SUGAR VIOLETS (US)
Our colleagues from the great TBTCI describe very well Sugar Violets’ blend of Shoegaze/Dreampop as:
“Slowly sexy vocalization, slow, guitars that move like living water, everything for the mind to fry each chord."
You can judge by yourself by listening to their music work to date:
215 (two fifteen), single, November 2018
Maybe, Single, January 2019
The current line-up of the band is:.
Lashaan Everett - Vocals, Guitar
David Loucks - Guitar, Bass, Drums, Production
INTERVIEW
What are your goals as an artist artistically/commercially?
David: To make records as good as the ones that we love. Making enough money to not have to work day jobs would be great.
Who would you want as a dream producer, and why?
David: Probably Butch Vig or Alan Moulder, they've collectively done many albums I love. I think for now I'm doing okay with it.
What are you trying to avoid as a band?
David: Being a carbon copy of another band. I like to respect the artists that have come before us but at the same time move things forward and find new sounds.
Explain your songwriting process.
David: One of has an idea and records a demo. We figure out how we want it arranged and go from there.
Lashaan: Luckily, we tend to feed really well off one another's energy and ideas.
In 2018 there is no new or old music to a 17 year old with internet access. Discuss.
David: I think in that statement that same 17 year old loses the context of the time period the music came out in. For example; take Nirvana's Nevermind. If you just listen to the record it's great but you kind of miss out on the backdrop that was 1991. The impact of that record compared to the majority of things that were out at that time can get lost I think.
Why do you make the music you make?
David: What else would I do?
Lashaan: I feel like making music gives me some direction. It's nice to be able to pour your energy and love into something purposeful.
Describe your palette of sound.
David: In a word, infinite. Guitar wise I prefer more vintage gear, especially for guitars and amps. Pedal wise anything goes. I've been grabbing up TC Electronic pedals lately. You can hook them to a computer and make your own tone print and manipulate the sound in new ways. Drum wise I use a Roland TD-25 electronic kit, I run that in to Logic X and manipulate the drums sounds there. There's a lot of technology but we are using it in a very conventional band kind of way.
You are collaborating with someone who lives 1500 miles away , what are the advantages?
Lashaan: I can't think of any advantages to the distance. It takes that much more effort to try to piece our ideas together than if we were sat in front of one another like a regular band. However, I feel fortunate we live in a time that we are able to do so, years ago that would have not been possible.
David: Recording things and sending them back and fourth is laborious compared to just sitting down in the same room and working it out. Lashaan came out to the studio a few weeks ago and we got more done in a couple days than we normally would in a week. We are going to try doing Facetime practices and see how that works out. People do guitar lessons that way so I don't see why we couldn't use that as a tool as well.
