potentially a few music videos, definitely watch this space as I’ve got some things in my back pocket and more in the works.
Thank you so much for your time today, Alyssa! Is there anything else you would like to add to the interview?
Alyssa: just a huge thank you to yourself Ash & to the wallflowers (new & old), I couldn’t do this without you.
Make sure you follow along with Alyssa by clicking the links below -
Spotify
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Alyssa - On the Radar, WTTG
Dónal Gunning: An Irishman Turned Kiwi with a Zero Bucks Given Attitude
Stoked to have had the opportunity to interview Dónal Gunning, an Irish-born, Wellington-based musician. All photos provided from Dónal’s Zero Bucks Given EPK
Recently, Dónal Gunning sat down and answered some questions for Welcome to the Gig about his new EP, Zero Bucks Given, how it feels to be the only Irish-Kiwi musician in the country, what drew him into music as opposed to accounting and what to expect from his upcoming EP tour.
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Hi Dónal! Thank you so much for taking the time to sit down and answer some questions for Welcome to the Gig today. Before we dive in, do you want to fill readers in with a bit of background on yourself?
Dónal: Sure, why not! I’m Dónal, pronounced Dough-null, the little accent over the ‘o’ is called a fada (fadah), it’s a Gaelic name, it means ruler of the world.
I’m a musician from Dublin now based in Wellington. I draw on punk, indie, folk and rock influences. My current favourite bands are Queens of the Stone Age, Wunderhorse, Lola Young, RHCP and Soundgarden.
You’ve just released your new EP, Zero Bucks Given! Congratulations on such a great accomplishment on releasing this brilliant body of work. Do you want to run through the process of how the EP recording came together? What struggles did you face while creating?
Dónal: Thank you for that - it means a lot.
I wrote two of these songs in Ireland and two in New Zealand. I’ve been sitting on Gimme More and Satellite for nearly three years now — it’s incredibly rewarding to finally release them. Losing Weight and Your 1 were released as singles earlier this year, in March and May respectively, and received terrific praise internationally.
We struggled to nail the recording process at first — it took us three separate sessions just to get the stems down. That challenge really pushed us to become tighter and more compact as a group. Now, we’ve got a much stronger grip on our recording formula. The trial and error definitely helped us lock in as a unit, especially when it came to our live performances.
How do you feel that Zero Bucks Given sets you apart from other musicians that are also competing in a tight market of music?
Dónal: The music world is in an interesting place at the moment; we are oversaturated with a plethora of complex genres. I see the valour of keeping rock music alive, it has a unique showmanship that is lost in current popular music. You can hear this powerful showmanship on Zero Bucks Given, it translates from our performances to record.
It’s impeccable that in our ever evolving, multi-genre world that rock music keeps breathing, it is the base of arguably all modern music. We see the country music revival in the States and at home in Ireland, meaning by historic chronological standards the rock revival is just around the corner. No better time to release Zero Bucks Given and finish my debut album set for release in 2026. Zero Bucks Given is the torchbearer for the rock revival.
You’re currently the only known (to my knowledge) Irish-Kiwi musician in New Zealand, which is amazing. How have you found getting into the music scene here?
Dónal: I can confirm that I am Aotearoa’s only upcoming Irish Musician - nice ring to it!
It took a lot of grafting, particularly at the start. At one point I was gigging 6 times a week and juggling a part-time job to support myself. I started on the cover scene, playing to my advantage hitting up all the Irish pubs. After tackling the cover scene I was hungry to get cracking on my original material. Funny enough, sourcing cover gigs wasn’t overly complicated but finding slots for your originals projects, that was a challenge.
Moon Bar Jams and Open Mic nights were great places to meet musos, which definitely helped. However Wellington isn’t particularly a big city, it reminds me of Galway or Cork. With that it didn't take too long to start building up a network and find bandmates. Kiwis have been very welcoming to me on the scene.
My advice to anyone is to just get out and gig (especially at the start) you never know who you may pull up to your show! It’s all about growing your network, that and your release portfolio are your CV in music.
What bought you all the way from Ireland to New Zealand?
Dónal: I wanted a change from life in Europe — plus two crucial things: somewhere I could surf and play music. Wellington ticked both boxes. I saw musicians busking on a sunny day down Cuba Street, and after a quick trip to Lyall Bay, I was sold.
You’ve got a massive 14-date tour with your bandmates, The Bucks, incoming very shortly! How has the planning been for this?
Dónal: Busy! Lots of emails, voicemails, and texts. But I’ve learned so much through it all — you start to see roadblocks differently. Mistakes, blunders, and missed calls aren’t setbacks; they’re just part of the process. It’s all about learning and adapting.
It's funny, I wonder if my accountancy skills played into my organisation here, nothing that I was doing to organise was overly complex, more tedious and required persistence…. I best not speak too soon, we haven't even hit the road yet!
What can attendees expect from the tour?
Dónal: A showcase of modern rock, featuring guitar solos, epic drum fills, vivid showmanship and of course an Irishman, singing his heart out.
We have some great support acts booked too; Bad Schematics, Headlock Grave, Doom Swoon, Monotones, Leo Lilley, plus more to be announced!
Have you always been into music, or was there a turning point in your life where you were like, “okay, this is what I truly want to do”? I see you were once an accountant, which is a faraway land from music!
Dónal: I’ve always been into music, growing up we were forced to learn piano until grade 3, after this we could take or leave music. I swiftly left piano and gravitated to the guitar, bass and drums. I kept music up as a pastime through my 20s, playing the odd gig, jamming for fun in bands.
It wasn't until Covid struck Ireland and I started playing guitar more seriously for friends/flatmates. Here I felt I could mold a potential music career.
There was a distinct turning point - before I moved to New Zealand, I was gigging in the Algarve in Portugal. I played a show for 15/20 people in an intimate venue called Mynt Bar on a Friday night. I fed off that crowd, I discovered a newfound flow state, it was a small crowd but my god, we were in sync. I was buzzed for the whole week after. I knew at this point that this was something I wanted to do, but more importantly I could do. That post performance buzz is worth that chase, let me tell you.
This is in the realm of random questions I like to throw out there, but if you could liken your music to a movie, or even a TV show, which would you choose and why?
Dónal: The Office US & Malcolm in the Middle? Hahahaha, I instantly thought of my two current favourite shows. This is a great question, very evocative.
There's an Irish crime drama series called Love/Hate, it’s quite serious but peppered with apt tongue-in-cheek, not to mention Irish idiosynccies(!). Seems like a good fit to me.
Aside from music, what are some of your other passions?
Dónal: I’m a keen surfer, it’s arguably why I moved to New Zealand; [however], it has taken a backseat in pursuing music full-time. I'm thinking about moving to Lyall Bay next year.
I also love walking and running (I know quite basic), but when I'm not gigging I enjoy simple, more straightforward activities. I enjoy cooking for myself/mates/flatmates after a busy weekend of shows, usually steak/chips, burgers or a spicy curry.
So much of my life is absorbed in music that I often forget to make time for other passions to be honest - I think it's a package deal when it becomes your career.
I’m proud of my growing vinyl production, a bandmate just loaned me Steely Dan ‘Aja’ and Fleetwood Mac 'Pious Bird of Good Omen’ as a means to reduce screentime and further develop my music appreciation. I chuck these on after a long day and do my best to fully disconnect and listen.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Dónal: During the week - tea, bass chops, walk, coffee(!), admin/emails, practice, write, lunch, run/walk(!) Reaper tutorial, email chases, tour admin etc… come 4/5pm I’m usually set for dinner and an evening activity or band practice.
Weekends can be funny; I’m usually juggling gigs and practices! Sundays and Mondays are for me to decompress.
Where do you source your inspiration from when creating? Do you find it comes naturally to you, or do you have to dig quite deep?
Dónal: It comes naturally now when I sit down to it (it didn't for a long time). Usually a bass line, guitar chord or other sounds spark an idea... From there, lyrics follow and songs will evolve providing I keep chipping away at it through the week. It’s funny when I look back on the songs I see a potential meaning or message, but during its creation I allow myself to follow the stream of creative subconsciousness.
Across the span of your career as a musician, how many songs do you think you’ve written, and are there any that you really wanted to put out on Zero Bucks Given that just didn’t make the cut?
Dónal: Not far off 100 now, I’ve got a bedroom wall here covered in A4 sheets with songs I deemed not strong enough to release. Perhaps I'll combine the best of the worst into a separate album if I ever get a writer’s block. There were some I deemed would be fit for the album versus the EP.
What other essentials should the readers of Welcome to the Gig know about you?
Dónal: Please come say hello if you see me at a show. I love chatting about all things music with everyone. Also, that I’m only just getting started!
Would you like to add anything else to the interview?
Dónal: I commend the mahi Welcome to the Gig does for upcoming artists here in Aotearoa, good on you!
Those of you based in Christchurch come check out the show at Darkroom Thursday 20th November!
Please follow me on Instagram/Facebook for tour updates and further news.
Thanks so much, Donal for your time, I can’t wait to see the show live when you play down here in Christchurch shortly!
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Make sure that you follow along with Dónal by heading to the links below -
Unlimited Inspiration and Creative Imagination: An Interview with Emma Kate
Emma Kate is new to our Christchurch music scene, but she has already paved her way with ease into the scene, and we are so lucky to have her!
Picture this: It is a sunny Saturday where a new friendship is being formed, wholesome cat-sharing content has happened, and the enjoyment of eating “breakfast” foods at 1pm is being accomplished. What a wonderful way to bring back interviews to Welcome to the Gig.
This past weekend, I sat down with the lovely Emma Kate at Moment Cafe in Christchurch Central to catch up with her about her new single, Chemical, how she finds inspiration for her songs (spoiler: she doesn’t struggle for inspiration!) and how moving down from Wellington earlier this year has helped with her music career, as well as her growth.
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Hey Emma!
Emma: Hello, how’s it going?
Good thanks, how are you?
Emma: I’m good thank you.
You’ve had a big morning so far, eating lots of yummy food!
Emma: I have. Lots of exploring in Christchurch and eating lots of yummy food.
That is the best way to spend a Saturday!
You released your new song, Chemical, last week (25th July 2025), such a lovely song, with so much meaning behind it. Do you want to talk about the background behind the song?
Emma: The inspiration? Yeah! So, I wrote this song back in February, it was the last song I wrote in a series of writing a song every single day for a month, which was a challenge in itself, but I ended up coming up with Chemical on the last day and at the time, I didn’t think anything crazy of it. As I was looking back through the song, I was like “oh, I really like that one, I think that’s catchy, I want to try and work on that one.” I wrote it about my boyfriend, who is up in Wellington, we are doing long-distance, don’t recommend, we’ve been together since I was fifteen, so almost ten years now, which is a long time, but I wrote it about the feeling of falling in love for the first time and that experience I had - kind of playing on the young love aspect of it, and all the warm, fuzzy feelings you get.
I bet your boyfriend is stoked you wrote a song about him.
Emma: He’s pretty much the inspiration behind most of my songs, so this is just the usual for him, but I do think he appreciates it. He is always super supportive of my music anyway, so he should be rewarded for that. Long-distance has been a struggle, but it has also helped me come up with some really cool songs. Good song inspiration writing, honestly.
I had no idea you’d written a song every day for a month, how the heck [did you manage that]?
Emma: This year, I set myself the challenge of actually trying to write 100 songs, or more than 100, if I can get there. So far, I’ve written about fifty. It got to February, and I was like, “oh. I haven’t even written five… I need to get onto this.” So, I did that challenge and really pushed myself, especially because I work full-time and I would have to come home from work and write a song. I’d always have things on after work and on the weekends, so it was hard squeezing it in. I went away to Laneway mid-February, and I had to do it while I was away, so I didn’t have my guitar with me, so I was just typing on my phone, but I did it. That was cool. Honestly, some of those songs may never see the light of day again. That’s the thing: maybe the songs weren’t good, but I still was able to push through and create something, which is pretty cool.
That’s amazing. To just be able to get your creative juices going is really inspiring and super cool. Do you have a favourite song that you wrote during that period of time?
Emma: Other than Chemical, I had this one called The Ice Palace, which I wrote off this random book which I got from Busy Bees I think it’s called Busy Bees, which is an op-shop/bookshop in Wellington. I got this book from there which I thought was a murder mystery, but it turns out it was about two young girls who were Swedish or something and they fell in love, and the next day, they were going to meet up at school and one of them on the way to school, she went off track and found this ice palace, got lost in it and then she died, and the whole town was searching for her, but they never found her. It was a pretty heavy book, but a very short book. So, yeah, I wrote a song based on that. (The book is Is-Slottet or The Ice Palace in English). It’s a really sad, pretty song. I’ve never written a song based off a book before, so it was a really cool perspective for me to try. The book kind of stayed with me.
Do you think you’ll ever release it as a single?
Emma: I hope so. Maybe not as a single, but maybe on a project. I don’t think it’s single material because it is quite sad.
I read that you’ve been writing songs since you were eight, that’s so young. How did you manage that?
Emma: Yup, that’s correct! The first song I wrote, I wouldn’t really consider it a song, but it was a song. I wrote it while I was sitting on the toilet, and I thought I was really cool. I sang it to my family, and they were like, “Emma, what are you talking about?” I used to sing in the toilet a lot. Or the bathroom, you could hear me outside. Taylor Swift is a big inspiration for me, so I just wanted to do what she could do. So, I just tried, and I’m still going, so obviously something is going right.
I was listening to more of your songs this morning, and I was listening to Abyss, and I was like, “wow, this is like Paramore-vibes”. I love Paramore!
Emma: Yes! Me too. They were definitely inspiration - I was going through an emo phase last year and the year before, which is when I wrote it. So, I wrote it in 2023-ish, I was in a band called Out of Hand, with a bunch of my friends, my brother was the drummer, and we were doing things like Dig the Gig up in Wellington, and I was in a bit of a heavier state with my music, so Abyss kind of came out of it.
I was thinking “this is so different to what you’ve got out!” but it’s so cool.
Emma: I think that’s the cool thing with music is that you don’t have to stick with one genre, and I kind of just make what I like. I do make things off what I am influenced by, and what I’m listening to, but at the end of the day, I am only going to put out ones that I really like and connect with.
Patiently waiting for Taylor Swift to call and ask for that collaboration with her. Photo credit: Molly Doyle Films
You said that you get inspiration from Taylor Swift. Do you have any other musical inspirations?
Emma: Over the past year, I’ve been inspired by the live performances I’ve gone to. I went to Gracie Abrams, you can probably tell by listening to Chemical that I’m pretty influenced by her, especially with the guitar, and the close singing. I feel like she’s whispering in my ear, and I’m really inspired by that, lyrics are really important to me. So, I think they need to be heard, not just swept away by the music. I got inspired by Olivia Rodrigo when I went to see her, too. Lizzy McAlpine is amazing also. There’s also a bunch of small artists like Alexia; she’s an Australian musician and she’s so amazing. I love her. She’s a huge inspiration for me. Local New Zealand artists, too. I just try to consume as much as I can.
This question kind of leads on, it’s kind of similar if you were able to collaborate with any musician that has ever existed, who would you collaborate with?
Emma: I have a few. We can’t not just say Taylor Swift. I think anyone would be elated to collaborate with her. I would love to collaborate with Foley, who is a New Zealand band, I love their music so much. Very catchy. I would love to feature on one of their songs. There’s another New Zealand musician called Navvy, she hasn’t really released anything in a while, but she’s amazing. I feel like any of the people I listed as inspirations would be cool. Also, randomly, I would love to collaborate with Rage Against the Machine. I love them. Such a wild pick, but they’re cool. Or… Nothing but Thieves. I could keep going. There’s so many.
When you’re writing, do you have a general direction that you want your songs to go in, or does it vary from creation to creation?
Emma: I think it can be different each time. Usually, I start off with a lyric, or a word, or I might just have a song I’m inspired by and want to write a song like that, and I kind of might break the song down into sections and do it like that, but most of the time, if I’m at home, I will just pick up my guitar and grab a notebook and a pen and just write in it and it kind of just comes. I don’t really find songwriting to be a struggle for me. It’s quite nice, actually, because it’s the one thing that will calm you down after a busy day or something like that. I just start writing and it all flows. I find it’s easier if I’m writing about a specific situation, and I’m usually more connected to the song as well. Even if I’ve got no personal inspiration from myself, I will write about things that my friends are going through, or things I’ve seen online, like, people’s relationships and how I perceive them, or how I think people perceive them. Sometimes things come from that, too. It’s really anywhere.
It’s cool that you’ve got that ability! I have noticed that your songs are full of emotion, and they captivate a lot of rawness and realness, is it hard sometimes for you to tap into that? I know you said you’ve got a lot of inspiration, how do you tap into that?
Emma: I try to write from my heart and say exactly what I’m feeling, because it’s important to be honest, and it’s important to say how you feel about things. When I was writing Invisible Broken Hearts, that’s a super personal song of mine, I went through a break-up. I was writing it post break-up. It was with my current boyfriend actually, but we got back together. We’re all fine, but looking back on the relationship, I couldn’t write anything in the moment because I was too devastated, but then I came back from it and I was like, “what was I feeling?" How was I feeling? Where was I?” and I just wrote everything down, even if it’s not in a song form, writing down your feelings is super important.
It sounds like you’re good at putting pen to paper and going “yup, this is how I feel. This is what is going to help me get through this situation.”
Emma: I think I’m pretty in touch with my emotions, I feel all my emotions. Not afraid to cry, not afraid to laugh, I think that is what helps me as a songwriter, being able to carry those emotions out.
If you could liken your music to a flower, which flower would you choose?
Emma: Oh my goodness, what a good question. I love flowers. I’m thinking really hard, because I don’t want to say the wrong one! I feel like a rose, but not a specific colour because they all mean different things. I have this book, and it’s my favourite book in the world, and it’s called The Language of Flowers, and it tells you what every flower means, so when you give it to someone, there’s this hidden meaning. I would just say like, roses, but a multi-coloured bouquet because yes, I write songs about love, and that’s what red roses are, but then I might write songs about jealousy, I think it’s yellow roses that represents jealousy, and I write songs that are sad, and you might give roses when you are sad, and I would probably just say a rose.
I did not expect you to blow that answer right out of the water like that!
Besides music, what other things do you enjoy doing?
Emma: I enjoy baking. At the moment, I am trying to do a session of baking every single Sunday afternoon, which has been pretty much successful for the past month or so. It’s good, because it not only benefits me, but my flatmates love it, too, because they get to have the baking for the week. I also love playing games on my Switch. Watching TV shows, bingeing TV shows, or going to the cinema… Going out with my friends. I also love crafts, too. Last year, and the year before, me and my friend group up in Wellington had a thing called ‘Crafternoon’, so depending on what day of the week it was, we would pick a random craft and we would do that craft. It was cool, it pushed the boundaries! Being creative in a different way. Love a Crafternoon.
I know you also love cats like I do, as we were talking about them before.
Emma: Yes. Love cats.
It’s not Taylor on the line… Yet. However, it is all of us telling Emma that we cannot wait for her EP when it’s completed! Photo credit: Molly Doyle Films
You mentioned you are from Wellington originally. How are you adjusting to Christchurch life?
