Category: Interviews

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Interviews

Artist Interview: Kiira

This week, we caught up with KIIRA, a 23-year-old Swiss-American singer, about her two new singles, “After Hours” and “Porcelain”. Born in Paris and raised in Zurich, KIIRA has spent the past few years working alongside multi Grammy-nominated producer Justin Trugman (Eminem, Wu-Tang, Ice Cube). 

“I remember being so in love with listening to music and singing from a very young age,” KIIRA expressed.  “I live and breathe music”. Some of her all-time favorite artists that she is inspired by are Lorde, Ella Fitzgerald, Lana Del Rey, Frank Ocean, Amy Winehouse, Daughter, and Ben Howard. As far as her current top artists, “My top influences are Dominic Fike, Billie Eilish, and Labrinth”, she stated. She’s currently evolving and perfecting her unique sound through her laid-back vocals and catchy melodies. Her two new singles “After Hours” and “Porcelain” redefine her sound, pushing boundaries in the chill-pop space. 

After listening to the new singles, we were interested in her writing process and how exactly she’s finding her own sound. “The writing process is such a magical part of it all,” she explains,  “Whether it is me alone on the piano or in a room with other people, bouncing off ideas… it’s pure magic!”

KIIRA keeps a journal with her throughout the day and takes notes as thoughts and ideas arise. Once she gets home, she will sit at the piano and make sense of it all. “Honestly, I just go with the flow and try to let things come out naturally,” she describes, “I feel like when things are forced, they are never truly authentic.” 

She feels most in her element while recording, just her and the sound engineer making music together and zoning in. “There are absolutely no distractions, just me in my element. I am truly the happiest version of myself when I am in that zone.” 

Since she recently released two new singles, we thought we’d get more details. “Love can be a scary thing because if you fall so deeply, you can become blinded and not see any of the red flags,”  KIIRA explains, “These songs hold a very special place in my heart.” While spending the last few years working on herself as an artist, these two singles showcase how she has evolved to find her sound. Find KIIRA on Spotify and all streaming platforms to listen to her new singles! As far as looking towards the future, she has stripped versions of “After Hours” and “Porcelain” that are coming out this month. “I am constantly writing and will have new music coming out in the near future,” KIIRA says. We’re excited to keep an eye out for what comes next!

You can check out her music on Spotify.

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Interviews Music News

Census on latest single “Sunbeam”

Progressive rock band Census presented us with their second single of the year just a few weeks ago. We got to discuss “Sunbeam,” the music video, and the song’s important story.

CSM: Your new single “Sunbeam” comes out today! How does it feel to follow up “Hydrangea” with this song?

CENSUS: We are more excited about this release than any we’ve done before. “Hydrangea” was a huge milestone for us as a band. In a way, it set the tone for both the sound and video quality fans can expect to see from a Census release. We think “Sunbeam” not only fulfills those expectations, but far exceeds them.

CSM: Both the song and music video are pretty emotionally intense. Only as much as you’d like to, what can you tell us about the inspiration and story of “Sunbeam?

CENSUS: “Sunbeam” is about a girl who deals with sexual abuse and battles depression and mental manipulation from her current partner. Ben wrote this song after having a late-night conversation with a friend who was going through some of the same things. He said it broke his heart, pissed him off, and he had to write about it.

CSM: What does the voiceover in the music video mean to you?

CENSUS: The voiceover sections were the brilliant mind of our videographer Joe Lane of Anointed Media. When we came to him with this song and message, we knew it had to be handled delicately. We wanted the biggest takeaway to be how common sexual assault actually is. In the beginning of the video, you hear a girl explaining to her therapist that not even her own parents were supportive of her sharing her sexual assault story. Many people are completely unaware of how common sexual assault is worldwide because victims are afraid to tell their stories. The video ends with the same girl explaining that she has chosen to overcome her trauma in order to give hope to others who are going through the same thing. We want victims to hear those words, understand that they’re not alone, and hopefully feel inspired to persevere.

CSM: I wanted to say thank you for including a resource for help at the end of the video. Do you wish that was a choice more artists made?

CENSUS: Music made for a good cause is still music made for a good cause. We think the video did a good job portraying how common and cyclical abuse truly is, but we also wanted to go ahead and include some resources that can help victims. It’s good for victims to understand that they’re not alone, but they’re more likely to seek help if they know it’s readily available.

CSM: Was the video for “Sunbeam” shot during the pandemic? If so, was it a challenge for you to decide how you were going to create this video?

CENSUS: It was shot during the pandemic! The biggest problem was just waiting for the right opportunity to come along for Joe to come shoot the video. Joe lives in Texas where COVID cases were particularly high, and the rest of us are in Arkansas. All the actors in the video are close friends and family to us, so once Joe was clear to come shoot, we knew the rest of us were safe as well.

CSM: What have you been doing to keep positivity and creativity flowing during this tough time for the music industry?

CENSUS: We’re just writing as much as we can. We had to cancel all of our tour dates just like every other band, but that’s just the way things have to be for now. We still talk with each other every day and get together as often as possible. We figure rather than moping around and waiting for shows to come back, if we just write as much new music as possible while we have the chance, it can’t be too big of a loss.

