ZACH MOSS TALKS KEEP THE SHADOWS AWAY

Behind the Coastline

You are reading an independently published interview-series published and carefully curated by Swedish pop-culture journalist Daniel John. Ever since its start in 2015, the core curiosity remains the same, surfing the creative currents of music, film, fashion and everything else on the pop-radar, catching the waves of culture as creative

Culture Coast TalksDaniel John

One would've hought you would be slowing down, at least some, after only having released an album pretty much only half a year ago. But you really have not. What has this time since the album release looked like?

I was immediately inspired by the process of recording from ‘Dark to Light’. Having that experience under my belt allowed me to look at the creation of the next songs differently. Since the release of the first album, my time has been poured into writing new material, booking shows, and most importantly, rehearsing with the band. A strong live show is very important to us.

Are the songs you've put out this year songs that just as well could have been on the 'Dark to Light' album or did you actually write these after?

'Cycles', 'The Mountain', and 'Keep The Shadows Away' were all written after the records release. I saw no sense in holding out for another full release, and decided it would be better for relevance to release them as singles. This served to practice my writing and recording process, as well as hone release marketing skills.

Spiritually they seem to have come out of a similar place?

As far as the spiritual connection, I prefer to think of them as blocks, built on the foundation of 'Dark to Light'. They are more mature approaches to the issues of mental health and spirituality than I believe I achieved on the record.

What is 'Keep The Shadows Away' about, What was it that inspired you to write this?

Shortly after finishing 'The Mountain' and preparing for it's release, a friend took their own life. This was not my first experience with suicide. But something about this one sparked a voice inside of me that needed out. I began to imagine the desperate feelings one must feel before making a decision like that. So I created a character who's lost in the desert. They are broken, alone and desperate, they cling to their campfire hoping it will keep their "shadows" away. It's a dark song, but it's also an issue that so many go through. I wanted to create something that made it clear that no one that is feeling that way is ever really alone, because there also so many of us who have been there and understand.

Why do you think that you write songs?

To be blunt, I struggled most of my life with addiction and mental illness, while a few of the songs were written in that time, most of them were written after getting sober. For me, I wrote them as reflections of that process, or even as messages to friends and family, like the song 'These Sounds'. I had no idea if people would connect with them. I've come to meet many people since who identify completely with my experiences. Because of this, while I always want to be true to myself when writing I've come to love connecting with others. As far as sharing and having people listen., at the very least it's shown me that I'm not alone in this world.

The life of a musician itself comes with a lot of highs and lows. A lot of setbacks to go along with every step forward. Does that pressure get to you?

I always feel nervous about releasing new songs, but luckily, I have some amazing people around me who help me through the entire process. The encouragement and feedback from the people closest to me has been invaluable.

You also released a live-album. Do you like being on stage?

I absolutely love playing live as I believe our live-sets is the most accurate representation of where we are as a band. We were all extremely happy with how the live-album turned out that we decided to put it out. It's been very helpful for attracting more people to shows, as well as sending venues for booking purposes.

Did you ever busk or the like?

I have not done much busking in my life, but I have played many many open mics, over the years.

You are often joined by the talented musicians in the band The Half Measures?

We've quickly become very musically close, and the difference between me playing solo versus with them is staggering. They've brought a fullness to the songs that I couldn't have imagined. All of the guys became involved in their own way and I am extremely grateful for them.

Might we be in for even more songs soon or will you spend some more time on stage this upcoming summer?

Both, we will definitely be hitting as many stages as we can, and we already have new music in the making.