Audra – Dear Tired Friends

photo by Jaymz

A decade is a long time to be without something but well worth the wait when it comes to the new album from post punks Audra. It is ten years since the Arizona hailing band released third album Everything Changes and it is fair to say a great many have been eagerly and patiently awaiting its successor and just as simple to assume they are going to greedily bask in the dark beauty of Dear Tired Friends.

Formed in 1991 and primarily brothers Bart and Bret Helm, Audra enfold the inspirations of post punk and its numerous shapers alongside the eclectic imagination found in the likes of the Velvet Underground, Jane’s Addiction, Joy Division, David Bowie, James, and Tom Waits within their sound. As Dear Tired Friends proves it emerges a riveting often haunting embrace of intimate shadows and bewitching melancholy framed in post punk starkness and gothic rock romanticism.

An album which “deals heavily with loss and letting go” and described as “a testimony of the effect the last decade had on each band member”, Dear Tired Friends opens up with the song Tired Friends and took barely a handful of seconds to seize attention with the sizzle of Bart’s guitar across the bold but controlled rhythms of the band’s drummer, Jason DeWolfe Barton. From there pure addiction grew as the track unveiled its post punk prowess around Bret’s potent tones, the imagination only further ensnared as a calmer passage of reflection bares the heart of the track. It is a compelling and irresistible start to the album and quickly followed and matched by the outstanding Wish No Harm.

This is a song which began back in the early nineties and reappeared on a cassette they found when the band was assembling demos for what originally was to be a 4-track EP. Completed last year, Bret adding lyrics and melody to the original demo, Wish No Harm became the lead single for Dear Tired Friends and there could be no finer invitation to the album. The opening bassline was immediate manna to the ears, its lure unapologetic flirtation echoing the core essence of eighties post punk and only enhanced by the swiftly following enticement of vocals and guitar. There is something of Bauhaus meets The Cure to the song with a just as flavoursome tease of bands such as Leitmotiv and Gene Loves Jezebel but nevertheless stands unique to Audra and their dark imagination.

Another Fallen Petal is next up, the song a slowly unfurling piece of emotive solemnity and melodic intimacy within the mournful yet radiant embrace of keys. With the pure captivation bred leaving a lingering presence in thoughts, the song simply beguiled as too its successor, Drinking Yourself To Sleep. Fuelled by an instinctive catchiness bred in all tracks however their darkness and character, the equally enthralling song bears a glam rock lining to its harmonic stroll with psych rock currents in its breath.

Sunglass provides another romance of ears, keys and vocals almost crawling over the senses with the subsequent blaze of guitar sparking a Bowie-esque hue to the soulful and atmospheric piece of dark rapture while Planet Of Me steps forward with a knowing swagger to its rousing virulence. Featuring Mike VanPortfleet of Lycia as guest on lead guitar, the track is a weave of contrasts and stirring imagination; it as striking in its calm as it is in its lively eddies of contagious enterprise.

Across the fertile almost invasive liveliness of Sliding Under Cars and its Numan-esque poppiness, through The Sound/The The styled bold rapture that is Fireflies, and over the doleful but enslaving fascination of 1987 we can only say that Dear Tired Friends engrained itself deeper under the skin and into the passions before Falling brought it all to a close with its dark wave nurtured seduction. Volatility lies in the heart of the song, never fully erupting but teasing fiery emissions to the surface as it adds to the inherent beauty and splendour which lines its shadowy magnificence.

We all may have lingered ten years for a new adventure with Audra but we can tell you that every long second was worth the wait and more.

Dear Tired Friends is out now digitally and on CD and vinyl; available @ https://audra.bandcamp.com/album/dear-tired-friends

https://www.audramusic.com/ https://www.facebook.com/audramusic https://twitter.com/audramusiccom

Pete RingMaster 28/11/2019

Dead Register – Captive

Nov2

It is two years since Atlanta outfit Dead Register not only thrilled but truly captivated us with debut album Fiber. It was a collection of tracks bred in the rich essences of doom, gothic, and post rock but equally embraced many more flavours to create something as unique as you could imagine or wish. Twenty four or so months on we still cannot truly define their sound or want to as that would be to sterilise its originality and fertility, both as rampant and captivating in the band’s new offering, Captive.

