What is your names?
Joel James
What is your genre of music?
Indie Pop/Rock, with some sugar and spice from other genres.
Give us a little bio about you.
Joel James is the type of musician that you definitely kind of think you’ve heard of, but you have no idea who he is. Especially if you live in Melbourne as he is most likely singing in all your favourite
pubs every weekend! 100% independent and self taught in every field and with a title almost as long as Daenerys Targaryen, Joel James is a multi-instrumentalist Singer/Songwriter, cover artist, producer with a keen
ear for sound engineering and the delicate touch of a mastering engineer. He found his way while busking Melbourne’s streets, his roots are Pop Rock, he has too many. favourite bands to choose one that influences him the most, but music is all he has ever done.
What made you go into music?
Oh man, literally every step I have taken in my life has pushed me to music in one way or another. Sure I have bands and artists that have inspired me in many ways, but ever since I was a kid it’s just been ‘there’, you know? It is so hard to explain!
I’m not saying it was destiny or anything, but no matter what was going on, if I heard something musical happening I just joined in because it was more fun!
Are you a signed?
I wish. 100% independent baby!
You released your single ‘Movie Kind Of Timing’, tell us more about the single.
Yes! Well I guess you can call it my isolation baby. I began recording it during the start of quarantine and now with restrictions easing its here to be heard! I’m low key proud of how it sounds. And High key proud of the video clip I made for it.
What is the meaning behind ‘Movie Kind Of Timing’?
Well I guess you can call it an ‘un sent’ letter to a former lover who left when the pandemic was getting to be too much. The letter talking about meeting a special someone in such a way you would only see in a film. All the events following with this someone seem to be timed perfectly as if it were a scripted story by a director or author. What seemed all too perfect was turned on it’s head when the entire world was flipped upside down at the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Forcing that someone to fly back home pre-maturely, the distance ultimately ending what was a special moment.
Describe the track in two words.
Big Drums
Who did you work with on the Single?
Just myself, no one else.
We also see a music video drop, tell us more about the making process.
It was so much fun. I knew I’d be doing it myself as we were all quarantined, so I planned it in a way that the ‘set’ was small but the video told a story. I made a green screened video of me jamming out to the song, then I edited it and threw it onto a USB. I found and old T.V that would play it back off the USB and essentially made that the centrepiece of the set. I surrounded the T.V with black bed sheets and the set was done! Throughout the video I threw in little easter eggs (not the chocolate) of the pandemic and a vibe that ‘the world was ending’ to resonate with that feeling of ‘everything falling apart’ after somewhat of a break-up. It was so fun, you should totally watch it! Even if it is just to see my terrible acting skills..
What was the inspiration behind the video?
I was speaking to my uncle Remo about ideas for it. He came up with the ‘watching the T.V’ idea and I loved it. I decided to make it so I was both on the T.V and watching the T.V, and used the pandemic as
inspiration.
Throughout the video I’m writing a letter, which was to keep the video true to the song itself.
Will we see an EP or Album and if so, what can we expect?
Probably not this year. I decided to make this year a year of singles! As much as I love make an EP and all the intricate and fun things you can do with and EP, I noticed when I would release one that only the ‘single’ would get listened to and the other songs were neglected and never given the
chance. And that can be such a heart breaker for a musician. Knowing the amount of love and hours you dedicated to a song and it doesn’t even pass 100 streams. Crushing… So I’m only releasing singles for the year just to see how different the results can be! Kind of an
experiment in a way!
Do you have any online shows coming up?
I go live on instagram from time to time! It’s nothing crazy, but we have a good time.
If so where can we find the links?
It would be on my instagram page
What else can we expect in 2020?
The way this year is going? Probably Aliens.
Do you have any collaborations coming up with any up coming artist?
Not at the moment.
Would you be up for collaborations if other musicians wanted one with you? and who would they have to contact?
Of course! Slide into my DM’s on any of my socials!
Do you play any instruments?
I play all instruments, in one way or another haha
My main instrument is the guitar.
Who are your influences?
Oh boy, where do I start? I’ll pick 5 just to make it easy, otherwise we would be here all day. The Beatles, The Gorillaz, Twenty One Pilots, Greenday and Imagine Dragons.
There are sooooo so many more!
How do you get inspiration to write songs?
My songs are pretty much always stories of something that has happened to me personally. An event would happen in my life, and then I write about it with music. It’s like I play the best bits in my head
as if it were a movie, and then write that down.
Where do you see yourself now in 5 Years?
Hopefully on the road for an incredibly successful tour. That’s the dream.
When you’re not doing music, what do you do?
I watch a lot of movies, play some video games, spend hours with friends/family and learn magic tricks! Want to see a magic trick??
What was the song you listened to most that influenced you to go more in to the music scene?
I have thought about this question long and hard and I simply cannot pick one song that pushed me into music.. I have a playlist on my Spotify page called ‘Some Roots and Mine’ which have a bunch of songs that influenced me. That’s probably the closest answer I can give.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given?
“Don’t try and sound like Billie Joe Armstrong, we already have one of him. Try and sound like you.”
What advice would you give to aspiring musicians not about the industry and just as an artist?
I would pay it forward and tell them that its okay to draw inspiration from your favourite artist, but don’t try and sound like them. I’d encourage every musician to find who they are and how they sound in music. We already have your favourite artists, but we don’t have you. Be you, not them, we
already have them!
What quote or saying do you always stick by?
“Gotta risk it to get the biscuit” Its lame, but relevant! Haha
Where in your hometown is a must go to visit?
St.Kilda beach.
Your coming off tour;
1/ Where do you go first?
Cinema, order a big box of popcorn. Bliss!
2/ Who do you see first?
The guy or girl at the cinema candy bar. Or whoever comes to the cinema with me.
3/What do you eat first?
For some reason I read this question as “‘who’ do you eat first” and not ‘what’, but lets pretend it’s ‘who’ and I will say I’d take a bite out of Baby Yoda. But not in the scary and horrific kind of way, just like a little bite of the happiness around him to fill me with joy.
When you are at a gig, what are 5 things you cannot forget?
Guitar, Hair tie, Pedal Board, Lucky socks and a vibe! I feel like I’m forge[ng something…
Do you have social media accounts so your fans can follow you?
Of course! You can find me here
Instagram
Facebook
Youtube
Spotify
Come by and send me a message!
J: Thanks so much for the interview <3
Thanks for chatting with us!