Emma: Yeah, I’ve been here six months, which has flown by, so I don’t know that I would call myself a local, because people say street names and I still don’t know where they are, but I’m also terrible with geography. I do like Christchurch, it’s a slower-paced kind of life down here. My weeks don’t feel as busy as they do in Wellington, I feel like I actually have time to relax on the weekend, which I feel like is unheard of, almost. I like it. There is a lot to explore, and it’s nice that the rest of the South Island is so close, so I can drive there if I feel like it. I do find it is a struggle, the distance from being away from family, friends and my cats. I miss the cats. A lot. So, that is the biggest struggle, but also, being away has given me that independence to be able to figure things out on my own. Really put my music career at the front of my mind and go for it, you know? Nothing else is stopping me. No one else is in the way. I’m just doing my best to try and make it a sustainable career.
What’s next for you, have you got any shows coming up, or any further releases?
Emma: Yeah, so I have some shows that aren’t just me, so with SOLE Music Academy, we will be playing shows later in the year at the Darkroom, and at Wunderbar, so keep an eye out for those. I don’t have any of my own at the moment, but I am always working on new songs, not just writing, but also recording new songs now. I would love to release an EP, I have an idea in my mind, but I have no date set. So, keep giving me motivation because the more motivation I feel from people, the more motivation I have to finish it. I do have a song that I am recording at the moment that I hope to release within the next couple of months, so that would be awesome.
Thank you so much Emma for your time! It’s been so lovely getting to chat with you.
Emma: Thanks for having me, Ash!
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Follow along with Emma’s journey in her career at the links below -
Reasons for Seasons, Beach Walk Voice Notes, and Feeling Deeply: An Interview with Rachel Louise
All photos provided by Rachel from her EPK.
Recently, I got an email from the wonderful Rachel Louise, letting me know that she has (and is) releasing some music and I quickly found myself drawn to the energy that she holds and the music that she effortlessly makes. I knew immediately that Rachel was someone that had to be interviewed for Welcome to the Gig, so, here is one of the loveliest interviews that you will ever read!
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Hi Rachel! Thank you so much for taking the time to sit down for an email chat! I am absolutely loving your debut track, Wasted, and I hear you have another side to it, Our Time, coming out shortly. You have a very soothing voice that can only be described as like being on a cloud. Are you able to tell readers more about how these songs came about, and how they perfectly fit together?
Rachel: Of course! Thank you for having me! And that is so kind.
Around the time I was in the studio with Wasted, I ended up writing Our Time and had this fizzy moment of realisation that Wasted had a B-side - the story kept going!
Wasted came out of a quiet season as I was making my way back from burnout. I had all these songs in me without the resources to get them out into the world and it was deeply frustrating. But that time of rest actually became really significant. With life stripped back, there was a disentangling of my sense of self from productivity and the way my life looked from the outside. My urgency to put out work lessened and I started writing for the pure love of it. The irony isn’t lost on me that the first song I shared was born out of a time that felt impossible. I’ve learned the music we make is a gift, but what happens within us during the process is an even greater one.
Wasted is about loosening your grip on your longings to honour where you are, and then Our Time does a bit of a 180. It captures the feeling of mild disbelief and wild hope when it seems those dreams might actually come to pass. Funnily enough, the release process has felt a lot like that. I think we often hesitate to admit we really want something - that we long to love, or go all-in as an artist. Because it means admitting we actually care and it opens us up to disappointment. But Our Time makes the acknowledgement of those desires feel triumphant and empowering, rather than something to shy away from.
The beginning of those dreams would never have arrived were it not for the still season. Wasted / Our Time is about holding things in balance. It’s about realising you haven’t wasted your time at all; embracing exactly where you find yourself while daring to hope for more.
You’re fresh to the New Zealand music scene, so I wanted to say congratulations for starting your journey and welcome! How are you finding navigating the scene?
Rachel: Thank you! I’m loving the journey so far. We’re so fortunate with the music community we have in Aotearoa and I’ve been blown away by the support and encouragement that’s come my way. I’ve honestly just loved getting to know other creatives and forming some really solid friendships. Making music can feel a bit isolating at times but my favourite moments have been when I’ve shared the journey with others - whether we’re collaborating, debriefing life, or just catching up in the kitchen over lunch.
On your website, it says that you can often be found wandering the beach, a great pastime. How does the beach help you, and does it help inspire your songwriting in any way?
Rachel: Oh my goodness, what a great question! I was actually just reflecting on this with a friend the other day! I was lucky enough to grow up by the beach and I’ve noticed spending so much time near the waves has formed quite a rhythmic nature in me. I often land on melodies as I’m moving - whether I’m driving or on a walk - and I love to dance, so I think a lot about the movement of what I’m making. Being able to see the horizon growing up also felt quite expansive for me which is a feeling I often notice in my music. I find the beach such a grounding place and it never fails to clear my head. It’s pretty rare for me to finish a beach walk without dashing back to the car to record a voice note idea.
I guess, this kind of relates to the previous question a little bit, however, if you ever feel a bit swept away by the world, how are you able to bring yourself down and get back to being centred?
Rachel: This is something I’ve worked on quite a bit. As someone who feels deeply, I can often feel quite overwhelmed by the world around me. It’s been important for me to learn when to lean into my emotions, and when to engage my more rational side. I also find I need to spend a decent amount of time outside to feel more human. Going on walks, or even pulling up under a tree with a picnic blanket and my journal or a good book does wonders. I’ve also recently gotten into gardening! I found the process of the first release pretty full-on and, at times, a little detached, as so much of it happens online. It was the most grounding thing to get into the garden at the end of the day with my flatmate, tear out some weeds, and plant fresh seeds.
For those who have not yet heard your fantastic music, what can you share that may encourage readers of Welcome to the Gig to jump on Spotify, or other platforms, to listen to your authentic music?
Rachel: A big part of why I make music is to give language and sound to the strangeness, heartache, and beauty of being in the world. I hope these songs extend beyond me, and that anyone who hears my music feels it connects with their own story.
You can expect a lush blend of soft pop and warm, organic elements - dreamy in places and more hard-hitting in others, with a bit of a cinematic quality. I’m especially inspired by artists like Novo Amor, Bon Iver, Oh Wonder, and Lizzy McAlpine so I hope my work carries a little glimmer of their influence.
For you, what are both the best, and worst parts of sharing your music?
Rachel: There are so many best parts! One I’ve especially loved has been when people have mentioned resonating with a particular moment in a song. I’ve had a few friends ask me about certain lyrics and it’s been so moving to hear how it’s connected with their journey. It’s an honour to give voice to those experiences and it’s paved the way for some really beautiful conversations.
I mentioned not especially loving the whole online thing (and I’m sure I’m not alone in that!). But I’ve been taking it as an opportunity to enjoy building a visual world around the songs, thinking of it as an extension of the storytelling. I’ve affectionately called my mailing list ‘Love Notes’, touching upon my love of words, handwritten letters, and my romantic tendencies, which feels a lot more fun!
Music is a universally spoken language and I think it’s important that we all get to experience different aspects of it throughout our lives. How has music shaped, and changed you into the person that you currently are?
Rachel: Oh, in so many ways. Music is a very intimate art form. When you approach a painting, it’s something outside of you. But when we listen to music, we somehow take it inside of ourselves; we feel it in our bones, and it forms us in certain ways.
I think music has made me more open to the world. There are certain songs that have kept me soft when it might’ve been easier to become hardened by heartache. I think music keeps me hopeful. The fact that some of us feel a need to make music despite all the turmoil around us is something beautiful in our humanity. It’s more necessary than we often realise.
One of my favourite questions to ask (and a big go-to) is if you could liken your music to a place, or a country, where would you choose, and why?
Rachel: Oh I love this question too! Songs always feel like their own little worlds to me so it makes so much sense to liken them to a place. My whole aesthetic is hugely inspired by Pre-Raphaelite painting and poetry (my inner art history nerd making an appearance there) so I see my music as a dreamy, spring-time garden for people to wander through. It’s golden hour, with light filtering through the trees, and fresh blooms abound!
Personally, I love getting to know musicians beyond the music with interviews, so tell me a little bit more about you so that readers can get to know you as a person slightly better!
Rachel: I drink copious amounts of green tea. I’m an incredibly sentimental and nostalgic person. I love secondhand bookshops. I once watched Sleepless in Seattle twice in a 24 hour period. My ancestors come from Scotland and Northern England and my third great grand-uncle made beautiful engravings of the landscape around Fife. I love a good weekend market. And twinkle lights never fail to lift my mood.
You mentioned you lived in London for a season in one of our emails, do you think you will eventually head back? What aspects of London are you missing the most?
Rachel: I would love to head back at some point! That was such a special season of my life; stepping out on my own, and discovering the essential parts of me that stay the same no matter where I am. It surprised me how much it all felt like home. I love to think of London as a collection of small villages and it’s such a delight to find your own favourite pockets. Mainly, I miss the people. I have family just south of London and I made some incredible friends there that I still talk to all the time. I’m hoping to make it over to see them again soon. Who knows, perhaps music will take me back there!
I’d like to say thank you so much Rachel for your time, and for your honest, moving music! Would you like to add anything else to conclude this interview?
Rachel: Just a massive mihi to you, Ashlea. We’re so incredibly lucky to have someone like you so invested in music from Aotearoa, supporting independent artists, and asking such beautiful, poignant questions. It’s a rare and astonishing thing to feel seen over email! Arohanui!
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Make sure you keep up with Rachel at the below links:
Finding a Place in the UK Music Scene: In Conversation with Kylie Price
Recently, I sat down with the highly talented Kylie Price over Zoom. It was super insightful and deep. Photo one by Erin Isaacs/provided by Kylie's Facebook. Photo two provided by Kylie’s Instagram. Starboard Side video from Kylie’s YouTube.
I sat down over Zoom with Kiwi-Filipina, London-living musician, Kylie Price for a chat. While she was filled with the dreaded covid at the time, she was still absolutely delightful to speak with. We spoke about her leaving little ole New Zealand for the crazy city life of London and how she has been able to feel more at home with her music in the UK than New Zealand. It was an absolute honour to get to virtually meet Kylie and speak about an array of different topics. Oh, and to fangirl over both of one of our favourite musicians: Noah Kahan.
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Hey Kylie! So, you’ve been living in London for three years now, that’s pretty crazy.
Kylie: Two and a half years in, so yeah, it goes very quickly. Time in London goes quickly.
That’s amazing. How do you enjoy it? Do you love it? Find it a bit different?
Kylie: I really didn’t like it to begin with. I knew when I was moving over, I didn’t like it because we’d come over in 2016 and granted, we came over end of October, so it was turning into winter, so it was all grey. So, when I arrived here, I knew I didn’t like it. It took me a good year; I’d say, to feel like I wasn’t the new kid on the block and just to figure out the Tube and how to get to places and where things are the distance to things, because it’s very different to Dunedin, which you can drive around pretty quickly. I’m liking it a lot better now than I was.
It’s definitely different to home, for sure. Obviously, you released your new song, Starboard Side (RGB Sessions) on the 15th of August, which is about London, isn’t it?
Kylie: It is about London. It’s about a group of girls that I fell into here, we were very fortunate that a lot of our friends had moved over, so there was a big cohort of people when we moved over and the girls in that group, I got to know, and they were just so accommodating and a lot of them were Aussies and they knew what it was like to travel all this way. They’re my best friends, they’ve all gone back to Aussie now, but they’re still my very best friends, so Starboard Side is just all about having somebody who is like your Starboard Side, looking out for the iceberg.
I love that! I love the song, it’s so beautiful.
Kylie: Thank you! Thanks for listening.
So, I’ve done a little bit of research, and I know you initially started doing country music. What made you change into more mainstream pop music? Was there any specific reason?
Kylie: I think I always struggled with never being country enough for country and then I wasn’t pop enough or mainstream enough to be mainstream, so I was kind of in this limbo area. I did all the country awards back home and I did the circuit, it was great, it gave me such a lovely platform and helped me on stage, all of that stuff. Country has been cool for me before everyone else jumped on board. Then, I just found that, it was my second EP, Bones, that I just wanted to swap mandolins out for synths, and you know, banjos for electric, clean, rock sounding guitars and that sort of stuff. So, I just saw the production side going more mainstream, but my songwriting, I think has always kind of been similar in that sense. Now, I’m not seeing a return to country, but I am seeing, especially over in the UK that you can have a foot in both, and a great thing I always talk about with the UK is that they are so inviting for singer-songwriters. No one ever says “what genre are you?”, they always just say “what music do you play? Are you a singer? Are you a musician, do you play guitar? What sort of music do you listen to?” and so I found that really refreshing. New Zealand is quite small; it has a very niche sound. For me, I felt like I didn’t really have a place in the New Zealand industry, so it’s kind of sad, but it’s okay. It’s all good. I haven’t left the country [music] as such, I think as I did it for so long, I’m invested in it. It’s how I learnt to sing and how I learnt my guitaring, so it’s always going to be in my music. The likes of Noah Kahan and his latest album, even Maggie Rogers and her latest album, they’re very mainstream. They also have quite an Americana, loosely country feel to them, so I think those two bringing out that you can do both has been really great.
It’s awesome that you can experiment with all sorts of genres and find what feels like you, instead of just sticking to one thing.
Kylie: The UK has given me a lot of ground to try new things, so yeah, I’m very privileged.
When I was looking at your website earlier, I did see on the artwork for Stay, in one of the corners, that you have Noah Kahan’s I Was/I Am cover artwork on there. He’s incredible, isn’t he?
Kylie: Yes. He’s done a lot especially in my type of music, and the type of music that I want to be putting out. He’s been really inspirational, and I saw him earlier this year in London and what you see is what you hear on the album and it’s exactly what you hear live. It’s so lovely when an artist replicates what they’ve recorded, almost to a T, live, and there’s no disconnect from that. I’ve loved him since I heard Young Blood in 2017.
[We chatted about Taylor Swift prior to this question, hence leading to this one]. Do you take any inspiration from Taylor Swift and put that inspiration into your own songs?
Kylie: I really like the imagery, especially Folklore. That kind of era of Taylor and again, [felt like] that album was what she’s always wanted to make, I felt, anyway. Things like that, kind of like Noah as well, I kind of like, listen to it and you might hear different ways that they deliver a line. I don’t know if Taylor is never not influencing something in the world, in one way or another, given who she is. I do like listening to stuff and breaking it down.
How have some of your own personal experiences shaped you as a singer-songwriter this far?
Kylie: It’s quite a big question. If I think of the sort of singer-songwriter I want to be, the main thing I always think about when I’m writing or delivering, or interacting with anybody is to be honest, be relatable and to be transparent, so those are three things that I think encapsulate my music well. That’s just from writing about things that are real to me, or, if they’re not directly something I’ve gone through, my friends have gone through it or I’ve witnessed or observed. So, in terms of my life experiences, I just think being honest, relatable and transparent is a way to bring people together and make them feel less alone. Especially with my experiences in London. I’m the first person to say that it is incredibly lonely in some respects. That’s okay. I’m not the only one who will be lonely here. Nobody talks about how hard it is to make friends when you’re 30. That sort of stuff. I am lonely, so I will write about it. That’s what I try to do, anyway.
I just want to say thank you for that. I moved here alone, I moved to York eleven months ago and I understand that feeling of loneliness. When I heard Starboard Side, I was like “oh my god, I feel this so much.”
Kylie: The amount of people who are like, “I resonate with that so much, I felt really lost moving to the UK.” One of my friends messaged me and asked, “is it okay if you’re still lost at 38?” and I was like, “We are all a bit lost, no matter how old we are. You just keep doing you.” Lonely is universal, nobody ever wants to say that they feel lonely. I’m not sure why. Noone wants to feel that they are lonely because it’s a vulnerability that we’re not always taught it’s safe and okay to show. I was lonely, I told Ben about it, and we wrote a song. That was Starboard Side.
It’s going to be a well-loved song, even from people who are yet to hear it.
This is a question I thought of today, and I don’t know where it came from. It’s a bit of a long one, but, basically, if one thing were to happen tomorrow that would completely change the trajectory of your life for the better, what would you hope would happen?
Kylie: There are two things that popped to mind, I’ll say both of them. One of them is just somehow, that I kick-off on TikTok overnight and, we’ve seen it happen. We’ve seen artists release one song [ and it] absolutely flies off. People go crazy over that one song and the next minute: they’re touring the world and writing with people and charting. It happened with my friend, Kaylee Bell, it was all because of her video of when she was on The Voice. She sung her song, Keith, with was written about Keith Urban and that’s the whole thing. That blew up on TikTok. So, that’s the thing that started it for Bells, so something like that I think is massive and I also know how small of a percentage it is. I’m not putting all of my eggs in one basket in terms of TikTok. Something like that that could get you in front of a mass of people and just kind of, get you out of that, I guess, that ocean of millions of artists who kind of are also in the same spot as you. They can kind of give you that lift. The other thing would be to write with Noah, I don’t know how that could ever go bad and especially with the songs that he writes, I just think of the chats that you would have anyway, in that room. I think I’d just come out of there so much better for it. Those are two things that came to mind. Being able to propel in front of a big audience of people and then writing with one of my favourite artists, that would be insane.
I think you’ve done really well already with getting yourself out there and I see you’ve got quite a good following. From an outsider’s point of view, you’ve got a good following. With the Noah thing, you never know. Your voice and his voice would go good together.
So, I was wondering about the process of writing and recording of your songs?
Kylie: It’s slightly different, but kind of the same thing sometimes. So, say, writing Starboard Side with Ben, I had started writing that song and I had a session with him. I went over to his house, and he has a studio, and he also produces. He’s a really great producer. So, we wrote and then recorded the song. So, it was vocals and guitar. Then we refined it a little bit more over a few more sessions. There is like, a full production version. It’s just not coming out yet. So, there is one, it’s just not acoustic. I do a lot of writing with Duncan Brookfield who is phenomenal and he’s also my MD for my band and we would write from scratch, or we’d write from a drumbeat. It would kind of go a little bit off kilt to write a little bit differently and all of that stuff is like, full production. Not just acoustic and vocals. It’s slightly different, but kind of the same at the same time.
It varies with each song.
Kylie: Yeah, it also depends on how your producer likes to work. Also, if you’ve got a couple of writers in a room and an engineer, or a producer, they’re building the song, while you’re writing the song. It all comes together that way. Usually, it would start off with me having an idea and showing it on guitar and then going from there.
Brilliant! The last question I have here is what does a typical day in your life kind of look like?
Kylie: Well, I also have a full-time job. If it’s a normal working day, it’s doing that and then kind of slotting in my music emails and stuff. I usually try and get up at 6am so I can reply to emails back home before the New Zealand workday finishes. Then, I’d start work here, then afterwards, it’d either be a gig or going to a show or going to the studio or doing more emails or working on a single release. There are some days I take the day off work because I have a really important gig. The other week, I had a songwriting session in the morning at Universal, and then in the afternoon, I was playing a gig for McLaren Headquarters, like the Formula One team. Days can differ. Then, there are days where you’re just filled with covid and that’s okay as well. London kind of breaks up the monotony of what normal looks like, I think. Well, the UK in general.
