Could you share the story behind your latest song and what inspired its creation?
This EP grew out of ‘Untitled Song About Driving’ which I wrote after finding myself mesmerized by a program on TV that was simply showing dash cam footage of someone driving through the Canadian province of Quebec. It made me think of all the long drives I have taken on Canadian highways, and the hypnosis that occurs after several hundred kilometres of trees and rocks broken by the occasional white cross on the side of the road, or declaration of love spray painted on an overpass.
To capture those meditative qualities the song structure is very repetitive, which is quite a departure for me with my progressive rock background. I wrote the song live in front of my audience on Twitch, and it soon became a crowd favourite. Since it was such an anomaly for me, I decided that in order to release it, I would write two songs to bookend it on an EP. First came ‘Red Twist’ which is about that feeling of spotting the twisted red neon ‘Vacancy’ sign on a roadside motel, and pulling over to crash after a long day of driving. Then I went back to write ‘Packing the Car’. There’s a very specific early morning feeling, before the rest of the world wakes up, that I wanted to capture here. The fuzziness in your brain before you’ve had your coffee, the haze and mist in the sky before the sun fully rises. Also, no matter how well prepared you are, there’s always that little voice of doubt wondering if you did all the things you were supposed to do, and packed all the things you were supposed to bring. And maybe the weather won’t cooperate.
How do you approach the process of songwriting, and are there any specific themes or emotions you tend to explore in your music?
I write a couple times a week in front of an audience, so I’m always looking for new and different things to write songs about. And while I will write about anything, there are a number of themes that do tend to come up again and again in my songwriting. Nature is a big one. Trees, bugs, seasons, the longevity of nature vs the short speck of dust that is humanity. Self-acceptance, joy, or finding the bright side of a bad situation seem to come up a lot. Many of my songs tell specific stories, so there will be a character that we learn about. As for process, I’ll use prompts for ideas, I have a bunch of Dungeons & Dragons dice and scrabble tiles which I’ll use to do things like, generate random words, or random notes to use as jumping off points for writing. I cover all the emotions but I try to have a speck of hope in every song.
As an indie musician, how do you navigate the balance between creative freedom and commercial appeal?
I have never given any thought to commercial appeal. Telling a story and serving the song is what I focus on and I think that is what my fans like about me. I make sure that I like the song. If I don’t feel good performing it, it’s not going to be a good experience for the listener. If I’m happy with the song, then others will be happy with the song.
What do you find most challenging about being an independent artist in today’s music industry?
There are so many avenues and resources at our fingertips today, which is wonderful, but it also leads to uncertainty and overwhelm. It’s easy to spread yourself too thin trying to take advantage of all the opportunities and resources available.
Can you talk about your experiences collaborating with other artists or musicians? How does it influence your creative process?
I’ve co-written a number of songs with Cara Winsor Hehir who writes lyrics when we work together. Since her lyrics flow differently than mine do, I end up writing music and melodies a little differently. Usually she sends me lyrics with the caveat that I can rework them as I please, but I usually don’t do anything more than maybe repeat a section that I think works well as a chorus.
I sometimes collaborate with an avant-garde vocalist named Sarah Albu. We do very strange and silly things when we get together. Most of that comes out of improv, which is quite opposite to what I do with my own, I’d say very carefully crafted songwriting style.
Something I’ve just started doing is signing up for collaborations on Twitch, where you are paired with someone at random to create a piece of music on a theme. This is a really new thing for me as I usually work with musicians I’ve known for a while. There is a certain opening of the mind that happens when you collaborate with someone else as we all work so differently.
What role does technology and social media play in promoting your music and connecting with your audience?
They play a huge role. Twitch has been one of the big players in connecting with my audience in that my audience is often present when I’m writing and recording. I’ve had a lot of fun coming up with ways to incorporate things like my love of shoes into my promotion. Previously I would simply wear great shoes on stage, but with social media, I’ve started doing these posts where I tell the stories of where I got certain pairs of shoes. Before my last tour I set up a playoff bracket to let my audience vote on which shoes I’d take on tour with me. I’ve been able to do videos talking about the stories behind the songs, or showing how I wrote them. I think that sort of thing helps get people interested in going to check out the music I’m promoting.
Are there any particular artists or genres that have had a significant impact on your musical style?
Jethro Tull, JS Bach, John Prine, Steeleye Span, Fairport Convention, and The Incredible String Band have probably been the biggest influences. I listen to a lot of 20th century classical, many of the metal sub-genres, particularly black and death metal, and a lot of prog rock. I played classical guitar as a kid, I sang in classical and folk choirs, I played guitar in metal and Celtic bands, I’ve been in experimental music ensembles as well, so all of that influences the music I make.
Indie musicians often have a close relationship with their fanbase. How do you engage with your fans and build a dedicated community around your music?
Twitch is a big part of this. My fans are welcome to come hang out with me while I write and record. I also live stream on Youtube and Tik Tok which are very conversational. I find that a lot of my fanbase are themselves musicians or artists, creatives of some kind. I have a discord server where there is a space for people to share their own work and keep up to date with what I’m doing. Social media in general has made it so easy to be in contact with fans.
Could you describe a memorable live performance experience or tour that has had a lasting impact on you and your music?
That’s tough to narrow down. Going to see live music is one of my biggest inspirations and I’ve been to so many many shows over the years. John Prine and the Carl Palmer Band were quite inspiring. John Prine (who I’ve seen 8 times) for his on stage nature, and Carl Palmer Band for the technique. Seeing musicians who excel at their craft always makes me excited to go home and work on mine. I would also say that living in St. John’s Newfoundland during the early 2000s had a profound effect. There has always been a fantastic singer-songwriter scene here in Newfoundland & Labrador and going downtown to see local live music every night of the week where everyone is playing original music probably had a lasting effect on me.
In an era of streaming platforms, how do you feel about the changing landscape of music consumption and its impact on independent musicians?
Streaming platforms have torn down a lot of barriers we independent musicians used to have. It’s made the possibility of releasing a single available to all artists, not just the ones with record labels since you no longer need to print them. To get your music around the world you used to need a hard to come by distribution deal. Now you can record a song in your bedroom and have someone on the other side of the planet stumble across it a week later. There’s never been more tools available to the independent musician.
Creatively, I love the album format and I find a lot of the streaming services make it difficult to listen to a whole album the way the artist intended it, but I still release albums.
The streaming platforms do need to pay more for the content they make their millions on, but in the grand scheme of things, the recording industry with big record labels was such a teeny tiny blip in human history. Throughout time musicians have made the bulk of their money playing live. That has never changed. Even in what we call the traditional record industry, it was the labels that made money off record sales, not the majority of artists. With the streaming services I’m able to reach fans in more markets to go sell concert tickets in. Fans can buy music directly from me now. More people can discover my music than ever before. Fantastic!