Artist Interview : The Music of Sound’s ‘Cold Weather Man’
The Music of Sound is an Indian-British band that, as a group, love to explore the nature of sound itself. And the music that they create, is in essence, the journey that they took this time around. It is crafty, whimsical, so full of passion and play. Imagine a child discovering the ways of the world. That is the wonder and refreshing curiosity that they bring to the table. And another remarkable facet is their camaraderie. Each song sounds so authentically spontaneous and free, like a jam session where every artist’s ideas and creativity is represented. That’s what makes the listening experience so full and fulfilling. Because, each arc, if you pay close attention, diverges and you can follow whichever one you want to. They are each so uniquely spirited, however the harmony and the chemistry that they share are band members and friends somehow seems to reconcile it all. The band has just released ‘Cold Weather Man’ a single that is right out of a world folk catalog. It is a sonic frolic that you want to keep looping through. And the band members sit down with us to breakdown their creative process, value systems, and just the floating visions that brought this track to life. Read on!
1. Congratulations on your latest single, ‘Cold Weather Man’. What inspired the creation of the track?
Sherin: Neil is the best person to answer this—he's the cold weather man himself, starring in the music video!
Ellie: Neil is an amazing songwriter and all of his songs have a such interesting background stories.
Neil: Awww my bandmates are too kind. Music-wise I had the hook written and could really hear Sherin’s lovely voice singing it. Then I decided to write a song about a guy who hides away all through the summer months, plotting what he will do when the cold weather comes and he can enjoy being out and about again. I have met people like this who everybody writes off as being the local oddball. But then you talk to them and discover they know so much about everything that’s happening around them. That was why I referenced The Beatles’ Fool on the Hill in the lyrics because Paul McCartney wrote it about a similar character. Then I put the song together with the piano playing mostly in open fourths and fifths and Elena’s goose bumping flute sound and style reinforcing the counter-melody and sometimes doubling what Sherin is singing.
2. What are some of the main themes that you explored in it / makes it special?
Sherin: As a singer, this song gave me the chance to explore my pop-style vocals. Most of our other songs lean towards a classical vibe, but this one is upbeat and playful. It allowed me to sing freely without the usual constraints.
Ellie: This track, I would say, leans more in the pop genre than we normally do, but this is a great example to show we can do a variety of styles. I like that we can lean into more classical music in some songs and then also try new genres and ideas! I also would say this is an audience favourite, whenever we play this at our gigs our audience always sings along!
Neil: It’s been our most popular track at live shows since we introduced it. It is another step in consolidating the way the band’s sound has changed since Sherin and Elena joined. We tend to use the flute and piano like other bands use synth and guitar so it gives us a really unusual sound. The absence of many straight major or minor chords in the song is also an interesting element to it. Just open harmonics most of the time and arpeggios in the bridge. So although our sound is a lot less obviously classical-influenced than it used to be, those elements are still there and Elena’s flute playing, which is so distinctive, emphasises the classical connection. It’s also the third single running that media people have compared to the Lynch/Badalamenti music and aura in the classic TV series Twin Peaks!
3. The track has elements of alt folk mixed in with chamber pop. What was the stylistic vision going into the track and did it change as you progressed with it? If yes, how?
Sherin: I do feel like we have some folk elements in our music. It's all Neil’s creativity when an idea comes naturally, I believe it's best to leave it as it is instead of sticking to regular rules. We should break boundaries and see where it leads. Sometimes, we’re not focused on sticking strictly to a genre or limiting the natural ideas that come through. We just go with the flow, and it turns into something beautiful.
Neil: That’s an interesting observation. I wasn’t particularly conscious of the folk elements but I guess the flute and piano could be heard that way. We broadly identify as a Dream Pop band with, weirdly, a synthpop element even though we don’t really use synth much of the time! It’s fascinating to discover how others hear our music though. I can see there is a Celtic and maybe a Nordic influence that have both always been there and are still part of what we do. Sherin has pointed this out before and we are all drawn to those folk traditions. Thank you for pointing that out.
4. What are the three words you would use to describe your music?
Sherin: Dreamy, eclectic, and vibrant.
Ellie: Dreamy, contemporary, pop
Neil: Cinematic Dream Pop
5. There are both classic and contemporary elements in the way the track is presented. Who are some of the artists that influenced your style as a musician?
Sherin: Keane is undeniably a significant influence on us, one that consistently finds its way into our songs and becomes a topic of conversation.
Neil: Ah well, our influences are hard to unlock but we can hear bits of Cocteau Twins, Julee Cruise, Chromatics, Ravishing Beauties, Keane and then, at a more subtle level, ideas derived from the likes of Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder and some classical music. We listen to such a range of music so it’s hard to say where ideas come from a lot of the time. A bit of Danny WIlson maybe in the piano riff on Cold Weather Man too.
6. What is the significance of the name of your banner?
Sherin: This is something Neil can answer best.
Neil: I formed the band when I was invited to play the BBC Introducing Stage at Latitude Festival in 2017 and, at the time, we were playing contemporary classical and electronic music that utilised a lot of pre-recorded sound from our everyday environment but specifically sound we could derive ‘pitch’ from and use harmonically instead of for sound effects - like leaf blowers, chainsaws, construction machinery, engines, blenders etc. - where I could put the sounds into Audacity and play with the pitch and tone to create harmony out of environmental sounds. The Music Of Sound was both a pun on the famous film The Sound Of Music and an appropriate name for what we were doing at the time. Since then there have been quite a few line-ups and the style has changed beyond recognition but we still use some environmental noise to create chords and bass tones in some of our songs. It is less explicit now than it used to be though. Luckily we are signed to the wonderful Monochrome Motif Records and their owner is the talented composer Andrew Hartshorn who totally gets how we do things.
7. As a band, what are some of the values that ya'll share and learnt from each other?
Sherin: As a band, we definitely understand each other and are flexible with each other's ideas. That’s our strength. I’ve learned a lot from Neil. He is hardworking and truly passionate about his music and style. One major thing I’ve learned from him is his determination and persistence, no matter the results. Elena, on the other hand, is a kind soul with amazing talent. Her skills inspire me to pick up an instrument and learn it myself.
Neil: We are all people who want a peaceful, more caring and compassionate world I think. And a world that takes better care of the environment. It is a very worrying time. I always thought I’d see the world become a better place as I got older but I can’t remember it being as bad as it is now with some very dangerous people in positions of considerable power and influence. Maybe it will take another generation for people to finally reject the outdated attitudes that seem to have made a bit of an unwelcome return in the past decade. We ought to have moved beyond prejudice, paranoia and blind acceptance of brainwashing by now but clearly not all of us have!
8. When it comes to concept, emotion, intuition, and imagination, which one of these do you think plays more of a role in your song making and why?
Sherin: I believe all of these elements play a crucial role in our song-making process. The concept helps us shape the direction of the song, emotion brings it to life, intuition guides the creative process, and imagination allows us to push boundaries and experiment. Each one contributes in its own way to create something unique and meaningful.
Ellie: Honestly I think that each of these are important but for me, emotion will always be a key role in music. Music has the ability to evoke emotion, it can make sad people happy and bring excitement into peoples lives. I also think that its an outlet.
Neil: They all do. I don’t know that I could say one is more important than the others. But intellect also plays a part. Obviously expression and energy are important but so are originality and imagination. And I like music and lyrics to have substance. So concept, intuition, having something to say whether that is just artistically or from a socio-political perspective; it all feeds into what we do.
You can listen to ‘Cold Weather Man’ by The Music of Sound here -