I am out of questions, sadly. Is there anything else you wanted to add to the interview?
Kylie: I think you covered everything well. Thanks Ash, thanks so much for your time!
You have been so delightful to talk to, so thank you so much!
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To keep up with all of Kylie’s amazing adventures, make sure you check out all of her socials below. You won’t want to miss a beat!
Nur Peach on Following her Dreams in the Face of Being Different, Making Harry Potter Rock Music and Moving to a Big City
Nur Peach was an absolute delight to interview! Nur’s debut album, Syncopate, is due for release on the 22nd June. All photo credits to Levi Dyer.
I caught up with Nur Peach via email to find out more about her debut album, how she felt moving from her comfortable hometown in the Coromandel to Auckland and how much she loves Harry Potter.
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Hi Nur, thank you so much for your time and for allowing me to interview you for Welcome to the Gig! How is life treating you?
Nur: My pleasure, Ash - thanks so much for agreeing to interview me! I'm great, thanks.
You’ve got some very exciting things coming up such as your beautiful new album, Syncopate, which is due to be released on the 22nd June – on a scale of one to ten, how excited are you for this to finally be out in the world?
Nur: Thank you so much for the kind words about Syncopate. In regards to how excited I am about it... it's definitely a ten! It's always been my dream to release an album, and I'm so proud of how it turned out. Syncopate has existed in my head for five years now, and it feels so surreal that it's about to exist out in the world now. The recording process was delayed several times due to lockdowns and there were times when I wasn't sure if I'd get to finish recording the album, let alone release it! But I did get to finish it, and now it's about to be released, which I'm so grateful for.
What does releasing Syncopate mean to you?
Nur: When I listen to the album now, I feel like it's a time capsule of the year I wrote it: 2019, which was my first year of Uni (I did a Bachelor of Music at the University of Auckland). It was one of the best years of my life, and my first taste of independence before everything changed in 2020. I feel like, in releasing the album, I'm immortalising that year in a way.
That year was also the year I turned 18, so this album is also a coming of age story. It's about coming into my own, learning who I am and deciding who I want to be and how I want to live my life. The title, Syncopate, is a music theory term which literally means accenting the offbeats. I've used the word metaphorically to mean daring to be different and to make a difference. To me, this is about taking positive risks to create change in your life and the world, but it's also about self acceptance. I've always struggled with fitting in, and you can hear a lot of these struggles in the lyrics. But despite all this pain, to me the tone of this album is triumphant.
Sometimes, self acceptance can be as hard as getting others to accept you. The world makes those who are different feel insecure about it, and try to hide it, and I've definitely been affected by this. But I'm finding that writing, recording and especially releasing this music brings acceptance. I already experienced this back in October 2022, when I released "Offbeat" which was the lead single from Syncopate. I did a release gig in Thames, and curated the setlist around the theme of being different. It was an extremely powerful experience and probably the most I've ever bared my soul onstage. The audience was amazingly accepting and receptive in allowing me to do that and cheering me on.
Releasing that song was a lot scarier than I expected it to be, because I hadn't realised how personal it was until then. Only as the day approached did I start to see that by putting this song out into the world, I was owning something I've always been insecure about: the fact that I'm "different." I was embracing it for everyone to see, and saying I'm proud of it.
Releasing the whole album feels like it's going to be an even bigger reclamation of who I am. And I think that's really important, not just for me but for everyone. The more we're brave enough to own the parts of ourselves that make us who we are, the more others feel seen and loved, and safe to do the same. After releasing "Offbeat" some people told me that the song had really resonated with their own experience of being different. This made me so happy because it means the song is fulfilling its purpose. My only hope is that it, and the rest of the album, continues to show people that they're not alone.
You wrote the entirety of the album in 2019 and have kept it under your belt since then. Have you made many tweaks within the past five years since writing the album? If so, how has it changed?
Nur: Probably the biggest change was that "Gift From Above" almost wasn't on the album. Although it was also written in 2019, I thought it wasn't going to "fit" on the album because it was supposed to be my "first year album" and I wrote it over the summer holidays (on Christmas Day, actually!). There was going to be a different song instead, which was called "Scared" and was about not giving into fear. But "Gift From Above" was just a way stronger song and, looking back, I realised it might fit better than I thought. In 2022, when I was finishing recording the album, it was becoming more important to me to release my best songs, and I thought if I didn't record "Gift From Above" now, it would probably never see the light of day. So at the last minute, a week or so before my last recording session, I changed my mind and decided to record "Gift From Above" instead of "Scared" I'm so glad I did because it's one of my favourites in terms of how the recording came out, and it's also had a bit of radio success.
Another big change was that I actually wrote the bridge/intro of "Offbeat" (the part that goes "we're all different, all the same/sing it with me now") a year after I wrote the rest of the song, in 2020. I had been performing it without that part for a whole year, but it always felt unfinished. I tried out all kinds of things for both the bridge and intro, like instrumental sections and repeating the chorus too many times, but nothing felt right until I finally stumbled upon those words.
In 2019, you moved from the Coromandel Peninsula to Auckland. How did you find that change? I know from what you’ve said, it has affected your mental health, being so far away from some good nature. What did that move teach you and how did you cope when you felt low because of your newfound city surroundings?
Nur: I think this move is the reason there's such a strong theme of taking risks on the album. I was really nervous about it, because it was my first time living on my own, and also my first time not living in the Coromandel Peninsula (I was born and grew up there). However, I was also excited. I used to visit Auckland a lot as a kid, and always thought the city was so fun and exciting. There was so much more to do in the city than at home. This excitement didn't completely wear off when I was actually there, as is evidenced in songs like "Cover to Cover" I loved the city and I felt like this was when my life really began. However, it was also quite overwhelming and I did end up quite disillusioned about city life.
A big thing I learnt was to be grateful for what you have, because so often, you really don't know what you've got until it's gone. When I lived in the countryside, I thought it was "boring" and just wanted to escape to the city. But once I was there, I really started to see how lucky and blessed I'd been to grow up with nature at my doorstep. I saw that nature was more important to me than I'd realised, and I really started to miss home. The house where I spent much of my childhood has beautiful big gardens and a short walk down the road to the beach. I wished I'd spent more time enjoying these things while I could.
"This Is Home" the first track on Syncopate, is about all this. I wrote it when I was home for the weekend. I'm actually living there again now, and have been since I finished Uni. I still need that song as a reminder, especially the line "now my mind is done deceiving" That line is about acknowledging that what I think I want isn't always what's best for me. It was about not appreciating my incredible surroundings and wanting to go to the city. Now that I'm back here, I'm struggling to spend enough time outside again, and I do sometimes dream about living in the city again. But this song reminds me of what's really important.
In regards to how I coped - to be honest, not very well! But there were a couple of things which I remember really helped. The first was going for walks in parks - being with trees and grass really helped me come back to myself. The other thing was songwriting. I'd been writing songs for most of my life, but it was only around that time that I really started writing constantly as a means of coping with life. Songwriting helps me get in touch with something bigger than myself in the same way that being in nature does.
From what I’ve seen on your social media, you come from a musical family, with your Dad also being a musician. Have you always felt inclined to take on a musical path in your life?
Nur: I definitely have. I've been singing for as long as I can remember, and I wrote my first song when I was five. My dad, Dylan Wade, is an incredible and diverse artist in his own right, and is actually the featured artist on "Gift From Above"! He's a professional singer/songwriter and guitarist who also teaches music. He started teaching me guitar when I was nine, and I also started learning piano the same year.
Music has just been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, and I couldn't imagine life without it. Singing and making up songs always just came naturally to me. My dad was always singing and playing guitar around the house and we often listened to tapes and CDs. I used to love playing make believe games both on my own and with my dad, and they almost always involved songs. I was really young the first time I performed on stage - probably only about four or five, at one of my dad's gigs. He played guitar for me and I improvised words over the top of it. I sang at a lot of his gigs, and as I grew older, I had sets of my own at festivals and the like. After I started writing "proper" songs, I would sing those instead of improvising. I always just found music and performing really fun!
Speaking of your Dad, you were in a band called the Joy Collective together. Are the band still together and if so, tell the readers more about this journey?
Nur: Unfortunately, the Joy Collective no longer exists because the other members decided to go their separate ways. My dad and I still perform together from time to time, and still play a lot of the songs we played with the band. Although I'm sad it ended, I'm really glad I got to be in that band. It was my first experience of being in a proper band, and I learnt so much about working with other musicians. It was a real challenge, but it was also amazing to be part of a larger group, and gave me a sense of purpose during a time when I'd just finished my degree and was feeling pretty low.
Besides music, what other things should we know about you, Nur? What else makes you YOU?
Nur: I'm short with really long brown hair and blue eyes. I live in Waiomu, a small seaside settlement on the Thames Coast, with my parents and 12 year old brother, who's my best friend. I'm vegan, as is my whole family. Both me and my brother have never tried meat and neither of us ever intend on doing so. I love nature, animals and healthy food. My favourite animal is a seal, because my childhood favourite toy was one. I still have him, and there are also several other toy seals in my house! I have this particular thing about the sky: I'm obsessed with stars, sunrises, sunsets and blue summer skies, which I associate with happiness.
Apart from music, my other passion is books. I love stories, especially of the speculative fiction variety (fantasy, sci-fi, dystopian etc., but especially fantasy!). I get really attached to fictional characters and they feel like real people who I know intimately. Most of my favourite characters tend to be heroes, because they're just so inspiring and amazing, and mentors, because they're so wise and you can't help but look up to them. I love stories that create a world you can lose yourself in, but I also love stories that say something important about our world. I love lots of parallels with real life and, of course, inspirational messages about the power of love and how we can all overcome. One of my dreams is to write a novel. I usually have one or two ideas I'm trying to write, but it's really hard and can get overwhelming, so I don't write as often as I'd like to.
My writing doesn't stop at songs and attempted novels, though. I write a lot of poetry, which is a great way to get things off my chest, and sporadically keep a diary. I'm also a freelance music journalist. At the moment, I write for NZ Musician and AudioCulture.
I see that you’re a big Harry Potter fan and even once did some Harry Potter music! That’s some amazing dedication, right there. What’s your favourite thing about Harry Potter?
Nur: Wizard rock was something I discovered in 2021. Believe it or not, there's a whole community of people making music about Harry Potter! And most of them are way more dedicated than I, who's more focussed on my "muggle music" I got really inspired by listening to other wrockers (as they call themselves) and started to write my own wizard rock songs. The wizard rock community is small, but the great thing about that is that it's really easy to get noticed! I started posting my songs on Facebook, and was very quickly noticed by the tastemakers in that community. I ended up being featured on a wizard rock compilation in 2022! My wrock project is called Leviosa, and I'm trying to get an album together for it.
In regards to my favourite thing about Harry Potter, that's really hard because I love so many things about it, and also it changes. When I was 12, the series was my first experience of not being able to put down a book! That's definitely one of my favourite things about it: how you can just lose yourself in that world. When I read the books, I don't feel like I'm just reading about Harry: I feel like I am Harry, and I'm really attending Hogwarts and going on a high stakes quest to save the world. And I can't just not mention how much I love the inspirational messages about the power of love and Harry's triumphant hero's journey arc. There's a lot of symbolism in the series which, to me, has a very deep spiritual meaning and is relevant to everyone's inner struggle.
How do you feel that your music sets you apart from others?
Nur: I struggled with answering this question because at first I thought that everything that makes my music what it is has been done before. I'm not the only one writing lyrics with a positive, uplifting angle - most of my favourite artists do that. I'm not the only one making electropop, or the only one making guitar/piano driven folk singer-songwriter music, or even the only one making both styles. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised how, in trying so hard to come up with something that sets my music apart, I was missing the fact that much of it is about being set apart. I'm not a normal person, so how could my music be? Even when I'm not directly singing about it (which I do a lot), my experiences of being different inform everything I write.
Being a young musician in New Zealand, how have you found getting yourself out there? What kind of advice would you give for newer, aspiring musicians that are trying to get into our small country's music scene?
Nur: I struggle with getting myself out there. I'm a completely independent artist and don't have a team, so I'm basically doing all the work myself, and I'm also very new to the whole promotion thing so often feel like I don't know what I'm doing! So I think my advice would be that even if you don't feel like you know what you're doing, just go for it. Learn by doing. Don't get discouraged by rejections, people not responding or people criticising your music. Put yourself out there and don't be scared of seeming annoying: you have to go after what you want.
The road of the musician, especially the independent musician, is not an easy one by any means. You have to be resilient and able to back yourself. It's really important to know when your artistic instincts are speaking and when you're just being inflexible. Learning the difference is crucial in achieving your full potential and working well with others.
If you could liken your music to any city in the world, what city would it be and why?
Nur: With this question, it was important for me to keep in mind that I've written a lot of music both before and since I wrote Syncopate. I feel like I have more of a tendency to associate my music with nature imagery than city imagery, probably because I've spent most of my life living in the countryside, and I love to use nature imagery in metaphorical ways in my lyrics.
However, Syncopate in particular does have a city association for me, and that city is Auckland. This is obviously because I was living there at the time I wrote it, and I feel very strongly that it's where the album is set. So many of the songs were written (or at least partially written) when walking Auckland's streets to and from class, so whenever I think of or listen to the album, I always picture those streets in my mind.
To round off the interview, is there anything else you would like to add?
Nur: Thank you so much for all your thoughtful questions, Ash. I just wanted to let everyone know that they can purchase Syncopate here.
I'm having some really beautiful CDs made, and you can get those at this link, or a digital download if that's more your style!
Thank you so much for your time, Nur, I am really looking forward to the release of Syncopate!
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For more on Nur, please check out her socials below -
Karra Rhodes on Being a Mum, Dog Mum, Musician and Her Love for Country Music
I had the absolute pleasure to have a chat with upcoming Christchurch-based country musician, Karra Rhodes. All photos provided by Karra.
Recently, I caught up with the uber talented, lovely Karra Rhodes for an interview about her busy life, her upcoming album and how she is delving into the Scottish music scene, as well as the New Zealand music scene.
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Hey Karra! Thank you so much for coming on Welcome to the Gig for an interview. How are things going since your newest release of your single, Why Can’t I Love You Less?
Karra: It should be me saying thank you for having me! I love your writing and the time you have for us artists; it means a lot.
Honestly, things have been great, chaos, but great! I am loving the journey and the connections with other musicians I have made along the way. If you’d told me I would have been here a year ago, I would have been shocked. Songwriting is my biggest crux, I love it! So the opportunities just this one song has opened and created has been almost overwhelming, in the best of ways.
Tell me about the inspiration for Why Can’t I Love You Less and what the feedback has been like since release!
Karra: When I write, I tend to write metaphors / analogies etc – Why can’t I love you less was about stripping it back to the storytelling aspect – mentioning songs on the radio, mentioning literal activities (put on that little black dress… throw back the shots…). This song was inspired by the thought of listening to a radio and it not feeling how it should when you aren’t singing along with that special someone anymore and how you should be out moving on, but it’s hard when everything around you just doesn’t quite sit right.
You've so far released four songs in total. How do you feel your music has evolved since your first single?
Karra: I still feel connected to the first three songs, in particular, My own Mind is very personal… but the genre it fell into wasn’t me. It was produced fantastically by an awesome EDM producer, but my heart and soul are country all the way. Working with Greg Haver on the new music (fourth single onwards) was just a ‘yup yup yup’ moment knowing it ticked all my boxes of what I was looking for in my music. I used to want to be edgier and cooler, but to be honest I have given up on that... I like writing what comes to my mind and what feels right. If you listen to the music, hopefully you’d see a natural evolution of confidence and just believing that I can, and should, write about what matters to me.
You’re a pretty busy lady! What do you do in your spare time away from creating your magical music?
Karra: Oh boy my life is busy! I love music so it does take up a lot of my time creating it… But apart from that, I love writing too, especially fantasy books – such a nerd for anything to do with writing! I also study a lot now which is no fun at all but it’s a must to get onto that next stage of my life. And I have two beautiful, wonderful little kids who keep me busy as well as my dogs and fiancé.
I know that you’re originally from Scotland, which is so exciting! Had you attempted to delve into the Scottish music scene, or is that something you’re just doing in New Zealand?
Karra: I have started to dip my toes into the Scottish music scene but not nearly as much as I would like to, it will be something I will work towards in the future as it is so important to me that my family and friends back home can sort of share that experience with me and have part of me back there.
I hear you have an album on the way! Are you able to share anything regarding that?
Karra: I am terrible at keeping secrets aren’t I!? I probably should have kept that under wraps… But I get too excited! I have so many songs and melodies and lyrics that have just been bursting to get out of the little shadowland of songs I put them into, so it’s very exciting that they will now have a home… You will definitely have regular music coming from me and you can keep that full album on your radar! And after that, I can guarantee it won’t be too long before there will be another album in the works… There’s no stopping at this point!
You’ve had some awesome radio play across New Zealand and Scotland, what’s your reaction like when you hear your own music on the radio?
Karra: I am quite an awkward person, like seriously, if my song comes on – I love it of course – but it’s like when you hear yourself talk, you’re like oh boy this is strange ha-ha so if you’re with me, I will be like ummm should we listen to this, or I can turn it off right?? But gosh I did love the response, and to hear that my music is out there, and it is enjoyed, means more than words can actually express.
What does a typical day off look like for you?
Karra: Like there’s a zombie apocalypse and it’s a scramble for survival… I am joking, but in all seriousness, it’s full on during this period of my life. Trying to be the best mum I can be, while working full time, trying to always make sure my dogs are loved and walked and played with, while studying and making music…. There’s very little down time (for now) but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!
If you could liken your music to any country in the world, which country would you choose and why?
Karra: I would like to think even though my music falls under the country genre (USA), that it has its own sound and doesn’t quite fall under any country… I have moved and lived in many different countries, so I feel I have taken inspiration from many sources. I’d hope so anyway!
What do you hope that your music brings to the world?
Karra: I was talking about this with someone recently. Honestly, I want the lyrics to mean something. I want someone to hear it and think – I can relate – or just feel part of the song. I want it to be something that means something – corny and cliché right? But if it can help someone or if it can be someone’s ‘song’ that resonates with their life and is their song, well that’s what I want.
You’ve got this beautiful country sound! Is country always the way that you knew your music would go and are you considering adding in other genres in the future?
Karra: Country has always been my go to music! Throughout my teenage years I think I was the ONLY one in my friendship group who was obsessed with country music and I think subconsciously I adopted that tone / style. I just feel that country music has stories – and I feel with a lot of other songs they lack that. The realness that country music has – that was always what I wanted. However, in saying that, I love exploring other genres, I am not a closed book to any genre (maybe except rap, although to be honest you’d be surprised how many rap songs I know every word to hah!)
Thank you so much for your time, Karra, I’m very excited to hear your album when it’s released! Is there anything else you would like to add to close out the interview?
Karra: One thing I want to do in the future – is primarily be a writer for other musicians or with other musicians (co-writing). I will always have my own music, but there are far too many lyrics and melodies in my head to be just for me, it would be a waste! I am always open for collaboration…
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Make sure that you keep up with Karra’s exciting adventures at the below links -
Daily Routines, Dreams of Collaboration and Two Truths and a Lie, an Interview with Castaway
If you don’t know these fellas in Castaway, you will be hooked after this interview! L-R (from top to bottom): Austen, Joe, Jackson, Jack and Rhys. Photo provided by Castaway’s Instagram.