Every word in praise of Fiber by us and so many others can be echoed with zeal in regard to the Captive EP, but not only repeated but escalated as its five tracks venture to mouth-watering new heights in the imaginative craft and inventive prowess of Dead Register. The new EP sees percussionist/drummer Danny Ryann (ex-Gigan) alongside vocalist/bassist M. Chvasta and his wife, Avril Che on bass synth, keys, and backing vocals; Dan Dixon (Whores, The Life and Times, PLS PLS, Biters) recording, mixing, and mastering their now proposition.

Captive opens up with its title track, a dark mist springing the lumbering gait of the song but a funereal step soon wrapped in romancing melodies as a shadow bred atmosphere descends. Magnetic rhythms are swiftly courted by the ever potent and alluring tones of Chvasta, both in turn hugged by the heavy emotive doom gaze breath of the track. Haunting and mesmeric, the song continues to seduce and impose, drama soaking very brooding note and harmonic utterance trespassing and seducing the senses.

It is a highly tantalising and increasingly captivating beginning to the release and one as powerfully continued by next up Ender. A song exploring love and loss and “a reminder to savor even the most mundane idiosyncrasies that “make” our loved ones who they are”, a premise easy to relate to, it rousingly smoulders in ears and thoughts but a thick simmer with volatility which only enriches its emotional incitement and a sound with Type O Negative/Nine Inch Nails hues. There is also a breath to the track and its successors which reminds of eighties band, The Sound; an instinctively downbeat almost depressive yet rousing dark essence which is especially apparent in the fiercely infectious Heresy. From its predacious nagging bassline to the sonic tendrils and Chvasta’s transfixing vocals, the track is pure temptation as virulently catchy as it is melancholically consuming.

A riveting cover of the Dead and Gone track Blood from a Ghost follows, Dead Register infusing it with a voraciously dark elegance without defusing its raw heart and anguish. Few covers in our experience improve on the original but the threesome certainly flirts with that success before Monochrome completes the aural mastery of Captive with its own tenebrific majesty soaked in emotive dissonance. A breath-taking and arousing yet corrosive romance, the track is a maelstrom of destruction and tenderness and quite irresistible.

It is a spellbinding prowess which devours the whole of Captives and feeds the infatuation we have already found for the band. If in our words Fiber was “dark magic, emotional trespassing, and quite wonderful”, Captive is pure aural alchemy and one of the year’s essential encounters.

Captive is released November 2^nd; available @ https://deadregister.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/deadregister

Pete RingMaster 02/11/2018

Her Despair – Mournography

Jul17

“Mournography is an exploration into the mysteries of tragedy, blasphemy, death, and love; both literally and figuratively…The mourning of some, the lust of others. These songs praise and pervert the Word of God simultaneously: providing a deeply unsettling spiritual experience set to a bleak backdrop of melancholia.”

The words accompanying the new EP from UK goth/dark metallers Her Despair perfectly encapsulate its tone, heart, and seduction. It is a journey into dark places as broad as they are intimate through a sound as melancholic, thickly shadowed, and mesmeric as the emotion laden words within.

Formed in 2015, Berkshire hailing Her Despair began as the solo project of J; the album Hymns For the Hopeless its introduction that April. It set down the seeds and template for the rich fusion of atmospheric and emotive gothic and dark rock with the trespass of punk and metal. It was a captivating raw mix within that first encounter but now with Her Despair a fully-fledged band makes for one richly compelling proposition within the new encounter.

