Get To Know: The Sometimes Island

In Austin, Texas, there's a manmade lake called Lake Travis, and sometimes, depending on the fluctuating tide, small islands can be seen poking out of the lake. These part-time islands are the inspiration behind the Los-Angeles based (via Austin) multi-instrumentalist and producer Matt Blankenship Jr's moniker. "I thought it was a good metaphor for sometimes it’s just a one-man band, and sometimes I have a bunch of people with me," Blankenship explains about the meaning behind his latest endeavor, an indie electro-pop project, threaded with summer vibes. While we recently chatted with the well-versed musician, we heard about his upcoming EP, his journey as a musician, his tour survival tips, and more. Get to know The Sometimes Island now!

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Photo Courtesy of The Sometimes Island

He Decided To Do Music As A Profession at 14 Years Old

Blankenship’s musical journey stretches all the way back to the age of 7 or 8, when he says he asked his dad to let him play drums. “My dad was pretty smart. He was like well, I’ll get you this little drum practice pad and as soon as you can do a drum roll, I’ll think about getting you a drum set and getting you drum lessons. I was like 7 or 8 and I had no idea how to do a drum roll,” Blankenship recalls. As the story continues, his dad then offered him piano lessons, which he continued to learn for about seven years. Blankenship reveals that he’s since been dedicated to music 100 percent for more than half his life, saying, “I think I was around 14 when I was like ok, I think I’m just gonna do this for the rest of my life, as a profession. I’m 30 now.”

It's been a winding road since then, with other bands and past projects, but Blankenship describes the formation of The Sometimes Island as a natural progression. "These songs...this project in general has been something that I started working on about three years ago. I was in another group at the time, that was much more electronic leaning. This was my way to have an outlet to make this beachy kind of catchy music. I have bubble gum in my veins. I love a good pop song, so I was writing these [songs] and they weren’t a good fit for the band I was in. It came down to that band breaking up and me focusing on this full time for the last year," he says. 

He's Focused On The Community Around His Music

Having played music in the buzzing scene that is Los Angeles for more than 11 years, Blankenship says he's learned a thing or two about the business side of things. "I spend more time marketing myself than making music. Which to make enough music just means that I do this constantly," he confesses. He continues to share his wisdom, adding, "The biggest lesson I’ve learned is you can make a Facebook event and invite people to a concert, but if you just do stuff that works on a small scale, like calling a friend and saying 'Hey, I have this show. Would you like to come?' That’s the kind of hustle that you have to do to get people to actually go." Blankenship emphasizes the overflowing market in Los Angeles, saying you really have to go above and beyond to create something unique and memorable. "In this town especially there’s no shortage of really talented musicians, and they’re all playing shows and you have to create an environment where people want to go to your show not just because the music but because there’s like a comradery. And the other people who come see you play kind of create a little scene, and that’s how you get something going. Rather than just being like hey this is a really good song, listen to it! People will listen to it and forget about it. But if you create a community, then you have something going," Blankenship advises. 

He Hoards and Repurposes Old Material 

So while Blankenship may have started writing material for The Sometimes Island years ago, it doesn't mean he's released all of it. In fact, Blankenship reveals that he obsessed over the songs on the upcoming EP, called Bad People. He elaborates on the EP songs, saying "I spent way too long on these songs. They’ve been around for so long and I didn’t have anyone to bounce musical feedback off at the time. I obsessed over them, and they’re good for it, but I learned a lot about just writing off the cuff and improvising. Just because I worked on something for 10 hours doesn’t make it better than something that came from maybe 15 minutes. I’m really hard on my music and I’m actually proud of these songs, which is saying a lot for me." 

Blankenship also reveals that he saves the material that he hasn't deemed as ready for release. "There’s also a huge value in tying a bow on something and saying this is done and listening to it objectively. If a song isn’t good, then you don’t have to release it. But if it’s pretty good, you might have worked all the good out of it had you kept going. If you make a crappy song that has a really good part, I’m very into cannibalizing my old material for a new song. There’s some parts of songs where I’ve been like this would work really well, and I never released that old song...," he says.

African Funk Music Is His Jam

Blankenship talks about his influences, saying, "I spend a lot of time looking back on the past. There’s a lot of great music out right now, but The Beach Boys are a huge inspiration to me. I’ve been putting a lot of harmonies and vocal soundscapes into my music. I love the sound of chillwave from around 2009."

