Thomston – Honeymoon

By starrymag | December 28, 2021

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) The deeper I get into this project, the harder this is to answer. Pop is the anchor that grounds all of my music, but I like to skew the norms a bit, whether it’s leaning more dark electronic or folksy or R&B-tinged.

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) Taylor Swift is a master songwriter who flourishes in whatever genre she commits to, which I respect endlessly. Perfume Genius is, artistically, the blueprint. His boldness, his visual worlds and his soundscapes are hugely inspiring to me.

 

Q) How did growing up in New Zealand help shape you as a musician?

 

A) It definitely gave me space to figure out who I was, and what I wanted to say. The industry in NZ feels incredible casual and small and I was lucky to be paired with Josh Fountain for my early work, who produced in a way that let me develop on my own path, and hone my songwriting.

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Honeymoon.”

 

A) “Honeymoon” is just about the cold splash of water on your face when you leave the infatuation phase of a relationship. I tried to capture it honestly and completely.

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

 

A) I think if you’ve been in a relationship, it’s a pretty universal feeling! I find that there is a universality in even the most specific of emotions because we aren’t that unique from each other at the end of the day.

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) No, I love to pull lyrics together over a longer period of time. Single lines or phrases or even words come to me at random moments, or I walk around my neighborhood to try and get my mind going. Then, when it comes to assembling a song, it’s like I have all these little pieces that are supposed to fit together, and my job is to figure out how.

 

Q) How much of hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

A) Recently, a lot. Early on I was still very involved and had a lot of opinions and how things should sound and feel. Over time, I began to pick up on the verbiage and production process and eventually was able to do it myself. A lot of the next record is entirely self produced, but I also love working with others so Struan Finlay, Wells* and Dylan Nash have cuts on the upcoming album.

 

Q) You have an LP in the works. What can you tease are some of the themes you’ll be exploring?

 

A) I wanted to try making something extremely narrative driven. I think that going into an album with a really strong idea can actually do a disservice to the songs because it adds another set of parameters for the music to live inside. But I have had songs I’ve saved for this next record since 2016, which meant I was able to have a lot of strong songs that all serve a narrative function, and I just had to fill in the gaps over the last year. It follows a relationship from beginning to end, and it’s all set inside a car.

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) Auckland will always have my heart. That’s where my family and closest friends are, as well as fans who have stuck with me from the beginning. I would really like to play more in the US as I haven’t had much of a chance.

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

 

A) I think HAIM are a perfect band.

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

 

A) I have a love/hate relationship with social media. I think if I were a superstar, I would eschew the whole thing entirely. It’s very taxing, which sounds kinda ridiculous, but it’s all the creative exertion without any of the artistic payoff, and it’s incredibly data driven. You see your followers fluctuate, the likes go up and down, and it also places you at the mercy of changing algorithms. Its sole redeeming quality is how people can message me directly. I love talking via DMs and learning about where I fit in the lives of fans. It’s so fascinating and special to connect like that.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) Thank you for sticking with me. I hope I can make you proud.