CSM: I’m truly, truly loving your music! Do you have anything more in store for us this year?

CENSUS: Thank you so much! We can say with full certainty that there are more new music and videos still to come in 2020.

CSM: Is there anything else you want us to know?

CENSUS: Our new song and video “Sunbeam” is available now on all streaming platforms! We love you guys and hope you are all staying safe out there.

You can listen to “Sunbeam” here!

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Interviews Music News

Artist Interview: Priya Francis

If Priya Francis wasn’t on your radar before now, you certainly need to check out her music. The Melbourne-based singer-songwriter has a new single out today called “Jeans,” an alternative R&B ode to growing up and growing apart. We got to chat with Priya about the new song, her upcoming EP, and finding inspiration!

CROWDSURFER: How does it feel to have your second single of the year out?

PRIYA FRANCIS: I’m super excited to have the single out! It’s really different from a lot of my other releases, and I’ve been sitting on it for quite a while now. I think I first performed it live back in October last year, so it’s been a long few months finessing it and finalising all the little details to have it ready to put out there.

CS: Tell us about the story behind “Jeans.”

PF: The story behind “Jeans” kinda stems from a situation I was finding myself in often, where I was just losing touch with friends, not seeing or talking to certain friends for a long time without even realising it or without there being some sort of argument or blow-up, and I was in that spot with one of my best friends for a little while. A lot of the people around me were getting pretty upset with the situation but from the way I saw it, it was just her growing up and finding herself a lot quicker than the rest of us, and it wasn’t something I could get mad at her about. She’s still one of my best friends now, I may not speak to her every day or even every week but she’s still one of my favourite people ever, and I think a lot of other people can relate to that.

CS: One of my favorite lines is “but funnily enough I don’t mind / it’s strange to think I reckon we’re fine.” What made you want to write a song that’s different from what we usually hear – intense heartbreak or getting over someone – and instead about outgrowing relationships?

PF: I think like a lot of people, I struggle to write about things I haven’t personally experienced, so things like heartbreak or big heated arguments aren’t really something I can get into the right headspace for, but I’m super connected to my friends and my relationships with other people. Quite a few of my songs are about my friends or their experiences, and I think “Jeans” is just me wanting to try and put into words that feeling of growing apart from someone in a really peaceful way where you still care about them and love them. 

CS: How does “Jeans” differ from the music you released last year?

PF: It’s a lot more direct in my opinion. I think the music I released last year definitely took a step in that direction, but “Jeans” is a lot more authentic for me in terms of storytelling. It’s also a lot less angry and upset, I think. Although it is talking about a subject that can be sad, it’s not as negative about it, it’s more open and understanding. In terms of the sound and vibe of the song, I love the energy in the track, and Jarrod Hambleton, who produced it, really listened to my references and ideas and pushed me to get some new sounds in there that have shaped this track hugely. 

CS: Are “Jeans” and your last single “Butterflies” going to be part of your upcoming EP?

PF: I 100% want “Jeans” on there. I like the idea of “Butterflies” being its own little, humble stand-alone track as a single, but “Jeans” just fits the plan I have for the EP perfectly in terms of storytelling and sound.

CS: What can you tell us about the EP? What’s the sound, what’s the mood, does it have a release date?

PF: I don’t know a whole lot myself. All I have at the moment is the name, quite a few of the tracks, some that are still being picked, some that are being written super last minute and swapped in for others, but no release date at all. To be honest I was kinda very optimistically hoping it would be ready earlier this year, but I think I did a lot of new writing and growing in the time between first recording the demos and laying everything down properly that capturing the sound I want and the level of songwriting has been an ongoing process. Thankfully Jarrod is super understanding and deals with my random bursts of inspiration and demo dumps like a champ. 

CS: What other artists do you draw inspiration from? And how are you using that inspiration in your music?

PF: I draw from a few artists who contrast each other. Kehlani is a huge inspiration for me in terms of how her music mixes storytelling and production, as well as how much she embodies that alternative/RnB pocket so naturally. She’s also just got a criminally under-appreciated voice. I have an ongoing obsession with Jon Bellion just because of how different his approach to songwriting and production is, and his lyrics are out of this world, so I always try and look back at lyrics and challenge myself to make them better. H.E.R, D’Angelo, Snoh Aalegra, and Lauryn Hill are probably the other artists I’m constantly referencing whenever I’m listening to new music for inspiration, things to learn or trying to implement sounds into my own stuff. 

CS: I don’t know how things are in Melbourne, but what have you been doing to stay focused on your music throughout the pandemic?

PF: It’s pretty grim in Melbourne at the moment but we’re all doing what we can! I’ve been trying to get better at playing the guitar because I’m absolutely rubbish if I don’t have a capo with me, so learning some trickier chords and stuff like that which will just make my songwriting a bit easier. I’m being super pedantic about writing down literally every development that’s made music wise, whether that’s a new song I’ve sent over, notes for vocal production, a collaboration or just something I’m excited about. I also make an obscene amount of Spotify playlists so that’s always good for getting me inspired.