With guitarists Dan and Jord, bassist Vikki, and drummer Lee alongside vocalist J, and recorded with Matt Bew at Whitehouse Studios in Reading, Mournography immediately strikes the imagination as it opens up with Blaspheme With Me. Straight away there is a tenacity and controlled urgency in rhythms as the guitars entangle their lures; an energy which fuels every aspect of the emerging song until it hits a boisterous stroll behind the enticing tones of J. Hues of bands such as Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim collude with the uniqueness of Her Despair as the track grows, each essence adding to its captivation and seamlessly changeable gait. The outstanding song epitomises the band’s sound; it’s embracing of sturdier metal traits with its gothic instincts.

The following Valentine’s Mourning similarly has a raw energy and swing to its attack driven by the senses nagging boisterousness of rhythms with this time harsher punk essences infesting its character. Keys add to the melodic seduction and flames tempting within whilst as with the first track, an organic catchiness brings something akin to bands like Dommin to the imagination.

A darker calm caresses ears next with Within Tragedy; it’s almost funereal march an imposing yet rousing incitement matched in tone and intimation by the air and words escaping J’s vocals. The track is pure seduction with heavy drama in its tone and an immersive lure to its rich web of almost threatening romance.

Charming keys and harmonic calm opens up Damnation Tonight next, their coaxing soon immersed in the song’s thick theatre of sound and intimation. Though missing the final spark of imagination of its predecessors, the track simply tempted and embroiled ears and thoughts in its creative and emotive melodrama as the body instinctively swung to its virulent inclination.

In the Arms of a Sadist brings the EP to a close, it too making a calm entrance with reflection colouring word and sound. It is a dark brooding though which escalates throughout, sometimes ebbing as the track and J’s vocals reach deeper into the heart but always giving a magnetic shadow and trespass to the dark intoxication.

It is a fine conclusion to a release which fascinates from start to finish. Possibly there is a lack of individual surface uniqueness between the five tracks making up Mournography yet each enthrals in their own ways, more so with attention and time, and united ensures from start to finish the EP transfixes and impresses; increasingly so by the listen.

Mournography is released July 20^th; available @ https://herdespair.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/herdespair/ https://twitter.com/herdespairband

Pete RingMaster 17/07/2018

The Filthy Tongues – Back to Hell

May21

Two years ago Scottish band, The Filthy Tongues released a debut album which quite simply blew us away. It was a striking and increasingly haunting incitement of “caliginous flavours and textures.” Such its gothic beauty and immersive intimation we wondered if the trio had already laid down their finest moment and would struggle to match let alone eclipse its majesty again. Oh fool us! The band has just unveiled its successor in Back To Hell, a web of instinctive drama and invasive magnetism which puts its predecessor and pretty much most things this year to date in the shade.

Edinburgh hailing, The Filthy Tongues consists of vocalist/guitarist Martin Metcalfe, bassist Fin Wilson, and drummer Derek Kelly; the three previously members of Goodbye Mr Mackenzie and Angelfish alongside Shirley Manson. After the demise of those bands, all ventured into different projects, musical and not, before Wilson and Metcalfe came together as acoustic duo The Filthy Tongues, named from a phrase from a Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie song. This project subsequently evolved, the three gents back creating together and vocalist Stacey Chavis joining what would become Isobel Gowdie & the Filthy Tongues (to become Isa & the Filthy Tongues). Moving on, the band became three again and The Filthy Tongues with the startling Jacob’s Ladder the irresistible wake-up call to their presence and dark world. That first album was a tapestry of sound and styles; everything from dark rock, garage punk, surf, dark folk and post punk aligned to plenty other rich flavours as the band created almost salacious realms of seductive craft and gothically shadowed deeds. Back To Hell is more of the same yet a whole new landscape of manipulative imagination, riveting sound, and lyrical weaving.

