Introducing Interview: Alice Mary

Following her last single ‘Too Much’, London based artist Alice Mary has now shared the second of four singles to be released this year. Reflecting on the mix of feelings that can overwhelm the mind after a break-up, ‘Mystery‘ offers a jangly slice of swirling indie-pop. With shades of the uptempo danceability of the likes of Blondie, it showcases Alice’s sweeping vocals alongside funk-tinged hooks and a scuzzy energy.

We caught up with Alice to find out more… !

Hi Alice, welcome to Get In Her Ears! Can you tell us a bit about yourself?
Hello! I’m a singer-songwriter, producer and guitarist and I make indie pop music which combines my love of classic pop from the ’80s and ’90s with modern production and introspective lyrics.

What initially inspired you to start creating music?
I started having guitar lessons when I was eleven – I would bring along tapes and CDs of songs I wanted to learn and my teacher would work them out by ear and teach me how to play them. It sort of forced me to develop a music taste because I had to bring something every week to learn and luckily I lived in a house with three older siblings whose record collections I could raid! Then, after I’d been learning for about a year, my teacher said “I think you should start writing your own music now”. I wasn’t very good and I thought you had to be good at playing music before you were allowed to write it, but he just gave me the permission to go ahead and start. After that I never really stopped writing music!

You’ve just released your twinkling new single ‘Mystery’, can you tell us a bit about this? Is it focused on any particular themes?
The lyrics are about this back and forth I do in my head where I can be a bit all or nothing. It’s looking back on a break up and thinking – “I have to completely forgive this person and be their best friend”, or “I have to hate them and we’ll never speak again”, or “am I still in love with them?”. I could get stuck in this black and white thinking and struggle to make decisions, but I am a bit better at seeing the nuance and the in-between solutions now! After all the back and forth in the verse and pre chorus the clarity comes in the chorus: “I don’t really like you, you’re just what I’m used to / I’m happy that we’re done, I just miss having someone.”

We love your shimmering, heartfelt dream-pop sounds, but who would you say are your main musical influences?
Hmmm, so many! For these latest songs probably St Vincent, Prince, Radiohead and Joni Mitchell.

You’ve previously charmed us with your beautiful live set at The Amersham Arms a few years ago – but can you tell those who may not have had the pleasure of seeing you what to expect from your live shows?
I have two different kind of live shows – one with a bassist and drummer where I play electric guitar and sing and have some electronic sounds I playback on an iPad, and one where I play and sing solo with special arrangements on the acoustic guitar.

And, although we are still far from ‘normality’ at the moment, do you have any plans to gig in the near future? And if so, where/when?
I feel like I’m not supposed to say this but: I haven’t missed playing live that much! I’m wondering if when I start to do it again that’s when all the pain of missing out on it this last year will hit me, but I don’t know. I find playing live very stressful and although I enjoy it once I’m up there, all of the organising and psyching myself up beforehand is quite hard. All of that is to say I don’t have any gigs booked and I’m quite ok with it! If I get offered anything good (and safe!) I’ll go with it, but I’m not making any effort to book anything right now.

How have you been connecting with your audience and other musicians during the pandemic?
Instagram! I’ve been lucky to be quite creative during the last year and have enjoyed sharing my experimentation via videos on my instagram stories. I also joined a Facebook group for women and gender minorities working in music production called ‘2% Rising’, which has been great for learning and sharing ideas.

And has there been anything/anyone specific that has been inspiring you, or helping to motivate you, throughout these strange times?
I started having Zoom piano lessons a year ago and I’m still learning now – I love it and I’m so surprised! Not being able to play the piano was always a secret shame of mine, but now I can and it’s given me so much confidence in myself.

How do you feel the music industry is for new artists at the moment – would you say it’s difficult to get noticed?
The music industry is still a complete mystery to me, and I think that’s by design. There are amazing people who aren’t getting noticed and not very good people who have managers and agents. It’s a business, so they play it safe because they don’t want to lose money. So in answer to your question: yes, it is hard to get noticed by gatekeepers in the industry, but do we even need them anymore when you can reach fans directly through social media? That’s its own kettle of fish – it seems almost completely random to me what gains success online, but in a weird way that has helped me because I feel free to just try anything. There isn’t one way to find success, so you may as well just try things out and see who connects with it – if no one does, then try something else!

As we’re a new music focused site, are there any other upcoming artists that you’d recommend we check out?
I always want to shout out my friends, so I have to say: Hayley Ross, Semi Precious and James Chapman And The Blue Moon.

Finally, what does the rest of 2021 have in store for Alice Mary?
I have a re-release of an old song coming out for Bandcamp Friday in September. Then two more singles coming out in the autumn, and some recording this summer which I’m excited about. I’m also hoping to produce and mix some other artists.

Massive thanks to Alice for answering our questions!

Listen to Alice Mary’s new single, ‘Mystery’, here:

Photo Credit: Ben Peter Catchpole

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Track Of The Day: My Idea – ‘Stay Away Still’ / ‘That’s My Idea’

Ahead of the release of their debut EP at the end of this month, New York-based indie-pop duo Nate Amos and Lily Konigsberg – aka My Idea – have now shared the first taster of the collection in the form of two singles, ‘Stay Away Still‘ and ‘That’s My Idea‘.

Kicking off to a quick start, ‘Stay Away Still‘ launches with an upbeat drum line that lays out the rhythm ahead of a rush of guitar and vocals. The tongue-in-cheek lyrics juxtapose laughter and pain in a way that’s smart and relatable, nailing a light-hearted approach to depression and existence that fuels millennial humour.

