Joe Sensible
Joe Sensible This interview with Joe Sensible explores the inspirations, creative process, and authentic songwriting behind his new EP, revealing how he balances personal expression, mood, and individuality in today’s music landscape. 1. “Don’t Say Goodbye” explores the pivotal moment between holding on and letting go in a relationship. What personal experiences or reflections inspired this song, and how did you translate that emotion into sound? I think everyone finds themself in that position at some point. When I wrote Don’t Say Goodbye I was feeling very positive about holding on in the relationship I was in. To translate the emotion and positivity into sound, I added as much warmth to the mix as possible, especially with the acoustic guitar, vocals and cello. The uplifting piano took the longest time and I had to develop my skills to get the feel I wanted. I then layered on the retro soulful licks on the electric guitar to give the song a laid-back rock vibe. 2. Your new EP highlights a calmer, more introspective side of your music. What drew you to focus on this mood, and how does it fit within the broader narrative of your upcoming 2026 album? If you create anything meaningful then it inevitably reflects different aspects of your personality. I think that when you start to deliberately focus on specific moods, there is a risk that your music can lose meaning. When I’m writing, I try to let the mood of the song take shape by itself. I have a calm and introspective side as well as a more complex and darker side. Both sides make an appearance on the album. 3. You’re known for a distinctive vocal style and unique fingerstyle acoustic guitar. How did your approach to arrangement and production evolve on this EP compared to your earlier work? My first album was a set of ‘live’ recordings with just guitar and vocals. This E.P. has the same foundation but I wanted to do something much more musically immersive. The whole process taught me a great deal. I thought I had all my arrangements in place at the start of the project but I really didn’t give enough consideration to tone during the initial recording sessions. When it came to mixing I was continually revisiting issues in the arrangements that I had created during recording. In the future I will give pre-production a lot more time and respect. 4. You’ve described the album as a “time capsule” of songs from your twenties. What made this the right moment to release that era of your songwriting into the world? It eventually became apparent that there wasn’t a wrong moment to release the music. These songs are as much part of me as the music I write now. I think I had something worth saying and it is still worth saying now. 5. You’ve carved a voice in a music industry where authenticity often feels curated rather than genuine. How do you stay true to your own identity while navigating the pressure to fit into certain sounds or trends? A friend of mine once released an amazing piece of music and it was only streamed a few times. Nobody would add it playlists or give him airtime because it was different. He told me the biggest lesson to learn is that no-one cares. Ironically, I have found that liberating. In the modern music industry, almost no-one cares about your music so there is really no point in making music for anyone else. Making formulaic music is straightforward so lots of people are doing it every day. However, you’re not doing anything meaningful, you’re making almost no money and what’s the point if you haven’t stayed true to yourself anyway? I would rather be genuine so whenever a listener connects with my music it is a real connection and it really means something to me. 6. Your influences range from Nick Drake to The National. In what ways do these inspirations shape your songwriting, and how do you balance honoring those roots while avoiding sounding like anything else?” I don’t really have any clear roots. When I was learning guitar I listened to everything from heavy metal and blues to traditional folk music. I’ll never stop loving the artists that inspired me but I don’t feel obliged to emulate their work. I listen to a huge range of music but I have always been determined to do my own thing rather than sounding like anyone else. That is especially true of my songwriting. As soon as you start trying to copy someone else’s songwriting style, you start singing songs that sound like someone else wrote them. If I’m writing a new song and it starts to remind me of someone else, I try changing something. If the song still sounds like something else I put it aside and forget about it. Joe Sensible | Instagram, Facebook | Linktree
Smoke Spider
Smoke Spider Smoke Spider return with “Vengeance,” a fiery new single blending raw power and melodic punch. In this interview, the duo unpack their creative spark, driving energy, and what’s next for the project. 1. You’ve released a few singles since starting Smoke Spider in 2021, and now “Vengeance” arrives as your third one this year. What sparked the idea for this track — was there a particular moment or feeling that set it in motion? Göran Florström: Well, you know, what set it motion was, as always, that urge, that itch inside saying “let’s write a new song!”. It might sound stupid, but that’s the way it is, always chasing something new. And the topic, vengeance, is that forbidden desire we all feel once in a while, I guess.. At least I do.. Let’s drag that little monster out in the open. 2. The title “Vengeance” suggests something dark and intense. How do you balance that raw energy with Smoke Spider’s signature melodic groove? GF: Don’t know how really, but we do balance it, don’t we? That’s a good description of Smoke Spider you’ve got there, by the way.. Sometimes I feel like primitive man, and then I realize that I’ve got to dress the whole thing up in some kinda melodic suit.. We love a great melody.. Don’t get me started about how much Johan loves it. And the energy is like our trademark. 