Introducing Interview: Dyan Valdés

Having been involved in the music industry for twenty years, Berlin-based Cuban-American artist Dyan Valdés has played in esteemed bands such as The Blood Arm and Die Sterne, and has now released her first solo material. Taken from her upcoming debut solo album, ‘Fade Away’ offers an immersive shimmering soundscape; propelled by layers of synth and driving beats alongside Valdés’ luscious vocals, it’s a poignant, twinkling message of hope at a time when things can feel hopeless.

We caught up with Dyan to find out more…

Hi Dyan Valdés, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
Hello! Thanks for having me. I’m a music industry lifer – I got together with my first band, indie rockers The Blood Arm when we were at university in 2002. After releasing five albums and two EPs, touring the world and moving to Berlin together, we went on hiatus in 2017. The singer and I formed the synth punk trio Mexican Radio in 2017, and released another two albums under that name. The band hosted a radio show on KCRW Berlin for 2 years, in which I interviewed artists such as Stereo Total, Sleaford Mods, Ian Svenonius, Allison Wolfe of Bratmobile, and many more. I’ve been playing with Hamburger Schule legends Die Sterne since 2012. ‘Fade Away’ is my debut single as a solo artist and Stand will be my first solo album.

How did you initially start creating music?
I never thought I would make my own solo music – I’ve always been a supporting player, co-writing the music and singing backing vocals. But, the pandemic changed things. At the beginning of the first lockdown, I was attacked by a strange man in broad daylight on the streets of Berlin. I recognised that my already precarious safety as a woman was even more threatened by pandemic circumstances. I arrived home, overwhelmed by my experience and by reports of increased domestic violence and the exploitation of female labour at the frontlines of the pandemic. I wrote and recorded the protest song ‘Stand’ that weekend – feeling that I needed to create something that would make me feel powerful again. This was the first time I had created a piece entirely on my own. After cancelled tours and rehearsals, I was alone in my home studio and could not fall back on my bandmates to provide a creative outlet. I stepped up and did it myself.

Throughout my music career, I have often been the only woman in the room. When I was attacked, I felt alienated and alone. I realised that on some level, I’ve felt the same way in the music industry for years – moving through spaces that are not designed to fit my body, protect my safety, or elevate my voice. What would our industry and our art look like if this model were flipped on its head? In order for the process of this album to line up with the sentiment, I employed women at every level of the project: production, artwork, video, photography, PR, styling, and marketing. 

We really love your recent single ‘Fade Away’ – can you tell us what it’s all about?
‘Fade Away’ is about looking around and saying to yourself “this isn’t good enough”, and dreaming that someday you’ll find yourself in a situation that is. I imagined this feeling of being locked in a house – either by someone else or by myself – and wanting the ceilings and walls to just disappear so that I could be free. The song is sad but hopeful – the “different day” hasn’t come yet, but I believe that it will. I dedicate the song to anyone who has ever felt trapped, marginalized or silenced. The song came to me extremely quickly – I wrote all of the lyrics, melodies and music and then recorded the basic tracks at home within about four hours from start to finish. I felt like the words and music just came through me from a place where they had already been written.

You’ve been compared to the likes of PJ Harvey and Bat For Lashes, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
Probably my life-long biggest influence is David Bowie, who was never afraid to take big swings and explore all kinds of different directions. I thought about him a lot when making this record, just in terms of pushing myself to take risks. PJ Harvey is also a big influence, as is Stevie Nicks, Kate Bush, Peaches, Courtney Love and Tori Amos (obviously – I’m a keyboard player!) I was also very influenced by books that I was reading while writing this record. I’ve been a proud feminist my whole life, but while working on the album I really did a deep-dive into a lot of feminist writing. That helped me sharpen the messages that I wanted to deliver: who benefits from the oppression of and violence against women? How is capitalist society complicit? How am I complicit? I did a lot of self-examination on this record, and I hope that comes across.

