Diandra Interviews: Idle Frets Stay Grounded In Their Love For Music & “Tasty Ear Soup”
It feels like everyday there is a new book dedicated to making success into a tangible formula. By now, we know a few of the solid keys such as, positivity and perseverance. Yet, beyond the few necessaries, we have no idea what makes a person’s success happen or felt as an individual. Thus, I was happy to hear that Idle Frets have found another key to success in the form of love. For them, if you love what you do and the people you do it with then there is not reason to “fret”. It is this mentality that is garnering them “industry” buzz, but it is also that same mindset that is helping them not to take it beyond flattery. In the music business, its best to always stay grounded like, Idle Frets, to counter a world that feels surreal.
Diandra: You describe your sound as more textural than others’ classification of “indie rock”. If you could describe your music as a certain, particular texture/fabric which would it be and why?
Ben: I’d say either silk because we’re pretty god damn silky, or velcro because once you’ve had a listen or seen us live you’ll find yourself stuck, attached to us.
Diandra: You learned music at the prestigious ,Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, where so many great, international artists began their rising careers. What were some of the best, core lessons you learned about music and its industry at the school, particularly the lessons that you feel have helped its alumni like, Dan Croll and Frances, garner a following in the U.S.?
Erin: I actually didn’t study music there myself, I studied Music Management, but I guess the question still applies to all the courses. It may sound cliché but LIPA has a very family or everyone knows everyone vibe to it. This has kind of taught me a couple of things in that respect. It’s great and will have helped many alumni, because how ever big or small people think the industry is, people talk! Good and bad things, but its definitely a case of “who you know”, and although that wasn’t a lesson we were sat down and taught in black and white, I’ll leave LIPA and take lessons with me into the industry like, leaning on people sometimes is okay, it’s great to utilise people and it really helps to be helpful too, just occasionally you have to be careful who it is your leaning on and what for!
Diandra: You write music with the intent of making something people can understand and connect with. Do you feel that idea is or should always be an intention in music? Do you think that notion is what has made your music so “radio-friendly”?
Ben: I think different songwriters write for different things, some like to be very personal when writing, and describe things that you can only imagine happening in their life. Some write about anything as long as it’s trending, they sell themselves a bit. The trick, and what we try to achieve, is finding the balance between those two types of people. I think the best songs fit in this position; the ones that are strong subjects in the writer’s heart, but can also be related to circumstances the vast majority of people are experiencing or have experienced.
Diandra: In terms of connection, what are the biggest themes you feel listeners connect to, in terms, of your songs?
Luke: Generally, our songs are about everyday situations anybody and everybody can relate to. Whilst behind each song there may be a deep underlying meaning, we’d like for people to interpret them in them in their own way. Although, troublesome relationships seem to be a forté of ours…
Diandra: Your band has various musical tastes? What do you feel about having such varied likes in music helps and blocks creativity?
Dave: We are all big into different styles of music but it’s certainly not a bad thing. I guess we just all take our favourite flavours and influences from whatever we’re listening to at the time and throw them in a pot to create some fucking tasty ear soup.
Diandra: How does it help, in terms, of creative communication that you all, as a band, have known each other for so long as friends and family?
Luke: It helps massively in the creative process. We all understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses and know how to get the best out of one another. It’s important to have a smooth flow as a band when getting together. Knowing each other for so long helps to find that fluency.
Diandra: “Up and coming band ” and “rising stars” are terms currently being used to describe your band with success and potential stardom. Do you have any goals or standards when defining these words in terms of your music?
Dave: To be fair I think we try and turn a blind eye to all that. We are just doing what we love doing – four mates who get a buzz off playing music together. It’s amazing that we have been well received, but I think it’s important to keep the focus on why got you into it in the first place.
Diandra: “Be Yourself” and “Enjoy Yourself” are often the advice people give for life and the music industry. Describe a situation, relevant to your experience as a band, where you learned the importance of these two phrases.
Ben: Meeting new people within the industry. There is so much that can be said for being yourself, enjoying yourself, and what you’re doing. It’s crucial to connect with other people within the industry and I think the best way to do that is to just be honest and be yourself.
Diandra: Besides the two pieces of advice above, which phrase would you add as advice for anyone entering the music industry ?
Erin: ‘’Keep going!’’ You may think it’s been tough and you’ve been at it for a while, but it takes longer than you’d have imagined. It’s intense hard work, but keep going and you’ll get there!
I I really appreciated the simplicity and candor of Idle Frets’ responses, in part, because it does not take as much as everyone believes to “make it”. For the most part, the ingredients are already inside you. Thus, when Idle Frets advise “Enjoy Yourself”, “Be Yourself”, and “Keep Going”, it is not some superfluous mantra. It is a genuine call to everyone that, at the end of the day, if you really want to be happy in YOUR life then you have to be you. Everything you do, including your music, begins and ends with you, from your creations to your reactions. The fact that Idle Frets have picked that up is definitely going to send them on a long, fruitful career but, more importantly, a happy one, For More Information On Idle Frets Click Here.