3. You’ve both got strong musical histories — Johan as producer and multi-instrumentalist, Göran with Marionet and Generous Maria. How does your experience in those other projects influence what happens in Smoke Spider? GF: I’ve been singing in different bands and projects for quite some time, you know, and I been utilizing different layers of my voice, depending on the context. So I just bring it all into the boiling pot that is Smoke Spider. With Johan I don’t know, he’s just extremely talented.. 4. There’s a real sense of motion in the way you describe the track — “the train of Vengeance is rolling all over you.” Was that energy something you chased deliberately in the production, or did it happen naturally? GF: As I talked about earlier, the energy thing is a must, whether it’s an uptempo song or a slower track. So yeah, we chase it, and it’s there naturally. Both. It’s like our thing. And when it comes to Vengeance I think the train metaphor is valid, you’re run over by wheels of steel. 5. Smoke Spider’s sound feels like it lives between rock grit and melodic sophistication. How would you describe your creative chemistry when writing and recording together? GF: It’s a busy world, so we work pretty fast. We met up in Johan’s studio, and I usually ask “do we have something new to work with?” and almost always Johan shows a thing or two, and I start trying out some vocals in pretend English. We put the parts together, and when we meet up the next week I’ve written some proper lyrics, and we record the vocals. By then Johan has recorded the basic tracks of the song and when the vocals is done he continues building the song, so to speak. We’re picky about the mix, so it’s allowed to take some time. Usually the creative process runs smoothly as whipped cream. 6. With “Vengeance” hitting all streaming platforms on October 9th, what’s next for Smoke Spider? Should fans expect more singles, maybe a full-length release, or even live shows in the near future? GF: Since the release of Vengeance we’ve started the recordings of the next single. Hopefully it’ll make it all the way, and if it does it’ll be out pretty soon.We released a full-length album in October 2024 called Voodoo Spell. Now we’ll stick to releasing singles in a splendid row for a while.Smoke Spider is a recording project, you know, and so far we just don’t do live shows. But who knows, that can change. In the meantime, check out Smoke Spider on a music platform of your choice! Smoke Spider (@smokespiderofficial) • Photos et vidéos Instagram
Rob Eberle
Rob Eberle Rob Eberle’s SIGNAL FADES blends raw emotion with cinematic alt-pop, tracing a powerful journey through love, distance, and self-discovery. In this interview, he reflects on vulnerability, growth, and crafting his debut’s narrative. 1. “SIGNAL FADES” feels deeply personal—almost like reading pages from a diary. What moment or realization first inspired you to turn this story of love, loss, and self-discovery into a full album rather than a few standalone singles? Honestly, it stopped feeling like a collection of moments and started feeling like one long story I needed to tell. Every time I tried to release just one song, another piece of the narrative showed up, another memory, another realization about who I was becoming through this relationship. It was the first time I felt like I wasn’t just writing about something, I was processing it in real time. Turning it into a full album gave me the space to show the full arc: the hope, the distance, the unraveling, and the clarity that followed. 2. The album uses powerful sonic symbolism—like the fading signal motif and synths that mimic static. How did you approach blending these production elements with your storytelling to capture the emotional arc of a long-distance relationship?Everything on this record had to feel intentional to me; like the production was echoing what my heart was doing. The static, the distortion, the signal cutting in and out…those weren’t just textures; they were metaphors for the miscommunication and the emotional lag that happens when you’re oceans away from someone you love. I spent a lot of time making sure the production didn’t just support the story, it was the story. The synths, the dropouts, the way some vocals feel close and others feel blurry…all of it mirrors that feeling of reaching for someone who’s slipping further away. 3. Many listeners describe SIGNAL FADES as a coming-of-age record. Looking back, what did making this album teach you about yourself—both as an artist and as a person transitioning into adulthood?It taught me that I can’t keep shrinking myself to protect other people. Making this album forced me to sit with emotions I’d usually bury and to be brutally honest about what the relationship brought out in me. As a person, I think I finally understood that growing up is messy, you don’t get an instruction manual. As an artist, it showed me that vulnerability is my superpower. The more honest I got, the more everything clicked: the sound, the visuals, the storytelling. It made me trust my instincts in a way I never had before. 4. You’ve mentioned being influenced by artists like FINNEAS, Billie Eilish, and Alexander 23. How did those influences shape your sound on SIGNAL FADES, and what do you feel makes your approach to alt-pop and rock distinct from theirs? I think their influence shows up in the way I treat production as an extension of the emotion, FINNEAS’ minimalism, Billie’s intimacy, Alexander 23’s conversational storytelling. They taught me that “clean” and “raw” can coexist. But what makes my sound distinct is the blend of darker alternative rock textures with really confessional pop writing. My songs feel like they’re meant to be read and heard at the same time. I think that’s where my version of alt-pop lives. 