What can fans expect from your live shows?
Since I’ve been playing in bands for nearly 20 years, I wanted to do something different with my solo show. Instead of hiding behind my keyboard, I’m challenging myself to be a real pop diva and sing and dance throughout the show. I have two backing dancers with me, and one of my producers Maya Postepski (who releases music under the name Princess Century and plays drums with Peaches), will be playing drums on stage. It will be a high-energy rousing pop spectacle!

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any new/upcoming bands or artists you’d recommend we check out?
Sadly, I usually discover new bands by happening upon them live, which hasn’t been possible in the last year and a half. However, when I was hosting the radio show, I had the pleasure of discovering a lot of new and exciting bands: Sweeping Promises, Big Joanie, Special Interest, Automatic and Surfbort were a few of my favourite discoveries.

And how do you feel the music industry is for new bands at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
When I started, my band The Blood Arm was part of the last generation of bands that really had the “get signed, get an advance, get label support for touring and PR” trajectory. It’s very different now – in some ways, you have more direct access to fans, but because everyone else does too, you have to find a way to stand out. I think the difference is now I’m not trying to get “label attention”, but rather to reach out directly to the fans. If new artists can manage to make a direct connection with people who like their music, that can be very powerful.

Finally, what does the rest of 2021 have in store for you?
Now that live music is opening up again, I’m touring a lot with my German band Die Sterne and doing some recording with them as well. Following ‘Fade Away’, I’ve just released a second single, ‘Be My Revolution’. There will be a third single (‘Irregular’) in January and the album Stand will come out in February. We are also choreographing and developing the live show, so it will be a busy time! But, after such a lull in the industry, I’m excited to get back on stage and even more excited to share my solo music with the world.

Massive thanks to Dyan for answering our questions!

Stand, the debut solo album from Dyan Valdés, is set for release on 11th February 2022 via R.I.P Ben Lee Records.

mariangelicalaneLeave a comment

WATCH: CRISP&CLASSY – ‘Boom Bay’

Having released their fantastic debut album XTRA CRISPY last month, Feminist LGBTQIA+ electro-pop duo CRISP&CLASSY (aka producer Kat Knix and singer-songwriter Plushy) pride themselves on bringing sexual liberation and self-acceptance to the UK pop scene. Following the release of the euphoric single ‘Boom Bay‘ earlier this year, the duo have now shared a vibrant new video to accompany the track.

Exuding a colourful queer joy and blissful sassy splendour, the playful, fun-filled visuals are the perfect accompaniment to the track’s sensuous, soulful drive and its uplifting, empowering lyricism. A wonderful celebration of self-love and our connection with each other, it’s just what you need to start off the weekend – a truly liberating treat for the eyes and ears that’ll exhilarate and inspire.

Of the new video, CRISP&CLASSY tell us:

“We are so excited to share our first music video with the world. This is a music video sponsored by our fans and made for our fans!

We had the absolute honour to work on this project with incredibly talented director Leo Lebeau and stunningly gifted producer James Bell. They have inspired us and milked the best out of us in this video. More iconic artists who worked on this project are stylist Tudor Covaciu, MUA Alberto Papparotto, wig styling by StyledByVodka and more wigs by Manwigs, drag artist Polka Dot, intersex model Deanna Jade.

The storyline follows us on a sexy journey, surrounded by a community of LGBTQIA+ performers. This is how we’ve always wanted our fans to see the CRISP&CLASSY World. Empowering women, non binary people, and the LGBTQIA+ community has always been our mission statement, and was important to include in this video, and our future work.  We love giving our audience a gender and genre bending experience, inviting them to a safe space where everyone can feel safe and seen.

We really enjoyed shooting this project and we love everyone who was there on set and in spirit with us from a far. We love u!”

