(Photo Credit - Carly Valentine)
We had the opportunity to interview alt singer/songwriter Lauren Ruth Ward for an Artist Spotlight feature! She dropped a new EP titled 'VOL. 2' on March 13 and it's definitely worth your time. Before you check it out, check out our interview with her!
1. How did you come to pursue music and how long have you been at it?
"I’ve been creating music since I was a teenager. I did not start pursuing it as a career until I was 26. The process is hard to explain. I had a hunger to perform and share my songs. The hunger grew stronger for about five years resulting in me moving to California and leaving a career and a life that I still loved and enjoyed in Maryland."
2. Could you walk us through your process of writing music?
"I am always writing words, concepts, thought processes down on a notepad in my phone. I will occasionally write a guitar part just to get more words out. I am very driven by guitar. Then I bring it to my lead guitarist, Eduardo. He and I usually smooth the song out on my front porch. Most times scrapping any guitar that I wrote. Then we record demos at his home studio. This has been a really helpful part of the process. Because we love co-producing our music, it gives us an opportunity to understand our ideas before hopping in the studio to record the final track." 3. What artists have inspired you in your career? "Mirah, Elliott Smith, Jackson 5, the carpenters, Frank Sinatra, Led Zeppelin,The Doors, Nelly Furtado, the Beatles, mana case, the blank tapes, slugs, Valley Queen..." 4. Do you have any favorite music gear (guitars, amps, effects pedals, keyboards, etc.) that you love to use? If so, what’s the story on them?
"I love my Explorer. It was a gift from Gibson Guitars. I’ve been very lucky to have worked with them on a couple projects. It has completely opened up my mind to playing electric. I’ve played acoustic for so long. I’m now collecting pedals. I’m just not a very techy person, I’m definitely an organic person through and through. Very thankful for this life-changing gift, I would not of purchased it if left to my own devices. I’m also completely in love with my vocal pedal. (Mastering this instrument made my guitar pedals seem less daunting.) it’s a death by audio echo master. I like it because it doesn’t distort my voice too much. I’m able to create trippy vocal moments we have on the album. I saw Prism Tats using it at a Dodos show."
5. Can you describe the vibe at your live shows? Also, what do you enjoy most about a venue when you do a show?
"I mean a venue can definitely set the stage for a cool show, no pun intended, but it’s not the venue I’m focused on. It’s the fans. The energy they give is the energy I give back. Only wish I have for the venue is a decent sound person which is usually the case."
6. What is one thing that you want the public to know about your music?
"I write about my own experiences more than anything."
7. Can you tell us about the writing, recording, and promotion process for your release
VOL. II?
"Writing process, see answer for question number two. Recording process is all over the place, yet organized. Eduardo and I have A couple go to peeps. We also have a couple different sounds so this makes the most sense to us. VOL. II was recorded/mixed/produced by Claire Morison, David Davis and Matt Linesch. Promotion.. I love collaborating with visual artists. Out of the 11 tracks on this album there are 7 music videos. we also love touring. We were supposed to be on tour right now: 5 weeks headlining the US, Home for six days, another 5 weeks in UK/Europe. Fingers crossed for the human race that the coronavirus dies soon. We can tour whenever. The safety of everyone is most important."
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