Elder Island, a trio out of Bristol in the U.K., didn’t expect to go into music. In fact, each member of the electro-pop group studied a different art form in college — where they all met — but music wasn’t one of them. They eventually decided to form a band together, and little did they know their music would garner millions of streams, endless accolades and adoration from fans of all genres. We earned the chance to talk to Elder Island about how they got to where they are today, their recently released video for their new song “Feral,” their upcoming album, Swimming Static, and what’s to come.
Play Too Much: Let’s start with introductions — who are you and what is your role in the group?
Katy Sargent – Vocals/ Cello ♀︎ David Havard – Electronic Nerd Luke Thornton – Comic relief
PTM: The three of you studied different art forms in college but came together to create something none of you had made your collegiate focus: music. How did that happen?
Katy: In a lot of ways we approach the music like you would an art project. Maybe I think this to prove those four years weren’t spent in vain! Originally music was our hobby – a side project, something we did whilst hanging out. EP1 was originally frivolously thrown up on SoundCloud until an interested party asked if he could put it out properly. We couldn’t believe the pick up it got. That was the first prod to take it more seriously, I think from then on there’s been a steady stream of prods to keep working at it.
PTM: You started your discography with two EPs, and one is completely different from the other. Your Self-Titled debut EP is sonically atmospheric with airy vocals, and 2016’s Seeds In SandEP fuses elements of dance and flowery lyricism. You’ve also released the trippy synth track “Welcome State” and bass-heavy “Bonfires.” Is your goal to keep changing your sound and experimenting?
David: The writing process for us has always been about experimentation and learning new techniques and tools. We never set out with an intention for a song, we let the initial sessions lead us. And with such eclectic music tastes between us it can take us in many different directions. When making the Self-Titled EPwe only had a select amount of instruments and a lot of them were acoustic. Running them through loopers and fx pedals creating textures. The only synth to feature on that EP was an old Yamaha psr-16. After playing a few shows, we wanted to inject a lot more energy into our performance and music, which bleed into the making of Seeds In Sand. Along with adding some better equipment! We pick instruments and equipment based on what we feel was lacking previously and things to help thicken and richen our live sound. When we started to perform Seeds In Sandwe added a Moog Minitaur to our live rig for some extra bass weight, which in turn inspired the writing of “Bonfires.”
PTM: The Omnitone Collection, your 2019 debut album, has earned over 200 million streams worldwide and continues to bring in 1 million listeners each month, even two years later. How does it feel knowing your music has had a lasting impact already?
Luke: Very rewarding. We spend countless hours working on the tracks, sculpting and shaping in the hope the music will last.
PTM: The next year, you released a remix album of The Omnitone Collection with features from the likes of Shigeto, Matthew Dear and former tour-mates Dirty Nice. What sparked the idea of remixing an album everyone already loved?
David: We started with just a few as have always found new music through remixes and think it helps with promoting the original songs. We really liked the outcome of the initial few that we decided to do a full album.
PTM: Your biggest song to date,“The Big Unknown,” has accumulated mind-boggling numbers alone, eclipsing 30 million Spotify streams. Did you expect this would be your most well-known song when you were writing it?
Katy: No! We knew it was a good track, it was dynamic and always fun to play live. We had no idea it would catch on like it has though. To be honest because of the production quality we can barely listen back to it! Although I think that is testament to a good song’s appeal, in the end, production quality has very little to do with it. It’s all about the track itself and what it means to other people.
PTM: You’ve already sold out plenty of crowds, and last June, you released a nearly eight-minute-long documentary that was filmed during The Omnitone Tour that showcases the energy you bring to your shows. How much are you missing that atmosphere right now?
David: Quite a lot. It’s really creeping in how important live music and the inspiration that comes with performing. It’s the environment where you truly see the response to the music. I remember when we went out on our first headline European tour, The Omnitone Collectionhad only been out for about a month, with the first show in Paris and everyone already knew the lyrics and were belting them back at us. It’s what drives us to keep creating.
PTM: Bands have been getting more creative when it comes to performing for fans during the pandemic — everything from live streamed concerts, drive-ins and even putting fans inside inflatable bubbles to experience live music again — when you are able to tour again, do you have any plans or ideas to make the experience extra special for fans?
Katie: UK tour dates have just been moved to start October this year. Transforming this new album into a live show is going to be a great challenge. We always take a hands on approach when curating our live shows, from music to lighting. Last tour we built our own lighting rig that worked off our equipment’s midi signals so the lighting was more intuitive to the music we were playing. We’re hoping to expand on this idea, create something more immersive. We try to give the live music an extra kick when playing live. We’re fans of a good dance about and like it when people join in. We’ll be looking to create an environment people feel free to move in.
PTM: Your upcoming sophomore album, Swimming Static, is due out in May. You’ve already released a handful of singles and a video for one of them,“Purely Educational.” What was your vision for the video?
Katie: Working with our friend and director Nic Kane, we wanted to create something that reflected the playful qualities of “Purely Educational” as a track. There needed to be an element of dance, or movement, but we didn’t want to make your run of the mill solo dance piece. There’s a fun glitzy dress-up element to it, much like the track has but there’s also an undertone of melancholy in the lone dancer- buoying herself on. A nod to the current shortage of parties and nights out. It was tough organizing a shoot in the depths of lockdown, we had to keep things simple and plan around filming with a minimal crew. Using this idea of simplicity in the filming method, with long continuous takes, one location, one dancer and only token props, meant the watchers focus was freer to concentrate on other aspects of the video. It allowed the personality of the dancer and the nostalgic quality of the traditional community hall to shine through.
PTM: You’ve already said in previous announcements that Swimming Static focuses on reflecting while also looking forward, breaking musical boundaries and learning about your selves along the way. Would you say the album is your most adventurous and cathartic yet?
David: I think we didn’t realize we were in a place until we finished and got out of it.
PTM: Are there any particular groups or artists you’d like to work with in the future?
Luke: There’s a few producers we’re interested in working with in the future. With the likes of Dan Carey & David Holmes being on there. Always like to leave it open though as the tracks can develop in different ways depending on who you work with.
PTM: Swimming Static isn’t even out yet, but do you have plans in the works for beyond its release?
Luke: We most certainly do! There are always many plans flying about in the Elder Island camp but we’ll keep it under our hat for now. In the meantime, we’ve released an online card game which you can enjoy over at our website. Check it out and see if you can get the high score.
PTM: Thank you guys so much for taking the time to talk with us – is there any final thoughts you’d like to share?
Katie, David, Luke: Thank you for chatting to us and to everyone reading this. We are really looking forward to going on tour and playing in front of people in the upcoming year.
