Project Description

Interview with

FOLEY

Interviewer – Dave Bruce

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How did you meet and start making music together? 
We met in a New Zealand high school band competition called Smokefree Rockquest when we were about 15 and 16. We were in different competing bands but all the members became best mates, which I think happens to a lot of people who meet in those kinds of situations! We played heaps of shows together and were super tight, so once our other bands went their separate ways we decided to join forces and write music together! It was a super natural progression because we were already such close friends, so it was easy to write openly and honestly with each other. It’s been a BLAST ever since.  

What kind of music did you grow up on? Which artists inspired you early on?
I grew up pretty much solely influenced by my mum’s music taste. She’s an epic groover on the dance floor and was always blasting bands like Groove Armada, M People, Straw people, Fleetwood Mac, U2, Queen, Macey Gray and pretty much a continuous stream of good vibes. The older I got the more I fell in love with Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks really lit the fire as far as song writing and vocal performance went for me. I was a bit of an impersonator in my early years trying to sound like her! I am a lot more influenced by RNB and Neo Soul now so the influences have changed a lot but ol’ Stevie will always be the first <3 

How would you describe your sound?
We have created this kind of amalgamation of funk influences and classic pop, which is down to Gabe’s funk basslines. Neither of us started out writing pop music so it’s been challenging and exciting to try and write succinct and fun music while maintaining our own flare and personality. Mostly the music is fun and funky, and we place a real emphasis on juicy guitar licks and glossy synths. The music is aimed at bringing people together- its that universal experience of living in your early 20’s and working out what the heck is going on. 

Your new single “Can’t Help The Way” is scheduled for release on June 28^th. What’s the story behind the song? 
“Can’t Help The Way” is all about freedom and letting go of the head over heart. We are both huge over thinkers when it comes to love and relationships so it’s something we have talked and talked about in our friendship. Sometimes you just have to let go and accept that feelings are out of your control, and we like who we like! 

What was the process of writing and recording the song like? 
The song was originally cooked up in an overnight session with our good friend Giorgio Scott from another kiwi duo CLAYE. The song came together so quickly and it felt super natural so we added it to our live set for the next few months. We came back to the song about 6 months after that when I returned home from travelling, and we went a lot deeper into the production detail and perfecting the melodies with another producer Josh Fountain (who we have worked with on our last 3 singles, an absolute legend). 

How did you find the Songwriting process? Is there always a big appetite to write some more?
We are always writing- it never stops! The appetite is HUGE and continuous because we are obsessed with song writing and it consumes our lives…  ahhhh

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How has your music evolved over the years?
I think our music is always evolving, and most musicians would probably say the same. Every song seems to pull on a new influence or a song that you have fallen in love with that day. I hope that our music gets better and better and we can keep being honest with our fans about what is happening in our lives. The main evolution for us has been learning to be fully candid in our lyrics and let all our failures and flaws hang out to dry- as scary as that can be sometimes. 

What’s next for you in 2019?
The next big project is our debut EP. We have been aiming to put out a larger body of work for some time so we are planning to really dive into that after this release so that we can crack into the kiwi/aussie summer with some songs to jam to at the beach slash your summer bbq and sangria nights. That’s what I’ll be doing when the EP drops. 

Which musicians and bands are you listening to or inspired by at the moment?
We are huge kiwi and aussie music fans, so at the moment we are listening to musicians like Middle Kids, Balu Brigada, Cub Sport, Bene, Clea, Round Buddah, Pickle Darling, Miss June, Dulcie, LA Women, Randa, and about a zillion others!
I am also an avid Colours Show watcher- such a great channel that I always get inspired by; It’s so amazing to see artists in their most stripped back form where the song can really shine. 

What shows or tours do you have coming up?
We have our last show for a little while on June 21^st, and then we are taking a little break to write the EP. There’s only so many hours in the day!
But hopefully we can jump back into tour mode coming into the summer to line up with some festivals and the release of the EP.

If you could perform with anyone right now, Alive or Dead, who would it be? And why?
I would perform with Freddy Mercury because holy crap how could you not. *Tears of joy*

Do you have any significant longer-term goals or aspirations as a band?
We both love the festival vibe as attendees so a huge goal is to play some major international festivals. I already have so many outfit ideas for Coachella – Dream BIG I reckon.  ☺

Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVORITE:
Album – Ctrl SZA
Artist – AHHHHH so hard to chose, probably Haitus Kaiyote but this is tricky!
Movie – Juno
Place to visit – Prague
Food = FRIED CHICKEN (kfc forever)
Drink – Gin and Tonic (on a hot afternoon sitting on the deck)
Person in History – Freddie Mercury 
Tattoo – (if you don’t have one, one you would get?) I have a little tattoo on my ankle that my mum and I got matching while travelling in Barcelona last year. Definitely a winner.

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Check out FOLEY below
FACEBOOK​ | ​INSTAGRAM​ | ​SPOTIFY

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AMNPLIFY – DB