5. You’re about to bring SIGNAL FADES to life on your LOST SIGNAL LIVE Tour. How do you plan to translate such an emotionally intimate record into a live experience—especially for songs rooted in heartbreak and distance?The live show is going to be its own universe. I want people to feel like they’re stepping inside the album, static, glitches, blue tones, all of it. Some songs will stay stripped and vulnerable, the way they were written. Others are getting these big, cathartic live arrangements because heartbreak feels different when you’re surrounded by people who get it. I’m not trying to recreate the record; I’m trying to let the emotions breathe in a new way. The goal is for people to walk out feeling like they weren’t just watching me process something; they were processing their own story with me. 6. SIGNAL FADES closes one chapter but also signals a new beginning in your artistry. Where do you see your sound and storytelling heading next after this debut?I’m stepping into a phase where I’m less afraid to experiment and more willing to tell stories that aren’t just wrapped in heartbreak. SIGNAL FADES was me learning how to let go. What’s next is me figuring out who I am when I’m not holding onto anything or anyone. Sonically, I feel myself leaning into a mix of bigger, grittier alt-rock moments and softer, more cinematic songwriting. I want to explore growth, reclamation, the feeling of starting over on purpose. Whatever comes next will still be honest, it’ll just come from a version of me who isn’t fading anymore. Rob Eberle (@robeberle) • Photos et vidéos Instagram
Rejection Ratio
Rejection Ratio Rejection Ratio return after decades with a rediscovered time-capsule of live recordings, transformed into a newly released album that blends raw emotion, authenticity, and genre-defying creativity. In this interview, they reflect on the past, the healing that shaped their journey, and the resonance their music still carries today. 1. Your music was recorded live in a single take back in 1997. Listening to it again decades later, what struck you the most about those raw sessions when you revisited the DAT tape?It was like opening a time capsule. When we listened to it, we realized that it was so good we needed to release it as an album. We had to give it to the world instead of wasting it and leaving it behind. Somehow everything was leading us to do that. So much could have stopped the process, but it didn’t. It took a lot of work to find the right equipment and the right person to translate it from tape to computer while preserving the sound quality. But it was destined to happen. 2. The band went silent due to Nelly’s unexpected hearing issues. How did the journey of healing—and eventually discovering the real cause—shape the emotional tone of the album today?We wanted the sound of the album to capture exactly the emotions and musical drive we felt when playing together. That’s why nothing new was added or changed. For example, we wanted the vocals to sound as authentic as possible, so we did not allow any autotune or pitch correction. Through authenticity, we aimed to bring the album’s emotions and feel directly to our listeners. 3. Rejection Ratio blends rock, pop, new wave, and alternative without fitting into a clear category. How do you approach creating music that’s intentionally genre-defying yet still cohesive?We created our music mostly by jamming. But the basics of some songs were made at home by a single person. This combination of jamming and occasional personal redirection truly diversified the style. Ruud, Ton, and I (Nelly) always wrote the lyrics. I somehow knew which lyric I would have to sing with which tune. We all have a love for different types of music, so why fit into one category only? Blending music shows our love and compassion for all music. 4. “Love Is Like Heaven” is your first single from the newly released album. Since the song was written years ago, why does it feel even more relevant in today’s musical landscape? ‘’Love like Heaven” has a different beat and stands out so much, inviting you to dance and also to listen. The lyric tells about someone who uses people and discards them. It does seem to be happening more often. This trend is linked to broader social changes. I also think that expressive and emotional singing is needed again in today’s musical landscape because singing with your heart is important. I noticed that ’80s and ’90s music is popular again, and our single has that feel to it because it was recorded then, but it is also different. 5. The remastering process involved the same person who initially recorded the tracks in 1997. What was it like to collaborate again after all these years, and what did you aim to preserve versus enhance in the sound?We lost connection with Theo, who recorded and mixed the album. Somehow we found him again and reconnected. We got our friend back! It was like it had to happen. Theo just knew exactly how our music had to be mastered. He made the sound better but still preserved the sound of that time. I think no one could have done it better, also because of his love for the album, which you can somehow hear. 6. Your YouTube release has been gaining organic engagement without promo budgets or Spotify exposure. How important is authenticity and direct connection with listeners in this new phase of Rejection Ratio?Authenticity is very important to us, and connecting with the listeners is so important in this mad world. I would love to hear what they think. I think that making music is important to help everyone feel better and to connect with each other. If you read this, I dare you to check out our other videos on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@rejectionratio and visit our website: https://rejectionratio.com/ . Leave your comments below our videos on YouTube. We would love to hear from you! Our full album Acceptance Quotum Resonance is available exclusively on iTunes and Amazon Music. Our second album will be out next year, so keep following us for updates. rejectionratio.com