CS: It was also just your birthday! Did you do anything fun?

PF: It was! I mean, I did as much as I could in lockdown haha. I had dinner with my family and my little sister makes stupidly good brownies so we demolished a tray of those. I also had some drinks over Zoom with my best friends which is always a great time.

CS: Do you have anything else you want to tell everyone?

PF: Keep an eye out!! There’s definitely music on the way, whether it’s my own stuff or collaborations with a bunch of other talented musicians, I’m super keen for all the music that’s about to be out. Also stay safe and wear your masks!!! 

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Interviews

Artist Interview: Emily Deahl

You will not find a more creative artist or adventurer than Emily Deahl. Confident and resilient, she’s been working at getting her name in the industry for quite a few years now. Deahl initially thought she wanted to be a dancer, and after she moved to LA at 17, she realized dance wasn’t her passion: music was. After getting a deal to perform pop music in China off and on for a few years, Deahl spent some time in Charleston before deciding to move to Nashville to focus on songwriting and her sound.

She worked on learning new instruments, recorded two albums of music, and kept practicing. “It just became all about doing things I was afraid of, pushing myself outside of my comfort zone and getting better. I was like, I want to be sure I’m not giving anyone a reason to tell me no anymore.” In Charleston, her sound became very singer-songwriter, but it didn’t quite fit, in the same way the LA pop sound wasn’t the right sound for her either. “I realized, I’m somewhere in the middle of both of these.”

She’s been in Nashville for the past year, working toward releasing the new music she recorded with a producer in Charleston. After just joining TikTok in February, she found her videos going viral one after another. That’s when she realized “I can actually promote my music on this app.” She brainstormed and came up with the idea to “do outrageous sh*t to get my song into the Top 100 on iTunes.”

“Everyone told me that was an impossible goal, so I thought, if I want to get it, I’m going to have to do something outlandish and crazy, and what better place to do that than TikTok?”

On Day 1, she highjacked a grocery store’s overhead speakers to tell shoppers to stream her new single My Baby Hates Me. Day 2, she stopped traffic in Nashville, Day 3 she hid pink boxes at radio stations around town, on Day 5 she called an ex-fling that she wrote the song about, and this weekend she (with the help of her fans) tried to convince Diplo to remix her song. Talk about hustle.

@emilydeahl

Reply to @njm3443 Follow to keep up with this sh*t show. Stream My Baby Hates Me now! #NotTheOne #BiggestFan #manifestation #music #singer #dating

♬ original sound – Emily Deahl

But that’s not the only focus of her creativity. “I have a lot of conceptual ideas behind what I do. I’ve written two children’s books about the music I’ve created under the alias I sometimes call myself ‘The Ice Cream Girl’. In my most recent children’s book “The Ice Cream Girl Presents Ghost Stories” I walk you through my first EP where each chapter of the story has a coinciding song.” 

“There’s so many things that have inspired me over the course of figuring out who “me” is. I have so much creative energy and lately I’ve been saying that it feels like finally I’m proud of what I’m doing and everything is just exploding out of me. I can’t even keep up with all the ideas that are in my head right now.”

Many eclectic musicians have inspired Emily along thee way, such as Jack white, Lady Gaga, Freddie Mercury and Elvis.

“I’ve always been inspired by theater and musicals. Mostly I think I get inspiration from things that are just authentically themselves. I also think it’s every artist’s duty. We listen to music because we want to be set free. And the only way you can do that is if you’re listening, watching or reading something that’s real, that’s coming from a vulnerable place. And that, in turn, as a fan, I am inspired by those people who who are unapologetic about it.”

Photo by Shania Houchens @shaniahouchens 

After about a week of doing outrageous sh*t on TikTok, Deahl had an awesome moment: 107.5 The River radio station played My Baby Hates Me.

“When the radio station here played it, I said ‘this is the best moment of my life’ and I was not kidding. I couldn’t sleep that night. It was so validating for so many reasons. For all of these years I’ve been like, ‘I want to do this my way.’

“I hate the rules that the music industry has. Everyone told me it would take 10 years for that radio station to play my song. I was like, ‘No, I don’t have that amount of time. I’m going to figure out how to do it in one.’ And it’s all coming full circle now. I’m so glad that I stuck to my gut and did it my way and made the music from my honest place.”

We can’t stop playing My Baby Hates Me. If you haven’t heard it yet, head over to her Spotify to check out her music. Big thanks to Emily for sitting down with us to chat! You can follow Emily on TikTok here and Instagram here.

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Interviews

Artist Interview: Sloane

If you’re in the mood for some vibey electro-pop beats that have been dubbed “music to cry to while you smile,” then you’re going to need to stop everything and listen to jazz-musician-turned-solo-artist Sloane.

The moniker Sloane was created by LA-bred Nick Rosen. He discovered jazz as a teen and spent all his time practicing bass. Rosen then joined the TV and film side of music, helping record and produce scores for Super 8, Star Trek, LOST and more.