As far as his favorite music just to listen to and absorb, Blankenship gives props to the genre of African Funk music. "As far as new stuff that’s coming out...I don’t even really know what’s new anymore with Spotify. If a song is new to me I’m like did it come out a week ago? A year ago? I’ve been really into trying to get out of my pop music space, so I’ve been listening to a lot of African Funk. Which is great music to have on. The songs are extremely long, really jammy. It’s great music to just sort of have on while you’re doing other things, but it’s also great to listen to directly. African Funk, man, that’s been my jam." 

He Stays Tame During Tour

Blankenship will be hitting the road at the end of July and early August, but he admits the tour won't be all that wild. "I’d love to do the whole rock’n’roll party all the time thing, but I gotta make sure I’m not drinking too much, I’m getting enough sleep. Because this tour is particularly packed. It’s one gig after another. And if I’m tired for one, chances are I’ll be tired for the next one. I have all the time in the world to party when I’m not on tour. So I’m very regimented about it." As far as which cities he's most excited to play in, he says, "I’m definitely excited for all of them. I don’t want to sell anyone short. I’m particularly excited for the Seattle gig because I’ll get to play a show with my  good friend Claire George. So I’d say that one I’m particularly excited about."

Blankenship also gives a teaser about some of the songs that will be included in the setlist this tour, saying, "I think 'Bad People' is a lot of fun. That’s gonna come out as a single in a couple weeks, and it’s the namesake of the EP.  It allows me to go off on a bunch of crazy vocal stuff. And I really enjoy playing a quieter song that will come out on the EP that’s called 'Mornings Are The Worst,' that’s just sort of very acoustic. I don’t really believe that mornings are the worst. I wrote it on a morning where I hadn’t slept at all, so the sun rising was a bit of a bummer. That’s a song that just sort of wrote itself. It became sort of a critique of who I was at that time, in retrospect."

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Keep up with tour updates and new tunes from The Sometimes Island here, and listen to the newest single "Can't Move On" below!

Get To Know: Skela

Independent, fearless, genuine: Skela is the New York based singer-songwriter you need to know about. A power vocalist and a poet with the knack for crafting catchy pop melodies, Skela's not afraid to pack a punch with her message. After playing an incredible show at The Mercury Lounge in NYC last month, Skela took some time to chat with ANCHR about her upcoming debut EP, new music video, and her other writing projects. Get ready for Skela's takeover in 2017 by reading up on 6 things you have to know about Skela. 

Photo Credit: Grace Watts (@gracexless)

Powerful Vocalists and a Chipmunk-Tuned Cassette Player Got Her Started in Singing

As a self-taught musician, Skela definitely took an unconventional approach in teaching herself to sing. "I actually have one really distinct memory," She revealed. "My earliest memory with music and realizing how obsessed I was with it...I used to live in Sunnyside in Queens, and we had this little Mickey Mouse cassette player. I was really little, I think I was maybe 5. It had this little chipmunk option that made it go really, really fast. It was this song called “Toy Soldiers" on one side, and on the other side was Mariah Carey or something. And I remember that’s how I taught myself how to sing. By mimicking exactly what I heard over and over again, and I would mimic the chipmunk voice. I wanted to sing high. That’s when I first started singing. I would do that all the time until my mom came in one day like 'What are you doing?” I was like in a trance, it was just so normal to me," she continued. 

As far as other inspirations behind teaching herself to sing, Skela credits a lot of female power vocalists, from popstars to pop punk front women. "It’s so broad, it changes over the years when you go through different phases," Skela says about her influences. "Growing up I guess I started off with all the great vocalists. You know, Aretha, Etta James...Christina Aguilera was huge. Mariah Carey. We would listen to a lot of Janet Jackson. As I grew older and kind of got my own ears going, I would listen to The Beatles all the time. I went through that whole emo pop-punk phase of Paramore, you know," she revealed.

Although her influences include a meld of all these different artists and they're ever-changing, Skela says, "I definitely started out with vocalists. That was like my number one. It still is. I could listen to Ariana Grande sing for days."

