Meresha [Interview # 194]

Meresha for “Raised by Gypsies”.    4th of July 2017

1)     Your music was first described to me as "alien music", which of course I was more than willing to listen to based upon such a name, but what do you feel makes your music so alien?  That is, how would you describe what that means to someone else?  (Personally, I like to think of your music as pop but not pop, which probably doesn't help at all)

Pop but not pop is a good place to start.  Some people say I’m from another planet.  I don’t comment on rumors.  In any case, hope my music fits with other out of ordinary music and takes you to another place while still being accessible and getting you to move.

           

2) Every time I hear someone with such a wonderful voice as yours I am reminded of the number of women currently featured on the radio and at what would be called a "mainstream" level, while at the same time there seems to be ten times as many men singing.    What are your thoughts on the gender gap as it relates to music (It has never really been evenly balanced, has it?) and what are your thoughts on the current group of women in the "mainstream" eye such as Adele and Florence and the Machine?

There are a lot of talented artists these days. I’ve sometimes been compared to Florence and would love to have the chance to perform live to as many people as she has over time.

While I’m not really focused on gender when I work with people, it was cool this year to work with Emily Lazar.  She's the first and I think still only female mastering engineer ever to be nominated for a Grammy. 

If you look among producers too, you also find few women.

So the “gap” seems to go beyond performers.

I’m working on being able to produce my own music, and may in the future also work with other artists.  If that some day makes it easier for female artists to succeed, would be a great thing.

3) Who do you consider to be the influence you have- or just the artist that you enjoy the most- that people seem to be most surprised by?

I'm a big fan of Led Zeppelin.  Video of my covers of “Communication Breakdown" and "Rock and Roll” are online and people seem to have liked them.  This might be a surprising sound to people who hear my latest songs.

4) Having songs currently on SoundCloud, would you ever like to see your music released physically, perhaps on cassette, or do you feel like that is an outdated media?

Cassettes are cool.  Would be great to have my EP on cassette, as long as people could be able to buy it and listen. 

My previous EP was also on a “vinyl CD”.  It played in a CD player, but looked like a smaller-sized 45 vinyl record. 

Think real music fans appreciate having a physical copy of the music from their favorite artists.  I know I do.  I have a collection of vinyl, cassettes and CDs that I have no intention to convert to digital, even if I also use streaming services.

5) As an adult and a huge fan of cartoons, when I first heard the song "Lemonade City" I thought it had to be about a place which really existed within an animated realm somewhere.   It sounds like something out of "Adventure Time" but could even just lead to a series of animated music videos.   What are your thoughts on all of that?

That's a great idea.   So far I have only made a “lyric video” of that song using some extra footage from my “New Revolution” shoot.  Would be great to create a built out Lemonade City people could visit, at least for a few minutes.  Would be happy to work with the right animators.  Any ideas?

6) If you weren't making music what would you be doing?

I’ve been pretty focused on music since I was 12, and I hope to be able to make a living working in music in different ways.  It is a bit hard to imagine what else I might be doing, but it would likely be something in the creative realm.  I used to draw and sketch a lot, including portraits of Björk, Robert Plant and Jimi Hendrix.

7) If you could collaborate with any person- living or dead- on a song (whether it be an original or with David Bowie on "Under Pressure") who would you choose and what song?

Would love to do a new duet with Björk.  She’s someone I greatly admire.  Coming from a somewhat remote, smaller land, with great creativity she created worlds for us to visit.   Maybe we could create a new one together.

An absolute fave is also James Blake.  Love his sounds and always appreciate seeing him live.

8) Final things we should know about you / shout outs / links / etc??

Watch out also from some DJing and techno news from me.

All my links are on meresha.com

I really appreciate all the support people give.  For an Indie artist like me, every listen, like, follow, etc. helps me get my music out. 

If you hear a musician you like, be sure to let them know!