Confessional singer-songwriter Eliza Shaddad gets poignantly nostalgic in new single, Girls, out on now via Big Indie Records.
An ode to one of Eliza’s oldest friends, Girls is a refreshingly candid take on what it’s like to grow up in an all girls school and the relationships you build. Talking about the track, Eliza elaborates, “it lays bare how scary it was, standing on the sidelines, growing older, watching someone deal with some insanely hard human experiences, unable to find a way to connect with them about it.” The first taste of Shaddad’s forthcoming EP – which navigates through multiple forms of withdrawal and isolation and was recorded in a remote bungalow in the wilds of Cornwall – Girls combines chiming dream-pop with shimmering indie-rock sensibilities to create a sound that is both tantalizingly sentimental and assertively modern. Eliza’s soft, breathy vocals reminiscent of the likes of Daughter’s Elena Tonra and Marika Hackman.
In this interview spotlight, I chat with Eliza about her latest release, challenges, technology and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Let’s dive a little deeper into You, the artist and your music. What attracted you to this genre(s) or style(s)?
My sister introduced me to a lot of grunge and trip hop when I was a teenager and I guess I internalised it in quite an important way. At University I got into folk music, became obsessed with Dylan and traditional folk songs from around the UK and I think together that’s my sound, the storytelling vibe of folk plus the dark but fairly pop-structured songwriting of grunge.
What led you into this journey with music? And further, what drives you to push it out to the public?
I’ve always been singing and writing songs but actually did loads of other stuff before I decided to do music; a Masters in Philosophy, taught English in Spain and then I studied Jazz. For me I always got the most joy and peace from performing, so I made that my work.
Who or what influences your creativity? Have your tastes in music changed over time?
I guess my stage in life is the most influential thing. If I feel happy and fulfilled, and chilled then the music is softer, warmer, more mellow. And if I feel frustrated, trapped, or angry then the music is a lot darker faster and tense. My tastes tend to change in relation to that too, so I think they’ve mellowed out a bit since I was a teenager haha.
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
I was trying a new way of recording – more lo-fi bedroom vibes, but still working to create large arrangements with producer Ben Jackson, so it was interesting and challenging work.
What was the last song you listened to?
USP by Liz Lawrence – so good!
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
It’s got to be vinyl, but I actually probably buy CDs a lot more – good for car journeys
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Bandcamp’s where it all started for me, I’ll always love them, and they’re so brilliant for merch too, and Spotify is kind of where a lot of my focus goes now as they’re really great to interact with and it’s such a big market of music and listeners.
Other than the digital era overwhelming us with access to an abundance of music, what is the biggest challenge you face when trying to connect with or find new fans?
I think the bias on social media towards only seeing most post popular posts is pretty frustrating – I feel like I have an organic way to connect with all these people who have asked to be kept up to date, and I can’t actually get the information to them.
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more music?
Instagram and Spotify I reckon, follow me on both for all the latest.
Anything else you’d like to add before signing off?
Come connect at a show!:) We’re playing a single launch in London on the 6th November, and have some big tour announcements coming up after that:)