She Directed Her Upcoming Music Video 

Skela's got a new single on the way, but rather than just releasing the song, she's going all out. The new track, called "Hella," will be accompanied by a music video that she directed. Talking more about the new video, Skela says, "We have Mithsuca Berry as the romantic lead, then the very talented photographer based in New York called Maksim Axelrod. I’m just so excited. I feel like it really is coming together artistically." The new single was originally scheduled to drop in April, but it sounds like everything will be well worth the wait. "We’re wanting to make everything kind of perfect," Skela elaborates about the pushed release date, also mentioning the wonderful flexibility and freedom that comes with being an independent artist. Regardless of the exact release date, get ready to be "Hella Skela" when this music video drops! 

She's Not Far From Releasing Her Highly Anticipated EP

Skela says that her EP should arrive shortly after her new single premieres.  Speaking of new music, some lucky New Yorkers recently got to hear some of the new tracks performed live at Skela's show at The Mercury Lounge last month. Talking about the show, Skela gushes, "I was actually shocked how well it went. It was a pretty packed room. Which is crazy. I’m a small artist, I’m pretty indie...So to have so many people out was really really special. We had a lot of cross promotion with a company called What’s in Your Box? And then we had female based brands like Millioneiress. We just had a lot of love and support. The new music went over so well. Like all of the unreleased music that we played people were like 'Where can I hear that?' And that’s such a good sign that people want to hear it again. I can’t wait to put out the new music. I just can’t wait."

Skela also revealed more about the theme of her new music and her writing process when we chatted. "I think I’m kind of like an odd songwriter because I never really...," she pauses before continuing on to say, "I do write about experiences and events to a certain degree, but most of my music is based off of the literature and the subjects I’m interested in within a certain time period. You know what I mean? I read up a lot on my interests and all of that sort of pours through to poetry, and then I’ll make songs from the poetry. So I’m hoping to release some poetry with the EP. I guess it just shows a little more of what the songs truly are about."

In a way, you could say that her poetry is the skeleton of Skela songs (say that five times fast).  

Her Advice For Other Independent Artists Is...

Skela recently wrote a guest blog for Tunecore about her experience in the industry as an independent musician. Touching more on that subject, and being a new artist, Skela gives her number one piece of advice. "You’re just so overwhelmed with where to start. And just eager. But I think-- just navigate from a point of rationality and logic as best as you can, and it’s gonna take a while 'til you can. Cause you’re so eager that you’re just down for anything and excited to work with everyone. That’s so great, but at the same time, you should be focusing on who you are and what’s right for you. What’s your decision. It’s easy to let people tell you what to do, from agents to managers to you know, anyone with opinions. It really takes a long time to be like no, I got this. I got this cause I got me. For me, my number one thing is just to stay as grounded as possible. And not in a humble way. In a literal, grounded place. Be grounded in your music and who you are. That’s a very hard part of chasing your dream. You lose that because you get discouraged, or you get one good thing that happens to you and it doesn’t work out. Then you’re devastated again. Just staying grounded."

For anyone starting a creative project, not just in the music industry, that advice to remember your intent behind the art is so important. 

“It’s easy to let people tell you what to do, from agents to managers to you know, anyone with opinions. It really takes a long time to be like no, I got this. I got this cause I got me. ”

— Skela on standing your ground as an independent artist

She's Not Just a Singer, But a Screenwriter As Well

Singer, songwriter, director, poet, blogger, and that's not all. The gem of Skela's writing possesses many different facets. "I actually just wrote a short film script," Skela says while talking about what's next for her this year.  "It’s going into production this year, and I’m actually really excited about that. That’ll be pretty cool to have my first screenplay actually going into production. It’s called 'Le Reve,' and it’s being produced and directed by a very close friend of mine, Chiara Gerek," she continued. 

So besides the massive amounts of writing talents, does Skela have any secret talents? "I don’t know if this is a talent, but I always twirl my hair, and I can do it really fast. It’s more of a nervous tick, really," she confesses. 