Massey’s Cross
Massey’s Cross Massey’s Cross blend rock, indie, blues, and folk into a uniquely Canadian sound. In this interview, they reflect on their origins, influences, storytelling, and what listeners can expect from their evolving journey. 1. Massey’s Cross emerged in 2024 and quickly shaped a distinct sound blending rock, indie, blues, folk, and experimental elements. What sparked the creative chemistry between you, and how did the band’s identity form in those early days? Mark and Geoff have known each other for years, (since junior high school) and have always worked on various musical projects and collaborations over the years, though not exclusively. The duo was formed in 2024 to collaborate on what became an independent EP release entitled Pretty Tasha, which tells the story of an idealistic girl who meets a malcontent who draws her into a toxic and manipulative relationship only for her to exact her revenge. This concept EP came from having an abundance of time on our hands during COVID lockdowns and resulted in Massey’s Cross, which continues creating, albeit on a less dark path with the recent indie release “Memorial”. 2. Calgary’s cultural landscape and the nearby Rocky Mountains seem to play a big role in your inspiration. How does the environment around you influence your songwriting, mood, or overall approach to creating music? Calgary’s geography and surroundings are a truly unique place. Both being rare native Calgarians, Mark and Geoff lean into the surrounding natural beauty as inspiration while also leaning into promoting “Canadiana”. Winters are cold which allows for a lot of writing and recording when you are locked away from the bitter weather. 3. Your songs combine classic rock grit with modern textures. Which artists or musical eras have had the biggest impact on your sound, and how do you merge those influences while still keeping your signature identity? From the classic rock perspective, notable influences include the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Hendrix and Pink Floyd. Those archetypes are somewhat universal but we mix in more contemporary acts like The Foo Fighters, Radiohead and Marcus King as examples. Having strong historical appreciation for the blues influences of the archetypes while also looking through a more contemporary lens allows for a re-examination and re-presentation of familiar themes and styles to keep things fresh. 4. “Gospel of Luther,” from your upcoming album Memorial, hints at a powerful and emotionally charged musical direction. Can you share the story behind this track and how it fits into the themes of the new album? Memorial is less thematic than Pretty Tasha, as the predecessor. Memorial is not as narrative driven holistically, but Gospel of Luther certainly sits in the story-driven mold. It is really a re-examination of delta folk blues music with a fictional derivative story of a man who is faced with hypocrisy in the face of his wife’s impending death from illness. Similar to my earlier comment, GOL is really a modern take on historical musical styles and themes. It started as a “throw away” guitar progression which caught the ear of Mark and inspired a rapid collaboration on the lyrics. 5. Your social media presence has helped you build a dedicated following, giving listeners a window into your creative world. How important is that direct connection with fans, and how do you balance online engagement with staying focused on the music? Human interaction is more valuable than online likes and followers most certainly. To date, we have been focused on “building the brand” online. Stage 2 then becomes more intimate personal interaction. Balancing creativity with the perfunctory brand building activities is always a challenge as an Indie band as there are simply so many hats to wear. Being consistent and committed to both the online requisites and the music is key to maintaining balance. 6. As you continue carving your place in the Canadian music scene, what can fans expect next from Massey’s Cross in 2025 and beyond—whether it’s new releases, tours, collaborations, or creative surprises? We envision having another album release late summer to fall of 2026. Concurrently, we will be focusing entirely on live performance and promotion so the prospect our tours is real but as yet, ill-defined. Massey’s Cross EPK
Giuseppe Cucé
Giuseppe Cucé “21grammi” reveals the unseen emotional weight we all carry. In this interview, Giuseppe Cucé opens up about the album’s origins, creative process, influences, and the intimate vulnerability shaping his sound and upcoming tour. 1. “21grammi” explores the invisible emotional weight we all carry. What personal experiences or turning points made you realise this concept was the heart of your album?There wasn’t a single moment—it was an accumulation of small fractures.In recent years I understood that the most significant things in life often happen in silence: a look that lingers, a door that closes, a memory that resurfaces without permission. I realised that the human soul carries a weight made of desires, absences, regrets, and rebirths. Those “21 grams” became a metaphor for everything we cannot measure but deeply feel.The album was born from the need to give shape to that invisible heaviness and transform it into something that could breathe, vibrate, and, hopefully, heal. 2. The album blends poetic realism, intimate songwriting, and cinematic indie-pop elements. How did you find the balance between raw vulnerability and crafted production while maintaining the album’s emotional truth?The balance came from not forcing anything.I wrote the