In our latest band spotlight, we chat to Nick Wold, vocalist for New York’s world-beating alternative pop act, DREAMERS.
S] How are you today?
I’m great today, thanks for asking. A bit dead on the homestretch of a 6-week tour, but quite alive as well.
S] What motivates your sound outside of music, think specific people and places?
I’ve always been motivated by some kind of internal drive to communicate. For some reason I feel the need to try to explain or record all the strange crazy and wonderful feelings I have. I’m inspired by science, or more like wonder at the natural world. David Lynch films and visual art, fantasy worlds.
S] How do you guys define success as artists?
Success can certainly be defined differently by every artist. To me it’s three parts. First making it so we can live a life of making music, full time sustainable creation and no day job. Second, fully realizing our sound and abilities to their full potential, making the art that really captures the feelings and statements that we set out to capture. And third, making it so that people hear it, and think about it and take it seriously.
S] What are the biggest challenges you face?
In the beginning it’s having the money to make it all happen, I lived in my practice space for years, dumped every dollar I could make at the bar into the band. After that it’s becoming truly good at your craft, writing that song, finding ways to say what you truly mean gracefully and with originality, and being able to play it live. Once you can do that the rest can begin to fall in place.
S] What advice would you give to emerging artists who want to follow in your footsteps?
Be young, move fast and hard, work as much as you can and then relax as much as you can. For god’s sake be humble and know that you will always have to learn more to be good.
S] Talk us through what ‘LAUNCH FLY LAND’ means to you as a record?
LAUNCH FLY LAND was a breakup album for me. I was still going through a big breakup of a many year relationship while writing the first songs and had all kinds of feelings about it, and about what it means to be in love and in a monogamous partnership. We wrote a bunch of songs together as a band on this one, and we had all been through crazy life experiences during that period, from personal successes to deaths of loved ones, and endless tours of the US and Canada. The album title and progression of songs we put out is about these journeys we all go through in life, and what it’s like to come out the other side.
S] What has being in Dreamers taught you about yourself, personally and as an artist?
I’ve learned that I’m happiest when I’m working tirelessly on something I care about. I’ve learned that anything is possible within reason and logic. And that rock and roll still lives.
S] Thanks for your time!
Thank you for the same!