She's Got a Love For Lo-fi Music

Skela will easily become one of your favorite musicians once her EP comes out, but talking about her favorites, she says, "I’ve been listening nonstop to this one artist called Ben Rosenfield. He’s very awesome. I have this big love for lo-fi music. I’ve been listening to him a lot. I always go back to the basics, like [Sandy] Alex G...Day Wave...Mitski. Diet Cig is really dope, they just came out with a new EP that’s really good. Those are the ones that I go back to. Oh, Active Bird Community. My friend- he goes by Kraus, but his name is Will Kraus and he’s super talented. I feel like he’s about to blow up in that scene. I listen to that music pretty regularly, and it serves as a strange platform for pop music. If you listen to the new music, you’ll definitely hear it. It’s in the melody...it’s all over."

Elaborating specifically on her favorite local artists, Skela has some hot tips about the NYC scene. "I have some friends and musicians that I think are really talented, and I really only try to work with people that I genuinely support and love. A few of them are Josh Jacobson. He’s a producer and a songwriter I work with. He’s dope...he’s got great stuff coming out. Florio. He actually opened for me at the show. Then the Frances Rose girls are so talented. They’re kind of Synth, 80's pop. This girl May, she is amazing. She has this crazy voice, just crazy operatic training behind her. There’s a lot of great musicians in New York, but I feel like right now those are the ones I really pay the most attention to cause they’re somewhat in my lane, but I also really admire them," she says. 

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Stay "Hella Skela" by keeping liking Skela's Facebook page to keep up to date with any updates. You can also listen to this killer Spotify playlist that Skela made, featuring some of the artists she hyped as her favorites while you wait for the EP. 

A Springtime Guide to Los Angeles with Toyko

On the rise LA-based duo Toyko just released their third single "Like What I Like" earlier this month in advance of their debut EP. To celebrate the new song about relentlessly staying true to yourself and being into what you're into, regardless of what other people think, the duo have put together a guide to their favorite local spots. Whether you're based in Los Angeles, planning a trip there soon, or need something to add to a vision board, check out Toyko's guide to what they like in LA.

"Like What I Like" artwork

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Rooftop Bars

Rooftop bars are always amazing! Perfect for day drinking with friends in the sun. Some of our favorites are:

• The Onyx Bar at Shangri-La Hotel in Santa Monica
• High Rooftop at Hotel Erwin in Venice Beach
• E.P. & L.P. in West Hollywood
• The rooftop at Mama Shelter in Hollywood
• The Rooftop at The Standard Hotel in Downtown L.A.

Japanese Cuisine

We absolutely love Japanese cuisine, especially sushi and ramen.  Some of these places don’t take reservations, and the line will go out the door.  Pro tip: Try visiting for off-hour meals to avoid the wait.  Some of our favorite Japanese Restaurants are:

• Sugarfish. Locations all around Los Angeles…(trust me)
• Tatsu Ramen on Sawtelle and Melrose
• Daikokuya on Sawtelle and in Little Tokyo
• Chibiscus (ramen) located in Hollywood...this is one of the most underrated ramen joints in the city
• Izaka-ya on 3rd St. in West Hollywood.  Try the honey hand rolls and seared albacore & truffle roll. 

Museums

The Broad Museum in Downtown L.A.  This place has an absolutely amazing contemporary art collection.  Plus, it’s free to the public! Lines can get crazy though so reserve a spot in advance, or try and go on a week day if you can.  The Takashi Murakami room is a favorite exhibit of ours. 

Health and Fitness

Aroma Spa & Sports is a great place to go in Koreatown. We usually skip the spas because they have an amazing multi-story driving range for when you just need to crush some golf balls.

More Eats

Farmers Markets are an awesome place to try out on random weekends. A great benefit is that you can find one no matter where in LA you’re waking up. Our favorites are the Larchmont Market and the Original Market on 3rd and Fairfax.

La Poubelle is a great little bistro/ restaurant in Franklin Village. It’s a great spot for a spring date on the patio, however the night life is even better. We’ve enjoyed many nights hanging and drinking the house lager with no shortage of great company.

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There you have it! Toyko's springtime guide to the city of stars. Get ready for their upcoming debut EP by listening to their first two singles here. 

Get To Know: Two Feet

It's been quite the year for Bill Dess, AKA Two Feet. His breakout single "Go Fuck Yourself" has stacked up close to 20 million Spotify plays in less than a year since its release, he's currently nearing the tail end of his first tour, he's just played SXSW and has been announced on the Bonnaroo Lineup. Oh, and he's got new music on the horizon. While there's quite a lot of buzz and a lot going on for Dess, there's still a lot of mystery surrounding the multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and producer.  Lucky for you, we chatted with Dess earlier this week, after he played his first show in Chicago in support of Jain. Get to know more about Two Feet now!