He then served as music director at LA nightclubs and hotspots Bardot and The Sayers Club, where he ended up performing with the likes of Prince, Will.i.am, Jamie Foxx, Bruno Mars, and more.

As if all that wasn’t enough, he’s become an accomplished producer and engineer along the way, including working with Phantogram, Tinashe, and others. We had a chance to spend some time talking to Sloane about his new music, songwriting, and what’s coming up for him in the next few months. Check out the interview below.

Crowdsurfer: Where’d you come up with the name Sloane?

Sloane: Originally I wanted to call myself Sloane Peterson based off the girl I had a crush on in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. That didn’t work so I decided to call myself Sloane.

CS: Talk a little bit about the idea for wearing the mask and how that originated.

Sloane: I was thinking about ‘How can I give someone an experience? How can they experience the music as an entity not me as a person?’ I thought it would be interesting and I’ve never seen someone wear their own pixelated face as a mask.

All of my songs are like breakup emo love songs and I like the idea that when you breakup with someone your whole world is almost pixelated because you’re seeing it fragmented and you’re seeing yourself less clearly. With that being said, whatever people think it is, that’s it too. As soon as you make something, it’s out into the world and it doesn’t belong to you anymore.

CS: What made you want to break out and create some songs as a solo artist?

Sloane: The last decade I’ve been working with other artists and I really like supporting other songs. I went through a classic really bad breakup in 2018 and I started writing some new songs. I wrote Old Hands New Face which was the first song I released as Sloane. My buddy Thomas was working at this label called SideOneDummy with Bill (Armstrong). He said, “We know that you’re working with a bunch of bands, can you send us who you dig in LA?” So I sent him around 30 songs, and I put Old Hands New Face in there, and they were like, “Well that’s great, would love to sign that!”

And I was like, “Shit.” I didn’t have any more songs yet. So that’s why the EP I released last year have mostly other people singing. A lot of them were songs that I took from sessions and I produced them and made them work, but it wasn’t fully me yet. So it was almost having to make up a project by accident.

CS: How has it been transitioning from writing and producing with other people to writing for yourself?

Sloane: The song that I just released a few weeks ago called Down From Here was just me and it was super personal just writing for me and that’s why it feels spiritually better. But I also feel like I still have a lot more to go. I’m writing and finding a sound and I’m in a crazy inspired period right now where I’m just writing constantly. I’ve already turned in like eight new songs to my label and I just want to keep going.

CS: What are some of the things that inspire you?

Sloane: Non-musically, I practice Buddhism which is a huge part of my life. I love the idea of simultaneous cause and effect and the lotus blooms and seeds at the same time. So I love the idea that as soon as I’m making a cause, it creates an effect. With music, as soon as I do something it’s created something else. And I like the idea of a moment. To me, music is a perpetual quest to create clearer and hopefully be open enough to capture moments. So that’s exciting to me on a life level of what inspires me to create.

I have a tattoo of this guy named Albert Ayler who I’d be surprised if anyone listening to this knew who he was. He was a really Avant Garde sax player. While my music doesn’t sound anything like that, I think I took the freedom of expression in that. So that inspires me a lot, just being free to be whatever. Those are two big aspects for me.

As far as music, I’m super inspired by anything these days. Anything that I think is real I love. I love The 1975 right now, I’ve been loving the new Taylor Swift album. Bon Iver and The National are like my two all-time favorite bands, so I love that Aaron Dessner did that album. I try to study Max Martin because he’s a genius and I want to know how you make all these hits.

CS: Talk a little bit about the dichotomy between the upbeat nature of your songs and the lyrical content which has a heavier theme.

Sloane: I like the idea that you can be having a fucked up day but yet you push yourself to dance. So the pre-chorus for Down From Here goes, “Everybody else seems happy waking up with someone else / Good for them I wish them well, maybe I just hate myself / The south of France could be Mojave, looks the same in Abu Dhabi / Feeling that’s inside my body wouldn’t wish on anybody.”

So it’s a pretty dark statement, but in a fun way and to me I just like the idea that it is really dark but hopefully people can hear a hopefulness in the fact that they can connect with it, but then maybe relate and move forward.

CS: We’re excited to hear some new music soon from you. What’s next for you in the upcoming year?

Sloane: I’m trying to really focus on what I want my next year to be. So the artists I want to work with next year, focusing on sessions. My label and I want to do another EP. I want to do another album too called “Will You Be My Friend?” and just do Sloane plus friends on every song. And I want to do half of it as children’s songs.

I also work with Phantogram a lot so we have a few things that are about to come out that are Sloane and Phantogram. I’ll probably do some touring with them next year and maybe try to book some of my own shows as well.

Big thanks to Sloane for chatting with us. You can follow Sloane on Instagram here and check out his latest music here.

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Interviews Music News

Artist Interview: Give Me A Reason

Zurich based pop-punk band Give Me A Reason has a brand new single called Sad and we’re loving it. We asked the band a few questions about the new song, new music in the works, and plans for the future. Check out the interview below!