As its predecessor, Back To Hell ventures through the dark claustrophobic underbelly of the Old Town in Edinburgh yet equally it incites the imagination to broaden its landscape and conjuring. It opens up with the addiction sparking Come on Home, a track instantly sharing an electric mist of intrigue and dark suggestion before springing an infection fuelled stroll stalked by the vocal prowess of Metcalfe. Like the sounds, his voice has a dirt clad texture, a gravelly tone which just draws you into the narrative and atmosphere of the developing aural theatre. Keys similarly bring a teasing suggestion to the mix as rhythms and guitars openly simmer. Swiftly hips were swaying to its call, head rocking to its swing and voice aiding the wonderfully tainted harmonies. The band’s new single, it is just superb, that haunting quality in their music already seducing via keys and voice as guitars weave and rhythms coax.

It is an outstanding start reinforced by the senses transfixing tale of The Ghost of Rab McVie. Strings and their electronic counterparts quickly infest the imagination, the first from the suggestive touch and craft of Susannah Clark. Metcalfe is soon within their descriptive midst, voice similarly nurturing thoughts as the song leads the listener into its melancholic heart. There is a beauty to it though which just seduces ears and imagination but with an earthiness keeping the dark surroundings fully in view before the album’s title track provides the gateway into a nefarious journey. Feeling like being trapped in a Celtic Wickerman driven nightmare, the song simultaneously overwhelms, indeed suffocates, and seduces all with increasing intensity. It is quite superb with the craft of Clark simply irresistible.

Mother’s got a Knife follows, its animated shuffle also getting under the skin within the first dance of enterprise before slipping into a smouldering glide; repeating the captivating cycle in swift time. Like a mercurial fusion of Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers, The Bad Seeds, and Wall Of Voodoo with a Josef K lining, the track was another which seduced and enslaved with ridiculous ease such its masterful imagination and virulent breath.

Next up Leper Town was just as persuasive, its pop infested rock ‘n’ roll reminding of a few in some small ways but as ever, so unique to The Filthy Tongues as it had body and thoughts bouncing and appetite for their invention greedy. That individuality is never absent from a song as proven once more by Carlos the Jackal, menace and tenebrific elegance soaking its predacious yet infectious prowl while Who are you? is the band’s creative theatre at its most compelling and beguiling. It too has a threat in its air and beauty in its dark drawl; addiction for its creative alchemy once more inescapable.

The album goes out on the mesmeric croon of Take it, a song with a whisper of U2 meets Helldorado about it and a dirty laced grace which just fascinates as layers of sound seduce. It oozes beauty, loneliness, and temptation; a crepuscular radiance of sound and emotion which steals attention from the real world.

It is a glorious end to another extraordinary encounter with The Filthy Tongues. Their Jacob’s Ladder was one of the essential releases two years ago, Back to Hell is THE most vital release of this so far and hard to see being eclipsed too often over the months ahead.

Back to Hell is released May 25th through Neon Tetra / Blokshok Records.

http://www.filthytongues.com/ https://www.facebook.com/The-Filthy-Tongues-144934250476/ https://twitter.com/filthytongues

Pete RingMaster 21/05/2018

Sharone and The Wind – Enchiridion of Nightmares

Apr11

Like a series of dark fairy tales, Enchiridion of Nightmares the new album from dark rockers Sharone and The Wind captivates, seduces, and haunts. Each of its notes, let alone songs, comes with a shadow to their beauty, melancholy to their light, and intimacy to their grandeur with it all colluding in an adventure which just steals the imagination from everyday reality.

Hailing from Denver and emerging from the solo project of vocalist/songwriter Sharone (Borick), Sharone and The Wind is one of those propositions impossible to ignore or forget however their similarly striking songs appeal to personal tastes. Enchiridion of Nightmares is the successor to their well-received 2017 album Storm but sees an almost completely new line-up alongside Sharone. It was an emotionally traumatic time for the songwriter; the departure of her band inspiration within the new album fuelled by the emotions she became embroiled in; Sharone admitting “Writing this album was therapeutic to say the least. Before I began writing, I had just gone through one of the most difficult changes of my life and I felt more alone than ever. I felt angry, scared, and hurt, and I took everything I could from the experience as a lesson that allowed me to grow as a person as well as a songwriter.”

