Lily (June 2021)

 

(Nick Santos AKA Lily)

Nick Santos is the talented voice behind his up-and-coming project Lily, with music that’s been given as much love as the dog it shares a name with. Santos writes in to talk about his debut album Honesty Hour, the future of the scene, and what making music means to him. 

RRX: Tell me a bit about your project. I understand you also play in Lemon of Choice, however, the focus of this band seems to be more focused on lyrics and a more atmospheric sound (from what I've heard, correct me if I'm wrong), is this an accurate interpretation?

NS: You’re definitely right about Lily being more focused on lyrics. I spend a lot of time trying to make sure my lyrics make sense and can convey certain thoughts or feelings. A lot of the lyrics are written from a pretty autobiographical standpoint and many of the songs are related to pretty strong feelings about things I tend to not discuss outside of the music. That being said, the music is pretty close to me and is a lot more serious compared to the Lemon material. Joe and Dan tend to focus more on the music then put some lyrics over them. It’s pretty interesting to hear you describe the music as atmospheric though. I certainly don’t think you’re wrong, especially looking back at how much background noise is featured on the album. I mean the first track off the album ends with like fifteen voice memos and audio pulled from videos from my phone all played at the same time. Plus like half the songs have some sort of layered feedback tracks. When I wrote the songs though I guess it never was an intentional atmosphere created. Honestly, though, I’m still trying to figure out the sound of Lily. When I first began writing the album the songs were more based around trying to sound like Microwave. There’s also a lot of acoustic singer-songwriter influence on some songs. I’ve even heard some songs being described as twangy alt-country. I think the overall sound will figure itself out over time, and can always be subject to change. I guess the main goal of Lily for me right now is just to write genuine songs that people can relate to. If I don’t believe what I’m singing though I can’t really expect others to either. 

RRX: How does it feel working in both contexts? What is the difference to you between working on a LoC song and a Lily song?

NS: Working in both contexts is a blast just because the projects are so different. There’s a lot less responsibility on my part when it comes to LoC. Dan and Joe write all the songs then bring them to Sam and me. Sometimes they write the bass part sometimes they don’t, but my whole job in that band is to just show up and play the bass. I don’t really handle any of the business or back-end of that band so as I said, definitely less responsibility. Lily on the other hand is the complete opposite. I write all the songs and bring them to the other three. I make all the artwork and handle all the back-end work and the other three get to just show up and play. I enjoy a lot of that extra stuff no one really talks about with bands. Even though I fronted groups in high school, I didn’t have a project like that until my third year of college. Having the low stakes part in LoC though made me take for granted a lot of the like social aspect. I remember driving to the first Lily show with Joe and about halfway there I was like “oh shit I have to like... talk to people and do the thing.” 

 RRX: Is the project name/project itself conceptual at all? I'm assuming Lily is the dog used in art and in a lot of your pictures. 

NS: No, it’s not really conceptual. I wish there was more to it, but I just liked the name! Lily is the name of my dog, and she is used in the artwork and can be seen throughout a lot of our social media. I got her about three years ago and she’s just great. I wish I could get her little ear muffs so she could come chill at shows. Also, I just wanted to one-up the people that make Instagrams for their dogs… I made a whole band.

RRX: What's your favorite part of the songwriting process? (coming up with the song, practicing it, recording, production)

NS: All of it and none of it. I’m sure most people who write music can attest to this, but I have a real love-hate relationship with the whole process. I tend to be really hard on myself so every time I’m like hey this is cool, ten minutes later I’m like burn it all down! I’m also very much one of those people who can really only write at certain times. If I try to force it and write when I’m not feeling some type of way, it just doesn't feel genuine and I get frustrated and question my whole musical existence. As I said earlier the lyrics are really important to me so to an extent that may be one of my favorite parts. While I’m doing it I’m like this sucks, but once I find a certain word or string certain lines together it’s all worth it. I’ll also say for the longest time I really wasn’t a fan of the recording and production of my own stuff. While I was working on the album though I developed a new love for the process because it lets me really shape and add things I can’t in a live setting. 

RRX: What are your plans for the future/I see you've been working on getting an album out which I'm excited to listen to, is there anything you'd like to share about that?

