INTERVIEW: World Machine — Music Musings & Such

INTERVIEW:

World Machine

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MY final interview of the day…

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finds me speaking with the awesome World Machine. They consist of Jack Shea and Naz Kalsey and have created a stunning song in Affection. I ask the guys about their musical start and tastes; whether there is going to be more material coming down the line – they recommend new artists to investigate.

World Machine reveal what touring plans they have and how they spend time unwinding; what they would tell new artists coming through; what they have planned before the end of the year – they end the interview by selecting a couple of rather excellent songs.

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Hi, guys. How are you? How has your week been?

It’s been busy. Getting ready for the video release and our debut show on 8th June at The Islington.

For those new to your music; can you introduce yourselves, please?

We are World Machine from London, England. We consist of lead vocalist and lyricist Jack Shea and Naz Kalsey, the songwriter and producer of the band. We also have Luca Romano on drums for our live shows.

Affection is out. Can you talk about the song and how it came together?

Affection grew from a major transition period for the band. We wanted to change everything from what we were previously writing and recording. Our early tracks were darker and electronic-sounding with the lyrics becoming somewhat unreal and not connecting with us personally - like some of our early material in our previous band.

So, we decided to write a track that related to a more tender side of our writing and, by doing so, entered us into a completely different place.

Its video is out. Was it cool to film? What was it like working with Charleen Meredith?

It was extremely exciting working with Charleen. When we saw the footage she was featured in, we both were knocked out by not only her beauty but also her excellent portrayal of the female lead (for the Affection video).

It was also amazing working with Rob U., who directed the video. He understood our vision of how we wanted to illustrate the video and went far beyond this to produce something we both found to be astonishing.

Both were very fun and easy to work with.

Is there going to be more material coming for you?

Yes. We are currently working on our first E.P., EAN01, which will hopefully be out by July this year.

How did World Machine form? Do you remember the moment you met?

We first met in an Indie-Rock band we were in called Smashing Lights. After we started writing together for the group, we soon realised that we had the same taste musically and that this was completely different to what the band was releasing and playing at the time.

After nearly a year into the musical collaboration, we decided that we wanted to make a completely new sound and explore more contemporary Pop and R&B ideas. This was when World Machine was born.

Can you give me a sense of influences and the artists who impact your own sound?

Definitely by, literally, moving pictures and art culture. We try to incorporate this into our sound. Growing up listening to a lot of Garage, D&B; Soul and R&B also help put us outside the box when infusing it to our Indie-R&B-Electronic sound.

Some artists that influence our music are (definitely) Michael Jackson, Luther Vandross; Prince and Marcus Miller. We get a lot of influences from where we are and what we experience.

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Where are you heading on tour? Where can we catch you?

We are playing our debut show at The Islington on 8th June.

What do you hope to achieve in 2018?

To get our first E.P. released and to start travelling around the U.K. playing shows to the people.

Have you each got a favourite memory from your time in music – the one that sticks in the mind?

I think (just) playing our songs live to people is our biggest thrill. You start to hear the songs differently when you see people react to a track that you have spent months writing and recording...it’s a great feeling and memory.

If you could support any musician alive today, and choose your own rider, what would that entail?

Jack has an affinity for The 1975 and would love W.M. to support a band like them, purely on visual aesthetics and sound - which is amazing live! Also on the list would be Ellie Goulding (what a voice).

On our rider, we'd ask for a pony to ride us all on stage (and, also, tons of food). Jack loves fruit, so maybe a basket of fresh oranges and grapes would be his dream. Vegan/vegetarian snacks for Jack and Luca. Naz will eat anything (hopefully not the pony), so he'll be happy regardless.

What advice would you give to new artists coming through?

Let the music do the talking and the rest will come.