There is a rich cinematic and theatre-esque feel to Enchiridion of Nightmares which equally adds to its captivation; indeed its songs entwine an influence of horror movies, vintage and modern, into their personal nightmares. With just as richly layered and dramatic sounds to its exploration, the album is a persistent unveiling of new twists and shadows listen by listen. On our first meeting intrigue soaked the pleasure, through a couple more captivation, each subsequent listen leading to the inescapable bewitchment these words spring from.

The album’s piano nurtured atmospherically chilling Intro sets the tone alongside Sharone’s painting of words; its poetic scene setting the portal into the dark charms and cold breath of the following Graveyard. Once more the piano of Michelle Bailey captures ears and imagination as richly as the powerful and imposingly graceful tones of Sharone, both aligned to the infectious rhythmic manipulation of bassist Zach Barerra and drummer Anthony Hester. With sonic flames from the strings of guitarist Alex Goldsmith adding to the captivation, the outstanding track immerses the listener in dark magnetic theatre where whether calm and seductive or aroused and burning the senses, it engulfs the senses and imagination.

It is a rich success repeated across the release the following Haunted House instantly transporting ears and thoughts into its foreboding setting, anticipation looking through its piano built windows to find the melodic and infectious weaving of the band dancing to the song’s rhythmic swing. Again fluid passages of energy and emotional intensity flow through ears, the band’s multi-flavoured rock simultaneously gothic, symphonic, and melodic woven into another entrapment of creative suggestion and emotional release.

The initially punchier presence of Demons lures the listener into even darker depths and self-exploration, to places we have all felt in degrees. It is an intimate proposal with broad arms, an invasive entrapment of seduction and agitation brought with real craft and creative animation before managing to still be eclipsed by the gorgeous Music Box. An innocence lined melody caresses ears first with unsurprisingly intimation lining its charm before piano and guitar set their individual threads to the song’s vocal and musical reflection.

Elegant smoulders and fiery flames arouse the haunting might of Mirror Ghost next, emotive intensity and melodic drama soaking successor Zombie, both songs creatively and emotionally enveloping body and mind masterfully while Fire twists and bursts like its namesake within its dark carousel of temptation and seduction. The track is like a mercurial lover, coaxing and seducing before igniting in primal intensity and quite superb as it provides the inimitable pinnacle of Enchiridion of Nightmares.

Throughout the album the whole band simply impresses, spinning a web of dark fantasy and close to home intimation with the dexterous fingers of Bailey and the vocal prowess and majesty of Sharone steering the creative emprise, the power ballad Cursed another basking in the songwriting imagination and the quintet’s invention.

The final pair of Exorcist and Death of a Clown brings their own cabaret of invention; the first, featuring guest vocals by Hannah Maddox, an instinctively catchy yet thickly dramatic maze of shadow woven enterprise and macabre kissed seduction, its successor a melancholy spun serenade with beguiles as it haunts. Both leave ears captivated and the imagination engrossed and as the album just getting further under the skin by the play.

A unique tapestry of varied shadow bred rock, Enchiridion of Nightmares is a one of a kind adventure and tempting awash with emotional turbulence turned into cathartic beauty as compelling as it is magnificent.

Enchiridion of Nightmares is released via Syndicol Music on April 13^th, pre-ordering now available @

https://sharoneandthewind.bandcamp.com/album/enchiridion-of-nightmares

https://sharoneandthewind.com/ https://www.facebook.com/sharoneandthewind/ https://twitter.com/sharone_thewind/

Pete RingMaster 11/04/2018

Coburg -The Enchantress

Oct24

If a title ever fitted an album and its lead protagonist then it is The Enchantress. The debut album from UK hailing symphonic rock outfit Coburg, the release is a riveting cauldron of adventure fuelled sound and melodic seduction; a fascination of imagination with a bite in its jaws and theatre in its flirtatious trespass.

