Have you always wanted to be a musician? When did you start writing music?
I think it was always in the back of my mind from about 12 onwards, but I never thought it was possible that I’d actually make my own music – just something I’d fantasised about doing.
I remember writing a song in year 8 with lyrics and music and then I didn’t really write much until year 10, where I got super dooper depressed and started really getting into music. I started off doing covers and putting them on soundcloud where a couple of people thought they were really good, but I couldn’t really see it. I then bought a mic and an interface and a looper pedal and tentatively started doing my own instrumental stuff. It took another couple of years before I sang in anything.

Which music did you grow up listening to? How has it influenced your current style?
As a child, my Dad played a lot of Nirvana and Powderfinger. I remember my first favourite song being “Teenage Dirtbag” by Wheatus and my music taste around 8 or 9 was pop that sounded rock, like Avril Lavigne and Kelly Clarkson.
From about 11 onwards, Paramore were my idols. A lot of people seem to hear that it’s influenced me stylistically. Taylor swift was a big one too around that age. I got older and started getting into the world of indie – The Wombats, Two Door Cinema Club, Arctic Monkeys but then high school sucked and I started listening to Panic! At the Disco, Paramore’s stuff post Riot, A Day To Remember, Alexis on Fire, Defeater etc. I’d say that the consistent theme throughout this is guitar driven music.
I think I’ve always enjoyed rock music in a pop structure and lean towards emotive, distorted guitar riffs in my music. That’s something I’d really like to lean into more in the future and make some even rockier music I get a real kick out of listening to.

How would you describe your sound?
Guitar pop with a moody, often angsty 00’s edge.

Why do you think people resonate with your music?
I think it reminds them of the artists they grew up listening to in the era where pop music was guitar music – like “Since U Been Gone” by Kelly Clarkson, “4eva”, The Veronicas, “Mr Brighstside”, The Killers. I feel guitar pop has significantly died down in the mainstream music we hear but people still crave pop songs. That’s the gap I personally want filled, so I think perhaps that’s why people enjoy my music.

Your new single ‘Signals’ has just been released. Describe its origin and evolution.
Signals started as me wanting to follow up Affection with another strong pop song. I didn’t want to startle anyone with something too far away from my last track. Instrumentally it’s pretty much identical to the demo version I did in my bedroom. We even used a lot of the original synths I did in logic – but we tweaked the structure lots of times to make it as potent a pop song as possible. Structurally, it is quite different to the first version I did.

If you could perform with any music artist, Alive or Dead, who would you choose? And why?
Hayley Williams, but I’d probably just be a nervous wreck. She was formative in how I perceived women in music and especially rock music. Definitely my idol growing up and one of the main reasons I was able to envision myself, as a woman, playing rock music.

What’s next for Jess Day in the near future?
Probably not a whole lot of shows for now but ideally a fair bit of writing and recording.

What are your longer-term aspirations?
I’d love to have some kind of body of work I can confidently lean into my sound with. It would be great to show people the music I really enjoy writing and have it viewed through a broader stylistic lens.

You’ve recently been on your own headline tour. What is the best thing about performing to a live audience?
Hearing my songs sung back to me. This headline tour was the first time that had happened and it brings me pure joy to feel that these songs can be cathartic or just fun to some people. I love seeing them dancing and shouting the lyrics loud as hell.

Finally, a few questions for some quick answers –
FAVOURITE:
Album – ​Threads – Now, Now
Artist – ​Balance and Composure
Movie – ​Star Wars – Revenge of the Sith ( I like Phantom Menace too but you can leave that out)
Place to visit – ​Adelaide or Mt Lofty Botanical Gardens
Venue to play – ​Crown & Anchor
Food – ​Staazi and Co Yiros
Drink – ​Peach Kombucha
Tattoo – (If you don’t have one, what would you get?) – ​A fairy or an angel

Thank you Jess!