In this interview, we spend a few minutes with singer/songwriter Alec Shaw to discuss his new album Car Town as well as influences, gigs, and much more.
Full Q&A as well as links and an album stream available below.
Let’s dive a little deeper into You, the artist and your music. What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?
It’s hard to say what attracted me to the genre I play because I don’t think I’ve really landed on one yet. One that I want to be more consistent with. The styles on “Car Town” very a lot because I’m still discovering what my style is. With that said, I would say in general my style is rock of all influences. I love the possibilities with rock. You can combine so much feeling and all the more brooding sides of music with energy and grooves.
How long have you been creating and sharing your music with the public?
I have been writing for two years now. I haven’t shared my music with the public until I started doing gigs last year.
Who or what influences your playing and/or writing? Also, what motivates you to keep going?
My main influence comes from Paul McCartney and then the rest is a mix between all the other artist I like. There are a lot of things that motivate me to keep going. The first thing that comes to mind are the people that believe in me and encourage me, Especially the ones closest to me that are the most honest. My love and passion for music is another one. I love doing it so much I just want to keep going. I feel that it’s worth it to put in a ton of work so that eventually I can make a living doing what I love. Thirdly, I believe my talent and passion is something I was gifted with and that it’s my responsibility to cultivate it and use it for good.
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
I was just going for it! I wanted to do music so I simply recorded songs I wrote. Here you go! This is me! Alecs musical existence from 2014 to the end of 2015.
What was the last song you listened to?
Arbakkinn, some song I found on a german blog. By Ólafur Arnalds. It was pretty.
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
Vinyl. I collect them hehe. It’s the music equivalent of sitting by the fireplace in the winter with hot coco.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Spotify is pretty convenient. I use it. Never tried the others.
Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what are one or two of the biggest challenges you face when trying to attract listeners to your music?
Myself. I’m not upfront enough with my music. I feel selfish promoting myself sometimes, so that can be a little restraining.
Do you gig, tour or perform? Do you ever live stream? Where can music lovers see you live?
I play gigs a couple times a month with a band of 9! It’s a real fun show. If you want to see us live go to alecshawmusic.com and click on the live tab to see show dates.
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more of your music?
If you want to see what my life is like check out my Instagram @alechaydenshaw. Alec Shaw on facebook. You can find my music on my youtube or anywhere. Itunes, Spotify etc.
Any last thoughts? Shout outs? Words of wisdom?
I believe a musician’s music is a refined version of all his influences. It makes them unique… IF you listen to a bunch of music and different music. For example an artist like Ragina Spector had influences such as the Beatles and her Russian music which created a unique blend of influence. With practice she produced what she put in. Something new and interesting. Now, if you listened to only pop being music in it’s most generally appealing and already refined down to the pulp nature, your product will only be a refined version of that! And that is not going to interest anyone. Listen to things that challenge you with writing, listening, arranging, and feeling. Not necessarily just songs you want to sound like.