First Steps EP Artwork

He got his start in music working as a producer for other artists

Talking about his life prior to becoming Two Feet, Bill says, "I had a normal day job, and I was just kind of producing for random people. [I'd] produce a beat. Then that lead into doing actual pop production for people. One of my friends works at Atlantic [Records], so I started getting into more of the pop production level and that started going really well."

Although things went well at first, Bill does reveal that it sometimes got frustrating working for other people. Continuing his narrative, he says, "So I just kind of made my own project. [I] didn’t really think too much about it and just uploaded it online. 10 months later I’m doing this now. It’s kinda crazy what the internet can do. If you make something that strikes a nerve."

He'd like to collaborate with...

Speaking of striking a nerve, the song "Go Fuck Yourself" did just that with producer and musician Martin Garrix, who tipped off his fans about the Two Feet track in a video interview. Dess says Garrix's shout out gained him listeners and added traction to the song. 

If given the opportunity, Dess would love to work with Garrix too. "I’d like to collab with him. We'll see if we can set something up. He has his own label, but it’s under Republic too. My A&R is over there, [and] trying to set that up. Other than that, I’m sort of slowly setting up my collaboration list for the album. I’m definitely saving those collaborations for the album."

Dess also mentions other artists he admires while talking about his influences. "I really like the Bob Moses guys...they’re really cool. I like the XX or Chet Faker...Chet Baker, even. My dad showed me him when I was a kid. Other than that, a lot of it comes from electronic producers, like Mura Masa. It’s kind of like a mix of everything, and I kind of try to forget about other producers and other people and just kind of do my own thing." While we wait patiently for the Two Feet record and possible future collaborations, check out this collaboration with Melvv...

Lots of new music is on the way

During the set this tour, Dess and his bandmate Huff played a few unreleased tracks from the upcoming EP. Talking about the difference between the new music and the debut EP First Steps, Dess says, "I guess the first EP was a little more beat oriented. I was more focused on more of the production. This one is more songwritery and developed. So it’s a transition in that sense. It’s more flushed out. More information in all of [the songs]...They’re just a little wider is a good way to put it." 

As far as how he'll release the diverse EP (which should be coming in a couple of weeks), he says, "I think I’m doing double singles at a time. Instead of just one song, it’s gonna be two songs and then another couple of songs a few weeks later. To mix up the EP a bit more."

So we've got a new EP on the horizon, but what about a debut album?  "I signed with Republic Records," Dess revealed. Continuing, he says, "This EP is still going to be released basically independently, through Majestic Casual, which is like an Indie Label. The next four songs will be through them. Then after that, I officially start working with Republic Records. I’ll have a 10 track album and that will be released with them in either late 2017 or early 2018. But there’ll be singles leading up to it. I’ll probably have my first single released with them some time in the summer. I’m just really excited for the next 10, 12 months." 

He's a taco enthusiast 

While Dess and his bandmate were at SXSW, he admits they dedicated a lot of time to learning and just playing their own shows, saying, "On the days we had shows, it felt like the whole day was dedicated to just getting that show done, and then packing everything up and taking notes. We figured out what went wrong with the live set. I didn’t really have time to go out and see too many people." Luckily, the experience of playing multiple showcases in odd places gave them some pointers for the current tour. 

However, when there was any free time at SXSW, Dess says, "I just kinda would walk around and eat tacos and go to bars," adding that he did manage to catch a few sets from his friends playing the festival. 

This tour has turned him into a traveler

Much like SXSW, Dess says that most of this first tour has been dedicated to the shows with minimal sight seeing. However, they did get up to some additional fun in Austin and on the west coast. "We went to the river [in Austin]. Which was really cool. Honestly that’s kind of the only touristy thing we did," Dess says. "Oh--right. My tour manager just reminded me when we were driving up the coast of California we saw the Redwoods, which was really cool. We took a route that drove up next to the ocean. Which was really cool, really beautiful. That was probably the most beautiful drive I’ve been on my whole life. It felt like a dream, you know," he continued.

