Bryde Unveils 'Like An Island' – Review+Interview.
Bryde has become one of our favourite artists here at Nexus. Bryde provides a voice for individuals looking to express what is often held in the absolute depths of human emotion. Bryde’s ability to dig deep into subjects and openly express feelings is what allows audiences and fans alike to connect on a variety of levels.
With the release of ‘Like an Island‘, it appears that the strength to stand alone and be adrift of influences that are unwelcome really hit home. And this is not a negative at all. Bryde absolutely shines in her own space, and rightly so. The melodies, the timbre, the emotional depth and sense of space all help to teleport you into Bryde‘s world. It’s a beautiful poetic journey that will swiftly become apart of your outlook.
‘To Be Brave’ is an absolute monster track to kick off ‘Like An Island‘ with. And this is not in the traditional sense, it doesn’t contain a wall of sound. Nor does it force itself into your ears. It naturally weaves its way into your subconscious, it is delivered with a mysterious quality that will draw you in instantly. The sense of space and atmosphere blend almost seamlessly throughout, merging to form an image that draws out an inquisitive nature. My thoughts immediately after this track were:
“If this is what we get for an introduction, then I better strap myself in”.
And I wasn’t disappointed in the slightest going through the rest of ‘Like An Island‘. You wholeheartedly get drawn into this through ‘To Be Brave‘ and then the magic begins… Want my advice? Make sure you are comfy (honestly).
Following this, ‘Less‘ enters the fray to take you on the journey to the heart of the release from the moment that you touch down amongst the music. And the politeness of ‘To Be Brave‘ disappears as electric guitar tones kick in to take centre stage. All whilst a fever of ferocity and ‘in your face’ attitude builds and delivers a performance that gets your blood pumping at one hundred miles per hour.
With such a unique and fantastic blending of songwriting, immersion, atmosphere and delicate balances throughout, ‘Like An Island‘ is phenomenal. It has a sense of timelessness, with tracks such as ‘Euphoria‘ providing further emotion on top of what is already contained amongst ‘Like An Island‘. ‘Like An Island‘ is a body of work that will add to an already impressive collection of releases, leaving fans (us included) proud of what we hear.
We also managed to get an interview with Bryde for the release ‘Like An Island‘, which can be viewed below. Getting an interview with Bryde is something which we are absolutely thrilled about! So thank you to Bryde for chatting to us and congratulations on such a fantastic release!
How do you feel your experiences growing up have helped to shape you as an artist?
Well for some reason they’ve not put me off being one, which they definitely could have done. I lost my best friend and band member Nia George to Leukaemia at the age of 20. Nia was my best friend from the age of 8 so that was a horrendously difficult time. The disappointment was huge but also low down on a list of overwhelming emotions. I think the moment I decided to carry on playing music after that, I probably unknowingly committed the rest of my life to it. Aside from that, growing up around some very supportive parents and teachers enabled me to continue and have provided the much-needed thick skin and self-belief to still be doing it!
Who do you credit as being amongst your most defining musical influences?
Jeff Buckley, Tori Amos, Radiohead, Fleetwood Mac, Kylie Minogue, The National.
How has the creation of your label Seahorse Music impacted the way you make and think about your own current and future releases?
It’s kind of the other way round, to be honest. My releasing of my own music over ten years with Paper Aeroplanes to the last couple of Bryde years have informed the setting up of my label. Having the label definitely makes it clear which traits help an artist to succeed, irrespective of talent. The industry changes every week as well so it means I’m keeping even more up to date on the different ways that music can be introduced to the market.
Wales seems to continually produce incredible emerging songwriters such as yourself, Lost Like Alice, Cally Rhodes and many more. What’s the secret……?
I’ve not heard of those artists but will definitely look them up now. I’m not sure there’s a secret. I think the Welsh are generally good at authenticity, at being themselves, so maybe that helps
What characteristics do you feel are important for any modern artist to have?
Tenacity, authenticity, humility and a healthy dose of self-belief boarding on the unrealistic.
You manage to portray a great level of depth within your music. When you are songwriting, is this something that you are continually conscious about?
I’m glad you think they have depth because no, I’m not conscious of it at all except for maybe feeling a little exposed sometimes. I’m not sure that depth is something that emerges from anything contrived so it’s probably not surprising that I write quite naturally and the lyrics are sometimes fairly simple because I like to let them be nothing more than gut feelings.
What is your process for songwriting and how do you go about capturing the fragility and emotion of a subject or memory?
My writing process is just to sit down with a guitar and noodle around. When I’m in a more focused period of writing I’ve recently been benefiting from taking myself away to an Airbnb or a borrowing a friend’s apartment just to get some long periods of alone time and a change of scenery. If any fragility or emotion is captured then I’m grateful to whichever force allows that to happen.
Talk to us a bit about the upcoming dates you have on your tour, it looks to be a busy few months!
The tour will be epic! We can’t wait to get out here. Especially looking forward to the London and Cardiff shows which are always electric and then playing in Milan and the Spanish cities for the first time will be amazing too.
Thematically and creatively, what do you feel this LP offers that differs from past releases?
I think some of the themes have continued but there’s this definite light that emerges in some songs. Euphoria for me sums up that light at the end of a tunnel and the next record although still very Bryde will have a different tone.
If there were three things you’d hope an audience can take from this LP, what would they be?
A sense of belonging, a feeling of empowerment or exhilaration and the idea that they’d quite like to see us play those songs live.