Coburg is the creation of and led by singer songwriter/guitarist/actress/model Anastasia Coburg, an artist who has previously gripped attention through previous guise Jet Noir and as part of Naked Lunch. The London based band is completed by synth player Dean Baker and bassist Mark Spencer both of Galahad and Twelfth Night, rhythm guitarist Sarah Sanford, and drummer Pietro Coburg. Musically, Coburg embraces the gothic rock tones of Jet Noir into its grander and bolder symphonic rock soundscapes; a blending which simultaneously feels intimate and worldly around the emotively woven heart and expressively delivered lyrics of each individual adventure.

Straight away The Enchantress beguiles ears and thoughts, a tempting which only escalates track by track for a seriously potent lure starting from the first breaths of opener A Cold Day In Hell. As soon as the resonating touch of bass and keys fingers the senses the song, which was born in Anastasia’s Jet Noir exploits, has submission in its grasp. Swiftly, you can hear the growth and maturity which has blossomed in the song since its first impressive days a couple of years back, a new sense of drama and intensity fuelling stalking riffs and rhythms as Anastasia’s striking tones step forward. Erupting throughout with melodic flames, the song continues to prowl as that drama intensifies note by note. Apocalyptic in air, darkly romancing in character, the song is immense and unafraid to twist through unpredictable discord lined detours.

Its Middle Eastern spices are even richer within the following and equally exceptional Echoes In The Night. They emerge from the initial shadows of the song, dark corners and provocative ecclesiastical chants enticing as they are soon in union with the wiry tendrils of guitar. With Blancmange like qualities, those cosmopolitan essences dance seductively on the ear, keys and guitar weaving an entrancing beckon before the grittier tones of Anastasia walk the eager stroll. Her lead guitar prowess teases around and alongside too while rhythms share their excitable shuffle in a proposal which has the body as lustfully involved as the imagination.

Dark essences are never far from a Coburg song and coat the senses straight away as The Hall Of Ghosts steps forward next; its fiery and lively balladry a lithe saunter draped in flavourings hinting on the likes of Sisters Of Mercy, The Mission, and Vajra. Its melodies have a childlike innocence but encased in a dark tide of further melodic suggestion and raw power. With bewitching harmonies sealing the deal, the great track is matched in success by the tenebrous atmosphere of Into The Darkness. Gothic rock again flows openly through the symphonic nurtured tapestry of sound, bringing a noir lit intrigue and in turn virulent infectiousness to infest ear and imagination. As with every track, each listen reveals a new twist and layer, the song evolving and growing from its stirring introduction into another major moment within The Enchantress.

Each song also feels like an individual tale and fresh chapter in the album’s journey, Requiem no different as it romances ears next. Though not quite having the sparks of those before it, the track is a heated flame of melodic and lyrical invention which captivates with creative ease before the album’s title track spins its own crepuscular web woven with the fingering enterprise of synths and guitar around smouldering but direct vocals. With electro and progressive rock invention joining its drama, the song is an increasingly compelling proposition, an essence which applies to all songs to be honest as proven by next up Thy Dagger. Its union of intimidating scythes of guitar and electronic revelry instantly grabs full attention, a focus rewarded with vocal and melodic dexterity as the track blossoms note by note into a magnetic slice of cultured rock ‘n’ roll

A haunting realm of suggestion and sound brings Till The Bitter End into view, its shadowed melodic lighting and veiled threats encapsulating the intimate yet broad depths of song and words. Personal tastes did not take to the track as easily as with its companions within The Enchantress but instantly it nurtured a want to go deeper whilst embracing the siren like harmonies and undisguised imagination bringing it to life.

The album is completed by firstly Warrior’s Blood, a song with steel in its skeleton and rousing invention in its evolving character. There are moments which mix the bite of Otep with the melodic fire of Within Temptation but just flavoursome strains in the individual emprise of song and Coburg before Rise closes things with its inflamed hope graced ballad. As if further proof was needed, the song is an emotive declaration of Anastasia’s quality as a singer and songwriter as well as the band’s craft and individual imagination.

