Nick Wilson returns with another slice of ambient alt-pop on single All The Same, out now via AWAL (Kobalt).
Inspired by the pain that comes with leaving someone you love, All The Same is a stirring piece of electro pop. It interweaves textured, cinematic soundscapes with Wilson’s emotive vocals to create a delicate, heart-rending power that is second to none. Showcasing Wilson’s impressive songwriting ability with a sound akin to Honne or Aquilo, All The Same is an evocative ballad that’ll captivate immediately on first listen. Of the track, Wilson explains, “leaving someone may be the most logical thing to do, and you could even be the one ending things, but it still kills you inside in some way. It’s a really heartbreaking sentiment.”
In this interview spotlight, I chat with Nick about his latest project, motivations, challenges 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)?
I think when it comes to the style of music I make, it always just comes down to want I want to listen to and what I think sounds great, and for me that has always stemmed from (usually) acoustic, lyrically driven music. I’m always drawn towards interesting voices too; I grew up on Gavin DeGraw, James Morrison etc so I think that has definitely influenced the way I write melodies.
What led you into this journey with music? And further, what drives you to push it out to the public?
I’ve always just had this desire to create. When you cross that with a musical upbringing, I think it’s inevitable that making music will become a part of your life in some way. There’s this nervous excitement that comes with putting that music out to the public too, which I love. There’s something so satisfying about putting out something that has been very intimate and personal to you for so long, and letting people do what they want with it.
Who or what influences your creativity? Have your tastes in music changed over time?
I like to think I take influence from a whole bunch of genres but if i’m honest it usually always comes back to John Mayerand Noah Gundersen for me. I love the melodies Mayer comes up with, and I think Noah has the best vocals/lyricism of any ‘singer/songwriter’ out there. But I do listen to a lot of pop, that latest Lorde album and the Kacey Musgraves one are incredible.
Were you trying to accomplish anything specific on this new project? Creatively or otherwise?
I don’t think there was an intentional decision to do anything different at first, but it definitely ended up being something new for me. I wrote it with the insanely talented Dom Liu and Sean Mac of ‘Kingdoms’, and when Dom came back with a produced demo filled with this vocoder throughout, it was obvious that the song needed to focus in on this weird/left field style. The songwriting was just as organic and personal as usual, but the way we approached the production was definitely something new.
What was the last song you listened to?
Smoke Signals by Phoebe Bridgers (she is incredible)
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
I prefer MP3’s because I listen to so much on my laptop, but you can’t beat the physicality of a CD or Vinyl.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Hands down Spotify, purely because they just absolutely NAILED it with their music discovery playlists and algorithms. I’ve found so so many new artist through Spotify.
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 it’s not as much the fact that there is so much new music, but it’s trying to make sure your music is as best as it can be when things are moving so so quickly. Like I have demos that have been sat around for a couple years that I thought were incredible when I wrote, but I lready hear things i’d change because the musical landscape has changed so much even in the past year.
Where is the best place to connect with you online? Discover more music?
You can find me on all socials, just search Nick Wilson or uknickwilson. Follow me on Spotify too to be the first to hear new music!