#luxtides

Amandah Opoku: Danni thank you for doing this interview today! Before we kick off please tell our readers about yourself and one new artist you've discovered recently Luxtides: Hi guys, I’m Danni Bouchard and I’m an artist called Luxtides. Prior to being a solo artist, I was one half of the folk/pop duo Oh Honey. An artist I’ve discovered recently is Lizzy McAlpine via TikTok, which is a platform I’m definitely trying to get better at.

AO: You were part of folk/pop duo Oh Honey which disbanded in 2016. After that you began creating music as a solo career. How has the transition been from creating music as a duo to a solo artist? Luxtides: When I started Luxtides, I wanted it to feel completely separate from Oh Honey. The music is darker and moodier, the lyrics are sadder. I’ve really enjoyed working with different writers and producers, and also just sitting down and writing at my keyboard by myself, which is something I lost for a while. As a person who loves to be in control of all aspects of my life, being a solo artist tends to work well for me. The decision-making process is tougher though! I am THE most indecisive person, and without bandmates to bounce ideas off of, I’ve been trying to get better at owning my decisions. So it’s been a good life lesson!

AO: Do you feel any pressure to match the success of your previous music endeavours with your music career? And has that affected the music that you make as a solo artist? Luxtides: Definitely. With OH, things exploded so quickly, and I was thrown into all of it without really knowing what I was doing. We did a lot of incredible things in a short time, but there were also things I wish we did differently. With Luxtides, it’s been a much slower, more deliberate build, but I feel so much more knowledgeable and better equipped this time around. It’s way too easy to compare, but one of my favorite quotes is “comparison is the death of happiness,” and it’s so true. I’ve learned to celebrate the wins, big and small, and I’m trying to do a better job of living in the moment vs always thinking about what’s next.

AO: During your time creating music as part of Oh Honey, what’s one piece of advice you received that you’ve carried with you as you pursue your solo music career? Luxtides: Write about what you know - and sometimes saying less says more. And that the music industry is extremely unpredictable, so you have to really, really love what you do and trust in that on the hard days.

AO: What would you say is the biggest challenge you’ve experienced as you’ve pursued your music career, both in your previous music endeavours and now as a solo artist? Luxtides: Probably pushing through my anxiety and lack of self-confidence. I’ve been making music for a living for 7 years now, but I still struggle. It’s a brutal industry, and it’s easy to compare yourself to your friends, or doubt yourself, or your talent, or your music. There are days when my anxiety spirals out of control and I shut down. I’ve learned it’s so important to take care of my mental health and also allow myself to take breaks. I’m trying to figure out a better balance.

AO: If you could use 3 words to describe your music, what words would you choose and why? Luxtides: Dark, dreamy, raw. A lot of my songs start as late-night poems or a lyric idea born on the subway. My main goal in my songwriting is to be honest but also to create music I want to listen to.

AO: 2020 has been quite a year for all of us. How has the pandemic affected you as a musician? What have you learned about yourself? Luxtides: As a human, I was a bundle of nerves in the beginning of the pandemic. But I decided that one of my goals was to get really good at recording and producing my own vocals during lockdown - it also gave me something productive to do when the rest of the world felt like it was put on pause. “After” is actually my first release I produced the vocals on, and I am so incredibly proud of that.  Beyond that, I really miss in-person writing sessions. Facetime just isn’t the same, it’s missing that “magic” you feel in a room full of friends (or strangers). That’s one of the things I’m most excited to get back to when the world is safe again. I also weirdly miss the subway (never thought I’d say that) - I do some of my best writing there. And obviously live shows!

AO: Earlier this year, you released your debut EP ‘Flood Sounds’. The EP was very personable, honest and raw. Going into the records release what did you set to achieve with it? And how has the response been? Luxtides: Thank you! Flood Sounds is the culmination of the first batch of songs I wrote as Luxtides, and I’m super proud of it. I went through so much that I was never able to write about, so once I started Luxtides, I had a lot to say. The songs on the EP each represent one of the five stages of grief, and are ordered in the way that I typically move through the grieving process. Releasing Flood Sounds (in the middle of a pandemic) helped me let go of a lot of pain - it also felt like it was paving the way for the next chapter.

AO: “After” is your new single, releasing on December 11th. What was the writing and recording process like? And how did it differ from the process for your earlier releases? Luxtides: “After” was written over a FaceTime session with two of my friends during the second week of NYC lockdowns. I wanted to write about what was happening in the world, but also about how I was processing it. I suffer from OCD and anxiety, and my mental health was in bad shape when all of this started. My co-writers Jackson Hoffman and Julia Brex are some of my favorite people I’ve ever worked with. The song came alive in the span of a couple hours. Jackson produced the track at his apartment, I recorded the vocals here, and we sent ideas back and forth via voice memos and videos. It was all very 2020.

AO: Following the release of “After”, what can fans expect from you next as we head into 2021? Luxtides: I feel like I always say this, but I have some really exciting things coming up that I can’t quite talk about yet. But 1000% you’ll be hearing more music.

AO: What do you want fans and new music listeners to like to take away from your music? Luxtides: I want people to feel heard. I listen to music when I‘m craving solidarity, to feel like someone else out there knows what I’m going through. My songs are about my life, so if someone can listen to them and feel a little bit less alone, that’s pretty much all I can ask for as an artist.

AO: As you continue to pursue your career as a solo artist, what goals have you set for yourself? And what do you hope to achieve within the next 5 years? Luxtides: If you asked me this before this year, my answer would’ve been very different. Since it’s pretty much impossible to plan anything in the current climate, other than (safely) getting back onstage, I would probably say….stay alive? Seriously, I’m so incredibly lucky to be healthy (knock on all the wood). 2020 definitely reframed my priorities, but I’m excited to start planning and dreaming again soon.

AO: Luxtides, thank you for sitting down with me! Before we close this interview is there anything you want to say to your fans and our readers? Luxtides: Follow me on all the socials! @luxtides. And keep streaming and sharing “After.” :)