New York - Vance Joy is the moniker of James Keogh, a breakout Australian singer-songwriter whose music’s been spreading like wildfire since it surfaced last year.
After releasing his debut EP, “God Loves You When You’re Dancing,” in March 2013 via Liberation Music, Keogh’s single “Riptide” drew international attention. The track was heavily rotated on Australian commercial radio, and was even featured in a US-based GoPro commercial. Shortly thereafter, Keogh signed to Atlantic Records for a behemoth five-album deal.
Well into the heart of a US tour, Keogh spoke to BestNewBands.com about his foray into music, his sonic influences and how to keep an authentic grip on reality amidst a sudden and explosive bought of stardom.
Read the interview below to glean how this musician thinks, and watch an exclusive premiere of Vance Joy on the road during Splendour in the Grass, presented by Mushroom. Coupled together, the text and extemporaneous video below paint an intimate portrait of an artist well on the rise, and one who has guarded his artistic intent with thoughtful precision and humble grace.
BEST NEW BANDS: What artists would you list as influential to your sound?
JAMES KEOGH: I just like good song writing, so musicians like Paul Kelly, Beck, Bon Iver and Coldplay.
Can you talk about your decision to become a musician? I understand you were on the path to becoming a lawyer.
Right, I was studying at Uni to do law. About halfway through, I wrote a few songs I was really proud of. It made me start believing that maybe I could do music. I kept writing songs in the background while I was finishing my degree, and by the time I was finished I had about five or six songs I was really proud of. It wasn’t a big decision; it was more about coming to the realization of seeing what I could do with music, and getting out for gigs in my area, in Melbourne. My dream, at that point, was just to get some recordings under my belt.
You’ve just finished writing Dream Your Life Away, which is slated for release in September 2014 in the US. What was it like writing your first LP?
For this first full-length album, I was writing a lot on the road. It can be hard to describe how certain songs come into the world. Sometimes you can push them around a bit, and it’s more obvious how they work. But sometimes it’s like a little accident how it happens, and you can stretch it out into a song. My songwriting approach has been similar throughout, I think, from my first song until now.
What informs your lyricism?
Well, my mum was an English teacher, and she gave me a lot of help throughout school to express myself clearly and economically. I try to do that in my songs, too, hopefully to achieve that clarity. I like reading and I like watching good films, so sometime I come across great lines in books, films and other songs that inspire me. Songwriting can be about incorporating themes from those sources into the thought process, and reworking those ideas into my own words.
Favorite film/book?
I don’t have a favorite film, but one that I watched recently and really like is No Country For Old Men. A book I’ve read that I really enjoyed recently was one called Lucky Jim.
You actually took your band name from a novel, correct?
Yeah, exactly. I got the name from a character in Bliss, which is an Australian novel by Peter Carey.
What made you choose that?
It was kind of part of my creative vision. I wanted to take a serious step into music at the time, and I thought that having an alias would help me to do that. I thought it would help me create an atmosphere.
I think it’s safe to say you’ve garnered a lot of attention quite rapidly. It must have been a quick pivot, getting picked up by Atlantic Records. I’m wondering how that felt.
Yeah, it was definitely a bit of a rush. Sometimes you feel pressure, and you find yourself thrown into a mix of people and personalities quite suddenly. Before, you’re used to a kind of “happyville,” or a private creative bubble. But entering the world bursts that bubble.
Honestly, I just try and focus on what’s real. I know that songwriting is real. I know that playing shows is real. I know that the feeling of working hard is real. I think those things are the touchstones that can navigate the confusion and help a musician hold onto a sense of identity. Sometimes reviews and charts and figures can throw me off. All that stuff isn’t really real at all, though. It can be distracting.
Lets talk about “Riptide.” What inspired the song and how did you settle on the visual accompaniment?
My role was really to just say ‘yes.’ I got a number of pitches, and all I’d said was that I wanted to make a literal video. It would be too hard to translate that song into a separate story line, or to make it more prosaic or predictable. When the director [Dimitri Basil] sent me a few pictures of things he’d assembled, shots of props and stuff, he made it look so great and it was really exciting.
What new groups are you listening to currently?
I like Chet Faker from Australia a lot, and I also like Royal Blood, they’re really good live.
You’re launching a big US tour, and you’ll continue the touring trek across Europe through November. What’s next?
I’m always trying to write while I’m on the road, but you sort of take what you can get and just keep trying. In January I’ll be done with touring for a bit, so after that I just want to go to the beach, chill out and kind of recuperate.
Liz Rowley
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