Superglue has been quite an adventure to record, when and how did it all start?
A second record is often hard to get right – when you make a debut record you’re documenting the story of several years’ writing and finding out who you are as an artist. With second records it’s very much a case of ‘where to from here’. I sat down to write the new record pretty much in one go in the second half of 2006.
I often get asked why I don’t write in this or that style, but the truth is that for me song writing is an organic process that I don’t have much control over, which is why I haven’t done much writing yet for other people – the music just flows out the way it wants to come out. I’m the kind of writer who writes very much from the inside out – everything is filtered through an internal felt perspective. I worry about the texture of images, the feeling they evoke in me, the colour of language, rather than making linear sense. I guess that might make the music pretty introspective, but it keeps it honest.
How did you end up working with Ola Sonmark in Sweden?
In early 2007 my friend Matt Allison – the owner of Dockyard Studios in Cape Town – got me involved in the international online collaborative recording project called CAPE run by the Mixerman.net web forum. Mixerman is a well known internet persona who has a very loud voice in the recording industry internationally (he’s actually a very famous American recording engineer who works with some of the world’s biggest artists, but I’d be shot if I told you who he really is), and he and his cronies at the Mixerman.net forums have been pushing the envelope in global collaborative recording for some time. It was a curiosity – I did it as an experiment – but before I knew it I was recording an early version of the track ‘Clocks’ (now on ‘Superglue’) with musicians from Paraguay, Germany, Australia, Turkey, the UK…. and Sweden! Ola was the mix engineer on the project, and one thing just led to another. I had a ‘real’ project to offer, and I loved the musical perspective he brought to my music. So, although we hadn’t actually met in person when I hired him, and I didn’t even know what he looked like, we’d actually had a test run of working together, and I knew it was going to work out great.
Who else has Ola worked with?
Ola has mostly recorded Swedish artists, some of whom have had decent runs in Europe – Within Temptation, Eskobar, The A-Teens, Renegade Five – and he has worked with a very wide range from metal through to pop and singer-songwriters. He also collaborates extensively with top-flight international producers and engineers through mixerman.net (where he is one of the moderators). Unfortunately I can’t mention names because that forum operates in a very anonymous space – but they are people at the very top of their game. He’s a really musical engineer, and his work is being increasingly recognised in Sweden and further afield in Europe.
The album was recorded by artists from all over the world, who are they and how did that happen?
Most of the people came through Ola’s network of contacts in Scandinavia. Rune Thoen was the other really important contributor to the record – he played all the guitars in Norway. I’d been focusing heavily on melodies and lyrics and on most of the tracks had left things quite open in terms of arrangements. Rune brought a real sophistication – the guy’s a genius. The Scandinavians are musically incredibly well schooled and the standard is really unbelievably high. I think we’ve got a lot of catching up to do over here! All of the artists who played are really strong session players and there is something uniquely subtle and sensitive about the approach to music in that part of the world – it was a natural fit with the songs. Svante Forsbäck at Chartmakers in Helsinki then did an amazing mastering job, and preserved the really open, natural feeling of the record.
There are many stories to tell, but one of the most interesting is about the strings on the song ‘Superglue’. We’d been feeling for some time that the song could benefit from strings. A close friend of Ola’s is an arranger and pianist called Dan Bornemark, who lives in a tiny village in the south of Sweden, and is a prominent children’s music composer. I was incredibly fortunate to have Dan compose an orchestral arrangement for the song, which was then generously recorded by the Karlstad Sinfonietta (city orchestra). There has been so much goodwill towards me and the project from the north. I’m incredibly grateful.
Why do you think the first single ‘Over Now’ has been such a success on radio?
Radio is always unpredictable, but yeah, it’s been really satisfying how well it’s kicked off on this record. We picked ‘Over Now’ as the first single because it’s the most up-tempo, straight up pop track on the record and we wanted a track to turn the ground for the ballads that will follow… which I’m expecting even more from! I think we’ve got four or five potential singles on this record, so let’s hope it’s going to have a decent run at the charts.
What makes ‘Over Now’ work?
I guess hit songs are always fundamentally about the song-writing. This song has just had that ‘right’ feeling about it since the first day. The whole record has got a really contemporary sound, great production and some really good playing, and I’m sure that hasn’t harmed it either. When it comes down to it, I think the challenge for South African musicians is to step up to the plate and deliver a really international sound and songs that could stand up on any radio playlist anywhere in the world. We seem to be doing ok just now…
‘Over Now’ isn’t your average break-up song, what do you think makes it stand out?
Hmmm… the ‘break up’ record? Well, just one read of the lyrics means it’s pretty hard to dodge that accusation… it wears its heart on its sleeve. I guess the problem with love songs is that they so easily sound whiny and contrived. It’s tricky to bring something fresh to the same old tired ground. At the same time these are themes that everyone identifies with, and writing from real experience brings something important to the result. At the end of the day we want to be moved when we listen to music. We want to identify with what we’re hearing.
I’ve really worked hard on these lyrics. I think there’s a personality to the imagery that’s refreshing. Lyrics have got to sound right coming out of your mouth – not on paper. This record’s got a bit of variety – there are a couple of jokers in the pack, and some songs that are so raw that I still find them hard to sing. There’s a self-critical part that always wants to do better, push further… but right now I’m feeling pretty satisfied.
Why did you choose “Superglue” as the title of your new album?
Well... it’s kind of sticky?