Although so much of the tour is spent driving and setting up for shows, Dess says he's really grateful for this opportunity in general. "I’d never really traveled much before this. So either way, it’s still like I’m seeing a whole bunch of the country that I never thought I’d have the chance to see," he admits. 

In addition to a summer tour in the works and his upcoming appearance at festivals like Bonnaroo and Lightning in a Bottle, Dess says, "I’d really like to play some shows in Europe and go to Japan. My band member is Japanese and he’ll show me around!"

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Keep your eyes out for the upcoming show announcements by checking on Two Feet's Facebook page, and listen to the fill First Steps EP below...

A Chat With: darkDARK

Duo Genevieve Vincent and Chris James make up the new electro-pop act darkDARK.  The Los Angeles and Austin based pair have a debut EP on the way next month, and they've already been gaining traction with their single "Restless," featuring Haley Bonar.  Before their EP release, we chatted to Genevieve and Chris about their start in music, their favorite spots in LA and Austin, their 2017 goals, and their idea of a perfect date night. They're currently working on a Valentine's Day themed playlist for us too, so keep your eyes out for that, but in the meantime, get to know more about darkDARK: 

darkDARK is Genevieve Vincent and Chris James.

ANCHR Magazine: Can you tell me a little bit about how you got into making music, and how the two of you started this project?

darkDARK: Hey! Definitely. The two of us have been pretty immersed in music most of our lives as producers, composers, and songwriters. We met through a mutual friend and started working together in the commercial composing/music licensing industry, crossing paths many times through work before jumping into darkDARK. Our first artistic project together was a remix for Universal. In working on that track, we realized that our tastes and writing styles mesh in a pretty unique way and we had this short hand and a lot of fun working on stuff. So we jumped into writing what would later become the Heathered EP.

AM: What’s the story behind your name?

darkDARK: Our name came to Genevieve in a dream. We both liked it and responded well to the symmetry, so that was that!

AM: Who are some of your influences?

darkDARK: It’s a bit all over the place. We both love film scoring, especially horror, thriller, and sci-fi, so John Carpenter is someone we both admire greatly - especially now that he’s touring, and has made that crossover. Other favorites are the classic Bernard Herrmann scores, they’re just brilliant.  Also, we love bands with strong and haunting front-women -Beach House, Phantogram, Cocteau Twins, The Pretenders, Sinéad O'Connor, Sade, we could go on… Textures and detail are an important part of our sound – so we love producers like Amon Tobin, Com Truise, Flume, DJ Snake, STRFKR, to name a few.

AM: What can you tell us about the debut EP that’s dropping next month?

darkDARK: We’re super excited about our EP, Heathered.  It took the better part of the year to write, record, and mix it (which we did ourselves). We wanted it to take you in different directions emotionally. We spend a lot of time picking out each sound and using production to try to make each song an environment for you to step into. The record revolves around relationships - everything from the first moments with someone, which are so magical and fleeting, to the times where you've forgotten who you both are.  The name Heathered ...memories and moments between two people are like specs and shades.

AM: How collaborative is the writing process between the both of you?

darkDARK: We live in different cities - so our process works around that.  Since we’re rarely in the same room, we pass files back and forth on Dropbox constantly. One of us will start something, and the other will take over.  When writing lyrics we try to collaborate as much as possible, but we tweak and shift things as needed when we are together. Our aesthetic is pretty detailed, so we take our time dialing things in.  Our writing process has definitely streamlined after working out all the details on this EP. One thing we’ve found that absolutely helps our overall songwriting process - we imagine each track as a place, or setting… then we talk about that setting together, imagining what it looks like in our heads.  That way, we have a collective vision/inspiration that we can always refer back to when honing in on the track.

AM: I read that you’re based between LA and Austin, so what are some of your favorite things to do in both cities, like your favorite venues or places to eat?

darkDARK: Chris’ studio in Austin is on the eastside, so we tend to hang over there. It's just blocks from Switched On, one of the best vintage/analog synth stores in the country - so that’s an obvious playground for us when we’re not writing.  The food over there is also great - tacos everywhere (Las Trancas, Vera Cruz, any stand) and good coffee spots and bars (Figure 8, Quickie-Pickie, Flat Track, Stay Gold). Genevieve’s studio is in the valley, so when we’re there we focus on eating as much sushi as we can (Sugarfish, Brothers, Little Brothers) between songs. Favorite venues in LA are No Name, Complex,  Hollywood Forever, The Ace, Hotel Café...there are so many good ones!

