KYLIE PRICE: Pushing That Boundary
An interview by Doug Peters.
While the name Kylie Price may not have been instantly recognisable to many people outside of the country music scene, or perhaps to those who were fans of New Zealand’s Got Talent (where Kylie was a contestant back in 2012 but was removed from the show before the semi-finals after refusing to sign an unfair contract) – but that is definitely about to change with the release of her recent single ‘Here With Me’ as well as the release of her new EP ‘Bones’.
I had the chance to sit down with Kylie on the eve of her EP launch to chat about what went into the writing and recording of the new songs, as well as some of the stories behind the music.
You have received a fair few accolades over the last few years – most notably two awards at the Texas Country Music Festival at which you had to perform one 60min set; how much planning went into how the set would play out and what did you take away from the experience?
“It was my first country music competition for a while, so just having to get back into that headspace. The Country Music Awards are quite different (in a good way), and it just comes down to song choice. You just want to showcase the best part of you! So I had an hour to impress them, so it was more of a performance than in sections like how we do it over here, so that first of all was quite different.
So I decided to split my 1 hour and do half an hour of just acoustic and then half an hour with the band. I did this strategically so the band wasn’t overwhelmed with the amount of my songs they had to play, and they had more time to work on the songs. I also did this because I generally play and sing my songs on my own anyway, so I wanted to showcase that I was competent and able to do that independently on stage, and yeah, I think that worked out pretty well!”
You have stated previously that the judges enjoyed the stories that were interwoven into your set – care to give us a quick rundown on what one of those stories may have been?
“I played a song that I wrote about my boyfriend – it’s called ‘My Love’, and it’s on the EP, it’s the last track. It’s all about going through a shit time in my life and I felt really guilty that he had to be a part of that because it was my stuff, but he stayed through the whole thing, and he supported me like it was his own problem.
Really, he is the best person I could ever ask for to be with, so I wanted to just reinstate that when I met him at nineteen, that was when my life kind of begun again. And just having that support through the hardest part of my life made so much difference, and in a lot of ways he did save my life with his support and his love and he’s still around today four and half years later, and yeah, I thought that warranted a song!”
Moving onto recent times – You recently released the single ‘Here with Me’, your first in a while – what inspired this song?
“When I first started [working on] it, Maddy [Parkins-Craig], my producer and co-writer pitched it to me – it was something she’d been working on and she came to me and said ‘Can you run with this? Can you get the vibe of it?’ and I thought it was just a cool song about ending something and then realising you’d made the wrong move. I think a lot of us do that – not intentionally, but sometimes what we think is best isn’t always and I just thought it was a nice general universal message that a lot of the time we think leaving someone is the best thing for us then we actually work out they’re a lot cooler than we gave them credit for.”
Your EP ‘Bones’ is set for release this Friday – I believe that the EP is in part an apology for being away for so long and in part a gift to your audience?
“I went through a bit of a time after 2014 where I went through a lot of stuff that I hadn’t dealt with – so for a while the music was kind of put to the side because it was more important to worry about my health, my mental state, than it was to keep being on the scene. But I didn’t tell anybody that – I was just there one day and gone the next, and a lot of people thought I’d given up music.
So that’s what the track ‘Bones’ is about, which is the start of the EP and is kind of a ‘I’m really sorry, I didn’t give any reason for just leaving, and I’m sorry to those who may have thought I wasn’t grateful for their support over the years. This is what I was going through, and this is what I am giving you back – this EP, and I hope this suffices what you’ve been waiting for’.”
The songs are all co-written with Maddy Parkins-Craig – when it comes to writing songs that can often tell of quite personal stories, how did this co-writing relationship work? And do you believe that it helped the songs grow into something more than they would have been originally because of Maddy’s input?
“Yeah, absolutely! I couldn’t have done it without Maddy – well I could have but it wouldn’t have been as good! Maddy and I think completely differently which is really good! We both know what is best for the song, so there’s no egos attached to that and there’s no hard feelings – if she doesn’t like a line, then she doesn’t like a line and that’s ok!
I came in with the songs and would pitch them to her, then we would go from there and make edits and small changes and all that sort of stuff, then we left them. So when we were ready to record we revisited each song again, purely so had a fresh minds and were able to edit them a little bit more to take out the excess noise. Without Maddy I’m not quite sure where the songs would be, so yeah, she’s phenomenal!”
