{"id":2952,"date":"2021-03-19T19:27:28","date_gmt":"2021-03-19T19:27:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/platinummind.net\/?p=2952"},"modified":"2021-03-19T19:56:06","modified_gmt":"2021-03-19T19:56:06","slug":"blog-interview-livs-bandana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/platinummind.net\/index.php\/2021\/03\/19\/blog-interview-livs-bandana\/","title":{"rendered":"Blog interview: Liv’s Bandana"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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Hello Joe, how are you?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hey Derek! Yeah I\u2019m well thank you, super busy but I\u2019m enjoying myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congratulations on the release of \u201cNovember\u201d how does it feel?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a mixture of things to be honest! Obviously it\u2019s exciting seeing it all coming together, but all the normal nerves and insecurities are present too. Mostly it just feels bizarre \u2013 the track\u2019s been finished for ages but I\u2019m still billing it as a new thing, and I\u2019m so snowed under with uni work that my mind is often elsewhere!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You are a singer\/songwriter\/producer from Norwich and Birmingham, how did<\/strong> it begin for you?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I started writing music when I was around 14 or 15… I played in a couple of bands back in Norwich, where I dipped my toes in the local music scene, and this helped me land some session work. It\u2019s only since the first lockdown that I\u2019ve been producing and singing though! Loads of the tracks I\u2019ve been working on have been sat in my head for years. Singing absolutely terrified me for most of my life \u2013 my identity was totally attached to being \u201cgood at music\u201d, so I never had the courage to risk not being an amazing singer. I didn\u2019t let anyone hear me until the a few months ago when I bought a microphone to force myself to learn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNovember\u201d comes from a very deep place, how did it begin?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I suppose it started last term, when I was pouring lyrics onto my notes page every 15 minutes. I flicked through and picked out those that best captured this period of my life. Really, it\u2019s a very jumbled set of ideas, tied together by loose threads of self-discovery and the feeling of the first glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel. My perspective had changed from dwelling in my crises to viewing crises as opportunities for spiritual growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I flirt with the idea of making it a break-up song, indulging in the pain, but catch myself and change course (\u2018I can\u2019t afford to let you pass me by\/Oh, what a surprise\u2019). <\/em>I consider talking about drugs but it\u2019s very fleeting. This period of time marks the moment I started believing in myself and honestly accepting my insecurities, mostly because I needed to. <\/em>Yeah, let yourself feel insecure man, it\u2019s a hell of a lot easier than trying to convince yourself you\u2019re not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What artists did you listen to growing up?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s always been a huge range! As a kid I listened to Michael Jackson obsessively, followed by Bob Marley and Stevie Wonder. Jazz and neo-soul were the twin peaks of my adolescence, people like Lauryn Hill, Robert Glasper, Herbie Hancock, Erykah Badu, then in the last few years my go-to has been psychedelia. Other important names \u2013 the Beatles, Mild High Club, Dylan, silly stuff like the 1975 and Japanese House, and loads of UK jazz like Oscar Jerome and Ezra Collective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You recorded it at home what were the challenges and triumphs you faced in<\/strong> recording it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recording was all fairly straightforward (apart from finding a time of day when the house was quiet), but producing was much less so! I watched an immeasurable number of tutorials and spent ages tweaking the mix. Of course, the ironic thing is a few months after finishing this one, my production skills are already so much better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2020 has been a time of reflection for a lot of people what did you learn most<\/strong> about yourself?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Umm\u2026 I think I learned just how much of my life has been spent paralysed by taking myself way too seriously \u2013 as in, scared shitless about what people think of me, entirely dependent upon external validation, and addicted to overthinking! I bet that makes me sound mega neurotic, but I\u2019ve managed to be pretty functional despite all of this. I\u2019m sure these are feelings that resonate with other people too. On the flipside, I think I\u2019ve learned what it actually means to love myself. There\u2019s a ton of conditioning and hard-wired neural paths to overcome, but I\u2019m working on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COVID impacted the creative industry in a big way, what kept you motivated?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I suppose spending most of my musical life in my bedroom meant that I was blissfully detached from most of these difficulties. I wouldn\u2019t have created any of this were it not for the lockdowns, which is a strange thing to say. I\u2019m sure the government would love to watch the steady rot of the creative industries, but thankfully there seems to have been enough of a pushback to prevent this. The thought of live music returning is very <\/em>exciting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You live between Birmingham and Norwich, what are your favourite things<\/strong> about those places?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tricky one! For Birmingham it\u2019s the anonymity. It\u2019s wonderful being able to walk around the city and not bump into ten people you\u2019ve known since you were 5 years old! Norwich is the complete reverse but that\u2019s OK, you know what you\u2019re letting yourself in for and everyone\u2019s in the same boat! My favourite things about Norwich are my family and my cat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What new artists are getting you excited at the moment?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UK jazz scene is thriving right now! I\u2019m really into corto.alto and all the Live from 435 stuff, so they\u2019re an obvious choice. A mate from home is also putting out some great music with The Night Society. They\u2019re an indie band with a glorious 80s influence, so it\u2019s right up my street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re currently recording your EP at home, are there any new skills that you<\/strong> have learned during this process?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The EP is actually finished! I recorded and produced it last term, and it\u2019s gonna be out very soon! I learned a ton of new skills, some really simple and some more technical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are your favourite tracks from it?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Depends on the day and mood you ask! Right now I\u2019m probably most pleased with the closer, A New Path. I think there\u2019s some really interesting deconstruction on that one, and it definitely feels like the boldest track on the EP. The singing is drenched in autotune, and I also wrote some poetry for it. But I\u2019m really happy with the whole project, and I\u2019m happy to let the tracks go now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What are you looking forward to next?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve been working on a couple of music videos with some friends from uni, so editing them is something I\u2019m really excited for. Otherwise, I\u2019m excited to have time to write and produce again! I\u2019ve got lots of new material lined up so I\u2019m interested to see where it all goes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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