Intoxicatingly charming, university-born Christchurch band, Castaway, are not only best buds, but creative geniuses in their field who haven’t stopped revolutionising their crafts ever since they emerged onto the music scene, capturing the attention of listeners both in New Zealand and worldwide.
I caught up with the band via email for a chat and let me tell you, the Castaway lads have some absolutely fantastic answers to my questions, so, without further ado, let’s get into the interview!
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Congratulations on your newest epic release, Supernova! I love how the song came about - you've said it's a mix of shared nostalgia from the band, wishing to break free with your high school sweethearts and looking at going on big adventures. How does it make you feel knowing that they are able to hear these words within Supernova? Have you had any feedback from said high school sweethearts yet?
Castaway: Jee, thanks so much Ash! We are beyond stoked with how the song has come out and that people are vibing it. We haven’t heard from any old flames yet, maybe we should send it through to get their thoughts (the ones that we haven’t blocked, that is)! We’ll keep you posted…
But in all seriousness, we have had some awesome feedback from everyone so far and we’re truly thrilled with the positive reception. It’s extra special when something has been in the works for so long, and you believe in it so strongly, but don’t know for sure if it’s going to resonate with people. So, hearing our mates sing along at parties and seeing new fans all over the world streaming it is seriously humbling for us!
Supernova brings you back to the early 2000s and I've noticed that as a band, you have this kind of old soul vibe, which is unique in the NZ music world. How do you feel that this sets you apart from others?
Castaway: We all come from different musical backgrounds, and collaborating to bring these together is the essence of the Castaway sound. We all love the music of the 60s, 70s, and 80s such as Toto, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Journey - and of course, the 2000s! Bands like The Killers and Coldplay have played a huge part in forging our musical identity. Something that we feel blessed about is that we have two lead singers, and weaving Jackson’s silky smoothness with Joe’s big, powerful voice is a big part of our sound. We love harmonies, which is central to the old soul vibe you mention, and love playing with the contrast that we can create with two such unique voices. This is something we’ve worked hard on imbuing into Supernova and our upcoming releases this year.
It's been quite some time since we have heard any new releases from Castaway, what's been going on for you guys since the release of your EP, Chaos and Order, back in 2021?
Castaway: Although we haven’t had any music out since 2021, we have been non-stop busy developing and crafting our songwriting. We enrolled in the SOLE Music Academy artist development course in 2022 which focused on songwriting and music business. This was a huge step for us as we decided to take the band seriously and give it a good go. We learnt a lot about the industry and met some incredible artists and mentors such as Tiki Taane, Will McGillivray, and Prins. This began our journey transitioning from a university band to something more.
In the artist development course, we were tasked with writing 20 songs across the year. It pushed us hard, but these songs have laid the foundation for our sophomore EP, “Nondual”. In 2023, we started working with producers to get these songs off the ground and met the legendary Greg Haver. We travelled up to Auckland to record in The Lab Studio with Greg and his A-team, and Nondual started coming to life.
What kind of differences do you feel you have implemented into your music since Chaos and Order?
Castaway:
Incorporating synths - we got a gorgeous red Nord Lead 4 and the sounds that come out of the thing blow our minds. We take a lot of notes on how The Killers and Coldplay use synths to create emotion and soundscape - you’ll hear a bit of that throughout Supernova and our upcoming songs.
More intentional and crafted song and lyric writing - our first EP was authentic and youthful, which definitely left some room for our next body of work to be more deeply iterated and refined.
Sounds and production - Our first EP was squarely in the indie rock genre which represented us and our taste at the time. As we’ve explored wider inspirations for our songs we’ve been paying close attention to the nuances that really make the difference. We’ve had a lot of fun trying to incorporate these elements into our new music and we hope that our listeners pick these up too.
Mastered our craft - we’ve all spent heaps of time slaving away to the master of music, the humble Metronome. Being tight is key to feeling cohesive and locked in as a band, so the endless hours of tick tick tick really pay off in the studio.
For those true Castaway fans, you might pick out a widely infamous instrument in some of our upcoming work… The elusive triangle.
As Castaway, you guys seem to be very in tune with each other and that comes across not only in your songs, but also in your stage presence. How did Castaway come to be; how did you know that the five of you would all fit perfectly together?
Castaway: We found each other in our first year at the University of Canterbury. We all went to Rochester and Rutherford hall of residence and ended up in the same building, “Wilson House”. Not long after someone brought a guitar out, we all started jamming together and our drunken nights of yelling “Wilson!” down the hall corridors lead to the formation of Castaway. We mostly played for fun at a few university society events for the first couple years but we each grew to find this hobby becoming a real passion. Castaway’s formation was never a conscious decision, it just naturally fell into place through a combination of sheer luck, a supportive community of mates, and a love for playing music together.
A real turning point for us was when Jackson was looking online for some vocal lessons and discovered Sacha Vee at the SOLE Music Academy. Soon enough, we all started going to SOLE for music lessons and artist development courses. Sacha has been a huge supporter of our band and helped nurture our artistry into what we have today.
How amazing do the lads look with their makeup though? I, a female, can’t even rock makeup like this! Photo provided by Castaway from their EPK.
What does a standard day in Castaway look like?
Castaway: If we are talking about a weekday:
7 am: Triple S.
7.30 am: Gym.
8 am: Loud smoothie making in the kitchen - thanks Jack.
8.30 am: Get to work (sigh).
9 - 5: Live the dream one nightmare at a time.
6 pm: Get home, if on dinner - cook, if Austen on dinner - marvel at the culinary wizardry of the man.
6:30 - 9 pm: Music mahi.
9:01 pm: Cuppa tea.
9:05 pm: TV show of your selection.
10 pm: Sleep and do it all again.
As far as the weekend goes:
10 am: Get up.
11 am: Coffee + food.
12 pm: Chat the smack and chew the fat in the lounge with boys & co.
1 pm: Musical muck around.
4 - 9 pm: Self entertainment. High likelihood of a nap.
10 pm: Get ready for the gig, makeup for select gentlemen.
11 pm: Pack the Castawagon.
11.15 pm: Shot (None for sober driver).
11.20 pm: Leave for gig.
12 am: Start the show.
1 am: Get me a red bull.
2 am: Settle the punters down, finish strong.
3 am: Let’s go home.
4 am: McDonalds.
4:30 am: Bed.
You've all finished your respective studies and are now out into the world with jobs other than music. How do you ensure that you are able to find the time to still make music together?
Castaway: It feels like it was only moments ago that we were hanging out in the halls together but here we are now all working full time. It certainly makes practise and band meetings more challenging not having the flexibility of the uni schedule, but it almost feels like we’re still in the halls as we’ve been flatting together for the last two years. Granted, there are less people complaining about us playing music late at night now (sorry to the management team at R+R hall, please forgive us!).
Living as a unit makes organising practise and meetings a lot easier as we often chat over dinner, or knock on each other’s doors and say ‘hey bro, get your guitar and get in the garage, it’s jamming time!’. It still does require a good routine and we have practise/meetings booked out every Monday and Thursday. We tend to divide and conquer most of the jobs and just make time for these throughout the week around the rest of our lives. Sometimes it can be challenging committing so much time and energy to the band, but we need only remember why we do it - to make music for all you wonderful people!
They may be always busy bees, but they’ve incorporated having fun into their routine, as shown here. Photo provided from Castaway’s EPK.
Over on your Instagram, you've started a little series called Aotearoa's Finest, which is where you cover other NZ music (and do a damn fine job in the process). What inspired you to do this and are there any artists in particular that you would choose to collaborate with in the NZ music scene if you had the opportunity to?
Castaway: Our formation in Ōtautahi/Christchurch meant we were heavily influenced by local acts such as The Butlers and Mako Road in the formative years of the band, and have always looked up to these guys as legends. On one of our very first gigs we opened for The Butlers at the New Brighton hall and it was such an awe-inspiring moment seeing these guys only a few years older than ourselves doing the real life thing, and doing it well! Our early influences is something we haven’t forgotten even if we have moved away from our earlier sound. We wanted to pay tribute to those people who have inspired us and spread the awesome kiwi music that just keeps coming. What better way than to make some covers of some great local tunes.
If there was one artist in the NZ music scene that we could collaborate with it would undoubtedly have to be L.A.B. - true kiwi legends! We LOVE their music and the fun energy they have on stage. They’re so tight as musicians and write such catchy but still creative songs. To spend an evening jamming in the garage and sharing some beers with them would make us a bunch of very happy lads. Maybe one day we’ll get there, we could have never imagined getting to where we are now, so anything is possible!
What fascinates me personally about Castaway is that everybody gets to kind of rotate around, someone will be playing one instrument for one song or someone else singing and then the next everyone has switched and is playing a different instrument, or the singer has changed. It keeps it quite enticing and adds an extra element of surprise for newbies who may have never seen you live before or heard your music. Had this always been something you'd wanted to do as a band, to keep it fresh, or did it somehow accidentally happen like this one day and you went from there?
Castaway: It’s become intentional as a performance element, but it started out from our naturally collaborative style - we’re really passionate about sharing the spotlight, and letting everyone express themselves in as many ways as they can. As multi-instrumentalists, this meant that it was important for us that everyone got to express their different musical characters on stage. Austen plays the guitar differently to Rhys, who drums differently to Joe, who sings differently to Jackson, who plays keys differently to Jack. Giving ourselves the freedom to explore all those combinations keeps it fun and authentic for both us and the audience.
When it’s studio time, it’s a bit more like playing in a World Cup Final - everyone locks into their positions. For recording our songs, we play our primary instruments. That being said, it’s pretty cool recording a part knowing that someone else will play it live. It’s like saying, “here you go bro, I got it for now, then it’s all yours”!
Back in the good ole days of 2021, not too long before their Chaos and Order EP release show. Photo provided by Castaway’s Instagram.
For those who have not heard of Castaway, how would you describe your music to them?
Castaway: Imagine that The Killers and Coldplay raised 5 children. The boys grew up arguing at length about which type of rock is best, even dabbling in grunge (we don’t talk about that song though, do we Austen?), before landing harmoniously on a high-energy, youthful combination of pop and rock.
Like us Castaway boys, our music is fun-loving, high energy, and full of stories about love and failure. We aim to write songs that are perfect for singing along, jumping up and down, and listening to late at night with just your thoughts and the stars.
To add on to the previous question, what kind of fun facts/interesting things can you tell us that maybe a lot of people don't know about you?
Castaway: We’ll give you two truths and a lie:
We all live together in peace and tranquillity.
We used to have a female lead singer.
One of our members has webbed feet.
OG Castaway fans who have been coming out for years may know the answer. Those who don’t - you may have to do some deep digging on our Instagram (classic musician plug!)
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Thank you so much to the Castaway legends for allowing me to interview them and for the wonderful answers.
To check out more of Castaway, make sure you follow along with them through their links below -
The Wonderful Beginnings of Thuryah
Thuryah is an up-and-coming artist who is about to release her debut EP, poetry i don’t write. Photo provided by Thuryah.
Thuryah is due to become a household name over the next couple of years with her well-thought-out vulnerability that will engage you into her music, her unlimited love for her ethnic background and how it plays into her creations, which is what we can all agree on, absolutely amazing. We are in need of a lot more diversity in the New Zealand music industry and Thuryah is here to prove that. The bubbly and kind-hearted Thuryah sat down and answered some questions for Welcome to the Gig about her unique EP that is soon to be released, how she drew on inspiration for her words and embarking on her journey in the industry.
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Hi Thuryah! Thank you so much for allowing me to interview you for Welcome to the Gig and congratulations on your first single, ‘bed’ which you released back in April. The song is sweetly melodic and heartfelt, which is a beautiful combination of things. What inspired you to bring ‘bed’ out as your debut single?
Thuryah: Thank you so much for having me! I had written songs before bed that I thought would be my start in music, but honestly that all changed once I wrote the first line. I recorded it on my laptop one day, completely forgot about it, and then a few weeks later, I went to start a completely different song when I saw a file called ‘bed’ on my laptop. That one line felt so different from anything I had ever written before, and once I continued to write it, I just knew it had to be my debut. It was definitely a gut feeling for me.
I’ve read that you started your progression of songwriting during the crazy times of 2020, which you took inspiration from diary entries and heartbreak. Has music always been something you were looking to pursue? If so, did you think the amount of vulnerability that you allowed to be heard would be as free flowing as it seems in bed?
Thuryah: Absolutely, ever since I was a kid, I knew I wanted to be a singer. My songwriting passion came a little later in life, but singing was what always made me the happiest. And because of that, I don't think there could have been anything that would have stopped me from releasing music one day. When I began songwriting, it was always just for me to listen to, so it allowed me to be vulnerable because I never thought anyone would hear it. Even though I had such a strong feeling that ‘bed’ would be my debut single, at that time, its only real purpose was for me to try to create something beautiful out of a really difficult situation for me. So, I accidentally fell into being a vulnerable lyricist, which I'm so grateful for.
You’ve got your debut EP, poetry i don’t write coming out on the 25th of October. What was the process of creating this EP like? What are listeners able to expect?
Thuryah: The process was a mixture of feelings. The entire EP was written while I was trying to heal, so actively writing was needed so I could process it all, but most of the time, it was really hard and draining. When you're trying to heal and move on from something in your life, the last thing you want to do is constantly dive back into it and try to remember and write down your deepest feelings about it. But that's how art works. You have to make those sacrifices, and if I didn't, this EP probably wouldn't exist. In the end, I am so proud of myself when I look at it all put together. I wrote each song in my bedroom by myself, and as someone who was always more passionate about singing than writing, I'm so proud of my work. Listeners can expect a big extension of the narrative from ‘bed’. You'll hear a deeper dive into the less romantic side of the story and a lot more self-awareness amidst it all.
Getting ready to give you all her musical goodness! Photo provided by Thuryah.
You’ve got a track titled The Nile on poetry i don’t write that you filmed the video back in Egypt and while the song is in English, you’ve got some lyrics in Arabic featured – first, that is incredibly special that you can pay homage to your culture and secondly, how important was it for you to bring that element to your EP?
Thuryah: Thank you so much. Growing up on the North Shore as an Iraqi girl, a lot of people had misperceptions about my culture and identity, so in return, unfortunately, a lot of my young years were spent not wanting to be part of my culture and refusing to identify myself with it at all. But as I got older, I learned to untangle this internalised racism and try my best to cherish my cultural and racial identity at every point in my life. I don't think my teenage self could have ever imagined I'd film a music video in an Arabic country or have Arabic lyrics so I’m just so proud that I could get to this point. I know this is something I'm going to be proud of for the rest of my life.
How do you feel that your music impacts others and what has the feedback been like since you released bed back in April?
Thuryah: Well, judging by all the sad girl playlists bed has been added to, I can imagine my music is something people resonate with when they're feeling heartbroken, reminiscent or just…sad. At first, I wasn't sure how to feel about that because releasing the song has been such a beautiful chapter for me. I forgot that I, too, was a sad girl when writing it. So, I understand, and I can only hope it's helping people validate how they feel in whatever they are going through. The feedback has felt magical. Sometimes, people compare the song to an artist I was listening to at the time, and I squeal inside. I always hoped it could be a song that would help someone, like my favourite songs helped me back then. So, I'm so grateful for such positive feedback.
How have you found your transition into the New Zealand music scene?
Thuryah: I think I’ve been transitioning well! With only one song out it’s hard to tell but I would love to be more in touch with other kiwi artists that’s for sure. Being a musician and pursuing musical dreams can feel very isolating at times so whenever I do find someone who’s on a similar path as me I get really excited. Hopefully when my EP comes out I’ll start to make more of those special connections.
The cover art for bed. Provided by Thuryah.
Besides music, what can you be found doing on your spare time?
Thuryah: Oh that’s a hard one, since the single has been out all I’ve been doing in my spare time is focusing on the EP! But in between my favourite thing to do is spend time with my loved ones. I often watch Disney movies with my family after work, have catch up dinners with my friends, or go see my boyfriend's basketball games. If It's not music stuff I try my best to stay present and not use any technology but spend my time with people I love and care about. Because otherwise all my time is honestly spent on my laptop planning my EP release so it’s important for me to be present in between and make those connections.
I hear you take a lot of inspiration from Lana Del Ray and Taylor Swift, both very prominent female musicians in the industry. What type of elements do you take from them and put into your own tracks?
Thuryah: I’m really obsessed with Lana’s melancholic yet epiphany-like melodies. I definitely took huge inspiration from her album NFR when writing the vocals for bed. The melodies in that album are forever inspiring to me. Taylor is obviously a master of story telling and her album folklore really inspired the opening track to the EP, intro. Although it doesn’t melodically sound very much like something she would put out, I think you can hear it in the lyrics how inspired I was by the ways she describes and values the small elements in a memory from what a person is wearing or how they moved when sitting next to you. It’s really amazing what they both can do.
What would your dream festival line-up look like?
Thuryah: Oooh, I mean Lana and Taylor have to be there but I would also love to see Madison beer, Arctic Monkeys and Sufjan Stevens! I’m an indie-pop girl for life.
What else is coming up in the world of Thuryah that we can expect?
Thuryah: I think people can expect me performing live a lot more after this EP is out. It’s always been something I’ve been very shy about but I think after this project is out I will be so excited to sing it live for everyone to see. But also I've been writing some new music that I’m so excited to share as well. I started writing this EP in 2020 so I’m definitely excited for a new era after the EP is out!
Thank you so much for taking the time to chat! I’m thoroughly looking forward to hearing your debut EP later this year! Would you like to add anything else to the interview?
Thuryah: Thank you so much for having me and for all the kind words! I really appreciate it!
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Keep up with Thuryah below -
The Most Wholesome, Humble Band: An Interview with Marmalade
L-R: The legends that make up Marmalade! Dean, Chelsea, Liam, Jem and Koen! Photography by Danielle Hao-Aickin, provided by Marmalade.
In the ‘burbs of Auckland, three friends moved in together to create something magical, which is where Marmalade was ultimately born! Having added two extra members to the now full band, I caught up with the five musical endeavourers via email to find out what they’ve been up to since the release of their first single, Bright, what they’ve been able to learn from getting opportunities to gig with other artists across the board and the question that is burning in everyone’s minds… When is this EP they speak of due to be released, will we find that out? Guess you will have to read on to find out.
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Hey friends! Thank you so much for agreeing to be interviewed for Welcome to the Gig! How has life been treating you recently?
Jem: Course! Thanks for interviewing us! Life has been treating me reasonably all things considered. We are just gearing up for the release of our next single, but it has been nice to have a little lull in between Bright and the next one to recoup.
Koen: Heyo! Kia ora Ash, thanks for the questions! Life has been a blur lately; time goes by so, so fast! Life is full of fun at the moment; sometimes the music grind becomes a little too much but we’re learning to take our time between releases and touring.
A couple of months back, you released your uplifting, outstanding song, Bright, accompanied by the cutest video. Tell me about the process of bringing Bright to life.