AM: What are some of your goals as a band for 2017? Can we expect tour news soon?

darkDARK: You can expect more new music and collaborations with some great guest vocalists. We’d love to tackle a film score together, which is something we’ve only done as individuals so far. We’re also working on setting up some showcases - no tour news as of yet, but we’ll keep you posted!

AM: What other bands/artists are you listening to at the moment?

darkDARK: Carpenter Brut, Empress Of, Sampha, Childish Gambino, the new DIANA record, H.E.R., the new Tribe Called Quest.

AM: Since you’re making us a Valentine’s Day themed playlist, what’s your idea of a good date night?

darkDARK: Sushi and sake.  If all else fails, refer to the date scene from Better Off Dead where John Cusack plays the saxophone.

AM: On the same subject of Valentine’s Day, if your music was a conversation heart message, what would it say?

darkDARK: Feel something.

Stay tuned for the playlist from Genevieve and Chris, but in the meantime listen to their newest track "Shelter," which just dropped this week!

You can also keep up with the latest from the duo by visiting their Facebook Page.

A Chat With: COTE

Brooklyn based singer-songwriter Taryn Randall (AKA COTE) took some time to chat with us this week about her "classic songwriter" influences, her migration to New York City, how she spends her free time in Brooklyn, and what's next for her as far as music and tour. During our conversion, COTE mentioned she's already drawn some comparisons to Fleetwood Mac, which definitely comes across in her latest single "Cruel."  While she's only got four songs out at the moment, each have their own distinct vibe, like the hypnotic and delicate "Golden Hour," or "London,"  with its blend of synths and twangy guitars. Get to know more about this fresh and diverse artist by reading our chat with COTE:

COTE, courtesy of Danger Village. 

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ANCHR Magazine: So do you want to start just by telling me a little about yourself and how you got into making music? All that fun stuff!

COTE: Yeah, totally. So I have been working on music for a long time. I was in a few bands in LA, nothing that ever really took off or even that I really put that much into. I think I’ve been in the process of writing always, really. I did a lot of musical theater in high school, I have a lot of people in my family who are musical. It’s kind of been a part of my life from the beginning. With this album, I kinda started writing when I moved to New York, which was almost five years ago now. I wrote for about four years, started recording. Yeah, it kind of all came together, even though it wasn’t necessarily my original intent. After writing for a while, it just sort of felt like “OK, I have all of these songs” and that sort of became the next step.

AM: Very cool, so did you feel a little bit more inspired after moving to New York?

COTE: Yeah, definitely! For sure, I felt like when I was in LA, I was kind of writing what I thought people wanted to hear. I was a lot more focused on what was going to get a good reaction or if it was “cool enough.” When I moved to New York, it was so much more this therapeutic process, and because I was writing without the intention of anyone ever really hearing these songs, I really just wrote what I wanted to write. That went into melody, that went lyrics, and for me it was this transitional time. That’s what this album ended up being I think because I was a little more free of expectations of other people and what I thought they wanted to hear. I was able to be a lot more honest and write something that really felt like a good picture of myself.

AM: Yeah, it’s always best to stay true to yourself even if it’s hard at first. That’s typically when you’ll feel best about your work!

COTE: Yeah, absolutely!

"London"- COTE 

AM: So do you have any sort of songwriting habits, like is there a certain time that you find yourself writing, or inspiration hits you at random points?

COTE: Yeah you know it’s funny, I almost always start with melody. So that will come to me at really any time. I mean there’s been times where I’ve woken up in the middle of the night, grabbed my phone and just recorded a melody that was in my head. I also constantly forget everything that I come up with, so I have to record everything all the time. I always just start with melody and if something just feels like a natural fit then yeah I’ll put lyrics to it. There’s times when I’m really intentional and I’ll say “I’m going to sit down and write a song” and kind of mess around with some chords, and if I hear something I’ll go from there. But most of the time, it comes from me just doing my day to day life.

AM: Do you draw inspiration from any other art mediums at all, like film?

