Lisa Maxwell
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Interview With Lisa Maxwell By Chris 12/12/06
Lisa Maxwell is a great aussie singer
songwriter a discovered.
Great rock tunes that are catchy and also well written and
a joy to the ears
Read on then check out her stuff as she is really
good.
1. How did you get into music?
I have always had an interest in music, from nagging my
parents to buy me a recorder when I was 6 to teaching
myself how to play the guitar when I was 15. It has always
been an obsession for me. Professionally, I started with
the Arts Victoria funded Bent Incubator project a few years
ago.
2. Who were your idols growing up?
Believe it or not, the Spice Girls were a big influence for
me… until I heard them, I never listened to
contemporary pop music – I used to just listen to my
parents’ music collection. I definitely idolised Dave
Grohl for a while there, too.
3. Who were your influences?
Musically, bands like Nirvana, Powderfinger and Foo
Fighters influenced me early on. I find that people’s
attitudes, actions and behavior also strongly influence my
writing – I find people fascinating.
4. Are you happy with the responses from the latest
release?
Yeah, the response has been great!
5. What have responses been like to your music on the
web?
Excellent, people seem to be eager to find new music on the
web, so it seems to have been really well received.
6. Has the Internet helped with your music?
Definitely, thanks to things like Internet radio and
podcasting, my music seems to be reaching the right
audience worldwide. I found out I was being played on
college radio in New York and I hadn’t even sent them
a CD!
7. Do you think tools like MySpace are useful?
They definitely help, I don’t think bands can rely on
Myspace and You Tube as their sole means of promotion, but
it’s definitely great for communicating with fans and
networking – I met Jack Dahlqvist (who now plays bass
in my band) on Myspace, so it’s certainly
useful!
8. How did the recording process go for the new
album?
It was interesting… like any creative process; it
had its highs and lows. It was funny, some of the earlier
tracks recorded for the album ended up being released as my
“Bad Day” EP, so I found I was constantly
recording new songs. I definitely learned a lot about music
production and performance, and found that I developed a
lot of production ideas as recording progressed, to the
point of using parts of my own recordings and demos in
songs.
9. Was it different to your earlier releases?
Yes and no… I think the sound seems to be getting
darker and nastier, although it still has that pop-rock
element that the EP had. It still sounds like me!
10. What inspires you when writing music?
Anything and everything – good, bad and interesting
people, life in a small Victorian town, late nights, early
mornings, glandular fever, the music industry – the
list goes on!
11. Have you had much response from radio?
From alternative radio stations, definitely. I think
they’re always going to be more progressive than
commercial radio, just because of the freedom they have to
play what they like. People who like my music have played
it – I couldn’t ask for more than that.
12. What has been your favorite gig to date?
My most recent gig was at the Golden Vine in Bendigo
– that one is pretty hard to beat. There was a great
response from the crowd, and I was really happy with my
performance.
13. Has the Melbourne Street Press help with promoting
your music?
I’ve had some help from Melbourne street press with
promoting gigs when I have played in Melbourne.
14. Have you had much response from overseas labels
regarding your music?
I honestly wouldn’t know, I haven’t pursued
any. I have had a few overseas distribution companies
contact me, though.
15. Is it hard being an independent artist in
Australia? I think it’s generally a challenge to
be a songwriter/musician, major label or indie. Music is
such a subjective thing – so you’ve got the
politics of the business as well as the tastes of the
audience to deal with. But there’s nothing wrong with
a challenge, now, is there?
16. What is your favorite venue to play at?
The Espy in St Kilda is pretty damn awesome… the
Golden Vine is great too.
17. Do you think Idol is the downfall of the major
label?
Not really, “best-of” CD’s on the other
hand… major labels are always going to push
ultra-commercial product, whether a TV show is involved or
not. Sometimes that commercial product is actually really
good; sometimes it’s Idol.
18 Who have you has helped you out the most?
Jamie Durrant, who co-produced my album and the “Bad
Day” EP and released both on his label, has been a
great help and a wonderful person to work with – a
stupidly talented one, too. Jaq and Tee at Cracked Media
decided to use my track “Harmonic Rock” on
their podcast The Bleeding Edge, which has gained a lot of
exposure, so they too have helped out a lot.
19. Have you had much response from Triple J? Haha,
not that I’m aware of but then again, I don’t
really listen to Triple J these days I don’t actually
know what they do play anymore.
20. What next for Lisa Maxwell?
Some more gigs, a few more music videos I’m working
on one at the moment and singles from my album. I’m
currently writing and demoing songs that will most likely
end up on my second album, so I guess I’ll eventually
get my butt into the studio for that. Who knows after that,
world domination? Maybe!