Jem: Bright began in a flat that Koen, Liam and I shared at the time. The three of us fleshed out the bones of the song and then Dean and Chelsea have since then added their own juiciness to the tune as it has evolved. Once we had decided we wanted to release it, the real mahi began. For the first time as a band, we navigated the process of recording and releasing something. It took a lot more admin and time than I think we anticipated but we’ve been stoked with the reception of it so far. We wanted to make a music video that suited the song and also represented the debut aspect of it so we thought meshing together videos of us as children would encapsulate that nicely. It was actually a really joyful experience sifting through childhood videos of Liam, Koen and I (sadly Chelsea and Dean didn't have any childhood videos) and putting them together. Oh the nostalgia!
Everyone in the band is quite a prominent member of the New Zealand music scene, which is quite incredible to see what everyone gets up to. How does it feel to be that engaged in the scene and what kind of things are you aiming to improve on or change?
Jem: Thanks! That's actually really nice to hear as sometimes I experience a bit of imposter syndrome around that. I love being engaged with the Aotearoa music scene. In some ways it makes me feel like I'm part of a community and that I'm not the only one pursuing a career in this whirlwind of a creative world. But on the other hand I do think it could be more inclusive and slightly less cliquey at times. Being part of the industry in a media sense has also really helped with the admin side of releasing music as I’ve gained a lot of knowledge from being on the receiving end of releases that has been useful when releasing music for Marmalade.
Dean: The scene has been an interesting one to be a part of. For the most part all my peers are incredibly supportive and welcoming and I’ve got a great bunch of mentors who are extremely generous with their time and knowledge. My goals are to become a better musician and person which is a constant work in progress.
Having the opportunity to have played gigs with other up-and-coming New Zealand acts and well-established acts, what has been the biggest thing you have been able to learn from being around these bands or individuals?
Jem: Have a good team and be organised. I really notice that bands that keep the vibes high on gig day, understand everyone's needs and have their shit together make for the most enjoyable people to play alongside. It seems to really come down to practising your set and planning everything well before the day so that on the day, you can just hang out with your team and enjoy the process and that tends to influence both the actual performance and the all round experience I think.
Dean: There’s always something to learn from watching bands and artists perform and interact with each other and their audiences. I think we as a band have learned a lot about stage presence and our interaction with the crowd to keep them engaged from the very first note. It’s a work in progress but feels like it’s the right steps to take improvement wise.
Chelsea: Every single musician I have met has had their own sort of “shine” - there’s something very special in bringing that to different spaces and collaborating with other musicians to see what you can create together. Also another big thing I have learnt is that community is important! These people you brush shoulders or share space with often end up becoming good friends you always love to support and watch.
Marmalade just fit perfectly together! Photography by Flora Driessen/photo provided by Marmalade.
I hear you’ve got an EP in the works… What are you able to tell readers about this?
Jem: The next single is coming out in October 👀The EP is still in the works but Bright will be on there amongst a few other of our fave Marmalade tunes. It’s going to be a culmination of what we feel is the sound of Marmalade to give the best idea of who we are as a unit. We absolutely love the tunes that will be on it and we cannot wait to share it with ya!
Koen: Yep, at the moment we have 5 songs shortlisted for an EP, Bright and this next unannounced single included. They’re all cumulations of our tastes in music and indirectly our influences which make for 5 somehow cohesive tunes that can only be described as having that Marmalade quality to them.
Let’s go back to your debut single, Bright, for a moment. It comes across as this ultimate summery bop that really for lack of better word, brightens the darkness, especially through the hovering days of the dreary winter months we’ve been having. When writing Bright, did you think it would end up being your debut single? What felt right about having Bright as your first single?
Jem: When writing Bright I had absolutely no idea haha. However, we’d been playing it live a lot and it just seemed like it made sense as the debut single. It is super easy listening, catchy and we all feel like it encapsulates the Marmalade sound well.
Dean: Bright to me has the most “Marmalde-y” vibe. I reckon you can tell what we’re about before the first verse has even started.
Liam: When I first heard the bare bones of Bright, I felt instantly connected to it, and as we slowly incorporated more musical aspects to the song, it became this representation of Marmalade (in my eyes at least). It has everything that each of us bring to the table, and it just felt right for it to be our first single.
I’ve noticed that every member of Marmalade brings this infectious, vibrant vibe both to the stage and off the stage, do you ever have those days where you question whether music is your future and if so, how do you keep your head held high? I know that the music industry can be a bit of a bumpy ride, so it’s always interesting to hear what individuals have to say about how to deal with those moments.
Jem: Oh, for sure. It’s great to hear that we come across with that kind of energy as I do think that's who we are as individuals, but we definitely do go through the pits sometimes. As a group we hold communication to high value and if we feel doubtful as a band, we get together for an honest kōrero and usually come out the other side feeling a bit better about things. Personally, when I feel unsure about the future, I remind myself of why I'm doing it, make a cup of tea and just ride through it, or chat to a friend about it. Usually, those feelings come and go and sometimes it’s just about acknowledging them and being kind to yourself until they pack up and leave your brain. Sometimes there are some real shit days but as cheesy as it is, luckily, I have 4 Marmalade mates who can relate to the feelings, and we all take turns at picking each other up out of the pits when they inevitably come round.
Koen: All the time. I’m still looking for a way to bring sustainability to this music career we’re all trying to navigate. I suppose that answers question 3 as well; it’s what I would really like to bring to the music scene as a whole. Sustainability.
Dean: I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to do anything else and my drive to disprove the nay-sayers is what has really motivated me to try to leave a mark in this industry and have an impact on my peers. The industry for me has been incredibly fickle to navigate and there are days where I question whether there is a place at the table for someone of my ethnicity but the rejections I’ve faced have just motivated me to keep my nose to the grindstone and try harder, while trying my best to be a good person and serve the music.
Chelsea: Definitely! It’s hard to be a creative in Aotearoa, especially when your labour remains largely unseen and unpaid for a very long time until you finally can get a rhythm with it. The industry can feel a bit frustrating and honestly isolating at times. I’ve had to learn that the biggest thing is to just be present for the music, find like minded people and just enjoy the ride. Success looks different to everyone but I think we are doing our best as a band and being a musician is the most rewarding when we remember our ‘why’ - which is always going to be the music!
How do you feel that your music can make an impact of listeners?
Jem: I’d really hope that our music makes people feel heard and understood. Maybe that we’ve packaged a feeling or experience in a way that they relate to or feel they couldn’t explain.
Koen: This is another core question to why I make music. I don’t think it’s worth making music if it doesn’t impact listeners. Music is an artform and it’s much more important that artists make a mark rather than get a lot of pre-saves, playlists or big dollar sync deals; even though those are also nice.
Buddies for life! Photography by Flora Driessen/photo provided by Marmalade.
Tell me about how Marmalade was born!
Liam: Marmalade was born in the living room in our old flat. Jem, Koen, and I did the same music course at Uni and we were all looking to move houses, so funnily enough we were like “hey let's find a house together and also start a band!”. We were then lucky enough to find 2 incredible musicians, Dean and Chelsea, who jumped on board thus creating the Marmalade family we know today.
Which Kiwi artists are you currently listening to? Which up-and-comers would you recommend for the readers to pop on their playlists?
Jem: Balu Brigada, Foley, Muroki and Wiri Donna to name a few. I also really rate Fools Lagoon, Josette and Sam Bambery who are a bit more up-and-coming but definitely acts to keep an eye out for. There are so many cool kiwi artists though, including everyone Dean and Chelsea have mentioned, it's hard to pick!
Koen: We’re currently planning a tour with some of our favourite bands in tow!
Dean: Skilaa, Geoff Ong, Mazbou Q, Aunty Rae, Lisa Grace, Aro, Māia, Kyla Greening, Club Ruby, Ashy…
Chelsea: Cloak Bay, Leao, Summer Thieves and Club Ruby! The local Hip-Hop scene has been mean lately too. Diggy Dupe, LSJ & Brandn Shiraz, Mazbou Q and The YKK boys (Deadforest, Dera Meelan and Church & AP) are all doing some very, very special stuff.
What makes you most proud to be in Marmalade?
Jem: Apart from making music that I love and the achievements we’ve unlocked so far which I'm so stoked with, honestly, the way we work through the hard stuff. I think it’s really unique that at the end of the day we can sit down and have a mature conversation about whatever is going on. Plus, I’m really proud of what we can achieve as a unit without management or anything, it’s hard work but rewarding when it works out!
Dean: I love how a group of individuals with such diverse backgrounds and skill sets can come together to create something we’re all proud of. (Chelsea seconds this.)
Besides your upcoming EP, what other things do Marmalade have in the works?
Jem: Our second single coming out in October and A TOUR! We will be playing in Auckland, Waiheke and Wellington late October/early November this year and we can’t wait!
Thank you so much for your time! I look forward to hearing the next drop from Marmalade!
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Stay on the game by following Marmalade at all of their links below -
Spencer Coyle on What Music Means to Him and Collaborating with Drax Project
Recently, I got the chance to get in contact with up-and-coming Kiwi artist, Spencer Coyle to talk all things collaborating with Drax Project, his EP in the works and about the tour he is currently on with Mitch James. Photo: Provided by Sony Music NZ.
Spencer Coyle is a name that if you don’t know right now, you will know within the next week or two. Currently on tour with Mitch James, Spencer is on the way up with his catchy earworms in the form of music. Having recently released his newest offering, Castaway, with Drax Project, Spencer will have you hooked from the moment you listen to his music.
I sent some questions over for Spencer to answer, make sure to check out the below to find out more about this young, talented artist!
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Hey Spencer, thank you so much for coming on Welcome to the Gig! You’ve had some exciting things happening in your career recently such as releasing your latest track, Castaway, with Drax Project. Alongside quite a quirky video. How did the collab with Drax Project come about?
Spencer: I went to the studio one day and found out that I had a session with the Drax Project boys the next day. We wrote the song within a few hours of meeting. We all got quite attached to the song so finishing it was a given.
Castaway is this cool, calm, collected masterpiece that brings about these feelings of summer. Tell me about the process of bringing Castaway to life.
Spencer: At the start of the session, we all agreed we were going to write a summer song. I remember asking the boys what 3 things they would bring with them if they got stuck on a desert island. Somewhere in this conversation somebody bought up the castaway concept. We were all reflecting on the past few years with all the covid lockdown hysteria and felt like using the concept of “casting away” was a cool and unique fit.
Have you got any more future collabs with Drax Project in the works currently?
Spencer: Not currently. I am a huge Drax Project fan myself so I would love to collaborate with them more on future projects. All 4 of the boys are such incredible musicians and they have their recording process so engrained and on point.
I’ve read that you grew up inspired by the likes of Justin Bieber and others. Which of Justin’s songs inspired you the most and were there any elements that you took from his music and incorporated into your own?
Spencer: I have been a big fan of Justin since I was about 6 years old. I remember going to watch his movie “Never Say Never” with my cousin and leaving the theatre so inspired and since then all I have ever wanted to be is a musician. Obviously, there is no doubt he is a great musician with a truckload of hits but I think for me I mostly looked up to him as a fellow young male singer. Being a male pop singer in New Zealand surrounded by a culture of tall poppy syndrome wasn’t always easy but I could always look up to Justin as somebody who defied the odds.
You’re currently on tour with Mitch James for his Long Road Home tour. How are you finding that? Have you got any highlights so far?
Spencer: The tour has been an absolute dream so far. I've been a big fan of Mitch and his work for about 6 years now so it has felt so full circle to be sharing the stage with him every night. I’d say the biggest highlight so far has been the Dunedin show. It is hard to describe the feeling of hearing a crowd of people singing along with you and absolute strangers knowing all the words to your songs.
A capture from the Castaway shoot. Photo: provided by Sony Music NZ.
What was your reaction when you found out you were going on tour with Mitch?
Spencer: It was kind of hard to believe at first because as I mentioned I've been a massive Mitch fan for many years. It still feels very surreal stepping out on that stage.
What does the value of music mean to you?
Spencer: I honestly have no idea what I'd do without music. I'm either listening to or making music from the minute I wake up to the minute I go to sleep. From a very young age, music has been pretty much my only interest and passion. So, to answer that question plain and simple, music means everything to me.
For those who have the luxury of getting to see you on tour, what can audiences expect?
Spencer: Audiences can expect an intimate and acoustic set of original music, both released and unreleased as well as a cover or two.
What emotions do you hope to evoke with your music?
Spencer: Honestly, I just hope that my music can resonate with people. As an artist, there is nothing better than audiences creating memories to your music.
What’s the next step in your quickly evolving career?
Spencer: I am currently sitting on an EP which is set to come out in the very near future. A definite next step is just to play as many live shows as possible and hopefully have the ability to start playing headline shows and growing my audience.
Thank you so much for your time, Spencer! I appreciate that you have a busy schedule and am excited to see what your next project is. Do you have anything further to add?
Spencer: Thank you for having me. I’m very much looking forward to seeing what the future has in store for me.
Follow along with Spencer below:
Chasing The Silent Era: An Interview with Chris Schwarten
The Silent Era have a lot to offer and are quickly rising to make their music known across the UK! From L-R: Chris Schwarten, Jo Eiffes, Nicolas Zappa and Bri Macanas. All photos provided by Chris from The Silent Era.
While in London at the end of March, I caught up with legendary Australian, Chris Schwarten, who is the guitarist in London-based four-piece, shoe-gazey, alternative-rock band, The Silent Era.
We spoke about how different the music scene is between England and New Zealand (Chris has been involved in the Auckland music scene previously), what animal he would liken the band’s music to and the long process of recording.
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I’m here with Chris from The Silent Era, hello!
Chris: Hello!
Thank you so much for coming on Welcome to the Gig, it’s awesome to meet you.
Chris: Thank you so much for coming down on this lovely day in Kings Cross.
How’s your day going?
Chris: It’s good, good, I’ve just been working most of the day which is fine, you’ve got to do something to pay the bills.
As I mentioned, you’re from The Silent Era. Tell me about the band a little bit, what’s your background, how long have you been going for?
Chris: We’re an alternative rock four-piece, we’ve only really been together for the last two years, but the core of the band has been playing together for at least four years now on different projects. We’ve had at least two bands that we’ve been in prior that have fallen apart or have changed line-ups, then we’ve ended up with what we’ve got now, which is a little bit shoe-gazey, a little bit goth-rock… We’ve also got a really powerful female vocalist up front, which is kind of not really common for either of those genres.
I noticed that when I first listened to your single that, oh, you’ve got a female vocalist! That’s so cool. I love the diversity that you guys have.
Chris: That was one of the awesome things to me, I wanted to do something with a female vocalist, especially if we were doing something heavy and sometimes the guitars can get so noisy that they’re almost like white noise at times, so I wanted to juxtapose that with something really strongly melodically and I think that when you’ve got something really heavy, not that I think we are really that heavy, but when you’ve got something and you put a strong melody in and strong vocal on top of that, I think that’s when you can get interesting results. Which is what we’re trying to do.
I think you’ve achieved that with the first single that you’ve got out. Speaking of your first single, Heavy Cure, was released mid-January, tell me about the process around recording and writing, how did it all come together?
Chris: We started working on that song just after - in the middle of our worst lockdown - basically, our previous band, we’d just started recording an album and our singer decided he didn’t want to do it anymore and we basically didn’t know what to do with ourselves and we had recorded all this music and we couldn’t really do anything [with it]. We just decided because we couldn’t go out, we couldn’t see anybody, we had our rehearsal room, we could technically go and play in, so we decided, “okay, that’s within the rules, so let’s go down and just play music for fun” and we just started working on the songs together on our own, just the three of us and that was the first song that we starting working on. Our bass player, Nick, just demoed it up and bought it in and we got it out. That’s what it was. It was just an instrumental for a year or something while we were looking for singers and there were about four or five different singers until Bri reached out to us one day and said “hey, do you want to a female vocalist?” and it was like, “yes, that’s what we were looking for!”
Amazing, so it all came together quite well.
Chris: Yeah, it came together, but it took quite a long time. We recorded it last August and we’ve only just got to putting it out now.
Good things take time and you hear that with a lot of bands that they record something a year or two prior whichever and it doesn’t come out for ages.
Chris: Yeah, I never wanted to be one of those bands. Our other singles, we were hoping they would have been out last month [February 2023] and we only just got around to doing that now and they were recorded at the same time [as Heavy Cure], but everything takes longer with us.
Do you have someone who mixes and masters all of your work for you?
Chris: So, our bass player has been mixing our ones for this. He’s got a background in sound engineering, he’s a real whizz with the studio stuff. We recorded the next single in a studio in Brighton called Small Pond. We also recorded extra parts in his studio at home. We kind of recorded all over the place. I think that’s something we will probably do a bit more of, as well.
So, you’ve got bits of stories from different parts of England where you’ve recorded them, which is pretty awesome.
Chris: We’re probably going back to Brighton, it’s a pretty cool recording studio at the Small Pond. I had a really cool amp set-up for that, my amp was about £4,000 and I recorded about 100 guitar tracks. It was good to have that time to actually do that. I’ve done recording sessions in Reading and a couple of ones in London studios and some engineers aren’t that keen for you to take your time, essentially.
What was the inspiration behind going for the genre of music you make?
Chris: It kind of happened very naturally, it was more because of what we listen to, I guess. Nick and I, the first band we started doing, was this really experimental kind of industrial doom band. It kind of carried on from that. Him and I have quite a crossover in our musical taste, we’re both massive fans of Nine Inch Nails and Deftones, so those are the two big ones that come through, also The Cure. I mean, there’s probably 100 different bands that we’ll talk about at different times. Sometimes it’s The Cure, sometimes it’s Rage Against the Machine. It kind of varies. When we do our demos, I think, sometimes we’ll even call one song The Queens of the Stone Age song or something like that because it’s got a riff that’s like that, or that’s the Tool song, or that’s that. Nick used to do this thing where he would name his songs after cheesy things from the 60s and he has had some where Bri has taken inspiration from that and the lyrics end up in the choruses. I won’t tell you what they are, but you’ll hear them in good time. They come from all over the place.
I hear you’ve got a gig coming up at The Finsbury on the 15th April (editor note: for context, this interview took place back in March), what can anyone who hasn’t been to any of your live performances expect from that show?
Chris: It will be loud.
Maybe bring earplugs?
Chris: Definitely bring earplugs. You will end up with tinnitus if you don’t. Other than that, it’s kind of… We just sort of, rip through our set. We have a lot of songs to play and we just get through them basically, but we always have a curated set and we always try to have our visuals. We have a visuals guy who has done visuals for all of our songs. Everything transitions to another, so there’s basically one break in the show where we say “we’re The Silent Era, thanks for coming out” otherwise, we’re just going through it, which is good in some ways and bad in other ways because you sometimes find yourself changing guitars and going, “okay, alright. We’re coming with the next one.” But anyway, it’s good fun, but it’s a very fast 40-minutes or so.
If you’re non-stop, how do you deal with that?
Chris: It’s ah… It’s not too bad. It’s just because we rehearse it that way. We’ve got twelve songs or something to choose from and we change our setlist every time we play. We always plan that out before, so I guess it’s just a case of being prepared and knowing we’ve got cues to go with.