COTE: Yeah I feel like I’m constantly looking and open to that inspiration, though I don’t know if it’s ever intentional. I don’t feel that I’m seeking it out, but there are things that are always striking me. I feel like so much of my writing inspiration just comes from other music, whatever I’m hearing. Whether that’s current bands, usually it’s older bands. Or just older compositions. I really am just very melody driven, so there will be things from classical [music] or opera that will kind of drive me into a feeling or a mood and then I can kind of write from that place. 

AM: Yeah, very cool. So are there any particular bands that you look to as influences? Either current or older ones?

COTE: Yeah, I love Fleetwood Mac, I know that I get a lot of comparisons there. I think they’re awesome and forever amazing. I love, like lyrically, I really love everything Paul Simon does. I’m a big Paul Simon fan. I listen to a lot of older music, so Springsteen, Neil Young, all of those guys are kinda my jam.

AM: For sure, the classic songwriters!

COTE: Yeah, I think that’s really like the position that I come from. Yes like you said, the classic songwriter place. It’s interesting, there are a lot of bands that I love. I mean current people that I love are Jenny Lewis, War on Drugs, and The National... I love. Just like good rock’n’roll! Whether that’s older or current, those are my biggest...I love all of them. But other than that, I’m not insanely aware of the current music scene. I’m trying to get a lot more into it, but it’s really overwhelming and there’s like 50 thousand genres and directions and there’s a lot more out there now. I just end up reverting back to my old favorites most of the time.

AM: Nothing wrong with that! So what’s the story behind the name of this project [COTE]. I know you mentioned you’ve been in other bands so where did you come to find this name?

COTE: So for COTE, well the French definition of “Cote” is coast, so I really liked that. But I was looking, when I was kind of coming along to that I found that one of the English definitions is “to pass by” and so I felt like the English version kind of fit me better. There’s been a lot of transitions and moving and life changes and career changes and all of these things that were kind of encompassing this whole process of writing for me. This album, all of that, was a big change, and so it felt like that name was appropriate.

AM: Oh yeah that makes so much sense!

COTE: Yeah, there’s always going to be some intent and then there’s also like “Oh, it just kind of sounded good.” You know, it’s gotta be a combination of both.

AM: Yeah, so then is there any other news coming up, like a tour or full length [album] in the works?

COTE: Yeah, so right now we’re gearing up. We’re trying to get a show on the calendar for probably March or April. The album will be out this year. It is done, so there’s a full length. I don’t have word on timing yet...there’s a lot of decisions to be made. Yeah, it’s been such an interesting process for me. Obviously I’ve never really done this before in this capacity so there’s so many people involved and meetings and conversations. We will eventually narrow down everything, and the album will be out so…"this year” is all I have for you. But there’s a show in New York, definitely in the spring. I would assume once the album comes out probably a small tour, probably nothing too big. That’s not totally my vibe, but we’ll be around. We’ll try to get out to the different cities hopefully by the end of the year.

“When I moved to New York, it was so much more this therapeutic process, and because I was writing without the intention of anyone ever really hearing these songs, I really just wrote what I wanted to write. ”

— COTE on her songwriting process

AM: Very cool! So kind of a fun question now, what’s your favorite thing to do in Brooklyn, like your favorite music venues, food spots, shops, etc…?

COTE: Yeah totally! Oh gosh, so I’m a big homebody. I’m always home. I have my local bars that I’m at, kind of all the time. One Stop Beer Shop is the most common one. That’s kind of my local spot. Venues? There’s some good venues. There was one called Manhattan Inn, but it just closed. I loved that vibe. But you know, Music Hall of Williamsburg is great. There’s a lot of good venues around here! Gosh, what else do I do? You know, this is super nerdy, but I’ve been going to those escape rooms. Have you been to any of them?

AM: Yeah, I did one with my work team!

COTE: They’re so fun and hilarious!

AM: I know, it’s always a panic at the end.

COTE: They have one in Greenpoint, which is the neighborhood I’m in. My friends and I have been doing that more than we should, but we’ve been enjoying that.

AM: What’s your favorite escape room theme that you’ve done?

COTE: We just did this one called Murder Mystery and it was terrifying. It was like a haunted house. But we still got out in 40 minutes!

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Keep up with COTE by heading over to her Facebook page for all of the latest news. Also make sure to follow her on Spotify for all the latest music from her.