Watch the new video for ‘Boom Bay’ here:

Mari Lane
@marimindles

mariangelicalaneLeave a comment

Track Of The Day: Queen Cult – ‘A Song About Consent’

Following acclaim from the likes of BBC Introducing for their debut single ‘Shindigger‘, and support for explosive recent offering ‘Show & Tell‘, Cheshire band Queen Cult have been fast making a name for themselves. Consisting of front person Maisie Johnson and bassist Leila Jacklin, as well as Brodie Carson on drums and Piers Jarvis on guitar, the band pride themselves on their LGBTQ+ identity and sharing their queer, politically-charged messages with the masses; and, having recently pulled out of Hit The North festival due to allegations against promoter SSD Concerts, their dedication to smashing the patriarchy and standing up for what’s right remains steadfast and unwavering.

With a gritty, seething energy, brand new single ‘A Song About Consent‘ offers an all-too-resonant message about the challenges women and girls have to face every day in the face of the male gaze. With an impassioned, angst-driven power, it’s a swirling statement of intent, raging with a poignant fervour against men’s entitlement over our bodies. As front person Maisie fiercely proclaims that “consensuality is a thing”, she assures us that our voices should be heard; that we are entitled to have control over own bodies, and should feel safe in this knowledge. With a blazing grit, the track pulls no punches as it rages against the culture of victim blaming and society’s expectation that we are responsible for changing ourselves to protect us from harm, rather than holding the perpetrators of abuse to account. Of the meaning behind track, Maisie comments:

“Watching the news about the murder of Sarah Everard by a policeman hit us immensely. Seeing it unfold into what didn’t seem real. We questioned our upbringings, what our mothers told us whilst growing up. Things to remember to keep safe. And realising just how messed up that is. We wrote this song because we were shook by the idea of having to change anything about simply existing as a woman in this world. We do not stand for inequality. We do not stand for abuse. We stand for consent, decency and respect.” 

Another immense slice of pop-infused rock ‘n’ roll from Queen Cult, ‘A Song About Consent’ builds with a stirring tension and soulful raw emotion, alongside sweeping fizzing riffs, to offer a completely necessary and ferociously poignant listen, fuelled by a colossal, and instantly catchy, musicality. So, blast it into your ears, immerse yourself in its riotous catharsis, and stand up and join the fight against the patriarchy now!

Watch the new video for ‘A Song About Consent’ now:


‘A Song About Consent’ is out now. Catch Queen Cult live in Manchester at The Castle Hotel on 18th November – tickets here.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

Photo Credit: Debbie Ellis / A Supreme Shot

mariangelicalaneLeave a comment

Introducing Interview: Sister Ghost

With accolades such as winning ‘Best Live Act’ at Northern Ireland’s Music Prize in 2019 and airplay from the likes of BBC 6Music and BBC Radio 1, Derry based Shannon Delores O’Neill and Maeve Mulholland – aka Sister Ghost – have just released their brilliantly entitled new EP Stay Spooky. Taken from the EP, latest single ‘Buried Alive’ oozes the duo’s distinctive swirling, gritty power as soaring impassioned vocals and catchy hooks rage with a seething energy. A perfect slice of sparkling rock ‘n’ roll, exuding a much-needed empowering raucous spirit.

We caught up with Shannon to find out more about the new single, what inspires Sister Ghost’s sound, her thoughts on the industry at the moment and more… Have a read and listen to new single ‘Buried Alive‘ now!

Hi Sister Ghost, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about yourselves?
I started Sister Ghost while I was in uni at Belfast. It’s brought so many cool moments to my life, such as supporting LeButcherettes, Pussy Riot and Shellac (meeting Steve Albini and getting his plectrum was amazing!). One of the greatest moments was winning Best Live Act at the 2019 NI Music Awards – getting to stand on the famous Ulster Hall stage where Zeppelin played Stairway for the first time was cool. That award meant a lot too because we were two women, playing loud rock music, with no big team around us – totally a win for grassroots rockers. Sister Ghost started off as a means for me to make the music I always wanted to make, and it’s evolved into a band that is all about a great and energetic live performance where the audience should have as much fun as we do.