songs in their most fragile, unpolished form—just voice and piano or acoustic guitar. We protected that vulnerability like a sacred space. In the studio, we worked to enhance emotions rather than decorate them.If an arrangement didn’t serve the story, we removed it.If a slight imperfection in the voice was truthful, we kept it. The goal was simple: to let the songs feel alive, to let them breathe and tremble the way real emotions do. 3. You collaborated with an impressive team of musicians and creatives. How did their contributions shape the atmosphere, textures, and emotional depth of the record?Working with this team was like navigating different shades of the same emotion. Each musician brought something deeply personal:• the string players added a cinematic fragility,• the guitar and piano lines gave the songs their heartbeat,• the percussions created movement without ever overwhelming the intimacy. My producer, Riccardo Samperi, played a crucial role.He knows how to listen not only to the notes, but also to the silence between them.He helped me preserve the soul of every song while giving the album a cohesive, breathing soundscape. This record exists because we created a shared emotional language. 4. Your influences range from Battiato and Dalla to Bon Iver and James Blake. How do these inspirations appear in the album’s sound, and how did you ensure your own artistic identity remained central? I never wanted to imitate my influences—only to let them guide me like distant constellations.From Battiato I learned the courage of philosophical intimacy.From Dalla, the art of turning daily life into poetry.From Bon Iver and James Blake, the ability to mix raw humanity with modern textures. My identity remained central because every song was born from a personal need before becoming music.The emotions, the imagery, the stories—they all come from my life, my city, my memories.So even when the arrangements flirt with international sounds, the heart always remains unmistakably my own. 5. Recording at TRP Studios — a place tied to your roots — clearly shaped the album. How did the environment, analogue gear, and experimental recording techniques influence the final sound?TRP Studios is more than a studio for me—it’s a place where I grew up artistically.Its analogue warmth and the experimentation-oriented approach shaped the album’s identity. We used:• vintage microphones to capture the breath and intimacy of the voice,• tape saturation to give warmth and imperfection,• room acoustics to let instruments resonate naturally. The studio holds a unique energy: it’s suspended between tradition and experimentation.That duality became the sonic foundation of 21grammi. 6. With the upcoming 21Uniradio Tour 2025, you’re bringing these songs into intimate live settings. What do you hope young listeners and emerging artists will feel or take away from hearing “21grammi” performed acoustically?I hope they feel permission.Permission to be fragile, to be honest, to not have everything figured out. “21grammi” in an acoustic setting becomes even more exposed—there’s nowhere to hide.I hope young listeners see that vulnerability is not a weakness but a powerful creative force.And for emerging artists, I hope this tour shows that music doesn’t need spectacle to be meaningful: sometimes a voice, a guitar, and a true story are enough. Grazie mille Giuseppe Cucè – Sito Ufficiale
Fish-Head da Solista
Fish-Head da Solista In this interview, Sicilian artist Fish-Head da Solista opens up about “Lo spreco, il peccato, la perdita,” revealing the intimate emotions, experimental choices, and personal reflections that shaped this deeply vulnerable song. 1. “Lo spreco, il peccato, la perdita” is a deeply intimate song. What moment or personal experience first inspired you to translate this emotional journey into music?The song is about a tormented love relationship with a woman. I started writing it after one of our first dates, when I was excited and hopeful. Then things got worse, and the way the song narrative unfolds reflects this change. She suddenly became more and more distant, in contrast with the first weeks when she seemed totally affectionate. I tried to talk to her and to understand what it was that I’d done to spoil everything. Soon I understood that there was no point trying to get answers from her — my only option was trying and expressing my emotions in the song. 2. The lyrics are rich with sensory imagery—like “the unforgettable taste of your kisses by the sea.” How do you approach weaving such poetic details into your songwriting?I don’t feel 100% comfortable about putting these details in a song. I mean, this is actually and genuinely what I felt at that time, but I suspect people (if they’re listening to my song at all) don’t really want to know about these things, I mean, actual physical intimacy and stuff like that. But writing about these moments keeps you attached to them, helps keep the memory of these feelings fixed and bound to the lyrics. Songwriting is a cure against oblivion. 3. You’ve described the track as capturing both pain and hope. Which of these emotions was harder for you to express openly through your voice and production?Obviously it was more difficult to admit I still had some hope. Towards the end of the song I say “despite all this, I still want to make an effort, I already feel knackered and depressed, but I am not afraid of your fake indifference”. I mean, this was me ultimately admitting that I was totally lost for her, that I craved the chance of making an effort again to revive the relationship. I wrote and rewrote those lines a few times — at the beginning the lines were like “I want to be out of this asap” but at the end I chose to be honest about my feelings. 