The vocals are cleverly layered. The chirpy melody is complemented by deep, almost deadpan responses beneath. At times, the two vocal lines bounce off each other like a conversation contained within one song. At others, they conflict but in a way that feels like they come from the same place – as if one is speech while the other is echoing what you actually wanted to say. Although the words are often repeated, the way the lyrics twist around each other shapes the song with a driving momentum. The strings are lovely and light, and – with this sense of brightness particularly in the solo that continues through the following verses – a real boost is given to the music.

‘Stay Away Still’ builds gradually, with new layers being introduced throughout. Finally, it swells to a big bouncy climax that comes to an abrupt stop leaving you eager for more and grateful that this song has dropped as part of My Idea’s special two-in-one release.

The second single released as a teaser ahead of My Idea’s upcoming EP is ‘That’s My Idea‘. Shorter and softer than the accompanying ‘Stay Away Still’, it offers a clear idea of what to expect from the band in its less-than-ninety second run time.

Combining provocative lyrics – which if they were written down you might imagine were a challenge or even aggressive – with an ominously gentle delivery, the vocals are breathy, but not for lack of lung power. Instead, that softness feels like a very purposeful choice that lends a human element to the track and adds an impressive weight to the words themselves. Delivering phrases like “that’s my idea,/ talking to me like it was yours the whole time/ makes me want to fight you” with such delicacy tells an entirely different story than if they were belted out. Arguably, one that’s more powerful. The words seem to come from someone just finding the strength to stand up for themselves, not quite ready to yell but tired of being spoken over.

The light, high vocals are blended with bubbly guitar that has fun with the notes and creates a pleasantly textured foundation for the track. Fleeting with a memorably sly sweetness, ‘That’s My Idea’ makes for another fantastic appetiser before the EP brings the main course.

That’s My Idea, the debut EP from My Idea, is set for release 30th July via Hardly Art.

Kirstie Summers
@ActuallyKurt

Photo Credit: Michael Wolever

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Track Of The Day: Piney Gir – ‘Voice Of The Ages’

Following 2019’s seventh album You Are Here, London-based, Kansas-raised GIHE fave Piney Gir has now announced a new EP, Astral Spectra, which is set for release later this month. And now, ahead of the EP, she has just shared a characteristically uplifting new single.

Flowing with the jangle of twinkling hooks and an immersive sunny energy, ‘Voice Of The Ages’ reflects on the necessity of facing your demons to come out stronger in the end. As the distinctive shimmer of Piney’s luscious celestial vocals soar with an effervescent splendour alongside the striking grandeur of the track’s almost orchestral sounding musicality, a wonderfully majestic indie-pop anthem is created.

Oozing a swirling, psychedelic sense of nostalgia, ‘Voice Of The Ages’ retains its own unique sparkling grace, showcasing Piney Gir’s trademark honey-sweet and harmonious uplifting pop-sensibilities. Of the track, she explains:

“This song simply flowed, it was like a message from the subconscious mind or a force of the universe channelling through me. I couldn’t get it out of my head quickly enough; it couldn’t have been written any faster.” 

‘Voice Of The Ages’ is out now via Reckless Yes. Astral Spectra, the upcoming EP and the first part of a set of concept EPs, is set for release 25th June. Pre-order here.

Mari Lane
@marimindles

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ALBUM: Fightmilk – ‘Contender’

Recorded in two sessions a year apart, GIHE faves Fightmilk’s second album Contender is worth every second of the wait, following 2018’s Not With That Attitude. The band’s writing and recording process has understandably changed over the past twelve months. Combined with the influence of their new bassist Healey and and an expanded musicality, their style has developed without losing any of the raw emotion at the heart of what makes Fightmilk special.

The album kicks off with an authentic false start. This, along with later interludes, makes for lovely humanising moments that give DIY bands so much charm. Then the music comes in hard and fast. From the first beat, you get big drums, powerful vocals and guitars layered beautifully over each other. The album is rich with riffs, fantastic flourishes of strings that make every song pop. Both in individual tracks and across the album as a whole, the instruments build to roaring climactic moments that launch the vocals to an impressive new reach. The band know how to use their instruments to ramp up the power of every track at exactly the right time.

The songs explore the human experience with Fightmilk’s distinct brand of unapologetic vulnerability. There are wonderfully fuzzy love songs (‘Overbite’, ‘Maybe’) and pettiness-about-your-ex songs and please-dump-your-awful-boyfriend songs (‘Hey Annabelle’). There is also a song about “a hypothetical billionaire and his hypothetical pop-star girlfriend”, which is definitely hypothetical…

The lyrics are intense and personal in a way you can’t help but relate to. Every song is evidently grounded in real experiences and so imbued with emotion. The themes don’t shy away from the darker side of reality, but examine the impact of heartache, the patriarchy or corrupt governments on your soul with a twinkling, scuzzy charm. There’s a great balance between the reflective songs and hopeful ones. It starts and finishes with uplifting tracks that beautifully frame the journey the album takes you on, concluding with a sense of scrappy DIY optimism.

The album captures the essence of 2021 perfectly, drifting easily between plague and feelings and third wave capitalism and exes. The range of powerful energetic songs and more gentle ones fit well alongside each other without jarring. The changes in tone and emotion between tracks flow together with an endearing ease. Contender is at once cathartic, validating and empowering. It’s everything I want in the music that will propel me out of the lockdown slump and into a year that makes up for every lost minute.

Contender is out now via Reckless Yes. Buy on bandcamp now.

Kirstie Summers
@actuallykurt

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