Are you able to tell us a bit about how you initially started creating music together? 
I’d been writing and performing as Sister Ghost for a few years but met Maeve at Girls Rock School NI in 2017 (I was directing and she was learning bass) and we got on well, so I asked her to join in 2019 and it’s been going great. During the pandemic I was able to have the time to write an album’s worth of material and I sent those demos to Maeve who then wrote her bass lines – she’s always on hand to help with any technical side of things when I need a hand. The same process led us to writing the new EP Stay Spooky that came out earlier this month.

I love the gritty, seething energy of your sound, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
Thank you – I like that description, it reminds me of the song Seether by Veruca Salt, who are a huge influence on Sister Ghost for sure! The songs on the new EP are the best example I feel of a mash-up of two particular eras of music for me: lots of ’90s stuff like L7, Soundgarden & Radiohead and then ’60s folk/psych infused rock like CSNY, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Mamas and Papas, The Doors, The Byrds etc. Kate Bush and her iconic level of artistry and not bowing down to anyone, has always been something I look to as well.

You’ve just shared your immense new single ‘Buried Alive’, which is super exciting! Are you able to tell us a bit about this? Are there any particular themes running throughout the song?
I wanted to write about the experience of feeling smothered under the weight of responsibilities as well as when you feel that pressure to question yourself and where you’re at in life. Equally, I also wanted to acknowledge the realisation that everything that’s happened before has led you to where you are now – with purpose, and the gratitude and comfort you can feel in knowing that.

How have you found recording and promoting music during these strange times?
It’s actually been my most fruitful time for writing, literally just because the pandemic meant that moving back home to the countryside with not much else to do meant I could just be with my guitar, laptop and notebooks. It’s been shitty not being able to play many shows and live-streams are kind of a buzzkill too (even though they were necessary at a time). But the sooner we get back out on a series of gigs the better – I’m trying to manifest a busy 2022 for Sister Ghost!

You’ve recently played an exclusive, limited-capacity in-store show in Starr Records, Belfast – how was that experience for you? 
It was really great – the room was perfect, filled with candles and plants and it was the first time I got to play my new 12 string guitar as well (I’m a guitar nerd for sure). It was just so much fun to get to perform in a full band set-up for the first time since Friday 13th March 2020, which was also in that same record shop! It was so nice to see friends we hadn’t seen in a long time as well.

And how is the live music scene in Northern Ireland at the moment – has it ‘recovered’ after the limitations of the last couple of years?
Not really in all honesty – our government only just allowed a return for standing gigs on October 31st so we’re way behind.

How do you feel the industry is for new artists at the moment? Do you feel much has changed over the last few years in its treatment of female and non binary artists? 
Someone recently told me they felt it was an easier time for the brand new, just out-of-school artists right now because they had all that time during the pandemic to try out stuff without having the pressure to be out gigging straight away etc. I think it’s probably a bit of this and that really, I think the internet is helping a lot of people gain a following these days, more so than just being out gigging in the real world – cutting your teeth like I did as a teen in bands etc. In terms of your second question, I just think people who hold power need to keep making sure their venues and spaces are free from toxicity. I also think that work needs to continue on calling out the patriarchal systems and ways of thinking we experience on the daily, so that people of all gender identities feel validated and safe in every walk of life.

And, as we’re a new music focused site, are there any other upcoming artists or bands you’re loving right now that you’d recommend we check out?
Yes! Heart Shaped – Kendall is originally from Houston but has been based in Belfast for a few years now – we met through Girls Rock School NI. Mom Friend – Emily is based in Georgia, USA and we met at Girls Rock Santa Barbara.

Finally, what does the rest of 2021 have in store for Sister Ghost?
Preparations for the debut Sister Ghost album… Woohoo!

Massive thanks to Shannon for answering our questions!

Stay Spooky, the new EP from Sister Ghost, is out now. Buy on bandcamp now.

mariangelicalaneLeave a comment