Crowdsurfer Mag: We’re obsessed with “Sad” and the music video! We heard it was shot at the Supercandy Pop-Up Museum in Germany. What was the filming process like and how long did it take to film? It must have been a ton of fun!

Give Me A Reason: It was a pretty exhausting day, since we shot for 17h straight, but we got an amazing video out of it, and something you’ll find out very soon! Marc, from Stardust Visuals, did an amazing job, and made it so easy for us! It was a great experience.

CS: What has the response been to the single and music video and what has that meant to you guys? 

GMAR: We got a great response to the track and the music-video, we really didn’t expect this reaction! We are overwhelmed and extremely thankful!

CS: You’ve been compared to All Time Low and incorporating pop/punk vibes in your music. Who are some of your musical influences? What are your favorite artists/songs at the moment?

GMAR: To be compared with All Time Low is unbelievable, since we’re such an upcoming band and we listen to ATL since the beginning. We’re listening to bands like Neck Deep, State Champs and Point North, plus many more, on a regular basis. We also had different influences which go beyond the type of music we make, like Chase Atlantic, Røyls and The Band Camino.

CS: Tell us about flying to LA to record your new music. What was the songwriting and recording process like? Where do you find inspiration?

GMAR: It was an extraordinarily experience to fly out to the ultimate pop-punk city LA. The city itself gave us a lot of inspiration, to be in a different environment – One of the things that helped the process a lot, was meditating, because it helped us reset our minds and made us focus on the direction we wanted to move towards.

We had the great honor to work with Blake Roses, producer at Pastel Recording and former vocalist of “Oh, Weatherly”. We wrote and recorded eight songs in nine days, and we didn’t feel any pressure at any time. 

CS: What are you most excited about for the release of Vice Versa?

GMAR: We’re looking forward to showing everyone what we’ve been working on for so long. We can’t wait to share the experience that we have, when we play the songs in the bandroom, with everyone at the live shows. 

CS: Are you working on any more covers/new music during quarantine?

GMAR: Maaaaaaaybe, just stay tuned!

CS: Anything else you want to share?

GMAR: While answering this interview we were all sitting in our underwear, and i don’t know why.

You can check out Give Me A Reason on Instagram here and YouTube here, and definitely go listen to their new single, Sad!

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Interviews Music News

Abigail Barlow on “Heartbreak Hotel” and her new EP

If you haven’t heard the lyrics, “I don’t need a boyfriend, that shit’s full time employment,” then you probably have been living under a rock. That’s the first line of the uber-catchy song Heartbreak Hotel written by Abigail Barlow. She posted a video of the song with the caption, “I can’t sleep so I wrote something new.” It has over a million likes on TikTok.

Crowdsurfer: So let’s start with Heartbreak Hotel. It totally blew up on Tiktok with almost 4 million views! What inspired you to write the song?
Abigail Barlow: I wrote Heartbreak Hotel after meeting and casually talking to a dude that was buying me gifts, and I got a lil scared. Heartbreak Hotel was just inspired by my trust issues and how I’m simply not ready for a potential heartbreak any time soon LOL. 
CS: What was your reaction to it taking over Tiktok?
AB: Seeing comments that said “This is a hit release it now” was pretty overwhelming but SO insanely cool. It felt like the internet just sort of rallied and said “okay this is what we’re doing right? Let’s blow this song up!” And I couldn’t be more grateful for that. 


CS: Who are your musical influences? Who would you love to collab with one day?
AB: I don’t really like comparing myself to other artists, but because I produce a lot of my own stuff, I love talking about my musical and sound influences. I love the Max Martin era 2010 pop that dominated the radio waves a few years ago. I miss the era of Teenage Dream and 1989 SO much that I decided to sprinkle my music production with all the good old bubblegum pop vibes I could. If I could collab with one person it would definitely be Max Martin.
CS: Tell us about your EP coming out on August 14th. What songs will we get to hear and what’s the vibe of it?


AB: The vibe is pop. Purposeful, playful pop. I don’t take my music or myself too seriously, and I think that’s what makes it so fun to listen to. The bad b*tch inside your head gets a moment to speak up on my EP! And I give you a little taste of everything with the tracks, including an absolute BANGER I had the pleasure of writing with Meghan Trainor!
CS: Anything else you want to share with us?

AB: I’m just so beyond thrilled to finally be releasing music the way I want, and I just want to encourage any aspiring indie artists to do the same. It is TOTALLY possible for all of your dreams to come true. So do not ever give up on yourself or your art.  

You can follow Abigail on TikTok here and Instagram here, and keep an eye out because her EP comes out on August 14th!

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Interviews Music News

Artist Interview: Carly Shea

Carly Shea is definitely an artist to watch. Though only in the beginnings of her career, she’s certainly not inexperienced. We had the opportunity to have a video call with Carly and talk about her latest single, the music video, and her plans for more music this year. Read on!

CROWDSURFER MAG: You just released “Waste My Time!” It’s your third single of this year, how does it feel to be putting out all the music?