Is there a particular song you like to open with or close with? I know you did say it changes every time…
Chris: Yeah, we always close with Scorpio, which is our next single, so that kind of always ends up being the last one because it’s the highest energy one. We started opening with a brand new one… The single, we’re going to have an A side and a B side and the B side is going to be a cover of Mazzy Star’s ‘Into Dust’ and we like to open with that. That’s a standard opener and we don’t always open with it, but the reason we do that is because it starts off very soft and melodic and it stops people from talking over the top of us when we start playing. It’s kind of a good way of getting everyone to shoosh each other and getting everyone to pay attention.
I would love to be at one of your shows eventually, but of course, I don’t live in London.
Chris: Unfortunately, our drummer left last month, so we would have had a show lined up this month, because we tend to play three times a month. Next month, we were supposed to be playing four times, but things got in the way of that, as well. We are currently trying to get a drummer, our new drummer, up to show status. Unfortunately, the Finsbury’s the next one. It feels like it’s been ages since we played a gig, so we feel like we don’t remember how to do it.
I guess you’d miss it, when you haven’t played a gig in a while?
Chris: I didn’t think I would. I used to dread doing gigs and now I’ve gotten quite used to doing it. I start getting a bit, not antsy, but whenever I go and see a band, I’m always like “ah, I wish it was gig night tonight.” Hopefully we’ll get to go on a bit of a run after I come back from New Zealand. One thing we sort of started doing last year was playing outside of London. It’s very boring, but there’s regulations that you can’t play in London too often. Promoters don’t want you to play within two or three weeks of a gig because they want to ensure they get a good crowd for their gig. So, we started looking out and playing gigs elsewhere to get out of that. It is a bit of a slog when you have to go out to Reading on a Wednesday night or something. Anyway, it’s good. We keep cracking at it, though. If we could do it, we would probably play four times a week.
If you could choose three relatively unknown bands to open on support for one of your shows, who would you choose and why?
Chris: How relatively unknown is relatively unknown?
Just whatever you think, obviously not big hot shots out there.
Chris: There’s an excellent, actually, there’s two great Brighton bands I’d say right off the bat - I’d say Clt Drp, they’re a super interesting band. It’s really interesting because they’ve got the most amazing guitar player I’ve seen live and he doesn’t play in a traditional sense and he basically plays techno on his guitar. They also have the greatest drummer as well, they’re a super good band. So, probably them. Another Brighton band is InTechnicolour, they’re a really cool stoner metal band. They’ve been progressing in their latest album and you can kind of see there’s a bit of slickness about them, they’ve taken off the rough edges a little bit, so they’ve got a stronger sense of melody, but they’ve still got a grittiness to them. For a third one… How popular are Wet Leg in New Zealand?
They just have been to New Zealand, so they’re pretty popular. They can be the third answer.
Chris: Nah, I’ll say Wolf Alice. Let’s go Wolf Alice. They’re a big band here. We’d be a good fit for a Wolf Alice line-up. A very good band.
How do you find the support here in London, is it quite difficult or quite easy to get support from the public?
Chris: It’s easy to get gigs here. I also was trying to get into the Auckland scene. When I was in Auckland, I found it hard to play with people who had the same interests and tastes as me, whereas in London, there’s just so many people and you’ve just got to find people, so there’s a lot more opportunities in that sense. There are so many more pubs and we’re just in a random one in Kings Cross that just happens to put on gigs. It’s very easy to find places to play and I get promoters emailing us good offers from venues that I’ve never even heard of, it’s like, “oh, I didn’t know that was even a place in London!” whereas in Auckland, I know of all the places, I went to them. I find in Auckland, they’re a lot better at curating line-ups, so we’ve played with some jazz bands and folk bands. We’ve played with kind of a marching band last time we played at the Water Rat. It was a bit weird. They’re a bit like America’s Got Talent kind of thing. They played at Glastonbury. It was weird. You wouldn’t get that in Auckland and I think that’s probably a good thing.
If you could liken your tunes to an animal, which animal would you choose and why?
Chris: Dog. I just love dogs. My dream is to one day have a random patch of land that I have all these retired animals on and I’d have rescue dogs and rescue horses. I just think that dogs tend to bring so much happiness to life.
Scorpio/Into Dust is now available to listen to on Spotify and Apple Music and you can also check out The Silent Era’s Bandcamp to listen, too.
What’s next for The Silent Era, apart from the singles and the gig?
Chris: We’re going to start working on an album once I come back from New Zealand. It takes us so frigging long to do anything, we were hoping to start recording it this month, but we weren’t anticipating having a line-up change, so that’s kind of thrown things out, so it might be July when we start recording. As I say, we’ve got twelve songs so far and there might be two more singles out before the end of the year and hopefully some festival shows. That’s the plan. There are always opportunities that come up and there’s opportunities that we don’t necessarily always know about. I mean, we just started getting other bands who are just coming into town asking us to support them, so we are just getting those offers now. It’s exciting, just kind of getting opportunities coming along.
That’s great news that people are reaching out and asking you to support them. That’s huge!
Chris: Yeah, I mean, we kind of take things seriously, but I think in previous bands, we’ve taken things too seriously and it’s kind of taken the fun out of it. We try and be a bit more chilled out about things now because of us having been a few different bands at this point, so we’re trying not to lose sight of the fun aspect. We’re doing things we want to enjoy. If we have a shit time, we are not going to do it. If we play a terrible pub, we’re probably not going to play that place again. We’re just trying to take it one day at a time and have the best time that we can.
Where can people find your music and your social media?
Chris: Definitely follow on Instagram, I don’t have anything to do with it. Our singer, Bri, does all of that and does a good job of it. We’re going to try and be a bit more active on it. We’re trying to do a bit more behind the scenes sort of stuff. Spotify, Apple Music… But if you also go to our Soundcloud, we release demos well before we put them out. We’re just going to try and do that, we’re not being too precious about it. We want to be as accessible as we can be.
Thank you so much Chris for letting me interview you. It has been a real pleasure, especially here in London, I’ve never done an interview outside of New Zealand before.
Chris: Thank you so much!
For more on The Silent Era, you can check out their links below -
Chats with Dean from Gibson XCVIII - What Country Their Music Would be, NZ Music Support and Genre Changes
Gibson XCVIII are made up of Mark (left) and Dean (right). We had a nifty wee email interview to chat about a few things we didn’t cover on the podcast. Have a read below to find out more! PC: Dean from Gibson XCVIII.
Hey guys, thanks once again for taking the time to be interviewed! It’s been a few months since you were on the show and I’m stoked to have you back, but on the blog.
Gibson XCVIII: Thank you so much for having us again!
How has life been since the show aired? What’s been going on for Gibson XCVIII?
Gibson XCVIII: Things have been going well! There's a lot going on in the background, and we can't wait to share what we have been working on in 2023.
You’ve recently released another groovy song, GAME OF LIFE, which is brilliant, by the way. What has the response been to that, has it done as well as you’d hoped it would?
Gibson XCVIII: Thank you so much!! We've been blown away by the response of GOL, honestly we are super stoked with how it has turned out.
The dynamic that you’ve got as a band was touched on during the show and I love the fact that you can just bounce off of each other. Has that bond gotten stronger the past few months?
Gibson XCVIII: This is definitely something that continues to grow as time goes on and we continue working together. It is certainly something that we both take pride in when it comes to working on new ideas / concepts! We are confident that this will only get stronger as time goes on.
Besides music, what else do you both enjoy doing?
Gibson XCVIII: Not a lot really! We both work full time which takes up most of our schedules anyway! I guess apart from that, it really is just music!
Do you have a turning point in your lives where you were like, “wow. Music is what I should be pursuing?”
Gibson XCVIII: I'm pretty certain that music has always played its part in our lives since we were young. I guess the turning point was the end product when we started writing music. As soon as we listened to what we created, I think that was then where we realized this was something worth pursuing.
If your music was a country, which country would it be and why?
Gibson XCVIII: Hahaha that's a great question! I'd definitely say New Zealand, because that's where we are from and where our stories originate from. But in saying that I'd absolutely count the countries our extended families are from, like The Netherlands and Thailand!
If Gibson XCVIII were to change musical direction, which way would you go?
Gibson XCVIII: That is honestly something that we've thought about for a long time, and to be honest it's really hard to put a finger on it! Perhaps if we were to go down the alternative/indie route sonically that would be the closest bet, but we would always continue writing honest music as much as possible!
The moodiness of this photo is far from what you get when chatting to the Gibson XCVIII guys. PC: Gibson XCVIII Facebook.
A question that I have been asking a little bit of late is how do you feel that as New Zealand musicians, you can be better supported? I think it’s important to get a standpoint from different artists on this answer as I don’t believe you get as much support as say, Australian, American or even British musicians.
Gibson XCVIII: This is certainly an ongoing discussion happening in NZ. It's awesome to see that there are steps made in the business regarding representation and funding towards musical arts, but there's always more room to improve on. I personally believe that the industry in NZ should follow similarly to what Australia does, where they have the Triple J Radio & Triple J Unearthed - perhaps something that could be done here in NZ is to link with an already established national radio like ZM, The Edge, More FM + others! It's also refreshing to see organizations like RDU & Big Fan stepping up offering programmes towards musical development, diversifying opportunities for all of NZ as opposed to always gunning for funding from public agencies such as NZ On Air or Creative NZ, who knows what else may be on offer!
Have you ever had any interesting moments during recording that kind of took you aback?
Gibson XCVIII: Listening to your playing back is always something that takes us aback! I know it sounds silly but one thing my dad used to always tell me "the biggest critic in whatever you do will always be yourself" - sometimes listening [to it] back it can be quite daunting yet I'll admit there are times where we listen back and are fully dumbfounded that we just did that!
If you could have an animal to go everywhere with you, no matter how crazy, what animal would you choose and why?
Gibson XCVIII: It would be sooooo cool to have a pet elephant - they are such beautiful creatures and are incredibly adorable! They have so much character to them and are cheeky buggers hahaha.
Current favourite musician/band?
Gibson XCVIII: JON BELLION! NUMBER 1 FAN HERE.
What’s next for Gibson XCVIII?
Gibson XCVIII: We're currently working on something new here (stay tuned) plus currently in the works to pack out our calendar to perform live! Maybe even a wee tour, who knows ;)
Anything else you’d like to add?
Gibson XCVIII: Stay positive!
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Big thank you to Dean for his time answering the questions. Stay up-to-date with Gibson XCVIII below -
Words of Wisdom with the Monk Seals
3/4 of the Monk Seals! L-R: Jono, Abel and Yannik sat down at Rollickin’ to have a chat with Welcome to the Gig last week. Spot that Monk Seals poster on the wall! Photo taken on the Sony A600.
Last week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with talented-as-heck Christchurch band, the Monk Seals, to hear all their pearls of wisdom of what advice they would give to up-and-coming musicians, how they make things easier on those bad days and how New Zealand musicians can be more supported.
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Thank you for letting me interview you and a huge congratulations on the release of Easier Now, the second single of yours.
MS: Thank you, it’s been a good time, it’s been a fun journey for sure.
How’s the response been so far?
MS: It’s been real good. Everyone who's listened to it has said it’s real catchy, which is what we’re excited about. We think it’s real catchy. This is quite a cool song, it’s something that people will want to listen to more than once.
I know you said last time on the podcast that you were seeking more constructive criticism, have you had that?
MS: We have noticed that people have said like… The transitions between some songs have been slower, but that’s more just admin. Since our last [set of] gigs, we took that into consideration and planned out our transitions so that it can just be a lot more smooth and just more professional, I suppose, than “here’s the new song”. We’ve been trying to make it more like a show, rather than just a live band playing music at a bar.
MS: I think a lot more feedback as a band as opposed to the music itself. At the end of the day, we’re the only ones who can you know… As far as music goes, we’re probably our own worst critics a little bit, which is all good. We know what’s great and we know what we need to improve on and stuff. Every song gets a little bit better, I reckon.
Absolutely. I mean, you’ve only got two songs out at the moment, but I’m assuming you’ve got lots more on the way?
MS: Ah yeah, for sure. We’ve got so many songs that we’ve written. Even newer music that we’ve written recently. We’ve just got so many original songs we don’t know what to do with them, which is great because at the end of the day, we play music first and foremost because we’re musicians. So, we can just pick out the best ones because we’ve got so much now. When it comes to recording, we can just pick something out.
Are you guys still working with TK?
MS: We just finished working with him. It was such a fun experience recording with him, but you know, he’s a busy man. He’s earnt himself a well-deserved break. We’d love to record with him sometime soon when he’s got the time available. He really understood what the sound was we were going for. We can record a song at the end of the day, but it’s the person who mixes and masters it that really makes it. He executed that brilliantly.
That’s a bummer he’s busy, but it’s good you guys can experiment with different producers and such.
How does Easier Now differ from Sex Disco?
MS: It was actually made by a different human being, which makes it a lot different. Our old bass player, David, he came up with the riff and that’s sort of how the song originated. We all listen to the same music, it’s kind of drawn from similar sort of people. Like artists, influences. It was made by David and then we’ve sort of, made it our own. That’s how it differs from Sex Disco.
MS: Also, Sex Disco it was just a fun song, a little bit of a piss-take and just like, woo, party! [With] Easier Now, it’s about getting, like, out of a tough period. It’s a happy song. Sex Disco was rocky, but this one is a bit more uplifting and meaningful, but still, we tried to maintain that silly element. I don’t know, could you say it was a little bit more melodic, as well? Sex Disco was more like a blues-y kind of song. It’s more sing-a-longy, I guess.
This segways into my next question, what do you guys do when you’re not finding life easy. What makes it easier for you?
MS: Good question, good question. Music helps! Definitely being in a tough situation, like a break-up, you can turn it into a song and make something out of it.
MS: First and foremost, we’re musicians, so music is the reason we get up in the morning and I feel like [it helps when] getting on with the day.
MS: When you are broken hearted, you make art with the pieces.
That was words of inspiration right there.
MS: We’ve got ourselves a wee Shakespeare.
“You make art with the pieces.” words of ultimate wisdom from Abel.
We were just talking about your gig before. Your sold out gig at 12 Bar recently, do you have any major highlights from that night?
MS: So much fun, eh. A highlight was just being able to play the brand new songs. Like, the brand, brand new songs. For me, it was really exciting when we were about to play Sex Disco, everyone was “yeah!” and that showed myself and rest the rest of us like, “wow, they’re familiar with the song”. We could see people singing our original music which is very exciting to see.
MS: It was fun getting the antics as well. Getting a little bit more like, theatrical with it. We want to get way more into that. Last gig I think was like, a good indication of the direction we want to move more towards when it comes to gigs, you know? Just getting more creative with it. Building more of a community with it. Our last gig felt like a real good community, everyone was just stoked.
MS: It’s cool to see, when planning a show, when it comes to theatrical stuff, it’s nice seeing something come to life. We played one of our new songs where I talked about Yannik being held captive by goblins, you know? That’s silly, but when he came out in his dishevelled, hunched over, gremlin persona, it was really funny because that’s just how I pictured it in my head. People thought it was funny. It wasn’t just some weird inside joke between all of us.
You bring such high energy to the stage, it always blows people away.
MS: It’s great, but it’s also kind of scary because you think “oh, wow, we’re getting more and more theatrical and outrageous” like, we’re going to have to keep getting more and more ridiculous. One day, we’re going to like, blow up or something. It’s great, but it will be our undoing, for sure.
I can’t wait to see your next show.
What do you think about Monk Seals appeals to the audience at your live shows?
(At this point I realised I had asked a very silly question.)
MS: We’d hope the music. We’re a very energetic band. We’ve had people say that they really like, as a group, our dynamic of personalities. I think when we’re all together, we have like, this alluring quality and you know. Maybe sometimes they want to come to see Yannik take his shirt off. They want to see Abel with his shirt off. They might just want to see me in my blue jumpsuit. There’s no real way of telling what’s going on inside of the audiences’ heads. They seem to enjoy it, so that’s cool. We’re just here to entertain.
MS: I think a lot of it is just something different, really. Personally, I don’t think there’s anyone else out there, well, of course there are, but not many people are doing the same kind of music we do, the same kind of live performance we do. It’s a lot of inspiration from when like, rock was really our main focus in the industry and we are just trying to incorporate what made it so good back then into today. I think people appreciate that because it is something that is so… That whole vibe, is just, I don’t know… People just like it.
MS: See, it’s a real throwback for some people with some of the sounds we use. Our song writing and structure is still quite different. It’s not like we’ve just looked at a textbook of 70s music or something. I suppose it seems that our music and personas are authentic because it’s not like we’re just trying to force what we do. It all comes very naturally to us. It’s who we are. We’ve just been like that for years. Even when we were younger, we were like that. We’ve always all about doing something that’s a bit out there. It doesn’t seem out there for us, but I guess for other people, it’s different. It’s organic.
Jono and Yannik performing recently at Loons, Lyttelton. Photo taken on the Sony A6000.
With New Zealand music becoming more popular both locally and internationally, do you think there need to be changes in the way New Zealand musicians are supported?
MS: Oh, absolutely. As an artist, it’s kind of hard to become more and more utilitarian, there’s not much support for the arts. Christchurch isn’t the most, you know, artsy kind of [place]. It’s not a place like Wellington where it’s more celebrated. Artists need to get a lot more support and recognition and be valued as contributors to society. What would the world be like without art or music? Otherwise, everything is just bland without art.
I agree with you there. I’m obviously not a musician, but just seeing what you guys go through to get enough recognition as international artists is a hell of a lot harder here.
MS: It is a big fight these days. There’s so much competition out there. To ask for more recognition, it’s like, yeah, but at the same time, everyone wants that. There is going to be a whole thing that there are some people that do get more recognition. It’s like, clawing your way to the top.
MS: It’s real hard to earn decent money through streaming, as well. You know, we accept reduced royalties, which in my opinion, is a bit like robbery. Artists need to be looked on more seriously instead of [being looked at like] a bunch of hipsters, strumming guitars… Because a lot of work goes into it.
MS: It’s not just all fun and games and grabbing ass, that’s for sure.
I don’t know how you can get ahead. As you said, Christchurch is not the most artistic place and there aren’t enough venues for you to play.
MS: It’s hard when you know, you have instances where people are complaining about noise control and stuff, that’s ridiculous. Bit of a Donny move. It does make it really hard for artists and business owners in general because you know, business and music go hand-in-hand, it’s entertainment.
Would you guys ever consider moving to a different city to pursue music further?
MS: New country, new cities. Aussies got it going on. They appreciate it over there. They appreciate more bands over there, you know? As opposed to here, it’s very D&B orientated. “What’s everyone doing in the weekend?” “D&B!” you know?
MS: It gets bland after a while.
MS: It’s a lot more supportive. The culture is more fitting for it.
How do you feel you can inspire upcoming musicians that want to do what you’re doing?
MS: Because we play part instruments and we don’t really use drum machines or things like that, I feel like that’s dying out nowadays. Real music is live. To all the up-and-coming rockers that want to start their own band, we want to inspire people to be like, yeah, bands can make it, you can play your instruments, you don’t have to go all, I don’t know, techie and stuff in production.