4. The song’s freeform structure breaks away from strict conventions. Why was it important for this piece to feel raw and unpolished, and how does that reflect your artistic identity? My background includes experimental/avant-garde music, electroacoustic composition, live electronics… compared to these genres, the structure of this particular song might even appear conventional — after all it’s based on an obvious verse+chorus+bridge structure that is repeated for three times… yet I tried to use dissonance and other effects in order to spice things up and enhance the feelings of despair, abandonment and bewilderment that are attached to the lyrics. And yes, I think this fully reflects my artistic identity, I’d say I’m quite happy with how this song sounds — obviously I need to acknowledge the great work of Arthur Miúda on the electric bass, it makes everything sound so much better. 5. As a Sicilian artist based abroad, how does distance—from your roots, your memories, or your cultural background—influence the way you write about loss and personal stories?I’d say distance influences this type of writing a lot. At some point the song kind of stops being about this romantic relationship and starts exploring things like death, memory, etc. I guess distance is also cultural — part of what the song is about is, at the end of the day, an insurmountable difference in terms of our cultural understanding of what a love relationship is and how it should be handled. And I’m aware I might sound intense and weird to people: after all I was just seeing someone for a while and things didn’t work out, and I should probably just stop making a fuss out of that, and so forth… but then that wouldn’t quite be the way I feel about things, and I take full responsibility for being a bit of a weirdo. 6. What do you hope listeners take away from this song when they confront their own experiences of heartbreak, regret, or healing?I don’t really know. I think it’d be great if this resonated with people’s feelings and experiences, but this is never what I try to achieve when I write a song. I want lyrics to tell a specific story, and this story is usually quite personal and there are often specific details that make it my story. This song is not about a universal, generic relationship, and is not necessarily about “transferrable” feelings and experiences. Fish-Head da Solista (@fish.head.da.solista) • Photos et vidéos Instagram
Brian Keefe
Brian Keefe Brian Keefe’s shift from band life to a deeply personal acoustic path has reshaped his creative identity. In this interview, he reflects on discipline, recovery, and rediscovering his true artistic voice. 1. Your musical journey spans rock, metal, acoustic projects, and now a deeply personal solo career. What has this shift from full bands to a solo acoustic identity taught you about your own voice as a songwriter? Having a band background where I’ve played with many other very talented musicians, I’ve found over those years that few of them have had the drive and work ethic that I seem to have. This isn’t good or bad; it just seems to be. However, it was always frustrating to me whenever I wanted to rehearse and tighten things up for upcoming shows just to find that people simply wouldn’t show up. No call. No text. Just no show. It showed me that, while some of us take this seriously, others are only in it for fun. Unfortunately, you never know this up front and only find out later. This would always cause a revolving door in band personnel, and I finally concluded it simply wasn’t worth the effort any longer. So, I decided to have a go of it as a solo acoustic artist (and as half of an acoustic duet). I played a lot of live gigs in all kinds of venues until I contracted COVID around the end of January 2021. This was the initial strain and I spent 65 days in the hospital with pneumonia. Early on, my left lung collapsed with a tension pneumothorax and that took a long time to heal. 30 days until I got a negative COVID test, but the other 35 days was waiting for the lung to heal. The last live gig I played prior to contracting COVID was at Ri Ra Irish Pub at the Mandalay Bay Casino in Las Vegas in December 2020. It was a great night and a LOT of fun. Ri Ra was one of my favorite places to perform. I think being sick that badly really made me more aware of my own mortality. Not that I’m afraid of that or anything. It just made me realize that I had all these songs I had written but never recorded. So, since then I’ve been working on getting them recorded. My first initial recordings took place over a 2-year period (2022-2023) and were, I think, kind of a feeling out of the Pro Tools DAW and its workings. I took 2024 and recorded only a handful of cover tunes, getting to know Pro Tools and the associated plugins a lot better. I started recording originals again this year by re-recording 8 of my previous songs and recording 2 new songs. Knowing more about the software, plugins, mixing and mastering now, I think, is helping me get better end results. It’s taken a while, but my final recordings are turning out considerably better. 2. You mentioned that the last three years have been almost entirely studio-focused after decades of live performance. How has embracing the recording and mixing process reshaped your creative workflow and the way you hear your own songs? The two could not be more different. When recording, processes are much more focused and methodical. When recording, every mistake is enhanced because when you play it, you don’t just notice it once, you hear it again and again. So, studio work is meticulous and time consuming. Especially when doing everything as real audio and actually playing the instruments. You can “punch” into recordings with a DAW bouncing multiple tracks and stitching them back together where needed. However, recording used to be an analog process and any mistake would require re-recording an entire track. So, while it’s not as difficult as it once was, it’s still harder than recording with Midi or AI. On the other hand, when playing live performances, it’s more in-the-moment. The performances don’t need to be perfect because you play straight through any mistakes. Half the time venues are filled with people vaguely paying attention or, in the case of bars/pubs/taverns, people are drinking and having a great time. You are the entertainment, and live performances are a one-time event. You play the show and then it’s over. Mistakes are quickly forgotten, if even noticed. Most people don’t care about mistakes made when playing live. It’s expected. Forgetting the lyrics, bumbling a chord or a few notes – no big deal. So long as everyone is enjoying themselves, the performance is worth every moment for both the performer(s) AND the audience. 