A música pode causar infinitas sensações dependendo do seu estado de espírito. Pode te levar a loucura plena, nervosismo caótico, intimismo completo, ou ainda, te fazer flutuar sem ao menos você se mexer.
A música de Rhyan Riesgo através de seu projeto Todavia ativa a leveza da alma, conduzida por camadas suaves e cristalinas envoltas em um perfeito mundo de sonhos.
Evocando os mitos da cultuada 4AD, o Todavia cometeu um dos discos mais suavemente encantadores que ouvi neste ano, "Shyness", lançado em Abril, é uma preciosidade, simples assim.
Hipnoticamente envolvente.
Hipnoticamente envolvente.
***** Interview with Todavia *****
1. Todavia started in 2013 as a bedroom project. I was studying music theory at the time and had been on a music writing hiatus. everything I wrote, I felt was never good enough and in a way I still suffer from that mentality. I was heavily influenced by groove armada and washed out around that time, and so 'zoology' which was released in 2014, was intentionally very open, lots of space, more keyboard. all the guitar sounds ironically were keyboard. I didn't play guitar then. 'zoology' has everything to do with the beginning of todavia. from start to finish, 'zoology' tells a story. todavia for me is a space to exist where I feel I can't. it is dark, safe and intentional. it wasn't until 'stay' was released that I learned how to play guitar, and truly work on what todavia has become now. 'shyness' which I just released on 4/28 has everything to do with this new sense of myself. in 2013 i was very much afraid of showing the universe what I felt/thought/etc., and shyness (ironically, considering it's title and all) is a "coming-out". i want and try to love myself. I want to show the universe n o w what makes me unique, different, special and against any and everything conventional.
Q: Who are your influences?
2. my biggest influences are beach house, cocteau twins, erasure, and washed out. #1 will forever be beach house. I never thought analytically about presenting my music in the marketing world, I was solely focused on the artistry. but watching beach house on their last DC/TYLS tour really helped show me that there really is no disconnect from marketing + artistry. there is plenty of room for both as a brand. my image, my self, my music, my feeling is what todavia should be as a whole, always. siempre y todavia.
Q. Make a list of 5 albuns of all time…
3. top 5 records of all time :
1. the hurting - tears for fears,
2. four calendar cafe - cocteau twins,
3. devotion - beach house,
4. remain - them are us too,
5. mind out wandering - astronauts, etc.
Q. How do you feel playing live?
4. playing live has always been so odd to me ! there I am, facing a crowd, revealing who i am, having to translate a feeling so deep inside me. I had been obsessed with this idea of perfection and what was conventional for people in a 'band' like setting. once I started to own myself, really romanticize the 'multi-instrumentalism' aspect of me (because I play a lot of different instruments and not one do I truly feel I identity with entirely), I really started to think more about what is special about me, and what I can bring to a space so that others can understand what I am trying to translate in my music. gradually and slowly, I am being much more comfortable on stage. I wear a hat and mostly look down the entire time, but that is for comfort. I am so preoccupied with playing different parts that i forget anyone is even watching me.
Q. How do you describe Todavia sounds?
5. todavia is a feeling. it is dark, comforting, intentional and lush. it is dream-like but also very lucid. it is a space I hope will generate heartbreakingly beautiful ideas, feelings, and desires. it is purple and it is hard to see, but very easy to feel. it is a space to get to know yourself.
Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
6. tracking songs + writing songs typically happen together. it always starts with a loop. on my roland fantom I am able to build tracks and loop different sounds. I can have the loop going for hours, building, playing, jamming different ideas. I'll have vocals being looped, I'll usually be playing guitar. once I fall in love with it, I'll track it right away. mixing usually happens while I track just for efficiency and because everything is being done on my laptop anyways. i tend to obsess over things for short periods of time. I will completely fall in love with a track but throw it in the trash 3 weeks later. I might save a loop from years ago, but appreciate it's feeling and never reveal it. it all depends.
Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
7. *new* bands are tough. I'm obsessive so I always recommend beach house. I don't know any new bands but I do recommend them are us too, grave pool, seeame, and ghost noise as far as what I've been into lately.
Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
8. I would totally say beach house, but I tend to cover them already. it would be fun to cover cocteau twins because I feel like it would be so difficult to hear each individual layer of elizabeth fraser's vocal tracks and to capture it truly. I also don't play guitar that well either so that would be difficult too ! I started working on a cover of britney spears' 'toxic' but that got weird quick.
Q: What are your plans for the future?
9. my plans are to keep playing, working, and hustling as much as I can. I am completely d.i.y, I do my own booking, marketing, mixing, mastering, tracking, playing, writing, design, etc. etc., so it is incredibly validating the response I get from this project, and because of that it makes it easier to not give up or slow down. every now and then when I get frustrated with my own abilities I consider giving up. if I give up though I think I would probably die. a lot of energy is spent in my music, and why not keep going even if no one is listening? my life revolves around music. teaching, learning, absorbing as much as I possibly can. i suppose my only set plan is to keep working and to keep being involved with music.
Q: Any parting words?
10. my only parting words are to thank you for the opportunity to speak on myself and todavia. it is one thing to reach out to people in an effort to get noticed versus someone else reaching out because they noticed. thank you again for the opportunity.
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Thanks
http://www.todaviamusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/pg/todaviamusic
https://todaviamusic.bandcamp.com/