MS: You have to work for it. What I’d encourage a young, upcoming artist… Don’t try to be like anyone. Just be you. I’d encourage artists to be themselves. The best work will come out of doing what feels right for them.
MS: 100%. Love what you do, eh. Back yourself.
MS: Oblivion is bliss.
MS: We were like, 14, 15 when we started off. I joined Monk Seals in year 10 and we just wanted to play rock music and that’s how we’d spend our lunchtime. Every morning tea and lunchtime for the whole year. We weren’t great at first, but we had the ambition and the drive.
MS: We would just jam and it would sound pretty good. Obviously, we weren’t the best, just all those years we’ve gotten to know each other, we’ve just gotten better and better. Since we were all close friends, just having that strong friendship really helps as a musician. When you’re in a band, it’s all about relationships.
MS: But mostly, HAVE FUN! As cheesy as it sounds.
MS: At the end of the day, nobody is going to have fun for you.
This interview was just too much fun, I had to join in for a photo. Taken by the Monk Seals’ lovely manager.
I just wanted to touch on the EP, how’s that going?
MS: Coming along. To be honest, she’s pretty ready to go. For now, it’s just getting everything ready for it and some slight admin. Yeah, it’s pretty complete. Stoked with how it’s going. We are all fidgeting on our fingers every listen and we can’t wait to get it out there and see what people think.
Is the EP coming out sometime soon?
MS: That’s very hush hush. I don’t think you’ll need to wait too long.
Is there anything else coming up for you guys that you can talk about?
MS: Yeah, for sure. Two gigs coming up. We are going to be performing at Duke Festival which is on the 25th of March and we are also playing at The Village Inn in Sumner for the Tuawera Classic, both surf comps and that’s on the 31st of March, which is very exciting. Apart from that, there’s another song coming out. Just random stuff that’s going to be available.
MS: All in good time. A lot of music. Being in the music industry, a lot of it is just waiting.
Is there anything else you’d like to add to the interview?
MS: I was just thinking about young bands that want to become a thing, become a cover band before you say you’re a band so when you start off, you start jamming and don’t announce that you’re a band. You’ve got to test the waters.
MS: Thank you! We always appreciate a talk.
Oh, thank you guys!
MS: Always a pleasure and always great questions.
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A huge thank you to Yannik, Jono and Abel for taking the time to chat last week. Unfortunately, their fourth member was unavailable to partake in the interview this time.
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Greta O’Leary on Finding her Feet on Tour, The Release of her EP and her Dream Job Outside of Music
Greta O’Leary is an emerging New Zealand artist fresh to the scene that is already making her way through the country with an EP tour and a new EP already under her belt! Photo credit: Greta’s Facebook.
Just after the release of her debut EP in 2022, Treasure Horse, I sat down with Greta O’Leary to talk about how she is finding her feet within the New Zealand music industry, how she got her unique EP name and how quickly she has been able to adapt to tour life.
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Hello!
Greta: Hello!
How’s it going?
Greta: Good. How are you going?
Good thank you! Thank you so much for letting me interview you.
First of all, I want to say congratulations on releasing your EP, Treasure Horse, it must be super exciting that that is finally out in the world.
Greta: It’s a big relief for it to be finished.
How long was the process from start to finish to create Treasure Horse?
Greta: It feels like it has been a project over a full year. I recorded the first single on its own right at the start of 2022, the songs were already written when I began that process. Those were written… Maybe two years ago. All around the same time and yeah, the process of recording and developing it has been basically the whole of 2022.
So, it’s been a big year for you, then?
Greta: Yeah, it’s been really big. First year of this stuff.
Do you have any favourite memories from creating your new EP?
Greta: There were a lot of ups and downs. I get quite sensory overload, so it’s quite interesting when you’re listening intently for eight hours… But there are lots of good moments. There was one point when I was working on the second half of the EP, we were recording horns… Four women and one man in the studio and that’s very uncommon. It was amazing for me because I’m still starting to be around such prolific and professional female musicians and producers.
Where abouts did you record the EP?
Greta: It’s kind of in two parts because part way through, I got some funding, which changed things, so the first two songs Outnumbered and Body Now I recorded with Toby Lloyd who is with Tiny Triumph Recordings, so I recorded them with him in his studio and at different times as well. He produced, mixed and played some instruments on one of the recordings as well. The next three I recorded with Charlotte Yates. She was my producer and we got development funding from NZ on Air and so, we recorded in a bunch of different places, that’s just how it worked out. Partly at Massey Studios in Wellington, partly at The Surgery and partly at a home studio in Miramar. Yeah, two clear parts.
Did you have to apply for that funding? Were you put forward for it? How does that work?
Greta: You apply with a producer and the producer does most of the application because they kind of want to see that the producer has a strong track record of working with artists who are producing good work. It wasn’t too intense for me because Charlotte did a lot of that work and she was the kind of like, manager of everything. Any artist can team up with a producer and see if they meet the criteria and put through an application.
It’s good that there is some funding for New Zealand musicians, I can imagine it’s quite hard for people to get off the ground if there wasn’t.
Greta: A lot of people in the past have talked about the gap between sort of starting out and starting to get single funding. The main funding is so far from a leap and so this is something kind of halfway, yeah.
Who influences your alternative-folk sound?
Greta: Hmm, good question. I listen to a lot of sensitive music and really like lyrically driven music. That, I guess, plays a big part, the voice… The voice is the key weight. I guess because I get overloaded sometimes, I naturally go towards music that doesn’t overload me and it took me quite a long time to find full bands as opposed to more stripped down sets that I found calming or really yummy. My aim… Even though some of the songs I’ve made at the end are quite hectic, I made my aim as making music in a full band kind of way that still has that sensitivity.
[At the time of the interview, Greta was on a tour across NZ, hence why this question was about the tour] You’re currently on an EP tour across New Zealand, have you got any highlights to share so far?
Greta: I guess… Playing in Auckland was significant because it was our first show with the full band, so that felt like a really important moment. It was also the first time my parents have seen me perform, weirdly enough. Everyone is always shocked by that. That was a very key moment, having them come along and because I grew up in Auckland and got to connect with a lot of people and getting [to see them] at the show was pretty great.
What is tour life like for you? Have you found it easy to get into or has it been a little bit challenging?
Greta: Kind of both. I think it has been a little bit challenging. The week before the EP tour, I did a short tour at the top of the South Island where I played five times in four days and that kind of set me on the back foot a bit for the next couple of months of shows. I think because there has been a lot of sickness around, I think I’ve not been in a prime position to be pushing myself. Balancing rest and being able to rest with doing that work has been a challenge, but, overall, I find it quite easy to be going to lots of different places and adapting to different environments. I’ve travelled a lot in the past. I’ve noticed the similarities and so I do have some skills from having to think on my feet or deal with uncomfortable temperature environments. That’s been nice to discover that I can do things like that. At the moment, I can’t imagine delivering night after night with so few breaks.
When you talk to people about your music, what do you hope that you express?
Greta: I find it generally hard to talk about the music, it can be hard to sum up. I guess I want to be honest and show the honesty in the music. There aren’t a lot of tricks, it’s just very personal and open. I guess, I try to convey that in the best way that I can. It depends on the day.
If you weren’t doing music, what do you envision yourself doing?
Greta: I spent a lot of time, drifting around, travelling, working random jobs and spend a lot of time moving. I am no longer living that life, even though music kind of takes you into a circle where you are sort of doing that again. I guess, one of my fallback careers has been to be a sign language interpreter. I love sign language and have close connections in the deaf community. That is something I have become very, very close to pursuing. Then, the music… I can’t [forget about it]. Maybe one day I’ll be able to have both, but that’s probably the thing, yeah.
Greta is a folk-alternative artist who has recently released her debut EP, Treasure Horse. Photo credit: Greta’s Facebook.
That’s incredible. If you could go forward to the future, would you and if so, what would you hope you would see?
Greta: I would really like to… Now that I’ve decided to do this with my life and make records and play and tour, I would like to see that happening successfully, but, in a way that isn’t ruining me. I would like to make this a lifelong career, but not at the expense of family or my mental health. That maybe can be tricky as an independent artist. You’ve got so many hats all the time. Would I choose to see that? I think, I don’t know if I would. I think the mystery is important.
What was the inspiration behind the name Treasure Horse?
Greta: I was just going through important words from the collection, it just stuck out. It’s a little bit of a weird name and horses are an important theme and I just found and it and it was just the right balance of all the bits. I’ve just run with it and I love to say it.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Greta: I don’t think so. I am playing some festivals over summer, but not much because I really need a break and I would like to focus more on writing for a period, because I do my own releases, so it’s a lot of outward energy and I’m looking forward to getting back into that reflective space so that I can keep writing.
Definitely more music from you to come in the future?
Greta: Yup.
Thank you so much for taking the time to sit down and chat with me. It has been so nice to virtually meet you.
Greta: Thanks so much!
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Taking in the Simple Things, Changing Sounds and Dream Music Festivals: Edwin Judd from The RVMES
The RVMES are coming in HOT with their third album that you don’t want to miss out on listening to. L-R: Ronaldo Lima, Richard Moore, Edwin Judd, Logan Fox. All photos provided by THE RVMES.
Ahead of the album release, I caught up with Edwin Judd, frontman of The RVMES for a chat about Simple Things, growth as a band, personal inspirations and more. An interview for the history books, for sure. Read on to see what Edwin had to say!
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Hello!
Edwin: Sup Ashlea, how’s it going?
Good thank you, how are you?
Edwin: Not too bad, thank you.
Thank you so much for being interviewed for Welcome to the Gig and sorry it has taken so long.
Edwin: That’s cool. Cheers for having us!
Just to be sure, your band name is pronounced The Rooms, is that correct?
Edwin: Correct. Nice one.
You’ve just released your third album that came out on the 24th November, I noticed when listening to it, every track has a different vibe to it. Every sound is so unique to the next one. How did that uniqueness come about? What made you want to create songs that sound like different artists with every track?
Edwin: We’ve done it since day one, pretty much. If you listen to our previous releases, it is the same situation. When we were thinking and talking about making the band, we were wondering what it would sound like… For one, we didn’t know. Two, being a purely reggae band, eventually it would probably get old. I don’t know. I can’t say that for every band. Like, Katchafire are bloody awesome, but maybe at some point, they’re like “man, I don’t want to play reggae anymore”, but Katchafire’s so locked into it that they can’t really branch off. Every rehearsal and jam session would be different ideas and genres. It’s really fun to play with that kind of stuff.
It’s really interesting because like, I was thinking about it while I was listening and unless you were specifically told and you knew that you were listening to the new album, you’d think that it was different artists every time. I think that is such a cool way to approach an album. I reckon that’s super cool.
Edwin: Yeah, it’s a good surprise and what is nice is like, it does sound like different bands, but vocally, it’s the same lyricist, myself. The same singer-songwriter. So, it ties it all together. Different vibes all over the place.
Do you have a favourite song off Simple Things?
Edwin: I really like Who Shot the Moon, the second track. I’ve got high hopes for that one. I could see it on the start of a TV show or something. It’s very moody and stuff. Playing live, I think, What’s Troublin You is quite fun. That was one of our singles off the album. They all have their different thing. I like playing some of them live more than I like listening to them.
It’s a different thing to play it and listen to it, isn’t it?
Edwin: Yeah, and Who Shot the Moon is a motherfucker to play live.
Speaking of the album, to go along with it, you’ve got quite a hefty summer coming up as well, with a couple big shows and touring around the North Island.
Edwin: I’m super excited. I have my to-do list here. Absolutely rammed. It’s our fourth tour, we were trying to count this the other day. All self-organised, all self-funded, I pretty much do all the booking myself. All the graphics are done by our drummer. We have five festivals and I’ve booked five venues and it’s all around the North Island. I tried to get the South Island, but it didn’t work out. The budget is pretty tight.
You’ve got my friends, Odds & Ends and also Retro Valley on the line-up for some of the shows.
Edwin: Yup, big shout out to the team. Love them. We’ve got Makeshift Parachutes as well, DJ Bax. Camila Lenhart. I think that’s everyone. So keen, very keen.
How do you pick your support acts? Is it an easy task to do?
Edwin: There’s quite a few factors. It’s like, depending on who you want and availability, first of all. I had some other bands in mind, but either one or two of them were booked or they had releases of their own coming out, so you kind of have to hit them up way in advance. Band-wise, we like energetic bands… Another factor with choosing support acts, as well, choosing friends is amazing, very cool, we’re all about it, [however] getting support acts that are local rather than bringing someone from Auckland is that support acts will bring their crowd as well. Also, booking a more notable band will be better for you.
How does Simple Things differ from your previous albums, Lifetime and The RVMES?
Edwin: All three of these releases, they’re all self-recorded, so we did it all in our own studio. Well, my garage, the first one. I think Simple Things is a bigger step compared to Lifetime just in terms of how much we grew with production and stuff. We also grew as songwriters, so it’s more intricate songs and riffs. Also, lyrically, it’s deeper. We went with more topics that are real. Lifetime had a few happy-go-lucky songs, let’s just say.
You sort of touched on this, however, how much have you grown since the last two albums?
Edwin: Grown as a band, I guess, more with like age. We kind of matured a little bit, hence why those lyrics kind of changed and we wanted to produce different topics. There is quite a lot of mental health in this album and so, like, “the greedy corporate people”. The world’s crazy. The world is full of greed and whatever. Also, we’ve gone through a member change in the band, which, I guess you could talk about growth with that a little bit, maybe. It was quite scary to be honest because we didn’t know who we were going to get. We had about 10 or 11 people lined up to audition or who were interested… We did 4 auditions, the first guy, Richard Moore, the new guitarist, he absolutely destroyed it. He knew everything, he had the passion, he had the schedule as well and he was really cool. He was ready to go.
I’ve spoken to a few bands who have lost members and had to replace them. How does that affect you guys, apart from obviously the music side of things? Does that also affect you quite a lot personally?
Edwin: We were all very tight, Miro was amazing in the band and I knew that he wanted to go to Europe, even before we started The RVMES, so I had it in the back of my mind that he was eventually going to go over. We had four really good years with him. Richard has quite a similar style to Miro. It was quite a seamless changeover.
I’ve noticed you have done single releases and albums, but never EPs. Is there a reason you’ve chosen to go the longer route with albums?
Edwin: I think we’re just old school at heart to be honest. Albums are cool though, we take a lot of pride in the order of our albums, like the kind of energy it portrays… EPs are sweet, but they’re just a little bit too short. The length of Simple Things was really cool, because it’s to the point where if there were one or two more songs, it could’ve been too long. It’s quite a quick album - I think it’s like, 28 or 30 minutes in total. I think it’s a good bite to chew, you know?
You touched briefly on the recording process, I wanted to expand on that a little bit more.
Edwin: It’s going to change now because the home studio was Miro’s gear. I think this is a time for us at the moment where when we release, we want to go into an actual studio. When we first went from the garage to the home studio and [then back to the] home studio again, we had all these cool releases, we’ve done a couple of singles in studios, we won a competition with Parachute and we recorded at Earwig Studios in Birkenhead, which is all on tape… We wanted to record on tape. We did three songs in one day, I think. It’s crazy. We want to step up from now and just do studio stuff and lift the quality. When we were recording in the home studios, we had all the time in the world, so we would just sit around and track and experiment which was really nice because you don’t really have that leisure when you go into a studio. I think it’s going to be a positive going into a studio because yes, you can do it at your leisure, but that means you can nit-pick more and things don’t sit until they go stale.
What are your biggest achievements as a band?
Edwin: I think just how strong of a team we are. How well we get along. Having four people who are fully dedicated to the band, I think that’s quite a big achievement in itself. Achievements otherwise… Our last album release… I think we pulled 215 people at the gig. We kind of went big on the production side of things. We’re getting more into the festivals, which is another big thing we want.
Speaking of festivals, just to throw this question in there, if you could pick a dream festival line-up, and it doesn’t have to be just Kiwis, it can be anyone, who would you pick? There’s also unlimited musicians.
Edwin: Can they be dead?
Yup. Of course.
Edwin: That’s so hard, my God. The band is really inspired by Red Hot Chili Peppers. So, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sting, Allen Stone, Jacob Collier is really cool, IDLES… John Butler Trio, Odds & Ends, us, the list goes on… Bob Marley! All the Kiwi bands. All of them, basically. The Butlers. Park Rd is going real hard, which is real cool. Yeah, I could do this all day! It would be the most insane festival ever. Tickets would be like, five grand. You’d see like, a thousand acts.
Other than music, what are your interests?
Edwin: I fish. I don’t eat meat, to be honest, but I eat fish. Not too much, but when I catch it, it’s much better. My partner doesn’t eat meat and she’ll only eat fish when I catch it. I’ll get one fish for dinner and it’s really nice to get out and do that in the fresh air. I like to mosaic as well. Richard teaches parkour for a job. He can do crazy flips and stuff, which is awesome, he’s also learning Japanese currently. Ronaldo, he is a plumber and he’s a hands-on kind of guy. He loves gardening. So do I. We always yarn about gardening. Logan loves to surf. By the end of summer, he is like, bronze.
I always like to ask this one when I can. If you could claim someone else’s album as your own, which album would it be and why?
Edwin: Dan Auerbach from The Black Keys. His solo stuff. There is an album called Waiting on a Song and I blast this all the time. It’s just so, so good.
Is there a reason why, apart from the fact you really love that album?
Edwin: Instrumentally and vocally… It’s got great lyrics. When I record music by myself, it’s quite in that vein. I do a lot of sad kind of grooves and that’s like, a version of what I sound like. I need to tap in more to the upbeat kind of stuff. So, it’s an amazing album, I always take notes and stuff and ideas out of it. Short answer, he reminds me of myself in a way.
Who is your personal inspiration in your life as a whole?
Edwin: Don’t know. Probably my Dad. Mum and Dad because they’re amazing people and I love them both. My partner is amazing, as well. So, yeah, I just want to kind of, have a good life. I don’t want to be a carnage rock n roll star. I want to be a humble dude with my cats.
Thank you so much!
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I want to say a massive thank you to Edwin for his time, patience and for being a generally great person. Not only is he musically talented on a whole other level, but he is also genuinely kind and loves cats just as much as me. You won’t regret getting into The RVMES, so listen to them right now.
Follow The RVMES at the links below to keep up with their epic journey -
Feeling Restless, Challenging 20s and Career Developments: An Interview with Keeley Shade
While in Auckland recently, I sat down with Keeley Shade to chat about her new upcoming single, Restless and her show at Cassette Nine! Photo credit: Keeley’s EPK.
While in Auckland a couple of weeks ago, I sat down with the lovely Canadian-Kiwi, Keeley Shade, who is making big moves in her musical career to get to where she aspires to be, despite lockdowns and other 20-something challenges. With her upcoming single, Restless, on the horizon, Keeley is headstrong and is showcasing that females can do anything from organising her own music video shoots to mixing/producing her tracks.
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Thank you so much for meeting with me!
Keeley: Of course!
We’re just going to catch up as you have a new single coming out soon. What’s the song called?
