Author: Amelia
Addley is a Liverpool based artist combining alternative songwriting and instrumentation with electronic elements and dance beats. Already so early on in his career, his heartfelt lyrics and huge instrumentation have been featured on BBC Introducing, with his upcoming single "Where You Were".
Addley's combination of acoustic and electric instruments in "Where You Were" creates a unique sound that makes you want to get up and dance, whilst also maintaining an emotional connection to his lyrics. "Where You Were" takes the intense emotions of grief and loss and transforms them into something accessible, somehow allowing you to feel without stripping away the fun of the song's instrumentation.
When asked how he would describe his sound, Addley told us that he wanted to experiment with balancing these two types of instrumentation on each of his tracks, saying,
"It can be really powerful to hear how synths, electronic beats and pads work with the more traditional band set up of piano, guitars, drums and live strings. I feel that with every track I'm working on I'm always conscious of finding out ways to work out the best and most interesting interactions of these different sounds".
We have been lucky enough to hear "Where You Were" ahead of its release, and agree that the track showcases this combination beautifully. When I first listened, I was immediately reminded of Florence and the Machine, who Addley tells us is one of his main influences.
"I think the main artists who influence my song writing are the likes of Florence and The Machine, London Grammar, Daughter… all the bands I’ve listened to on a constant loop for as long as I’ve really loved music. The past few years though I’ve become obsessed with electronic music and how artists like Bicep, Faithless and Disclosure can create these massive sounds and tracks that are so immersive and energetic. I feel like the energy and danceability of these artists is definitely something that is more often finding its way into my music, and I love it! Overall, it’s big alternative/indie bands but add some synths and beats to make it a bit more on the ravey side."
With a song that features such grand instrumentation and so many layers, we always love to know how these types of tracks sound in their beginning stages. Addley has walked us through his songwriting process.
"Most often my songs seem to start with a little hook I’ll get in my head, so for ‘Where
You Were’ it was just the main chorus melody of “it’s in my chest, round my neck and
the cold takes hold”. I’ll get a little melody line and then run to the piano and work out
how to play this with whatever chords go from there really. All the good ones seem to
go like that! After I’ve got the song finished just on the piano, just melody and chords,
I’ll record it and start to add and write the different parts until I’ve got a full track! The
song will normally take a few hours to write in its most basic form but then weeks
and weeks to finish adding all the other elements, which I think is the same for most
artists really."
With huge names like Florence and the Machine and Faithless listed as his musical inspirations, we were interested to know what else made Addley start creating music.
"I’ve always loved music and wrote songs but it’s honestly the past few years I’ve
started to believe in myself that I could actually do it on my own. I think since I’ve
started to find more self-confidence and belief that I’ve began to take things seriously
and put my everything into creating and sharing my music. Now I’m just so excited to
get going!"
Luckily for us, Addley has found that confidence to not only release his first single, but to pave the way for lots of exciting projects. When we asked Addley what we could look forward to from him, he told us,
"There’s a lot coming up I’m so excited about, I’ve gathered a big five-piece band
together and we’re getting ready to start live performances and recording live
sessions very soon! The next few singles are also done and nearly ready so you can
expect them very very soon. This is honestly just the start of everything I’ve got
planned and I’m so excited to share it!"
You can hear "Where You Were" from 27th January. Addley is definitely an artist to watch out for in the future.
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