Danny Starr released the third track from his 5-track EP, “For Hungrier Hearts” (which is due in April) on March 2nd. It starts off slowly with a fantastic build featuring grungy electric guitars and an ardent vocal delivery. We had the pleasure of interviewing Danny Starr, and here’s what he had to say:
Q: I love how well-written “Over The Edge” is! How long did it take you to create this song?
STARR: Well firstly thanks so much. And thanks for wanting to interview me around this release. “Over The Edge” was one of the first songs I wrote in a non-standard guitar tuning, and came after a long period of experimentation with different tunings, mostly inspired by Ben Howard. I’m pretty sure the chorus came first, with this idea of being pushed away and pulled back repeatedly, on the edge of some disaster, being so vivid in my mind. I knew I wanted some calmness from the storm in the verse sections around the heavy chorus and they definitely took a bit longer to refine lyrically, although the vibe of the whole song came very quickly. In fact, I think I totally rewrote the second verse a few months after “finishing” the song for the first time.
Q: How did you decide on the instruments? Did the tune come with the lyrics or was it something that came together in bits and pieces?
STARR: So the electric guitar leading part came totally as a result of the tuning experimentation, which only really got into full swing after I luckily got my hands on a beautiful Gibson ES-335 a couple of years ago. That opened up the possibility of more intricate guitar parts that still sounded thick and aggressive to the ear. I only performed the track solo until after we recorded the studio version, so although knew I wanted thumping drums in the choruses really didn’t know what else would be involved on the record. Michael Smith, who produced this track and EP, had me play the song solo in the studio a few times over, tracking the natural tempo changes and nuances in how I play it on my own. It’s quite an emotional one so there are a lot of natural up and downs in my performance of it and Michael didn’t want to lose that at all when building the arrangement. Once we had the guitar part nailed and a rough vocal we just went to town on adding bigger, creepier, more horrifying atmospheric sounds to the soundscape until we ended up with this absolute cloud of rage you hear in the final chorus. I have Michael to thank many times over for his creativity and openness to try anything in the studio as I could never have imagined the sound this record ended up taking on.
Q: At what point did you realize or decide that you want to be a musician?
STARR: This is truly a hard question because I have absolutely loved music and it’s been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My family recently moved out of my childhood home and in the process I found a report card from when I was 5 years old, and in it, my teacher said I had a clear passion for music and movement, and I really can’t remember a time I didn’t want to be a performer. For a long time though I was on track to be a high-level rugby player, with eventually signing a premiership contract being the path I was headed down, but I was repeatedly injured in my early and mid-teens and eventually music just took over completely. I remember seeing a friend singing at a school concert when I was maybe 13 and asked my mum if I could learn guitar. She said “teach yourself”, so I did off youtube videos. I loved it and it didn’t feel like homework, and I’m not sure I’d ever experienced that before with something I had to practice all the time haha. Maybe that was when I knew it was a passion, not just a hobby.
Q: Who is one artist you look up to and think has had a significant influence on your sound?
STARR: I’ve already mentioned Ben Howard and always do in interviews because his music truly got me through some extremely difficult times in my teens. And over the last 12-16 months I have actually gone back to his album ‘I Forget Where We Were’ countless times for emotional respite and shelter more than ever, as this period has really been the hardest I’ve ever faced. The ability to encapsulate emotion in lyrics and sound in a way that people can completely relate to is something I absolutely strive for with my music, and “Over The Edge” may be my best effort at that so far. It’s not surprising this has come at the time it has considering my mental space and revisiting Ben Howard’s music over the period of writing this EP.
I also can’t help but look up to Wet Leg, who has recently been praised at The Brits for their stellar year, but I am so filled with energy by the individuality of their sound and how they are taking on a career as artists in the industry with such a relaxed charm that seems to come from just being them as a band. I want to be like them if I end up at the Brits.
Finally, Amy Winehouse always has to be mentioned. If I can make anyone feel anything with my songs the way she could with hers, I’ve lived a life I’m happy with. I’ve now realised you said one artist, sorry!!!
Q: That’s all right! What advice would you give to up-and-coming artists honing their craft and trying to gain some visibility?
STARR: Keep going. Keep writing. Keep gigging. “Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming” as Dory says. Try out new songs on people and see how it goes. Look for the parts of the songs that people are connecting with the most and try to understand why. Be ready to feel like you’re crap when YOU ARE NOT! And get used to that feeling, because however much awesome stuff happens in your career it’s likely you’ll doubt yourself all the way, it’s just how the industry can make you feel. But if you keep making, and being honest about what you’re making and why you’re making it, that self-confidence in your own work will come through and always be there deep down. I have wobbles all the time but remind myself I’m sharing music about my life, my family, and my experiences, and really I do it for me, it’s just awesome when other people appreciate what I create too. But as long as I can always see, feel, and know why I’m doing what I’m doing and singing the words I’m singing then all is ok. I do it because it’s always been an outlet for me, and as I improve my writing and my honesty the more and more “right” it feels, although it gets harder to share.
Q: What’s the best advice you’ve been given about the music industry?
STARR: I was once told to “Smoke. More. Weed” by an artist I totally looked up to and aspired to be like after getting to know them over a couple of beers when I was maybe 17 or 18. Now, this isn’t what you’re thinking, this isn’t a pro-weed-legalisation speech, not at all (although I definitely have nothing against a good smoke). That moment just totally stuck with me because it was the first time the veil of the music industry was completely destroyed for me. It felt like such an arbitrary throwaway thing to say. Sure smoking can increase creativity and make a jam session a whole lot more fun, but it’s certainly not advice for how to make it in music. It made me confront that all the musicians and stars I’d held in this magic space in my head on these sacred platforms are just people with their own vices and their own shit going on (who knows what made them say that so directly), who just loved to make music. And I suddenly felt more like I belonged in music than ever before, because everyone belongs here. Just make the music you want to make, be the person and artist you want to be, and get on with your life. There’s no point worrying about how to be or be like someone else. So that’s the best, accidental, piece of advice I got for the music industry and really for life as a whole.
Danny Starr will be performing live at Colours Hoxton on April 20th with his full band. You can get tickets to the show HERE!
Interviewed by Zoey King
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