There were a lot of other titles in the running, and we’d actually settled on another one and completed packaging for the record – with a very different theme – but it just didn’t feel right. A friend suggested ‘Superglue’ but I guess it took a while to used to the idea. It was a really tricky name to name because at heart it’s such a serious record, but a heavy title would smear the music lightness and positivity. It’s a quirky name, but I guess right now it feels like it couldn’t have been called anything else!
What can people expect from a live show?
A freak show. Circus animals, naked burlesque dancers, a python. My band are all dwarves.
How long have you been writing and performing music?
Since I was 17. I left school, went to the local music shop, bought myself a guitar and taught myself to play. I think I spent a lot more time at university playing music than studying, which might explain a few things. It was a while before I started taking it really seriously, and since then I’ve been trying to take it less seriously! I was stuck on that first album hump for a while, but it’s been a relief to follow through a (hopefully great) second record. The flood-gates have been opened…
Your debut album, “Freefall”, was nominated for a SAMA and received critical acclaim. How did you feel getting that much praise and attention on your first album?
The SAMA’s have taken their fair share of criticism over the years, but as an artist in South Africa it’s the probably the highest industry accolade one can get. I was tremendously proud to be nominated for my first record, and it was great feeling part of the record business in that way. We also received a lot of recognition and positive press for the record, and when you’ve poured your heart and soul into making it it’s a relief to be affirmed that you’ve done something good.
I guess the hard part is that if you win a Grammy, Brit or Mercury award it has massive commercial and publicity implications, whereas I’m not sure that the SAMA’s (at least in 2003) had much impact in popular consciousness at all – and consequently almost zero spill over to radio access or sales success. That situation seems to be changing fast, and they’ve been doing a lot of good work to raise the profile of the SAMA’s recently. If I’m in the running next year, I think it might be worth quite a bit!
“Freefall” came out in 2002 what have you been up to between albums?
Somewhat foolishly wasting time… Actually, I guess I’ve been living life and growing, finding things to say. Like many musicians I’ve had my share of heartbreak dealing with difficult conditions for local music. My first record came out at a time when singer-songwriters were just starting to make an impact again internationally. John Mayer, David Gray, Damien Rice, Jack Johnson – they were all starting to really make themselves heard above the clamour of rock, and the world seemed to be opening to a softer sound and intelligent lyrics. It just took a lot longer to make itself felt over here in South Africa. For the year after ‘Freefall’ I toured throughout the country, played all the big festivals, and started feeling like I was hitting a brick wall. Radio was closed, venues were oriented towards the youth-rock-plus-beer formula and it seemed like a dead end. I decided I was taking a break, and burying the music for a while and if it was ready to come back again, it would.
Of course now I feel like an idiot. I wish I had another album or two under my belt, but hindsight is for smart-asses. I’m just grateful for where I am now and the opportunities that are opening up. Perhaps the break’s allowed me to come back fresher and with more to say. Looking back I feel like I let ‘Freefall’ down – that record was a hell of a lot better than it did commercially, but everything in it’s right place…
You have a very strong online presence. How and why have you put so much work into your website etc.?
This record’s out on a deal with Musketeer, but the reality for musicians all over the world – especially in small markets – is that the independent ethic remains critical. There’s a lot of obligation on us as artists to get the message out there. I decided a while back that the best medium to do that is the web. Traditional media’s just too expensive, and too geographically focused. I’ve got a lot of plans and tricks up my sleeve, and I’m going to be rolling out some pretty impressive (holding thumbs) stuff over the next few months. I’m lucky to have quite a strong background in digital and multimedia, so at the moment I’ve been doing most of it myself. I’d prefer to spend more time on the music and less on all of this stuff, so hopefully that’s where it’s heading.
Web is the future – we’re seeing a convergence between forms of media in developed markets – TV’s even going online in the US! I don’t think any musician can afford not to have a strong online presence, and it’s not just about having a pretty website – it’s about building community, and it’s about content. We’re spending a lot of time making videos, putting together bits of advertising, and spreading a message. I’d rather play one great show, record it well and have it on Youtube than play a dozen small shows in local venues. Play local, think global!
What I learnt from my experience with ‘Freefall’ – and that’s the hard part, cause I think about where I could have been now – is that it’s consistency in the long terms that’s the real breaker. I may have a great new record out, but where am I next year? In three albums time? How will I grow as an artist?
I’ve taken a long hard look at myself the last three years, and I’m doing what I really want to be doing right now. I’m creating in my chosen medium… and I don’t want to let that go. I’m buying the shop.
Do you have any other tricks up your sleeve (other than music)?
Well, let’s just say I have had a pretty varied existence… right now I focus on creating – and some of it spills over beyond the frame of music, although it’s all pretty related. I’m a partner in a little film venture with a photographer friend, and we focus on beautiful, artistic work. Of course that also means that I get the opportunity to get my hands dirty making my own music videos, and the plan is to make a video for every track on the record, and release a bonus edition. We’re done with two and we’ve got a few others in production at the moment.
In the past… well, I’ve ridden a bicycle across Africa, I’ve mediated conflicts and written a book on dealing with conflict in peacekeeping missions, I’ve observed elections and trained people in conflict handling. I’ve also been worked in design in both print and digital media and written an M.A. on racism, faith and identity. When it’s blowing in Cape Town I pretend I’m kitesurfing for a living. I’m happiest on the beach with the wind in my face.
