In songwriting, I like old and weird and real and raw, says Loes - INTERVIEW
“It’s when I make music and really get into the flow of it that I feel most in tune with the world. Unfortunately, that’s not really something I can force. Sometimes I try to chase it. But in general I just try to accommodate it as much as possible: make music often, work on it and work for it, and if I’m lucky, sometimes everything will fall into place.””
Foto by Marie De La Montagne from Avoid Sessions shoot at (A)VOID gallery
Marie: Tell me, how did you form a band, and how did you get to writing music?
Loes: Actually, we are a “light version” of a super fresh five-piece band that has only been rehearsing for a few months! I am working on a solo album with my original material and for the longest time I wrecked my brain about who I wanted to have by my side on stage once the time came for a release concert tour. I’ve led an exciting life and its many sources of inspiration reflects in my songs. Disregarding the teenage angst repertoire, I seriously started writing in my early twenties, when I haphazardly found myself smack dab in the middle of the European bluegrass scene and became the lead singer of a Slovak bluegrass band (Waterflow, 2005-2008) - an experience that changed my life completely and started the chain of events that ultimately made me decide to move to Prague, learn Czech and pursue a career in music. The music I write is strongly rooted in bluegrass and folk, so I need musicians who have an affinity with those genres and some pretty specific skills… but there is also a poppy, crossover factor to it. It’s difficult to find just one line-up that fits the entire repertoire. And for me, it’s also extremely important that we get along as human beings. And that it never gets boring for anyone. I think I found that magic combination with Michal Rudolf Cádra (CZ: accordeon, guitar, mandolin), Jan Bartošek (CZ: violin), Anna-Marie Hradecká (CZ: piano) and Keishiro Mikawa (JP: cello). All of these people are virtuosos with lots of experience in various genres from high-brow classical via world folk to underground experimental electronic music - and they also all have a great sense of humor and beautiful hair that I am a bit jealous of.
Marie: Do you write in English or other languages and how is writing in different languages different for you as a songwriter?
Loes: Growing up in the Netherlands, there weren’t that many good songs on the radio with Dutch lyrics. Dutch pop music did not interest me, and when it did, I usually found out that it was just a translation, which led me to the American or Italian originals… The language of music for me was English, so when I started writing my own lyrics, it made sense to do so in English as well, because I felt like I could not make my Dutch vocabulary fit to my melodies. I have to admit that, at times, I found it comfortable to hide behind the “layer of protection” that the foreign language seemed to offer me, although I have changed my opinion on this. If I feel like I need to hide, maybe I should reconsider writing extremely personal songs in the first place; or I could make use of the richness of the language itself to make the lyrics more ambiguous. A singer/songwriter like Jeroen Jongsma made me look at my mother tongue in a completely different light. When he sings, it goes straight to your heart, even though you’re never quite sure if he’s actually giving away as much as an inch of his private life, nor does it matter. And most of his lyrics are really funny and also really Dutch in themes and imagery, even though the music is bluegrass. So far, I have written only one song in Dutch, one of my most recent ones. I was pissed off at myself and thought I needed to tell myself off in my own language, otherwise I wouldn’t listen. Since that, I’ve been in a creative dry spell for about a year or so. That’s fine, as I am working on different processes right now, finishing the album and arranging rehearsing the material with the band. And which language the next load of songs will be in, that’s a big question mark for me at the moment…
Marie: You performed ‘Simon Says’ for us. Can you share the back story behind it?
Loes: I don’t really remember where or when I wrote it, it’s already a couple of years ago. I admire the artistry and craftsmanship of Paul Simon, especially on the albums “Graceland” and “Rhythm of the Saints,” for which he collaborated with South African and Latin American artists. The lyrics and the way he sings them are still very much Paul Simon, British white guy-with-guitar, but at the same time he seems to turn into a percussionist, part of the interlocking rhythmical orchestra. What I also love about his songs is that there are always a few words or a sentence that go straight to my heart, giving me a feeling that he is saying something very profound that resonates with me, even though I don’t have a clue what most of the lyrics are about. Then one day in a songwriting course the mandatory reading was “Songwriters on Songwriting” by Paul Zollo. This collection of interviews with songwriters also includes a fascinating interview with Paul Simon, who very generously and in detail describes why and how he does things. I wanted to write a song applying his method, doing what “Simon Says”… and voila, out came this song! At that time, I was playing with a bluegrass band and the song did not seem to fit our repertoire, so it has been stuck in a drawer until I moved to Prague and started doing solo shows.
Marie: Where do you source your inspiration from?
Loes: That can be anything. A feeling I need to express, a phrase that pops into my head in connection with a melody, fictional stories or anecdotes people tell me, or just any kind of prompt to sit down and start writing, like a photo, a poem, a new chord I learned to play on the guitar or the rhythm the washing machine makes.
Marie: How would you describe your music?
Loes: I am not claiming to be so innovative that my music does not fit into any box, but as is probably typical for a songwriter, I don’t like jumping into one. It makes me claustrophobic. I would rather leave the describing to a reviewer…!
Marie: Where do you perform more, in Czech Republic or abroad? What music scene do you prefer to perform in and why?
