Photo: Steven Cook
"I will never forget the profound sense of existence I felt on hearing my voice separate from me in the room. I felt a sense of reality in a way I had never felt before," Duncan says, upon hearing the first songs she had recorded on a Tascam 4 track played back. The singer-songwriters latest album Antidote, is just that, a musical reprieve or refuge offered up to the listener. Experimentation and layering are like magical components, voices, both deep and high register, accompany each other throughout the songs, providing unexpected moments of musical bliss. "There is a sense of hope in Antidote," Amy writes, "I was searching for a cure, a way of being, that could move beyond the depressive cycle. Knowing the past cannot be changed, it is ultimately about moving forward, with the intention to choose to live life in a positive way." AHC: What has this journey in music, so far, been like for you, the highs and the lows, and what life lessons do you feel you've picked up along the way? Amy: When I first started performing my songs I felt an overwhelming sense of self doubt, and nerves frequently shadowed my experience of playing live. Gradually I have got to the point where, although it still feels very intense, I can be in the moment and I feel like I am really communicating with the audience. Recording my songs has always been a refuge for me, and the joy of experimenting and layering different harmonies and instrumentation feels like a magical experience that I will never get tired of. I have learned to believe in my work and I try to make positive choices whilst avoiding the inner cynic as best I can. AHC: What first drew you to music and what was your early musical environment like growing up? Were there pivotal songs for you then that just floored you the moment you heard them? Amy: I was introduced to the piano and violin very early on, and have memories of losing myself dancing to The Nutcracker Suite. I listened religiously to the top 40 charts on a Sunday night and am still a big fan of 80’s pop! When I was 12 I got my first tape ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ by The Cure, followed by ‘In The Wake of Poseidon’ by King Crimson and my musical world started to open up . Some of the many stand out songs I used to have on repeat were Kate Bush ‘The Man With The Child In His Eyes’, Suzanne Vega ‘Cracking’, and The Cure ‘Just Like Heaven’ AHC: Do you remember the first song that you ever wrote or played? Or that first moment when you picked up a pen and realized that you could create whole worlds just by putting it to paper? Amy: My first ever songs are not very memorable! But I remember the first recordings I made on my Tascam 4 track tape recorder. I will never forget the profound sense of existence I felt on hearing my voice separate from me in the room. I felt a sense of reality in a way I had never felt before. I remember playing one of my first recordings ‘Tides & Waves’ to a friend of a friend, who cried when he heard it. That might have been the first time I noticed someone else being moved by one of my songs. AHC: Which musicians have you learned the most from? Or writers, artists, filmmakers, teachers/mentors etc? Amy: Listening to great songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Kate Bush, Sinead O’ Connor, Gillian Welch, Bob Dylan and Neil Young, teaches me to create music that comes from within myself, and to follow my own road, as they do. AHC: What do you think makes for a good song, as you're writing and composing, is there a sudden moment when you know you've found the right mix, that perfect angle of light, so to speak? Amy: Having a strong lyrical idea that communicates a personal truth is what motivates me. If I feel an emotional connection with the lyrics then I know it is a song worth pursuing. Finding the balance with the instrumentation then seems to happen naturally. AHC: Do you consider music to be a type of healing art, the perfect vehicle through which to translate a feeling, a state of rupture/rapture, hope lost and regained? Does the writing and creating of the song save you in the kinds of ways that it saves us, the listener? Amy: YES. I do not know what I would have done without it. Whenever I am lost in strange states of mind, music always gets me back on track. The songwriting process brings out my ‘higher self’ and I am able to be my own counselor through observation and reflection. It feels grounding when other people relate to the songs, and this communication of the human condition helps me feel connected to the world around me. AHC: What are your fondest musical memories? In your house? In your neighborhood or town? On-tour, on-the-road? Amy: I look back at the recording of ‘Cycles of Life’ in 2013 with good memories of working with the producer Calum Malcolm for the first time. My first successful application to Creative Scotland gave me a budget to work with which was a real turning point for me. It was incredible for me to hear my songs and string arrangements with such good production and sound quality. I love working with my band which includes Fiona Rutherford (harp), Lawrie Macmillan (bass) and we have many memories of gigs including a trip to Canada in 2014 when all of our belongings were left at Heathrow and we had to perform with borrowed instruments in strange clothes quickly bought from the mall! I am lucky to have such great people to work with. Their sound and presence on stage is really balancing and grounding. On 9 May I am looking forward to performing with a new addition to the band Liam Bradley (keyboards) and a guest saxophonist Sue McKenzie at my album launch in Edinburgh. AHC: When you set out to write a song, how much does 'where the world is' in its current moment, culturally, politically, otherwise, influence the kinds of stories you set out to tell? Amy: Sometimes I am influenced by visual art, such as Antony Gormley’s ‘6 Times’ which inspired the song ‘Constant Without Me’ from my 5th album Undercurrents. In my new album ‘Antidote’, a lot of the songs came from my surroundings, such as ‘The Journey’ which I wrote on a train and ‘This is the Road’ which came from a field recording I made on the cycle path, of a passing conversation between 2 women. The field recordings weave through the album, and making them were my way of connecting more with the world around me rather than being so much in my own head. It was really therapeutic walking around Edinburgh tuning in to all the sounds of the city! AHC: Do you have any words of advice or encouragement for other musicians and singer-songwriters out there who are just starting out and trying to find their voice and their way in this world? What are the kinds of things that you tell yourself when you begin to have doubts or are struggling with the creative process? Or what kinds of things have others told you that have helped push you past moments of self doubt/creative blocks? Amy: Sing your own song, and try not to emulate other artists. There’s no point, it has been done already. You are unique so write from your own experience with honesty, and there will always be someone who finds value in it. AHC: You just released your latest album, Antidote, this month, could you talk some about this record, how long did it take to write and put together, what the binding themes of this work are for you personally? Do you have any new projects moving forward or ideas that are percolating for the future? Amy: I recorded most of the album at home with no one else around, and felt a freedom of expression which reminded me of how I worked with my first 2 albums ‘Pilgrimage’ (2006) and ‘Story of a Girl’ (2007). I had the time and the privacy to work and develop ideas until they felt right to me. It was great to know that Calum Malcolm would be mixing and mastering it, and bringing all the sounds to life, so I was free to create whatever I wanted. There is a sense of hope in Antidote. I was searching for a cure, a way of being, that could move beyond the depressive cycle. The songs are linked together by the theme of overcoming adversity in health and life. Knowing the past cannot be changed, it is ultimately about moving forward, with the intention to choose to live life in a positive way. I am working on some new piano based songs at the moment, and some potential collaborative projects are opening up too. I am in a very positive mindset looking down the road ahead... Antidote can be purchased via Bandcamp: https://amyduncan.bandcamp.com/album/antidote Visit amyduncan.co.uk/ Comments are closed.
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December 2024
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