Music does not have to be an overproduced mix of studio tricks and tools to be impressive. Some of the best music out there is some of the simplest recordings. A good song with strong instrumentation will be a good song no matter what tools are used to produce it. Our recent discovery Joey Collins puts his raw emotion into a raw sound that connects with the listener.
We had a chance to chat with the interesting singer and songwriter to get a look behind the curtain. Enjoy the interview:
What is it that first drew you to creating music?
I think hearing music that I really connected with at an early age awoken something in me. I became quickly infatuated with sounds and how the guitar could create all these different tones and emotions. I feel keeping journals of thoughts and feelings was a slow progression into becoming a lyricist and then ‘singer’ I guess. I just find creating in general is the best way to keep my mind distracted.
How would you describe the Joey Collins sound?
Emotional, honest and raw.
Which artists have had the biggest influence on you?
Jeff Buckley, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Verve, Incubus, John Frusciante, Eddie Vedder and many more…
How does a song come together for you? What is your songwriting process?
There’s no set formula. Sometimes lyrics come first and I’ll write an instrumental that fits theme sonically. Vice verca.
How are you dealing with the current world crisis and its effect on the music industry?
I’m quite positive regardless of losing all my gigs and income as I’m a self employed musician/producer. I’ve took a job delivering pizza which is keeping me busy so I’m grateful there’s some kind of work available that also helps the supermarkets/NHS. I feel people should take it more seriously though, when I’m out driving I still see a number of people just going about their day like nothing has happened. It’s great to see so many musicians do live streaming gigs and I think music consumers are having a wake up call to how important entertainment is. Hopefully live music will not be taken for granted after this all blows over. I won’t hold my breath however…
Your music is perfectly low-fi. Tell us about your recording studio and equipment used?
Thank you! I love being able to use production as a songwriting tool. Having a DAW like Logic allows so many ideas to materialize. It’s honestly such a basic setup. I have a M-Audio M Track 8 interface which I use for any live recording and then I just work in Logic with an AKAI MPK Mini keyboard for MIDI tracks.
Share some advice for other artists releasing diverse music?
Try and not worry to much about your audience. Write for yourself first and the right people will engage eventually.
What does the future hold for Joey Collins?
Who knows! I just take each day as it comes but I’ll definitely be working harder than ever on more music/producing and playing more live shows.
Keep up with more music and news from Joey Collins on his WEBSITE.