3. You’re currently re-recording and re-releasing tracks from your first two albums. What motivated you to revisit this older material, and how different do these songs feel to you now compared to when you first wrote them? You would not believe how much a song can change from the time you wrote it until you settle on a final product. I’ll give you an example. My song, “Dancing with the Lightning”, was originally written in the key of B and patterned strongly after Ed Sheeran’s “Lego House”. However, once I settled on the final recording, it ended up in a different key altogether and sounding nothing at all like “Lego House”. I’ve changed a lot of things over the past few years. I now tune my guitars ½ step down (flat) from 432 (440 is standard pitch). I also use what I call a half capo on many songs. You use it typically on the 2nd fret and it covers only the A, D and G strings leaving the others open. The sound emulates the standard DADGAD tuning and produces beautiful, rich tones that would typically not be captured any other way. The biggest reason I’m re-recording and re-releasing many of these songs that I had already done is because, after learning my DAW better and becoming more familiar with my recording processes, I felt I could do a much
NURIA
NURIA Blending dreamy euphoria with heartfelt vulnerability, NURIA’s “I Know It’s You” reflects her journey through love, independence, and emotional truth. This interview explores the song’s spark, vision, and deeply personal artistry. 1. “I Know It’s You” blends dreamy euphoria with an intimate, romantic narrative. What moment or feeling first sparked the idea for this song, and how did you translate that emotion into music? Historically for me, I’ve written more introspective songs than romantic ones, so I had a lot of love in my heart waiting to be expressed. The conception of this song originated in the production. When I first discovered the lead synth line paired with the drums it ignited that excitement of being enthralled in someone’s aura allowing yourself to dive into full surrender. Memories flooded my mind and then the lyrics poured out of me. 2. You wrote, recorded, and produced the track entirely yourself under NURIA Records LLC. How does full creative independence shape the way you bring your artistic vision to life? It’s full artistic authority. No one can express how you feel better than yourself. Being proficient in all these different aspects of your craft not only ensures the creative vision, but allows the freedom to convey with precision when collaborating with others to bring what’s in your mind into reality. I feel very deeply and am quite sensitive, so I protect my art and freedom with ferocity, viewing this as a super power rather than a hindrance. At the beginning of my artist journey I sought outside of myself for guidance and approval, but then I discovered the only way is to go within and carve that path out for myself. My hope is through my endeavor I connect like minded souls who resonate. Although it’s not an easy path, it’s extremely rewarding. 3. The song highlights the power of vulnerability from a female perspective. What does embracing that vulnerability mean to you personally and artistically? To live your truth is to love yourself, both personally and artistically. As a women, we experience such a vast emotional landscape sensing everything around us. Sometimes life makes it seem it would be easier to shut down and ignore this nuanced existence. The world is a harsh place, but that should never hinder your expression, dim your light or block your heart. Love is the most important thing, whether platonic, romantic, familial, love for your passions, love for the world.. if you feel it, act on it. Life is too short not to live with a heart wide open. Loving less doesn’t protect you and hiding the depth of your emotions won’t bring you peace. Be you, it’s your right. 4. The visuals were shot in the midnight streets of Paris, capturing spontaneous moments of love. What drew you to this setting, and how do these short-form videos complement the mood of the song? It’s based on my life and all of the nights out with the one I love. Where even to and from is an adventure unto itself. I wanted to convey that by setting the the scenes walking freely through the streets late at night, in the car with the wind blowing my hair, and on the back of the scooter feeling that rush where anything is possible. 5. You have a background in singing, songwriting, and dance. How do these different artistic disciplines influence the way you approach production and storytelling in your music? It affects everything. Nothing is ever isolated; it always comes back to the whole. When writing lyrics, I imagine cuts to a new scene of a music video, when producing I feel how each beat is met with a movement of choreography, when finishing music I think about how it will be presented on stage. I day dream about all the forms a piece of art can be conveyed through different mediums. It’s all consuming. 6. Your promotional campaign centers around real, adventurous moments with someone special. What do you hope listeners feel—or remember from their own lives—when they experience “I Know It’s You”? I hope this song brings pride to deep feelers, to celebrate the purity of their love, to cherish their heart, whether it’s love for another or love for themselves, marking a moment in time in their life relating to a happy memory, or bringing new hope for what’s to come. NURIA | Instagram, TikTok | Linktree
