If you like it dark this is most definitely one for you. We caught up with artist Ryan Louder for a brief chat on the his artistry, the London scene and censorship in music.
Where did your inspiration for ‘Ain’t No Other Way’ come from and how did you take positivity with bouts of depression?
The notion that as a human being we should be positive at all times I find unnatural. Thats why the adverts for positive thinking etc I find nauseating because I believe its not possible to stay that way 100 percent of the time and it just adds pressure on an already pressured society to be abnormally happy. When I have been depressed I quite often find afterwards that the lethargy and lack of motivation ended up giving me the space to reflect and evaluate. This space I think is positive. It was during one of those times that the lyric “I guess were all gana die someday” came to me and it just rung true and in a way snapped me out of my bubble of thinking which wasn’t healthy. Its another way of saying we only live once really.
What did you listen to growing up and how did it affect your own sound?
BJORK Massive Attack Johnny Cash Stravinsky Mozart Beethoven. I studied as a Composer at Royal College at the same time learning about Recording Studios and Synths so what I listened to was vast and varied.
Do you feel there’s an increasing amount of censorship going on within the arts today?
Yes I think its a different form of censorship than in the past now the censorship comes from laziness. We are shocked so easily now because we are so used to banality in content we consume online that it can be shocking to see content that is challenging and does not fit into the normal everyday music content consumption. Compared to Walking Dead my music video is a PIxar movie but because I put it into a music video You Tube were expecting to review a nice little song and me moving about looking out to the ocean with my guitar in hand. Thats why they reacting so dramatically because how dare I buck the trend of nice cool unchallenging music videos. BTW this used to happen all the time in 80s 90s we are so easily shocked now because we have got lazy in the world of music.
You’ve already produced for artists such as Dido and Troye Sivan – do you enjoy working with established artists or emerging generally and why?
Working with Dido is a dream come true it just does not get better than her in my eyes. I have worked with several established artists but theyre all so different you cannot make a general statement. If I could work with the calibre of Dido every day forever I would be a happy and content collaborator but she is one of the biggest selling artists of all time because talent like hers is rare. Troye Sivan was not an established artist when I worked with him he had just signed his deal with EMI. He was assured and knew what he wanted though and it was great to be part of that process with him.
We can identify echoes of Tom Waits and Fat White Family in your music, but how would you describe your sound?
Id agree with that but Id also add Nick Cave Leonard Cohen into that. I am several songs nearly finished to release and theyre all very different I know Im probably going to win a fan and then lose them with the next song but I am not out to be famous I just want to write songs that have depth and if my raw broken voice suits the tone of the meaning of the song then Ill put it out if it suits another artist then Ill do it with them. My Ego is not important the song is.
What do you think of the London music scene right now?
I love London I love a lot of artists in London I think we are living in an incredibly creative time I hope when they look back in 30 years time they will perceive this time as a golden era of music creation and London at the centre of it.
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