Loes: Well, since the COVID-situation started in March 2020, I have not traveled abroad at all. Under the current restrictions, we are not allowed to perform, and things like rehearsing with a band are also a bit iffy. It is difficult to stay motivated and active - I deeply admire musicians who are. Before COVID, and in that little window of freedom in the summer, I performed a lot in the Czech Republic: mostly for tourists in Prague in the American burger joints and Irish bars, but also for mainly Czech audiences in smaller towns. I used to travel all over Europe to perform at bluegrass festivals with Red Herring (bluegrass/folk band based on the Netherlands), but that’s all on hold for now. I feel very comfortable in the bluegrass scene because it’s like a family and I really appreciate the energy and virtuosity of the musicians. I also liked playing in the pubs, even though it was hard work and I really don’t think that I was brought into this world to play “Wonderwall” for groups of drunk hooligans each day. But it taught me a lot and I every single day I met at least one person who said something fascinating or lifted my spirits with a compliment or a smile - I kept a diary of my little after-show-audience-chat-highlights. I can recommend this to all gigging musicians by the way! For me personally, playing to Czech audiences (and communicating with them in Czech) is something very special and dear, as it reminds me of the reasons I moved here in the first place.
Marie: Who are your musical heroes?
Loes: Well, obviously Paul Simon, and Sting and David Bowie for similar reasons: they released lots of albums that are very different in character, they were not afraid to experiment, and I like their vision of the song as more then just “catchy lyrics sung nicely in tune which some high and loud notes in the chorus by a sharply dressed young person.” I like old and weird and real and raw. From America also Tim O’Brien and Darrell Scott for how they master their instruments and voices and deliver the story of a song in such a way that it goes straight to your heart. From the Netherlands, Jeroen Jongsma for the same reasons as aforementioned dudes, but also for his craftsmanship with the Dutch language. From Ireland, Paul Brady for his raw energy and the way he uses ornamentation in the traditional songs - his was the best live performance I’ve ever seen, and he was already over 70 years old!! From Canada, Stan Rogers, similar reasons. From Scotland, Karine Polwart (for her songwriting, social criticism, character - dare I say balls -, authenticity, for how she plays guitar, for how she is visibly nervous on stage and still brilliant). From the Scottish Outer Hebrides, Julie Fowlis, who sings in Gaelic (for her deep knowledge of and passion for the traditions of her home land, for her warm voice, for how she connects with others, for her pleasant calm demeanor). For flatpicking guitar, I look up to Tony Rice, Bryan Sutton, Grant Gordy, Ondra Kozák… For bass, Edgar Meyer, Ethan Jodziewicz, Mark Schatz… And there are so many more…
Foto: Henk Hennuin https://www.hennuinfotografie.nl/
Marie: What do you do when you’re not playing music?
Loes: I used to love traveling and I was often out and about doing all kinds of things - mostly cultural and social activities. Jam sessions and festivals, theater, movies, or just hiking and exploring, enjoying drinks and food with friends… But I also have a strong introvert side so having to spend a lot of time on my own on the couch with a book is by no means a punishment for me. Because of the situation with the COVID restrictions, after a few months of trying to stay optimistic, rehearsing and doing live streams and such, I decided to apply for a full-time job in an office. I work as a translator with French, Dutch and English, and as languages were always my passion, I am very happy to have this opportunity. I try to exercise for at least half an hour every day: at-home workouts, yoga, a run or a walk.
Marie: Is the artistic life lonely? What do you do to counteract it?
Loes: Hm, it’s difficult to say, because I don’t really see myself as an artist that much. I have only recently started calling myself a “musician”, but “artist” is a word that seems reserved for other people… Like “grown-up.” And when I get lonely, it’s definitely not because of the actual artistic part of the artistic life. On the contrary, it’s when I make music and really get into the flow of it that I feel most in tune with the world. Unfortunately, that’s not really something I can force. Sometimes I try to chase it. But in general I just try to accommodate it as much as possible: make music often, work on it and work for it, and if I’m lucky, sometimes everything will fall into place. When “the world was still normal” I usually felt the loneliest among crowds of people. I feel comfortable on stage; I am in a space with other people, I can enjoy their energy and I can give them something in return, but we don’t need to chit-chat. Sometimes it is hard to deal with the inevitable crash after a performance-induced adrenaline rush. I learned that it was vital to take a good amount of time for “stimuli-detox” after the show and allow myself to be boring off-stage.
Marie: Professionally, what’s your goal for 2021?
Loes: Finish my solo album and release it! Let’s hope that involves a live concert tour, but just in case that would be a no-go, then I aim to crawl out of my shell and do at least one decent live stream concert this year…
Marie: And now 5 quickfire questions:
Name 5 top releases of 2020 you think are great songs:
I live under a rock, I think my soul got lost in the 1970s… - I don’t know of ANY new releases of 2020 and I rarely dance. But when I do, in my living room with the curtains closed, it can be to absolutely anything! IMO, every song is a dance song - even silence!
Name three artists you’d like to be compared to:
I love it when people say the name “Joni Mitchell” in the same sentence as mine, because she is a badass powerhouse woman with a uniqueness and creative energy that I hugely admire.
What superpower would you have and why?
The ability to sometimes just disappear.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
“Read the book Songwriters on Songwriting by Paul Zollo.”
Or:
“Stop listening to other people’s advice all the time.”
What wouldn’t you do without?
Chocolate and coffee. I’ve tried, but I really can’t face my daily existential angst without them.
I would actually quite love to do without a digital presence, a smartphone etc, but I think we’re getting to the point where we don’t really have that choice anymore.
If I would have to go into quarantine, I would probably be perfectly fine as long as I had my guitar, a book, and either my laptop or a paper notebook and pen.