Lexytron
Lexytron Blending gritty indie-sleaze energy with emotional honesty, Lexytron return with Something New—a genre-shifting album shaped by raw storytelling, fearless experimentation, and the creative chemistry between Lexy and Mike. 1. “Another Lover” brings a gritty indie-sleaze energy with raw emotion and chaos. What moment or feeling sparked the creation of this track, and how did it take shape sonically?‘Another Lover’ was written acoustically around some chords I was strumming and the lyrics just kind of enveloped it, so the tone of the song was less chaotic even if somewhat bleak and forlorn. It stayed that way until Mike got his hands on it and made it into this fun and frenetic rock beast! I remember going into our home studio and loving what he’d done, but it didn’t have an opening riff, so I made one up on keys which sounded like an Americana-esque riff once he played it out. He’s a great guitarist which shows with the QOTSA-inspired solo at the end. He reflected the lyrics so perfectly by making the second verse (about going to the edge of the Earth and back) sound like you had been catapulted suddenly into outer space! 2. Your new album Something New blends alternative pop-rock with darker electronic textures. How did your creative approach differ from your debut Something Blue?I feel this record – even though it goes in some different directions – is more sonically cohesive than the first record. The first album had more acoustic guitar, and this one uses samples for the first time and more synth. However, I think the heart behind both records is the same. I said that was an alternative girl’s guide to love, lust, and loneliness (the subjects we all want to talk about!) and this one explores those same themes, as well as others. On ‘New’, Mike had the benefit of Logic experience and played around in some different sub genres like trip-hop, synthwave, funk and disco. 3. You and Mike form a husband-and-wife creative team. How does your relationship influence the songwriting and production dynamic behind Lexytron?Generally speaking, the lyric writing is not related to our relationship with a couple of exceptions – there’s a song on the first album I wrote about him and there’s a song on the second album he wrote about me (‘Every Little Thing’). I’m an observer for some of my writing and at other times, an initial spark comes from my feelings, but the song then ends up being about something else! All but two of the songs on these albums are my babies, but Mike is the colourist with his guitar, bass and production prowess and without him, these songs would still exist in my scrapbook or as voice memos. ‘Disco Jenny’ on this album was our first true songwriting collaboration because Mike wrote the guitar riff and I wrote the words and melody around it, whereas we normally carry out our roles separately and then come together – a bit like Lennon and McCartney but with much less of a hit rate! 4. The spooky vintage Mickey Mouse video for “Another Lover” is striking and unusual. What drew you to that imagery, and how do you feel it amplifies the song’s mood? I had access to the world’s greatest animator thanks to its copyright term elapsing, so thank you Walt! I chose that particular clip to work with because Mickey enters into a haunted house, gets spooked by all sorts of nightmarish imagery, including dancing skeletons, and runs for his life at the end. You can say that in the song, the narrator is feeling defeated by love, so what did they go through to get to that point? I really feel the video and the song go hand in hand. I hope Walt would have liked seeing his creation mixed with a bit of punk rock and appreciated in a different medium! 5. The album has earned praise for its ambition, honesty, and genre-shifting sound. Was there a particular theme or message you wanted listeners to walk away with after hearing Something New? No particular theme or message was intended, other than maybe that humans are multifaceted and so I hope you find that throughout the lyrics and the musical shapeshifting. Hopefully some listeners enjoyed it and if they took away some meaning from the lyrics, which I would love, that’s all I could ask for. My goal was to create something that I thought was good and I decided to share that for the benefit of others, so we could have a dialogue about it. I hope a few people got that ‘Disco Jenny’ is a funky dance track too and let their limbs move rather than just using their minds! 6. With support from international outlets and radio, where do you see Lexytron heading next? Are there upcoming releases, shows, or creative directions you’re excited to explore? I’m not sure where we’re heading because whilst we have had some phenomenal support, Lexytron is still a very humble and DIY project. I self-fund my music, record at home with my husband, do my own PR and social media, so it’s a big undertaking given my busy personal life! I’m sure a lot of DIY/unsigned musicians relate! However, I felt reinvigorated by putting this album out and my little one told me, ‘Mum, I like your songs. Please make more’, so we have her blessing to go forth and create! I have a plan hatching for a new project, but it’s early days and all will be revealed in time – stay tuned! However, if this is all we ever do, I can seek comfort in following the lineage of Joy Division, The Stone Roses, The Travelling Wilburys, Amy Winehouse and The Long Blondes. Home | Lexytron