Fresh off a shoot with Cyberdog, Sam previewed some of his new tracks off his latest E.P ‘Drift’ with Billy Holmes as they sunk some post-lockdown pints.
Hi Sam, you just played possibly the first advertised gig in London since lockdown – How was that feeling?
It was so good man, I was pretty chilled about it because I’d just come off the back of doing some park gigs in Peckham Rye that were really fun. There’s this movement called Babylon Chant Down which is directly linked to the BLM movement, they had been putting on these outdoor gigs so I decided to get involved. It started as a peaceful protest and thought it would be good to combine live music with it. We rented some speakers and got Wu-Lu to come and play as well. People travelled from all over North, East and West which was really nice.
Playing back in a venue, I hadn’t heard music well engineered in a confined space for ages because of lockdown. It was immediately like, this sounds mad! I was just enjoying the sound of my own guitar playing out, it was a lot of fun. Everyone was sat down as well due to social distancing measures which I was actually feeling; sometimes when the crowd is standing up you’re not too sure whether they are interested or not. It was pretty much one of the first gigs back in London, it was a really good vibe and the band is really progressing now we are back on stage. The Times gave our gig a five-star review which I am pretty happy about. First gig back and to get five stars, I can’t complain.
ArrayYou have an incredibly theatrical sound combined with indie conventions, how did this come about?
I listen to a lot of Radiohead, they have a really big cinematic sound. There are always twists and turns in the sound which always keeps you guessing. I guess I had adopted a little bit of that as well unintentionally. I’m too young to really have seen them live, but I’d love to in the future.
I want to score movies, I make a lot of stuff where I film random shit and I’ll replay the video back and write music alongside it. I went to the woods once and filmed the movement of the trees and leaves and then played a synth alongside the movement. It’s a really nice organic way of producing new sounds.
Are there any particular soundtracks or scores that stand out for you?
Taxi Driver. The ending is the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life. The way he looks in the mirror and the music cuts in is crazy. Again back to Tom Yorke, his score also in Suspiria is amazing. Uncut Gems though, the score and the way that worked was incredible, man. Daniel Lopatin ‘Oneohtrix Point Never’ is so talented – he made you feel like you were a part of New York.
ArrayWhat has been the process in achieving your specific sound?
When I was making my first EP I was just chilling in my room, I wasn’t in the best head space to be honest. I worked tracks through block-by-block and would make individual parts then paste them together by adding more layers. I actually made all that music just through headphones as well, not overthinking it. I’d just be at the pub and think of something for the EP and dash home to record it. Sometimes a track might come out in one night, but nowadays things have changed. Now I’m with a band it’s more structured and more of a collective. My new music coming up has a different feel to it for sure.
So how does making ‘Drift’ compare to your past material?
I took a lot longer on the songwriting side of things. My voice is more pronounced. It’s a retrospective on my youth, although I’m still young. My new material’s more about how life brings more stress as you get older, more things to deal with and sort out.
It’s not just me producing it now as well, some of it was co produced with my friend Finn from Sunken. I was listening to a lot of Joy Division and a lot of Motown whilst recording and I think some of the influence comes through. I never really overthink the music I’m making so I don’t really know where it fits in musically. There’s a big energy behind this and it’ll be best heard live for sure. I love the difference of a track being played live, there are always different quirks and changes that makes the energy different for the audience.
