JACRE
Q: What was the inspiration behind “Only Love Could Be So Blind”?
I was out walking in the hills near my home, and had already decided to write something revolving around nature. As usual for me, I came up with a starting melody, then found some words that were interesting and fitted really well (I think it was “There’s a gap along the treeline, an escape route for my mind”). I then came up with the phrase “Only love could be so blind”, and it occurred to me that this could be about a relationship from many years ago, where I was completely blind to what was really going on.
Q: Could you explain to me about how this song came about? Or did it begin with lyrics before melody.
I had recently started with a new producer (Dominic Romano), and wanted to write something that I thought he would like. I always write melody first. I’ve tried writing music to lyrics, and it never goes well!
Q: The imagery in it is so rich and evocative. How do you come up with such strong descriptions?
Thank you! Once I’d come up with the original idea, they seemed to flow naturally from looking around me and finding imagery to use. My voice recorder was invaluable that day, because I never would have remembered them otherwise!
Q: “Only love could be so blind” is a recurring phrase in the song. How did you come up with this line, and what does it signify to you?
It just popped into my head as an interesting phrase that fitted with the melody, but then I started thinking through what it meant. In my case, it was looking back at a relationship from many years ago, where I slowly realised that almost everything she had ever told me was a lie – and I had been completely blinded to it by being in love with her.
Q: It talks a lot about hope and doubt. How do these aspects play out in your own experience of love?
I’m a very hopeful, optimistic and generally happy person. This is usually a good thing – but it means that I tend to assume the best of everyone, and in this case, that didn’t go well!
Q: Do songs like these help while talking or thinking out loud through these experiences?
The events of this one were such a long time ago that I think I’ve explored it all to death! I tend to write a lot about mental health, which definitely helps examine my own thoughts and issues.
Q: What should listeners take from “Only Love Couldn’t Be So Blind” as an emotion or message?
Don’t be blinded by love, like I was.
Q: Painful stories are told here, yet they are sung beautifully; how do you manage them all at once?
My singing tends to be at its best when I’m singing about sad stuff. I guess that’s why I tend to write sad songs, despite having such a happy, settled life (and why they’re usually fictional).
Q: Can we talk briefly about your journey into music? What actually brought you into it at first instance?
The very first time was as a teenager, when I saw someone playing and singing the piano in a movie (Casablanca) and thought – I want to do that, so I taught myself to play, and then write. When I restarted my music career after a long break in 2020, it was because I had just found my birth mother (I was adopted at birth) and wanted to get one of my songs finished and produced for her. I then got the bug and haven’t looked back!
Q: Are there other tracks from your latest album that you feel particularly connected to?
I’ve only been releasing singles so far (and one EP), but I’m currently working on my first album in-between my singles, hopefully to be released in 2025. Out of my previous singles, I’m particularly proud of Always Here. The sequel to that, Silence Never Lies, is in production at the moment.
Q: What is the procedure you follow before attending a recording session? Do you have any rituals or routines that help focus yourself into that mode right before hitting the studio?
I would love to say yes, but I tend to do no warm up, rituals or routines – I just go into the vocal booth and get going!
Q: Up to now, what has been the peak moment of your music career till now.
A long time ago, about a hundred people sang some of my music in four part harmony. That was astounding. More recently, it was probably when some of my song lyrics made it into a poetry anthology, and when a fan told me that my music saved her life (and yes, I’ve written a song about her story, which is now in production!).
Q: How do you deal with this expectation that each new song should be good as the one before it since it became very successful?
That really doesn’t bother me. In fact, my most popular song is still the first song that I released, back in 2020. As long as I’m happy with the quality of my output, I’m content with that. And songwriting is a renewable resource – if one song doesn’t quite work, or doesn’t resonate with the audience, there’s always another.
Q: In what ways would like to develop artistically for next several years?
During my break, I changed my vocal style, losing some of my previous theatricality. It’s been fascinating watching how that impacts my writing style, and it’s going to be interesting to see where it leads.