CARLY SHEA: The first singles I released was more the excitement of releasing, but now I’m just like, I need to do this for myself to have something positive. But it’s been good! I want to do a release every month if I can.

CSM: Where did the inspiration for “Waste My Time” come from?

CARLY: The song itself is the first thing I made in New York City. I just wanted to make this fun, upbeat, vapid pop song. It started out with a melody idea, and I really wanted the producer to take this scale of British schoolchildren singing and manipulate it. It turned into this fun, quirky, dance-pop track.

CSM: I really enjoyed watching the music video as well. Of course, I’m partial to anything set in NYC. What was it like shooting the video?

CARLY: It was one of the most hectic and fun experiences ever. The guy running a pinball arcade yelled at me, we got rained on… It was wild!

Photos by Draco Mansion

CSM: What can you tell us about your previous singles?

CARLY: “Lemonade” is a track that I think is closer to what I’m going to be releasing in the future in terms of the sound. I have two different types of tracks I’m going to be releasing moving forward that are pretty different from “Waste My Time,” “Forever,” and even my next single “Feel.” One is more dark pop and the other is pretty soulful but weird. Hopefully it works!

CSM: Tell us about “Feel!”

CARLY: It’s also an older track, and it’s a track I wasn’t even sure I wanted to release originally. But I relistened to “Feel,” and even though it’s an extremely old song, the meaning to me reminded me of everything that I’ve been going through and that I’m sure that everyone has been going to in quarantine.

CSM: When does “Feel” come out?

CARLY: July 30th!

CSM: Other than releasing music every month, do you have more plans for this year?

CARLY: I’m going to challenge myself to improve. I have a hard time writing stuff that always makes sense, so I want to work on my songwriting and making it more cohesive. I want to keep pushing my stuff, continuing with voice lessons, and I want to just get better!

CSM: So, you’ve only recently began your career as an artist. What do you want people to know about you?

CARLY: I think that I would like people to know that I hope that however they connect with the music is my goal. It’s important to me that you can take something away from it. And that I want to create music and art that is true to myself. Sometimes it will be super fun, upbeat nights out, and sometimes it will be about traumatic experiences. I want people to know I don’t want to shy away from what makes life life.

Photos by Draco Mansion

CSM: Last question: If you could tour with anyone, who would they be?

CARLY: That’s a really good question! Part of me says it should be relevant genre-wise, so I’d say it’d be really cool to tour with Dorian Electra or someone like that. But deep down if I could tour with anyone it would be Hall & Oats or Steely Dan… that would be the dream!

“Waste My Time” is out now and you can watch the music video here!

Categories
Interviews Music News

Novarium on New Single “Virus”

Novarium is a gothic-metal group comprised of lead vocalist Jen Janet, bassist Carey White, keyboardist Micah Consylman, drummer D. Anthony, and guitarists Sean Gronholt and Dean Michaels. Novarium just released “Virus,” their first single in couple years, and we’re sure fans are excited that they are back! We got to catch up with the group about their new song, how they’ve changed, and what’s in store!

CROWDSURFER MAG: Your latest single “Virus” just came out! It’s been a while since you’ve put out new music, how does it feel to release this one?

JEN: This is my first original song done with Novarium, so for me it’s really fun and I’m excited to show the song to the world.

D. ANTHONY: It feels great, and satisfying, to finally release this song. People’s attention spans tend to be short and we wanted listeners to know that we haven’t gone anywhere. I think Virus is the best song to re-introduce Novarium to all listeners as it has elements in there for everyone to gravitate to.

DEAN:  It’s been a long time coming.  We went through some lineup changes and released a single in 2018, but aside from that we’ve been low-key and working on new music.  We didn’t want to come up for air until we had something solid, and I think we’ve accomplished that. 

SEAN: I’ve been close to this song for a long time, so I’m really happy it’s seeing the light of day.

CSM: What was the inspiration for “Virus?”

JEN: I’ve always been very interested in history and theology. I think some of the most powerful questions we ask ourselves, is who are we? Is there a god? Is there life after death, or a higher power, or just some bigger meaning to everything? This song uses ancient Egyptian history and religious imagery to move the story along. That period in history was always very interesting to me because the kings and pharaohs were revered as living gods. A lot of people don’t like the idea of a human being a god, but I think it’s fun to think about. If you love someone, for example, you may treat them in a way, like a god. We treat celebrities like gods, sometimes. It’s an interesting concept. This song is about loving someone very much, to the point where they are put on a pedestal, treated like a god. Sometimes this can go to your head, and that person changes, even though they didn’t want to. Ultimately if one wants to change, they need to do it themselves. You can’t save someone who doesn’t want your help.

CSM: This single has a title that is very timely. How do you feel about releasing it during the pandemic?

JEN: We actually already had the title “Virus” for this song before anyone had even heard of COVID-19. We started writing this a long time ago. We decided now was a good time to release it because the video was finished, but the timing was actually a coincidence.

D. ANTHONY: Luckily, or unluckily, we had that title before the pandemic hit. We actually wanted to postpone any ideas of releasing the video, and single, until things calmed down. We wanted to treat the events with respect and not attract unwanted attention due to the title and the chaos that was to follow the pandemic.