This EP sees a change of direction for you musically – from a very country music based sound to more of a pop-country one? Has this been a natural progression for you, or a deliberate change of path?
“It was natural – definitely natural. I didn’t do it out of disrespect for the country genre – I think that’s a really important and a strong genre within New Zealand. I think it’s becoming really apparent with the artists coming forward, you’ve got the likes of Jodie Direen and Kaylee Bell and they’re doing amazing things with country music!
I just started writing differently – it really came down to the fact that the more I worked on myself the more my writing changed. It’s like anything, it’s just a natural process that happened – and now it’s just [a] more mainstream [sound]. I really enjoy where it’s going now, there’s just so many different paths that I can take and I’m really excited to keep pushing the boundaries!”
I really like the direction country music seems to be heading – honestly, traditionally I’ve not been a fan. But earlier this year I went to the Stampede Country Music Festival and it blew my mind. It was so cool!
“Yes, Leanne Rimes is so fierce! She’s so cool.”
Yes! But even the Kiwi artists – they were all so good…
“So Jodi was there, and my friends Coopers Run – they’re really cool and doing awesome things! Country is such a massive avenue and has been such a massive foundation for other sub-genre’s as well, so I don’t really think it’s a ‘war of genres’ as such, I think we can take a little bit from everything and just make great music!”
So, going back to the EP – ‘I’m Going Back’ leans heavily towards a more electronic based sound – do you think you may explore more of this in the future?
“Yes, definitely! Maddy approached me with a couple of samples and was like ‘Is this too far? Do you want more?’ and I was like ‘This is awesome! Keep pushing that boundary!’. It’s really exciting to have that electronic based song on the EP – again it wouldn’t have happened without Maddy, and again I’m really excited, I like that electronic sound and I like – if it’s done well – what it can bring to a song. So I’d definitely like to explore that avenue a bit more, even with my live stuff I’m looking for ways to incorporate it into my ‘acoustic singer/songwriter vibe’.”
Hailing from the beautiful and in some ways unique city of Dunedin, do you feel your home city has had a hand in shaping your music and its sound?
“I think we have a very distinctive Dunedin sound. Originally starting off in country music being in the south it definitely played a huge part – and then I have obviously moved into mainstream pop now. And Dunedin is quite laid back, and I think that has contributed to both my sound and my personality so yeah, it’s had a big part… but I think there’s still room to grow!”
So what’s next on the cards for Kylie Price?
“Lunch! Then, a tour will follow after the release of the EP. I just want people to get a feel for it and have a sound that they can listen to first and be like ‘Oh yeah, I’ve heard her album, now I want to go to her show’ as opposed to ‘Oh I don’t know who Kylie Price is, I’m going to give that one a miss’. I’m going to just keep putting out music, keep hitting those 3, 6, 12 month goals and keep trucking forward producing the best music I can.”
So we’ll be seeing an album sometime in the future?
“Yes, we’ll most definitely see an album in the near future, yup!”
And finally – many are aware of the campaign you began to open for Ed Sheeran – obviously he is a huge influence of yours. Who else do you feel has helped shaped you as a musician/inspired you to be a musician?
“I really like Joni Mitchell – I think she is one fair sassy lady, and she’s so honest. In case of you still remains to be one of my favourite songs. Also Angus and Julia Stone. They have such a cool, chilled sound. I remember my first concert was Brook Fraser and I thought she was flawless – I still do. I think she is wonderful as a songwriter and as a performer.
Oh, and Fleetwood Mac! Stevie Nicks has pretty much one nostril from doing way too much coke and yet she still gets up there and sounds SO good! They know their business inside and out and I think that’s really cool. After all the shit that the band has been through the fact that they can all tour together and work together shows a massive dedication to the craft. It’s like ‘It doesn’t matter about our stuff, it’s all about the music’ so I really appreciate that they’re still doing that!”
For more information on Kylie Price you can check out her website, buy her music on Bandcamp and follow her on Facebook and Instagram.
Credits: All images shot by Doug Peters courtesy of Ambient Light. Live image courtesy of instagram.com/kyliepricemusic & Noise PR. Extra special thanks to The Garden Shed for providing such a stunning location – check them out on Facebook – we totally recommend the S’mores!