In Conversation With #110 - In Earnest
Indie-folk band In Earnest have just released their self-titled debut EP - which explores mental health, nostalgia and hope vs hopelessness. We had a chat with them about the release.
Hey In Earnest - how are you? Your EP is out now, how does it feel to be releasing music during a difficult time for the creative industry?
Hey! We're good thanks and hope you are too. We sat on the EP for around 18 months, so it feels really good to have the songs out there and be able to introduce ourselves to the world. The most difficult thing has been not being able to support the release with live shows, as it's so important to us as a band. Instead, we've created DIY music videos, done some live stream performances and worked really hard on our PR skills and trying to use this time to reach as many new ears as possible.
Where was the EP recorded? Any behind the scenes stories from the recording process?
We hired a holiday barn near to where we live in Essex, UK, and lived there for a week while we recorded. Our producer has a completely mobile recording set up, so we get to choose settings that inspire us and that give us the flexibility to record until midnight (if we want to!) There was an on-site spa, so we all went in the hot tub and steam room every morning before recording. There was also a small farm and we got to bottle-feed baby goats one day!
When it comes to your music, you have said you want your ‘listeners to connect, to feel something’ - what do you hope they feel from listening to this EP?
We hope they feel all the emotions that we're trying to convey through the music. All of our writing comes from very real and honest places and we hope this encourages our listeners to have the confidence to share their own stories and experiences with others.
What are the key themes and influences on this EP?
Mental health is a key theme that runs throughout the entirety of the six tracks, as well as nostalgia, hope and hopelessness. These songs are snapshots of our lives over the last couple of years and have been a sort of therapy in which we've learned more about each other and the way that we all process this crazy life in different ways.
When recording this EP, you opted for full like takes - what led to that choice? Do you think it changed the way the songs came together?
Our producer, Peter Waterman (Longcroft Recording), convinced us to attempt a kind of old school recording style where we played mostly live together and employed minimal edits and digital involvement. We tentatively agreed, however we were really happy with the results and found that having confidence if your abilities is the key to this particular method of capturing music. We think it definitely gives the music an 'ebb and flow' that you don't get with metronomes and extensive editing of takes - it's like the performance can really breathe.
Do you have a favorite lyric on the EP? If so, which one and why?
I think to sum up the whole EP, we would choose this line from 'Put Me Under': "You are everywhere and nowhere, just don't put me under your spell". It's a small but poignant commentary on how mental health is such a huge part of all of our lives, and yet it is mostly unseen and invisible. We think this is part of the reason that so much stigma is attached to depression and anxiety - having such a big effect on the lives of those who experience them, but being so difficult to convey the impact to others. Raising awareness of such things is the biggest part of why we write about what we do.