DEAN: We were sensitive to the timing and had even talked about whether this was the right time to release a song called “Virus”, but ultimately we knew that our song had no relation to what was going on.  We filmed the video back in September 2019, so if we’d released it when we wanted to it would actually pre-date COVID.  I remember when the nation experienced anthrax scares and the band Anthrax came out and said, “We’re not changing our name”.  The same goes for our song, “Virus”.  Our song is about human nature, and even during a pandemic, human nature is tested.

SEAN: Kinda like a jerk at first. On the one hand I was concerned that it would be crass or come off as cavalier for us to just drop a song with that title on to a world that’s been hurting under the strain of a virus for months now. But I’ve never been a fan of self-censorship, and as a smarter man once wrote, “Our doubts are traitors and make us lose the good we oft might win by fearing to attempt.” Now my only concern is that the title will be seen as unoriginal and cliched.

MICAH: Times are pretty rough right now. One small silver lining is that if you are home all the time, you can really let your inner goth kid out. I certainly have.

CSM: Tell us about shooting the music video! What was it like being on set and getting to tell the story visually? And what’s your favorite part of the video?

JEN: Being on set was great – we worked with a property in Pennsylvania who allowed us to use their space. It was a very large warehouse with a few different rooms. I made a storyboard for the video previously and we all put some creative ideas into it, so we knew how the story would go. Basically for the music video’s story, the band plays characters that have died in different ways, and passed on. My character is sort of a “goddess of the underworld” type of person. She appears to each person, one by one, waking them up in the afterlife. They are injected with a substance, and then transform into Novarium. We wanted this to be the story for the video to show that Novarium is back, and we figured it would be fun to have the members in normal, plain clothes first, and then transform into costumes later. On stage for live shows everyone looks very gothic and we keep that aesthetic, so it was fun to have both sides in the video. My favorite part of the video to film was actually the end when we are all performing, just because I haven’t been on stage in a long time.

D. ANTHONY: Shooting the music video was a fun event but it took a lot of work. I for one felt weird during the acting parts as I am far from being, and don’t aspire to be, an actor. The live part during the 2nd half of the video was the most fun for me. I just enjoy playing with fellow musicians and having a good time. You have to play the song over and over for different camera angles so you better like the song!

DEAN:  The hard part was telling our entire story the best we could using what we had available  for the time allotted.  We had it story-boarded out,  we had minimal equipment and wardrobe, and we had never been to the set before.  We weren’t sure if what we had planned was going to work because we couldn’t scout it out ahead of time.  Luckily the people we worked with were very accommodating and understood what we were trying to do.  They were filmmakers themselves and were on scene from time to time to watch the process.  I did a few takes for my hanging scene, and on the second take I realized that I had an audience watching me.  I’m not much of an actor and it was a bit awkward, but you suffer for your art!  I think we were there for 12 or 14 hours and my favorite part only lasted a few seconds on screen: the part where we all open the bay door, having been awakened, and enter where we are “made” for the first time.

SEAN: Personally I’m proud of the noose I tied for Dean. I’d never made one before, but when your friend asks for a noose for himself, what are you going to do, say no?

CSM: Your album Omicron came out in 2016. How would you say your sound has changed since then? How would you say you as a group have changed?

D. ANTHONY: The songs on Omicron started forming as far back as 2008. As you can imagine, we’ve progressed as songwriters since then. The new songs have more collaboration from all band members. Omicron is a great debut album and allowed us to share stages with great musicians and travel, but I feel like we’ve matured as musicians. When you first become a band you are starting to get to know each other and sometimes it takes a few songs, or an album, to figure out the formula.

MICAH: I’ve been collaborating with Novarium from the start. They have always been a talented band. They seem to be progressing toward tighter, heavier, more melodic writing and performances, with really sexy keytar players. The group has changed a lot since getting a sexy keytar player.

DEAN:  Omicron was a collection of songs by a band that was still finding itself.  We knew we wanted to blend a few different elements together, but we hadn’t worked out the ratios yet.  There are a lot of songs on that album that were written and re-written to fit into a mold that was constantly evolving. We were too heavy for the goth crowd, and too goth for the heavy crowd. We also had a different line-up.  Any time you change members, you alter the DNA.  Once we got our bearings and fell into a rhythm, we realized that instead of writing specifically for an audience, we would get better results if we just wrote for ourselves. We’re also experimenting more with vocals than we have in the past, blending what we call “beauty and the beast” style stuff between Jen and the rest of us.  Sometimes the vocal melodies inform the music, so the tracks are a lot more cohesive than before. You could say the band is more mature these days, but I’d like to think that we just stopped worrying so much about how we were perceived and just focused on writing the best songs we could.

SEAN: As a group, we’re more professional now. We have spreadsheets, deadlines, scheduled teleconferences. Only thing missing now is an HR department and performance reviews, which is fortunate for me. But really, we’re a well-oiled machine these days, and we’re far more effective than we were in years past.