Song by song The Enchantress captivates and stirs, growing as mentioned with every listen into something even more impressive whilst announcing Coburg a striking addition to the European symphonic rock scene.

The Enchantress is released October 24^th via Evolve Or Die Records and available @ https://coburg.bandcamp.com/album/the-enchantress

http://coburgband.com/ https://www.facebook.com/COBURGtheband/ https://twitter.com/COBURGband http://www.anastasiacoburg.com/

Pete RingMaster 24/10/2017

Serenading webs and trapping harmonies: introducing Tali Dennerstein

Jul13

Tali Dennerstein is a British rock singer, songwriter, and producer who is beginning to lure eager attention with her unique mix of Pop/Folk Rock, Gothic Rock, Grunge and Dark Ambient Music. It is a kaleidoscope of flavours embraced by imagination and invention as evidenced by her latest release and videos. We seized on the chance to find out more by talking to the lady herself, exploring her creative beginnings, her solo project, new EP and more besides…

Hello Tali and thanks for taking time out to talk with us.

Can you first give us some background to yourself?

I’m an alternative rock singer, songwriter and producer. I’ve always been very passionate about music and from a very early age, I grew up listening to a lot of 80’s and 90’s Gothic and Grunge Rock music, which really inspired me to want to start my own musical journey. I’ve always enjoyed writing lyrics and after being in a few different bands, I decided to become a solo artist, mainly because I liked having control of the direction my music was taking.

You mentioned previous bands. How have those experiences impacted on your own musical explorations?

I’ve been in a few different bands in the past. My first band was a more electronic /trip hop style band and my last band was a heavy rock/grunge band and I think it definitely helped me to decide the style and direction that I most enjoyed working with. I’ve also collaborated with a couple of artists online and recently I’ve also started a synthwave side project, which has been really fun to work on because I love the 80’s electronic sound and it’s been fun to do something so completely different.

Many solo projects decide to go under a created moniker; you?

As a solo artist I decided to use my own name, although I did consider having a band name but I just couldn’t think of anything that was good enough.

Was there any specific idea behind the direction you wanted your work and sound to offer?

I had a lot of song material, which I’d written over many years that I hadn’t really had a chance to do anything with for a long time and I really wanted to get as much of it completed and out there, as possible for people to hear. That was my main reason for starting my solo music. I also really wanted to try and create my own sound by merging both gothic and grunge rock styles together, as those were my two favourite genres of music styles, when I was growing up. I like folk and electronic music too, so I also tried to add some of these influences into my sound as well.

Are you driven by the same creative things and intent from being a fresh-faced musician or have they evolved over time?

As a solo artist, I’ve only really just begun so it’s relatively new for me but I think the same thing drives me as a songwriter and that’s always been to create meaningful music, that people can enjoy and relate to and that helps them in some way.

Since your early days as a songwriter how would you say your sound has evolved?

My sound has evolved quite a bit. I started with a very 90’s indie pop and folk rock and ambient electronic sound but my next album will be much heavier and a lot darker, both lyrically and musically.

Has it been more of an organic movement of sound or more you deliberately wanting to try new things?

I do like to experiment with different ideas and sounds, so I try new things to hear how they might add to a song but with regard to changing the direction of my music to a heavier sound that was deliberate because it’s how I felt the songs on my future album worked best and it just felt right. I do still like to write softer more folk rock and electronic tracks, as well but I tend to go with what feels right for each individual song, when it comes to creating the right sound.

Presumably a wide range of musical tastes you have an equal array of inspirations; are there any in particular which have impacted not only your music but your personal approach and ideas to creating and playing music?

