Inspired #187 - Cat Ryan
Last month Art-Gaze trio, Cat Ryan released their single, ‘Mary Shelley Song’ an addictive hybrid affair between swirling textures, danceable melodies and hypnotic vocals. They took a moment to speak to us about some of the things that inspire them and the importance of persevering through the pandemic.
Who are your top three musical inspirations?
Viola Beach are probably the biggest inspiration, as I first listened to them in 2017 and hearing their music made a significant impact on me: they directly influenced the kind of style of songs I wanted to make. I still believe they’re the only reason I was ever able to start writing good songs.
There are more artists, but if we have to choose just three then the other notable would be Vampire Weekend and Hippo Campus as we listen to a lot of their music too.
Is there a certain film that inspires you?
La La Land. The technicolour and cinematography is amazing; combined with the soundtrack (which is probably my favourite film soundtrack ever) this makes it a truly inspiring film overall. That perfect match of aesthetics and music is stunning.
What city do you find the most inspiring?
Newcastle upon Tyne. The north east music scene is incredibly diverse and has a strong DIY-ethic, which makes it a lot of character. None of us are local to the city, so I think we appreciate it a bit more; coming from elsewhere it means that we see the region differently, and can really appreciate certain aspects, such as the variety of music venues possible to play in and number of independent promoters interested in us and our music.
Who is the most inspiring person to you?
Taylor Swift, because she never fails to amaze me with her songwriting; it’s just not in her to write a bad song. Literally all her songs are catchy and she’s very good with lyrics. The main thing is that she’s a woman who has become so successful in music, having written all her own songs. It’s quite rare for such a massive artist like her to have written all her songs and I think, outside of Pop, she’s hugely underrated and almost frowned upon for being kind-of-annoying almost. I guess that I think her talent isn’t appreciated enough as it could be.
What were your inspirations when writing the track?
Mary Shelley Song is a random mix of events that happened over a summer as I was finishing 6th form. Lyrically it’s a very different song with lots of nonsensical lines that don’t mean much, but sound good in the context of the song. I guess that, other than my own experiences that summer, my friends were a big source of inspiration as they contributed to the opening lines of the song and helped it take form.
How would you like to inspire people?
We’d hope that others like our music enough to consider learning to play an instrument themselves, or become involved in music via another path like journalism. We’d like to inspire others to stay positive – both in terms of this pandemic, but also in terms of the north east music scene: there are so many amazing artists working hard and gaining attention, and it’s just a case of carrying on.
Interview by Karla Harris