CSM: How has the pandemic changed your writing/production/creation process?

JEN: For us it actually has not changed at all. We were already a remote band with members all across the US, so we were already writing remotely and sharing files back and forth.

D. ANTHONY: Our songwriting process is actually still the same. Due to how hard it is to juggle having a career and establishing your band, technology starts becoming your best friend. Even more so when not all band members live in the same state.

SEAN: Yes. Now I actually have to practice my instrument instead of my usual formula of just giving excuses. Like, “I have to go to work.” It’s a tough time to be a procrastinator.

DEAN:  Yeah, not a whole lot changed with the process during the pandemic.  If anything, it gave me a chance to finally sit down and concentrate on finishing a few things!  A lot of the pandemic has been us preparing to release “Virus”, retool our social media and web sites, and create content, so we’ve been pretty busy. 

CSM: “Virus” will be on your upcoming EP. What can we expect when it comes out? Can you tell us anything about it?

D. ANTHONY: You can expect the same elements that form the core of what Novarium has always been, with new and improved sounds.

DEAN: “Virus” set the tone for our new chapter. The EP is chock full of gothy goodness, songs about human nature, various tempos, and includes our previous single, “Christian Woman” for all the Type O (Negative) fans. 

CSM: I know the year is very much up in the air, but what’s next for Novarium?

D. ANTHONY: What’s next is releasing the first EP with our current lineup, finishing the 2nd EP, new merch, and some tours to come.

MICAH: Bass, heavy screaming, and blazing keytar/guitar leads.

DEAN: We’re finishing up the release of other singles associated with our first EP, starting work on a second, and gearing up to head to the West Coast for one of, we hope, a few performances out that way.  We also hope to shoot a new music video – the first to feature our new keytarist, Micah.

CSM: Anything else you want everyone to know?

JEN: We would love to stay in touch with anyone who enjoys our music!

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Interviews Music News

Kyle from The Unlikely Candidates on Latest Single “High Low”

You probably know The Unlikely Candidates from their hit song “Novocaine,” which just topped Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart in March. We got to talk with lead vocalist Kyle Morris about their latest single “High Low” as well as making music and staying creative during this pandemic.

CROWDSURFER: It’s been about a month since “High Low” came out, and I wanted to say I absolutely can connect with it. Where did the inspiration for this song come from?

KYLE MORRIS: The song is about growing up, really. I think the older you get, the more people kind of spread out and do their own thing. I wrote this about coming home from tour and realizing that this has kind of happened even more. But I wrote it a week before quarantine happened, and then I rewrote it during quarantine. It took on a new life because the whole thing takes place in a guy’s apartment where he has nothing to do but think about his friends.

CS: You were in tour when things shut down, right?

KM: Yeah, it really sucked. As we were touring, we would hear that the last venue we were at was closing. We were like, this is catching up really fast. Then we played in the middle of nowhere Wyoming and there was a blizzard. So we stayed there in a cabin, completely snowed in, and we had to make the decision to leave tour. It kind of felt like the end of the world.

CS: Was the process of making this song different because of restrictions of the pandemic?

KM: Usually I’ll go and track the vocals at my producer’s studio, but we couldn’t do that. So, I basically had my producer on Facetime and he would help me, but I was just in my closet at home. So that song was recorded in my closet! Like the old days.

CS: We’re all working from home, even in the music industry! Speaking of, what has it been like for you during this odd and difficult time for the industry?

KM: It’s been rough because we had a #1 single, and this was the year that we were supposed to harvest the fruits of our labor. And we didn’t really get to do that. So we started Flatten the Hump Day, our weekly stream, to give people something to do. We’re coming up on our 16th week of doing it which is absolutely insane.

CS: I’m so impressed by that!

KM: Yeah, I think we’re doing it to stay sane at this point! We’re running out of ideas though. We only have so many songs, but we’ve been trying to mix it up. One week we did emo week and covered our favorite emo songs. We all dressed up with black wigs and fingerless gloves, it was pretty ridiculous.

CS: Well, I definitely want to watch the emo week one.

KM: The emo week one was pretty good. Not gonna lie, it was a little rough to sing. Those voices are pretty high!

CS: I realize it might be hard to answer this question, but what’s next for The Unlikely Candidates?

KM: Just trying to write as many cool songs as possible. Last year I didn’t get to write that much because we spent a lot of time promoting “Novocaine.”

CS: Do you think you’ll be able to get out to LA for recording or will there be more closet songs?

KM: It’s basically all closet stuff. But it’s pretty dope! I’ve had people ask me if I’m going to keep doing this afterwards, and I’m like yeah. I think that this works just as well.

CS: Anything else you want us to know?

KM: We have a video coming up for “High Low.” And stay tuned for Hump Days 19-55! Maybe a drive-in theater, too. I’ve been trying to set one of those up.

CS: We’re fans of drive-in concerts, so I hope you get to play one! Thanks for taking time to talk today!

KM: Thank you! Keep watching Flatten the Hump Day at 3PM central!

“High Low” is out now, and you can listen to it here.