I’m inspired by a lot of artists and bands but my biggest inspirations are Curve, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, and Nick Drake. I love Curve’s Doppelgänger album and the way the guitars create just this huge wall of distorted sound. I also loved the way they used a lot of electronic elements, which merged in with the guitars. It made the tracks sound quite industrial, even though they were considered a shoegaze band. They had a very interesting and unique sound. I’ve also been very inspired by how grunge bands wrote their lyrics. They were often really deep and introspective and really made me think about what message they were trying to convey. I liked the fact that the lyrics weren’t straightforward and were hard to figure out and that everyone could find their own meaning in them.

Is there a particular process to your songwriting?

I always start by recording any melody ideas that come to my mind and I get a lot of ideas every day, so I like to keep my sound recorder next to me no matter what I’m doing. I tend to think of the subject matter usually after I’ve thought of the melody and that’s because I get an idea for the theme, usually based on the feel of the melody.

Where do you, more often than not, draw the inspirations to the lyrical side of your songs?

I’ve drawn a lot of my inspiration from some very tough situations I’ve had to face in my life, so my lyrics have sometimes reflected my hopes for things to improve, as well as my need to face the pain and fears I feel each day, due to my situation and to become stronger, despite the circumstances. I’ve also written lyrics based on things I’ve experienced in the past, such as heartbreak or bullying or about things that are happening in the world around me, that I feel strongly about such as war conflict and also about peace.

Could you give us some background to your latest release?

My latest release is a 7 track EP called Live For Tomorrow and I recorded the songs a while ago but I’ve only just recently released them.

Give us some insight to the themes and premise behind it and its songs.

The first song is called Summertime and it’s a very upbeat pop rock song, with a feel good Summer vibe. It’s about releasing and letting go of negative thoughts and instead embracing all of the small but meaningful and beautiful things that life has to offer, that we sometimes don’t always see, when we’re stuck in a cycle of depression. It’s also about keeping hope alive and just trying to stay optimistic. The second song is called Tonight and it’s a folk rock song. It’s about a girl being led on a journey, to find herself and unknowingly being guided by invisible forces in the right direction who are watching over her and protecting her. It’s lyrically written in a fairy tale style. The third song is called Live For Tomorrow and the track is an indie pop song, about a relationship that just isn’t working out and it’s about just accepting things and looking to the future and letting go of the past. The fourth track is called Hurt. It’s a slow electronic ambient song and is about unintentionally hurting someone you love and feeling guilty about it and how you miss them after they’ve gone. The fifth track is called See The Sun. This one is very 90’s Brit pop, in style and it’s about closing the door to the past and looking forward towards a brighter future. The sixth song is called Skyline and is about being there for someone who’s hurting and telling them you’ll always be there for them. The final track is called Far Away. That song is about imagining a better world, where hatred, greed and fear don’t exist.

Do you go into the studio with songs pretty much in their final state or prefer to develop them as you record?

I usually have some idea of how I think a song should sound and then I use that as a base to develop and add any ideas later on. I also work with a really great producer, and we work together until each song sounds right, so it’s a slow developmental process right up until a song is finalized.

Tell us about the live side to your music?

I love performing but at the moment, due to my circumstances I can’t perform, although I’d really love to. I’ve been concentrating on recording from home, as many songs as I can and I’m hoping sometime in the future, I’ll be able to perform them live.

It is not easy for any new artist to make an impact regionally let alone nationally and further afield. How have you found it?

I honestly don’t know because I usually use social media to get my music heard. I don’t think where I live, there’s much of a music scene.

So the internet and social media has been a potent impact on your music? Some see it as something destined to become a negative from a positive as things progress and grow. How do you see things?

I think social media is a great and very positive way for helping musician’s and bands to get their music heard. It can take time but it’s amazing to be able to connect directly with music lovers from all around the world. I think the only negative aspect is that there are a lot of musician’s and bands trying to promote themselves on social media and it can be hard to get people to click on music links as the market is saturated but it just takes determination and hard work and it is worth being on social media in the end.

Once again a big thanks for sharing time with us; anything you would like to add or reveal for the readers?

I’m giving away 3 free songs to whoever signs up to my mailing list, plus an extra free track off of my latest EP.