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Half-Spanish former burlesque performer and magician's assistant Paloma Faith became a singer almost accidentally. But with a vocal style that more than fills the hole currently left vacant by one Miss Amy Winehouse, it's hard to believe she never considered it as a career before.
Backed with a sound that takes her 50s and 60s influences and twists them up with 21st century production in a style that Duffy only got half way towards when she tried it, her latest single, 'Stone Cold Sober', is out now via Epic. She will also be appearing at Latitude, Standon Calling and Bestival.
We caught up with Paloma to find out more. |
Q1 How did you start out making music?
I began by writing lyrics mainly as poems. Then one day I was in a bar cleaning up glasses and singing along to a CD and this guy heard me and asked if I would want to do some writing with him and I said yes. I have always been very excited by music but I never really knew or thought I would be writing it! I read a lot and this has a massive impact on my songwriting. Mainly fiction and fairy tales.
Q2 What inspired your latest single?
The situation (which happens to me often) where everyone who is out is under the influence. I am not, and they are all lecturing me, telling me what I should/shouldn't be doing and at the end of the night they have all passed out and I am still dancing. It is about the notion that you can still have a great time without being away with the fairies!
Q3 What process do you go through in creating a track?
I live life and I take everything in. I carry a notebook and I write ideas down all the time. It may be a conversation I overhear, a visual stimulus, or a real event that spurs my idea on. I then usually take my idea to a musician/co-writer and they work with me on the music. I generally have a strong idea of how I want the sound to be on a song. Then the producer/writer will interpret my ideas and work alone on the production. It then becomes a series of back and forth emails where we both decide what is or isn't working for the song.
Q4 Which artists influence your work?
Etta James, Peggy Lee, Billie Holiday, Edith Piaff, Grace Jones, Bjork, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Maria Callas, Dinah Washington, PJ Harvey, David Lynch, Wong Kar Wai, Tom Waits, Tim Burton, Matthew Barney, Anish Kapoor - the list is very long!
Q5 What would you say to someone experiencing your music for the first time?
Be prepared for all your senses to be touched. I fly sometimes, though sometimes I land with a thud. I am never what you think, as I am multiple. Sometimes what isn't said is more powerful than what is. I hope to surprise you with what you least expect, but realise that predictability is not a negative thing. The mundane can be beautiful, so can the extraordinary...
Q6 What are you ambitions for your latest single, and for the future?
I would like to make top ten on my first single, and number one on my second single, and then sell two million albums and then I would hopefully make another four or five albums, have a family and continue to grow as a live performer. Pushing the boundaries of live performance is my main exploration in music.
published june 2009
