PIKE ON A BIKE

Over the past couple of years I have started to better understand and appreciate the power of words. Yes, it has taken awhile…I used to kind of just throw things out there as they came through my mind, and my songs - especially the really early ones - reflect that. Which I suppose is not altogether a bad thing, there is an element of raw emotion that I love and goes along with that kind of writing. But at this point, I feel more of a responsibility to the weight of words, and I find myself writing with a bit more intention.

I have always felt my mandate was to move people with my music, and I always come back to that. I am not a bubble gum pop kind of girl, and while I occasionally love a fluffy tune I know that my contribution does not land there. The kind of singing voice I have, the way my hands are drawn to certain sounds on the piano, it all lends itself to emotion. That’s not to say it can’t be fun - there just has to be some depth there. The music I am most attracted to, in all genres, has the same thread running through it - music with a powerful delivery which demands some kind of emotional response, whether that be a smile, an ache, inspiration, tears, desire, longing, delight. It’s not even always about the words…a friend of mine recently introduced me to jazz piano legend Bill Evans, and it’s in there, too. When I was studying classical music at University I always gravitated to the Romantics…Rachmanninoff, Brahms. Big sounds, huge emotion. Bach was technical; a training tool to enable me to master the Romantics.

In my time in the music business, working at a label, being on the road, i’ve met countless musicians who are trying desperately to imitate what someone else has already done or is currently (successfully) doing, and while I think there is much to be learned from contemporaries, friends and predecessors, the beauty of a true artist, in any medium, is that they are unique in their own ‘voice’. Sure, everyone looks for comparisons for a point of reference, and all artists draw influence and inspiration from others. But the artists I love timelessly, the ones I stand in awe of, are the ones who are unapologetically themselves and who inspire me to be myself.

So, here I sit on the beach in California, mulling over exactly what I want for my new album and piecing it together bit by bit. I am excited because I now know that my voice is my voice, and I have grown into it. And as long as I am true to that, as long as I am honest in what I’m saying and give respect to the power of words & music and the great opportunity I have to communicate and connect with you, I can make any kind of album I want.  Talk about freedom!  I have a feeling it is going to be an eclectic mix. I have not yet made a record I feel captures ‘me’…and I don’t begrudge any part of my journey in getting me to here, where I can truly embrace my own voice; it has all been necessary. But now I am ready to step it up. Full expression is the goal and intention, and I am now in the thick of it, the real work, my first ever self-imposed ‘writing retreat’…digging for these songs that have been growing and peeking their little heads out - giving them the time and attention they deserve so that they can be shared.  

In Love,
xo
Pike at the beach.