We interviewed Lydia Ainsworth before her show at Northside Festival 2014. This is what we talked about. And it’s all facts.
Hi Lydia – How are you? What have you been up to this week?
Hi Punchland! I’m very well thanks! I played a show in Brooklyn for the Rooftop Film Fest and have been doing some press for my EP.
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m a musician from Toronto, Canada. I’m about to release the first part of a collection of songs I’ve kept hidden away for too long.
I read that you went to film-scoring at McGill University. How was that experience?
The first time I heard my music played by a 50 piece orchestra was an electrifying experience, it was hugely uplifting/ inspiring / addictive.
Did you score other projects, other than films?
Yes, I’ve also scored music for art installations and for dance.
How did you get to the conclusion that you wanted to record a future-pop EP
Through using my voice in film scores and other projects it was a gradual progression. Friends started asking me to perform at their parties which encouraged me to increase my song repertoire.
So tell us about Right from Real Pt 1. Where did you record it?
I recorded almost everything from bedrooms and basements mostly in Toronto and Brooklyn.
What kind of gear did you use?
My set up was very basic and consisted of a MacBook/ Midi Keyboard / Presonus Firebox / AKG C 214 mic. I recorded vocals to ‘Take Your Face Off’ at a studio in Toronto on a Neuman U47 mic through a 1973 Neve.
Tell us about the creative process to make Right From Real Pt 1.
Each song had different evolutionary paths but they all started at the piano. If I am excited by the melody and harmony at a piano that usually means it’s time to move on to production at the computer. An important element of the creative process was testing the songs out at small clubs in NYC to work out the form / vibe of each.
What would you say is the theme of the record?
The record is about the infinity that haunts everyone, the infinity of one’s own interiority.
Are you on Instagram? We should be friends there. We can trade selfies when we become friends.
Please add me! I’ve just joined: http://instagram.com/lydia.ainsworth
Tell us a bit about the musical scene in Toronto. We have had a lot of Canadians acts in our first season of hosts! (Fucked Up, Ought, PUP, etc)
I am a recluse by nature and was a bit of a classical music nerd in high school, so because I moved to Montreal and then NYC after high school I wasn’t part of a music scene in Toronto growing up. New York was very welcoming to me – Mercury Lounge, Cake Shop, Lit Lounge, Glasslands – these venues were very open to booking me whenever I wanted to test the waters with the songs and the audiences and other bands were always very supportive.
You’ll be playing this weekend at the Northside Festival. Is this your first time?
Yes, first time!
What can the peoples of Brooklyn expect from your show?
Expect a forest of strings and maybe a few forest nymphs.