Keeley: The song is called Restless. I wrote it last year in lockdown when all of our lives were a bit stuck and I felt like, last year, the second year of lockdown, I was like losing so much time that I could be developing my career, living out fun things… It’s about wanting to be somewhere else in the future, somewhere past all this. In your 20s, you lose friends, change jobs, get new friends, relationships end… You’re kind of told that it’s going to be the best time of your life, but I’ve found it the most challenging. I guess I put all that into the song.
Your 20s are a bit like that. You must be so happy it’s almost out, even though you’re still working on it at the moment.
Keeley: Yes. Very close.
You said you mixed and produced the song yourself, which is so impressive, well done! How did you find that process?
Keeley: On the EP, I actually mixed and directed Give Me Time, and going through that, I realised I like being in control of the outcome of the songs. I went to art school, where you make everything yourself. So, I have this relationship with music where it’s the same thing. Most musicians I know, they have a producer and they have co-writers and stuff… It feels less mine. I’m very about lyrics and about writing, having a personal place, so I love taking ownership of the whole thing, it’s really fun.
So, you said you’ve done it before on your previous EP.
Keeley: A bit. This time, it’s fully by me. I recorded, mixed, produced… The only thing I’m not doing is mastering.
That’s a lot. That’s so much to do. Congratulations on doing all of that! I’d have no idea where to start [if I was a musician].
Keeley: Oh, it’s a lot of self-teaching and YouTube videos and trial and error.
You’ve got a gig coming after the release of the song at Cassette Nine. Tell me about that!
Keeley: Yeah, so that will be at Cassette Nine on December 2nd. I haven’t gotten to play a gig since May I think.
Make sure to get amongst this show if you’re in Auckland! Epic music by Keeley and smashing opening acts. Photo credit: Keeley.
Do you have any support acts that are opening?
Keeley: We will do. I don’t have them locked in yet.
[As of typing this interview, support acts have been announced - Chris Bates and Bridges]
Your EP, Give Me Time, has been out for a year and a half, how has your music evolved since that was released?
Keeley: It definitely… I kind of fell in love with the production side of things. The last EP had more acoustic elements, this one is a lot more pop-rock, alternative, electric guitar, bass.
Amazing. Do you perform all of the music yourself or do you have a band behind you?
Keeley: Live, I have a band and on the track, I recorded most of it. I had my guitarist who played a couple parts because he’s really good at timing. Otherwise, I made most of the stuff myself. I got samples and messed with them, too.
For those who haven’t heard of you yet, what can they expect in terms of your music?
Keeley: A lot of like, ear candy, a lot of instrumentation and delicate vocals. Lyrics are really important to me. It’s really hard describing yourself! Yeah, I’m just really inspired by 2010 modern folk.
What are some random/fun facts that we should know about you?
Keeley: I’m a TV editor for Warner Brothers Studios, I also do graphic design and music videos for other people. I was born in Canada and I’ve lived here for almost 17 years.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Keeley: I won a music and venues grant to put on shows for female musicians who mix and produce their own work. So, that’s going to be happening next year with some very cool artists!
Again, thank you so much for having a mini-interview with me!
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Mellow, Sun-Soaked Sounds and Madison Square Garden Dreams: An Interview with Nathan Kruse and Jack Letcher of Haze Lane
Kruse and Jack from Haze Lane! So excellent to catch up with these legends the other day. Stream their single, Natural Feeling, now!
Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to catch up with two legends of your new favourite sun-soaked/indie band, Haze Lane, who are an Auckland based four-piece, formerly known as Mind Over Matter. We sat down to have a morning drink at a RAD little cafe (it was literally called RAD) in Mt Eden to have a catch up about where Haze Lane hope to see themselves in the future, Madison Square Garden festival dreams and of course, the classic, what flavour Haze Lane would be if they were a flavour.
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Thank you for coming out and having a chat with me, I appreciate it!
Kruse: Of course. Thank you for having us.
So, you guys are Haze Lane. Do you want to introduce yourselves?
Kruse: I’m the singer and rhythm guitar player for the band.
Jack: I play lead guitar for Haze Lane.
You were formerly Mind Over Matter, how do Haze Lane and Mind Over Matter differ?
Kruse: When we were growing up, we started as Mind Over Matter and we kind of… Ventured towards more cover gigs. We wanted to kind of pull away from that and find our sound, with our actual original music… We started to develop this kind of surfy, mellow sound and we kind of pulled away from Mind Over Matter and discovered a new sound with Haze Lane.
You’ve just released your first single [Natural Feeling] as Haze Lane back in July, what has the reception been like from that? I know that when we had you at the Welcome to the Gig showcase, everyone knew your old stuff and you were shocked at that.
Kruse: Yeah, no, it’s been great! There has been a little bit of reception, we’ve managed to extend our fanbase a little bit more, not heaps, you know. To sum it up, it hasn’t been as big as we had hoped, but it is our first single, so we’re definitely happy with how it has been received. We had a radio interview with Sun FM which was awesome, really cool. First radio interview as Haze Lane, so that was awesome. We were stoked to have that. We got onto JuiceTV for our music video, which was really cool. I’ve been sent a couple of videos from my mates of us on TV. My mate was at Denny’s the other night and was like, “hey, isn’t this you guys?"
Amazing.
How did you get onto JuiceTV? That’s pretty huge.
Jack: We’ve been working with a media company a little bit. They’ve helped us with Sun FM and just helped with [promotion of] Natural Feeling.
What are you currently working on, are you working on new music? New videos? What’s the go with Haze Lane?
Kruse: We’re working on a bunch of new originals at the moment, for some reason, the writing juices have just been flowing, which is really good for us. Yeah, so the creative juices have been flowing heaps, we are working towards our new EP-album, haven’t got a release date or anything. We’ve got some awesome songs, if I do say so myself. We’re working into that Natural Feeling theme as well; we’re going to get some high energy bits in there, too.
Jack: At the moment, we’re trying to kind of select what song that we want for the next single. If it’s going to be lower in energy as Natural Feeling or more upbeat. We’ve got two that we’re pretty set on.
The two men of the hour! Photo provided by Jack Mensah.
So, pretty big things in the works for you guys. How would you describe Haze Lane’s music?
Kruse: We’re kind of a mellow, sun-soaked sound. We try to think what the beach would sound like if it could talk. A bit indie. At the moment, we trying to put in more rock elements, something a bit more edgy.
Jack: Our band is a bit different because me and Cameron have a rock background, Taumata has a reggae kind of background and we have Kruse with his pop melodies, pop background.
A good mix. For those who don’t know who Haze Lane are, what are some things that they should know about you? Even random facts or anything.
Kruse: Well, Jack, Cameron and I all started out when we were… How old were we?
Jack: 12 or 13.
Kruse: We all worked under the same music teacher and he decided that he wanted to make some bands in our local area. Jack and I knew each other and Jack knew Cameron, so, we were like, “hey, let’s form a band!” So, when we first started out, Jack’s Dad was actually our bassist. So, we played some gigs with Jack’s Dad and that was awesome. So good.
Jack: Yeah, my Dad was the bass player for local event, Summer Sounds and yeah. We’ve had a few bass players and Taumata is a new edition from our High School kind of days, he just joined us in 2017. He’s been part of the redevelopment of Mind Over Matter to Haze Lane.
Kruse: It’s been great because he has bought in that different perspective, which has helped our sound, as well. Especially with his bass lines, he will put down this little funk. It’s awesome.
Besides music, what other things do you thrive on?
Kruse: I’m a Personal Trainer. So, I recently got my degree, last year. So, I’ve been doing that all the time. I enjoy helping people. Yeah, that’s kind of all I do, really.
Jack: I just finished an Audio Production degree, so music is pretty much all I can do. I’m starting to do a bit of producing and I work at the Rock Shop.
So, everything music then? That’s incredible! What about the other guys, what are their passions, what do they do?
Jack: Kruse, Tau and Cameron are all quite into fitness. Tau’s a landscaper and Cameron’s a builder.
Kruse: It’s Tau’s birthday today. He’s out doing a 21km run right now. He sent us a photo just before and was like, “boys, I’m doing it, I’m doing it!”
“Happy birthday! I’m on a 21km run!” I love that you’re all so motivated in different areas.
Jack: It really does help that we can come together and mould in different ways.
This one is a bit of a random one, but if you could be a character from a movie, who would you be and why?
Jack: Probably Iron Man. Just like his suit, eh.
Kruse: I think for me, Mater, from Cars. He’s so relaxed. All the time. He doesn’t care what people think. That’s really cool. Mater and Iron Man, coming soon!
I feel obligated to ask this, but back in August, you guys played the first Welcome to the Gig showcase. How did that go for you?
Kruse: It was wicked. We all talked about it afterwards and just the fact that everyone was there to support the music, you know? We had a couple of people come along and we played the first song and they started singing, it was a surreal feeling having people sing our own songs. Amazing.
Jack: Yeah, we really enjoyed playing the gig. I just really love those gigs where you meet other bands. It’s always cool to have more connections, especially in the music industry.
You guys were amazing, I was blown away. Did not expect that. Thank you for playing! I appreciate it a lot that you did come out and play.
Kruse: Let us know if you ever want us again. We’d definitely be keen.
Haze Lane performing at the first Welcome to the Gig showcase, August 2022. L-R: Jack Letcher, Cameron Cowper, Nathan Kruse, Taumata Lowe. Photo provided by Jack Mensah.
100 percent.
If you could perform anywhere in the world right now, where would you perform?
Kruse: Madison Square Garden.
Jack: Yeah, same, eh. Our dream is to play Madison Square Garden.
Kruse: On Thursday night, we had practise and we were practising one of our new songs and afterwards I said “thank you Madison Square Garden!” quite cheesy, you know?
Not at all!
Kruse: It’s always been a dream, since we were younger. It’s always been a place we want to get to sometime in our music career.
I guess, to go along with that, who would you want as your support acts at Madison Square Garden? You can pick like, ten people.
Kruse: Ten people? Wicked! We can have a festival.
Yeah, there you go, turn it into a festival. Who would you want on a line-up at your festival at Madison Square Garden?
Kruse: Personally, I’d have to say Balu Brigada. I actually really love them. Ocean Alley. Love Ocean Alley. L.A.B. To be honest, they wouldn’t open for us, they’re too big. They’re awesome. I really love Fool’s Lagoon, who we know. I’d love to be up there with them, it would be awesome. Kiwis take over Madison Square.
Imagine that! That would be the best festival in the entire world.
Kruse: Exactly. We’ve got to work on that! Get the crew together.
I’ll be there, supporting. Somehow.
Kruse: Great! We’ll need the interview.
Who influences you on and off stage?
Jack: [Collectively, as a band] Ocean Alley.
Kruse: I think Jack introduced me to Ocean Alley. I’ve never really been one for the loud instruments. When I took off into music, I went straight into the poppy stuff. The freedom of the lyrics and such is probably the bands biggest inspiration, I’d say.
What about off stage? Anyone you look up to?
Jack: Playing guitar, one of my heroes is Jimi Hendrix.
Kruse: Mine is probably The Weeknd. Each album is like a different story piece. So, when I write music, I now try to do it as well. I feel like it’s a lot more interesting if there’s a full body story as opposed to individual songs. So, you can be writing an album-EP, trying to keep in mind all of that, so I really look up to him. There’s a fitness influencer, Austin Dunham. He’s an inspiration as he says you don’t always have to be healthy or be defined by fitness.
It may not have been a performance at Madison Square Garden, but Haze Lane performing at Welcome to the Gig: Volume 1, really blew my mind. Photo provided by Jack Mensah.
I tend to ask this question a lot, but I think it’s a funny question. If Haze Lane were a flavour, what flavour would you be?
Jack: Would we be savoury or sweet?
Kruse: Sweet.
Jack: Cinnamon? No. Like a… chocolate boysenberry?
Kruse: I think like a dark forest chocolate, maybe! I reckon the dark forest cake from the cheesecake shop. It’s like a sponge, it’s very subtle.
I’m all out of questions! Is there anything else you’d want to add?
Kruse: Thank you so much and especially for having us for the first gig. It was wicked, yeah.
I’m so happy you played. Thank you guys so much!
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WTTG Volume 1 Gig Review (Ft. Haze Lane)
Op-Shopping Queen Becca Caffyn on her Yellow House, Upcoming EP and Working with Will McGillivray
Becca Caffyn is quickly emerging into the New Zealand music scene and shows no signs of stopping at any point. Photo provided by Becca.
She’s burst onto the scene quicker than you can say humble talent, however, Becca Caffyn is going places beyond imaginable. Having worked with some notoriously excellent names in the New Zealand music scene, Becca is taking her talent to new heights and putting her personal songs out into the universe for all to indulge in.
I sat down with Becca a few weeks ago after her latest song, Replacement Blonde, came out to have a little chat about her upcoming EP, her yellow house of 18 years and her favourite things to do besides music.
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Hey! How are you?
Becca: I’m good, how are you?
Pretty good thank you. How’s your day been?
Becca: Pretty good! It’s warm in Dunedin. It’s been like, 14 degrees [celsius] here.
Thank you so much for letting me interview you.
Becca: Thank you for having me.
So, Replacement Blonde came out recently, how has that been for you?
Becca: It’s my favourite song. So, it’s been good for me. I really like just having it out. I think I sat with it for a long time. Well, what feels like a really long time, so it’s good to just have it out.
You mentioned that it wasn’t actually meant to be released, it was just meant to be for your ears only. What made you change your mind about releasing it?
Becca: I think I like to write with the idea that no one is going to hear it. Sometimes I will just play over things that I’ve written and I kept coming back to it and I really liked this one. I showed it to some people at Parachute [Studio] and they liked it and then, I think I just came around to the idea that sometimes things are really personal, but it’s also what is good about it them. Yeah, I just kept coming back to it and I wanted to put it out.
That’s so cool the fact that you can be that vulnerable and be like, “hey, this is part of my story, I’m sharing it with you”. I really applaud you on that. How’s the feedback been since it was released?
Becca: Pretty good. Definitely a bit different to the first one because it’s not as fun, but I think that there are quite a few people who have connected with that and who say it makes them feel something, so it’s always nice to hear that people resonate with your experiences, so that’s been really cool to hear with this one.
Some of your influences include Joni Mitchell and Bob Dylan.
Becca: Yes! They’re my original folk influences, I think.
They’re some of the great musicians of the world. How did you get drawn to them initially?
Becca: I don’t remember exactly how, but I do remember being shown Joni Mitchell when I was probably in year nine and thinking “oh, I don’t really like it” and then I came back a few years later and I was like, “oh, okay, I get it now, this is good”. I think I used to be really into country music and there were aspects that I really loved about it, like, the story telling kind of lyricism and the acoustic instrumentation, but there was also a lot about country music that I didn’t like. A lot of the things that I liked about country music, I found in folk music without all the things I didn’t like about country music. It played a part for me I think, country music. It wasn’t - it never really felt exactly like I wanted to do. I also never felt like I wrote songs that were country songs.
How did it come about that you worked with Will McGillivray? That’s pretty huge.
Becca: So with Parachute, I was on their artist development program and we did a few recordings at the end of the year and they pair you up with a producer and I didn’t really know heaps of producers or who would be a good fit and the person who ran the program, she had met Will years and years ago when he was in Nomad, they were managed by Lorraine Barry and her office is in the Parachute building. She thought he might be a good fit. He produces BEXY and There’s A Tuesday, so she sent me a playlist of some of the songs and it was basically my favourite New Zealand music. I’d never met Will before, but I went to Christchurch and we recorded the songs and it was great.
Did you get to many any of the other artists like BEXY or There’s A Tuesday while in the process?
Becca: Not on that trip, but I have met them at other times, just around the studio. It’s so much fun. I always wanted to have a community of creativity around me or people who liked the same music and I never had that until I went to Parachute, then I just met all these people who just love the same things that I do.
Tell me more about how you got to be at Parachute? I know you said you were hand-picked to be on the artist development program.
Becca: I applied near the end of High School and I didn’t really have a plan, I didn’t want to go to Uni straight out of High School and I saw an ad on Instagram and I thought “oh, that looks cool” and I’d heard of Parachute before with the whole festival and I’d never been. Then I went up and did an audition, played some songs and had a chat and then got an email saying “do you want to be on artist development next year?”, so that was really great. I didn’t have a plan and I think that was the perfect thing for me.
Make sure to stream all of Becca’s music right now! Photo provided by Becca.
You moved from Hamilton to Auckland to pursue that, didn’t you?
Becca: Yes. I’m really grateful I got to go, it’s the best.
You just hear so many good things about Parachute all the time!
Becca: It’s such a good little community.
You’ve lived in different parts of New Zealand like we’ve briefly touched on. How would you say each cities music scene differs?
Becca: Ooh, well, Auckland, there’s a lot more - there’s just more of everything. So, whatever you’re into, there’s probably going to be a little bit everywhere. There’s the Devonport Folk Club, things like that. Auckland has venues for everyone, there’s always something happening there, so that was great. Hamilton… Much less. There are some cool things happening in Hamilton, they’ve got a few venues and you do have some cool little bands and things. Rockquest really help with that. I have one venue, Nivara Lounge is quite a popular venue in Hamilton and I used to do open mics there, that was fun. That was about it in terms of places I played in Hamilton. I struggled a bit to find places to play. Nivara Lounge were really good, they were really great. Dunedin, I’m still figuring it out. There used to be a lot of venues, not so much anymore, which is a shame, but I still think there’s some really cool stuff down here, so I’m going to find it.
Besides music, what do you like to do in your spare time?
Becca: I’m a big op-shopper. I like that. Both my Mum and my best friend are really into op-shopping. My Mum actually volunteers at an op-shop with my best friends Mum. We all go op-shopping together, we find some good stuff. I like minor upcycling, I’m not very good at selling and things. I like to dissect things and put them back together.
What are you studying down in Dunedin?
Becca: I’m doing a bachelor of music with a criminology minor.
I noticed on your Spotify, there’s a mention that you grew up in a little yellow house in the suburbs. Is that quite significant in terms of your music?
Becca: I think I lived my first 18 years in the same house and so a lot of things were written in that house, a lot of memories in that house and I think it comes up in songs as well. I wrote a song recently and it mentions one of the rooms in the house and my best friend was like “ah, I know that room!” so, there’s a lot of things that happened, essentially my entire childhood is in that house.
Did you write either Stair Kids or Replacement Blonde in that house?
Becca: Neither of them were written there. They were both done in Auckland. Stair Kids was written at Parachute because it was during song week and Replacement Blonde was just in my bedroom at the time in the house I was living in.
What was the inspiration behind Stair Kids?
Becca: Stair Kids was just about that phase where you’re kind of growing out of people a little bit, you’re kind of heading in different directions and you still have a lot of love for people and the part they played in your life, but it’s kind of okay to grow out of people. It’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s just people move on and when you get your own freedom to choose what you want to do, you might pick different things to the people you grew up with.
Your debut EP is coming out this year, too. Are there any details you’re allowed to spill on that one at the moment?
Becca: Stair Kids and Replacement Blonde are on it and there will be two more songs. It will be fun to put out a little collection. It will be out before the end of the year.
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Becca: Stream Replacement Blonde and Stair Kids!
Thank you so much Becca for chatting with me, I really appreciate your time and know you’re super busy with everything.
Becca: Thanks very much for having me!
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