A native of East Sussex, Natalie Bouloudis first got her musical education in childhood, having played clarinet in jazz bands and had a few guitar lessons at school. From the age of seven she started writing her own music and has been (till recently) a secret songwriter ever since.
Having lived in London for the better part of the last decade, she decided three years ago to launch her music into the public sphere under the name Aurora Harbinger. She soon played venues like Servant Jazz Quarters and The Victoria in Dalston, quickly building a loyal fan base that enabled her to successfully crowd fund her debut record. For Natalie, playing live is an important consideration in the songwriting process, a process which focuses centrally on generating atmosphere and intimacy. Her debut EP is her first proper recording and it was all recorded live at Wax Studios in London and produced by Robert Strauss. For Natalie, getting the EP right was dependent on how precisely she could evoke the feelings she had in mind.
Though armed with encyclopaedic knowledge of narrative songwriters across the spectrum of folk, rock and jazz, Natalie brings to the table her own brand of atmospheric storytelling. It’s folky in its arrangements, but in terms of sheer vocal delivery she’s a soulful rock and roller, at times calling to mind the visceral and lurching tones of Patti Smith or Etta James. ‘Burning Pier’ may only be her first single, but already it reveals an artist in the classic sense: thoughtful, precise, and led by instinct and imagination.
In this interview spotlight, we chat with Natalie about influences, her newest project and more.
Full Q&A along with links and a stream of Whirlwinds below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)
I am a London based singer and guitarist with a folky-blues sound and leanings of jazz, soul and Rock n’ Roll all seeping through my narrative song-writing. For me the music is all about capturing an intimate atmosphere and telling a story. I’d like to be able to combine all the components of a film-noir and a dark fairy-tale, smokey and candle-lit.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to stay the course?
I’ve been scribbling down song lyrics and playing around with tunes for as long as I can remember but it was only in recent years that I decided to start properly performing and have since played at some amazing venues around London including Servant Jazz Quarters and Chats Palace. I decided it was time to get some decent recordings of my songs and to bring it together by recruiting a wonderful band.
How is your new release different than previous ones? Did you set out to accomplish anything specific?
My debut single ‘Burning Pier’ came out just before Christmas and now I have just released my first EP. ‘Dead Sea Scripts’ is a collection of songs inspired by the sea, real experiences as well as fictional references and in many ways each song is a chapter forming the completed story. There are some old-fashioned heartbreak tunes in there like ‘Whirlwinds’ which is a dramatic moonlit track and then you find a song like ‘Firebird’ with my interpretation of on a 60’s girl band jamming with a 90’s grunge band – capturing that moment when you decide to be a phoenix rising from the ashes.
This was the first time I had recorded any of my material outside my kitchen and all the songs were recorded live in Wax Studios in London. It was really important for me to capture the essence which you get with live recording. For me, that’s when this sort of music really comes alive at the height of a good performance.
Do you face challenges as an indie musician in a digital age? How has technology helped you (assuming it helps)?
It’s important to use digital channels in the music industry these days, it’s great that you can distribute your music so that anyone in the whole world can discover and listen to your music at any time. Although this also means that there is an oversaturated pool of listeners to reach so you really have to rely on promotion and music journalism to give you a smidge of a change of standing out.
In one ways the digital age has meant that people can now produce a good standard of home-recording which is how I made my first steps on this path. At the end of the day, it’s easier to find and share tunes but it’s also pretty much impossible to make any money unless you are a big touring name. People want it all for free or for minimal music streaming subscriptions.
Where can we connect with you online and discover more music?
You can find me on all the main online music channels; look for ‘Natalie Bouloudis’ on bandcamp, soundcloud, itunes, Spotify, Tidal, amazon, googleplay…the list goes on. You can also keep up to date with my latest gigs and news on twitter and facebook page too.
Anything else before we sign off?
I’d love to share with you the third single called ‘Whirlwinds’ which I have also just released from the new EP ‘Dead Sea Scripts’. The song is a stormy and heavy blues jam. You can hear it here
