Hiya folks thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today, grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide that music is a thing for you?
I’ve grown up surrounded by music so it’s hard to pin-point when it became a “thing” as it has always just kinda been there. I remember splicing and mixing music with my older brother back in the 80’s using a couple of tape decks all wired up together, some makeshift mics and keyboard. Boy did it sounded bad, but I’ve basically been doing this since I was writing lyrics in crayons. Saying that, it was probably when I discovered music sequence tracking software on my Amiga when I was like, hell yeah, this I can do! Since then, bedroom producing has come on leaps and bounds to where you can have an entire digital studio in the spare room in your house.
Introduce us to all of the members and your musical history.
I’m Chase Matthews and write and produce all our music. I’ve been producing multi-genre music for the last few years and have had the chance to work with some great new upcoming artists. SILKI is our lead vocalist and she has been active in the Manchester house and DJ scene releasing music to great critical response. She’s also been studying hard to graduate from the British Institute of Modern Music with a BA in Songwriting. Xerxes-K provides supporting vocals from all the way over in sunny California and has been releasing and producing melodic house and EDM with other artists from all around the world.
And that’s us.
Name me your 3 favorite albums.
Albums? I can barely name the artist currently playing on my Spotify account. I think that living in a world of playlists, recommendations and music discovery, music as a collection has become disconnected. Which is sad, because I remember buying a CD and listening to it to death, reading and re-reading the inlay and committing the lyrics to memory – but now we’ve traded in our carefully curated collection of 50 CDs for millions of songs at our fingertips. It’s sad – but I love how we can discover new music every second of every day. However, I’m surprised my CD player didn’t burn a whole in my copy of All Killer No Filler by Sum 41.
What was the first song you heard that steered you into a music path?
If I’m embarrassingly honest, it was when I heard Whenever You’re Ready by 5 Star as a kid. I know it isn’t a profound song by a legendary artist and is just a snippet of pop culture long forgotten about, but I loved the up-beat synth sounds and killer breakdance baseline along with the poppy vocals bouncing over the top of it. It’s just always stuck with me and pushed me into the more fun side of music from pop-punk to electronic pop.
The music industry is the hardest industry in the world to progress in, how do you feel you are doing?
Well, we launched our first song about a month ago to a whopping zero fans. Since then we’ve got tens of thousands of plays, hundreds of followers, got air time on BBC radio and I’m doing this interview. We’re probably as far away from “getting into the industry” as you can possibly get – but you have to start somewhere.
I’m seeing a lot of debate about women not feeling safe at music gigs, any thoughts on what we need to do to help?
It’s a horrible thought that people cannot go to listen to their favourite bands without having to worry about their safety. I guess knowing how to be safe is the first step. Things like always going in groups, never leaving drinks unattended and having a safe route home is important. But even if you are the most sensible person there is, it’s still others you need to be worried about and venues need to ensure there is enough security and safe passage to and from the event.
As you develop as an artist and develop using socials what ways do you get new ears on your music? Any tips?
Get on some good playlists, there’s lots out there, find them and contact the owner. Also, collaborate with other similar artists, that way you can feed off each other’s audience.
Tell us two truths and a lie about you.
I lie.
I never lie.
I just lied.
What are your thoughts on Spotify’s monopoly on the music industry?
If you’re successfully providing a product that people find useful and shake up the industry while doing so, then you deserve the monopoly. There’s competition with the likes of Apple and Amazon, but they typically tie that into their wider products and have other agendas. Spotify is purely music, they do one thing, and they do it right.
Do you sign up to any conspiracy theories?
The truth is out there.
Did you buy anything you don’t need in the pandemic?
You mean apart from half the world’s stock of hand sanitizer?
What makes you stand out as a band?
Our potential. We have some great talent and a backlog of music ready to roll out. The more you hear from us, the more you’ll want to hear.
I hear you have a new music, what can you tell us about it.
It’s our first single and pairs nicely with a hot summer day, a few friends and a garden BBQ.
Talk me through the thought process of the new tune.
We formed as a recording band and started from quite literally no fans, so it was important that our first single attract as many listeners from our genre range as possible. We needed to give them something that sounded familiar but also hints at our tone and of things to come. It was a bit of a strategical play as we needed to cast a wide net to get things rolling and our best is by far yet to come!
What was the recording process like?
Off the back of the pandemic and remote working, I decided I wanted to put together a remote collaborative group, so our recording process is broken up into stages. I would work on some ideas and then share them with the others. We would all then lay down some versions and suggestions going back and forth until we get something we like. We all have home studios which allow us to record quality stems that we then bounce about between us until we get to what we want and then I take it away and pull it all together.
What was the biggest learning curve in writing the new tune?
Patience. Typically, when you’re jamming together, you see the final product taking shape. Whereas working remotely, you have to wait patiently for your turn and the next stage to hear how your ideas are coming together.
Would you change anything now it’s finished?
You’ll have to wait for the remix to find that out.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
As Bill and Ted say, be excellent to each other and party on, dudes.
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