Emily Wells at Bottom of the Hill 11/3/2012

Musician, producer, performer, songwriter, composer, Emily Wells brought her intriguing sound and soulful style to Bottom of the Hill Saturday night and she invited me inside for a quick interview before the venue opened it's doors.

Q: Have you been to Bottom of the Hill before?
A:Yes, I have, just to see a show though. I don't remember who it was but I remember having sort of a life changing conversation here but I don't recall the band that I was seeing (laughs) 
Q: Well that's cool, I'd say that's a sign of a good time. 
A: Yes. 

Q: Many people describe your music as a mixture of classical and hip-hop. Do you agree with this description of your music?
A: I think that I have made music that has been heavily influenced by those things but I wouldn't say that that's all I am interested in making, you know what I mean? When you're  a band...well who knows, I don't know... I think maybe people want me to keep doing that. (laughs) but, people think that's all I do but....
Q: but you  do more
A: (smiles) yeah absolutely and  I am influenced by so much music but those two (classical and hip-hop) have been pretty major for me so I think they find there way in more than anything else. 

Q: I read that you started playing the violin when you were 4 years old and that your first violin was plastic?

A: Yeah! (laughs) You did do some reading! Yes, it was from Michael's and I think my parents were trying to appease me and, it didn't work (smiles) so...then I started the  Suzuki method for kids and yeah. 

Q: I picture a pink plastic violin, was it pink?

A:  No it was actually like faux wood, ya know, tan. 

Q: Ah, gotchya, so it looked real. Ok ok, now I have a clear picture of a young Emily Wells playing a plastic violin. 

A: (laughs) yes. 

Q: You play a bunch of different instruments; violin, guitar,  banjo, analog,  synthesizers, toy pianos and I will probably pronounce this wrong, glockenspiels?
A: Oh! That was exactly right.
Q: It was? Oh yeah! Do you have a favorite instrument?
A:  Umm, the violin. Yeah. Or the loop petal I kind of feel like it is an instrument,you know. It's like a tool to get cross arrangements live and so that kind of feels like an instrument even though you know it doesn't have strings or keys or whatever. But I love the violin, it's the thing I feel most comfortable with. Everything else I'm like "oh! maybe I can sort of get that to work!" so yeah.
                                                                             
                                                                       

Q: Tell me a little bit about the LP Mama, which was released earlier this year.
A: Right, in April.Well,  I recorded it in Topanga Canyon. Most of it was done on tape and conceptually...it's about lose mostly, on a lot of levels and yeah. It's been fun touring it but I'm kind of ready to move on. Mama got a little delayed being released and I have a new record written.
Q: Wow, really?  That's pretty awesome! I've listened to Mama a bunch and I really enjoy it, it's a great album.
A: Thank you very much.

Q: You have been on tour co-headlining with Dark Dark Dark, how is that going?
A: It's good, yeah. It's really fun. I like them a lot. I like their music a lot. You know when you sign up to go on the road with a band you better like their music cause you're going to have it stuck in your head. I was turned on to Dark Dark Dark long before we met and they have a song called Bright Bright Bright that I love. I try to get them to play it every night but...

Q: Have you encountered any fanatics along the way?
A:  (laughs) yeah, yeah definitely. Usually every night there's someone who's a little overzealous (laughs) Sometimes you just need to walk away but most times if you pause and look deeper in to the person they're seeing something of themselves in you so you have to be careful with that kind of power.
Q: Sounds like you probably got a good handle of it if it happens every night.
A: (smiles) Well to some degree. I was once a very excited fan as a teenager so know what that feels like, it feels very important.
A: Very.

Q: Last question here Emily then I'll let you get ready for your set. Halloween just passed, did you dress up?
A: I did. I dressed up as Bruce Springsteen.
Q: Awesome!
A: It was a really easy costume. I do love Bruce and I like his style.
Q: And did you sing?
A: I was preforming so...
Q: So yes
A: Exactly (laughs) I didn't sing any Sprinsteen though.   I kind of want to do a whole cover album of Nebraska, so yeah.
Q: That would be cool, I want to hear that.


Q: Thank you so much Emily I know how busy show days are! Looking forward to the show.
A: Thank you.

"Alright let's do this!" Emily told the crowd after technical hiccups and ill-placed equipment delayed the unique modern genre hybrid set and she got the party started on her violin with an instrumental diddy.

Emily is a true solo- artist: behind mixers and synthesizers, in between drums and symbols one could not help but be spellbound. The allure continued as Emily exclaimed "YEAH SAN FRANCISCO!" as she picked up a staccato timpani mallet banged it on a symbol and jumped right into the traveling circus-esque song "Symphony 2 & The Click Click Boom". 

Emily's eccentricity and accompanying eclecticism continued as  she graced the crowd with tracks off of Mama, including the bluesy, trip-hop, slow-tempoed track, "Mama's Gonna Give You Love" . Experiencing  Emily Wells live I realized that the far fetched resemblance of Emily's vocals compared to those of  Lana Del Rey are inescapable on record and onstage only Emily's vocals don't sound contrived. 


On December 7th Emily's tour with Dark Dark Dark ends but there is no stopping Emily Wells: "Becomes the Color"from the Stoker soundtrack is already out for your enjoyment and as Emily waits to record her next album you can listen to 2012's Mama!