NS: Yeah! We are releasing our debut album Honesty Hour. It’s a mix of a lot of different sounds from singer-songwriter, to emo alt-rock, to almost alt-country? It was supposed to be released April 30th, but we’re having some distribution issues, and at this point, it’s anyone’s guess when it’ll be actually available on platforms. Best bet right now is to just follow along on social media (@lilybandny) and we’ll keep you updated. I’ve been trying to come up with a way to put a fun twist on the delay but haven’t come with anything yet. I’ve also been working on writing and demoing new material so be on the lookout for some of that in the coming months. Also, fingers crossed we can get back to live shows sometime in the future! I’ve got a lead on our first live audience show late this summer so stay tuned for that. 

RRX: I see you've done and are still planning many live stream events, what are your thoughts on this method of performing/what are some challenges you've faced with these kinds of shows?

NS: We definitely have done a number of live-streamed events over the last year or so. I have pretty mixed feelings about these shows. On the one hand, I’m glad that I was fortunate enough to live with my friends/bandmates during quarantine. I’m glad that I’ve been able to continue to play music with people on a regular basis through all of this. I also can appreciate live streams because I have friends and family in other states who normally wouldn’t be able to see us perform but now can from their living room. Like I have a friend in North Carolina who has watched pretty much every live stream we played, but a year ago had no idea what we sounded like. On the other hand, nothing can beat the energy of a live crowd. One of the last in-person shows we played in person as Lily was at the Byrdhouse on a bill with Shred Flinstone. The energy from that show just can not be recreated when you’re playing to a camera, instead of people standing two feet away from you. Live shows are very much a give and take between bands and the audience and you kind of build off one another. 

RRX: So many of the bands I've interviewed for this magazine have come to be through the Saint Rose music program, and yet I've heard the program is being shut down. Can you explain what is going on with that and what are your thoughts on this; how do you think it will impact the scene/community?

NS: So this is a bit of a touchy subject I think but I’ll try to stay on track here. First I’ll say the music industry program at Strose is not being shut down. It’s just the music ed and music performance programs. It’s incredibly unfortunate for many reasons. The first is there are incredible professors and mentors losing their jobs and having to relocate their entire families. There are several professors from those programs who made a big difference in my as well as probably every one of their students' college careers. They gave a shit when others didn’t which is so important especially when you’re trying to learn subjects like music theory and ear training. To see them leaving is pretty upsetting but I know they’ll carry that same impact wherever they go. Also, growing up in a small town in Maine music education was not very prevalent, so watching the education program cut just makes me weary of the direction of young musicians. A lot of people, especially higher-ups in education take music ed for granted so those programs are usually the first to get cut and that sucks. It will be interesting to see how the industry program handles things being the only music program left at Strose. I know they have shifted theory and ear training to a more commercial approach which is kinda neat.  As far as the scene and community, that's a tough one. I think as far as the music goes, people are still going to play music. Like the industry program still exists and there’s a ton of great local bands that aren’t made up of music majors. Those two programs did show up and support a lot of the local scene though. Not having that extra group of people interested in music may somewhat affect the turnout at least for a little bit in the college DIY scene. 

RRX: What's an album that you think is perfect/close to perfect?

NS: It's impossible to pick one so I’ve narrowed it to two. The first one is definitely Much Love by Microwave. Everything from production, to lyrics, to the arrangement is just perfect to me. I’ve listened to that album so many times and every listen is still exciting and fresh to me. The second is The Party by Andy Shauf. He is without a doubt one of my favorite songwriters. The whole album is a concept of these stories he’s seen or created at parties. The arrangements are so strong throughout and the stories he creates are so detailed and emotive. Plus the drum sound on the album is wicked distinct and different from the norm, but they fit so well in the songs it's awesome.

RRX: If live shows were to suddenly come back, what's a band you'd kill to see right now?

NS: Oof. At this point, I’d be excited to go to pretty much any live show. I’d love to see Andy Shauf live though. I’ve seen his other band Foxwarren, but if I could see Shauf with a full band arrangement like in his Live at Massey Hall video I’d be ecstatic. I’d also like to see Thee Oh Sees or Psychedelic Porn Crumpets. Something that makes you wanna move a bit. I’d also kill to see Liz Cooper & the Stampede. 

RRX: Is there anything of yours or that your friends have done that you'd like to plug here?

NS: For sure! For starters, everyone in the band has their own projects that should be checked out. Dan has Dan Carr and the Cure for Asthma, Joe has joetaurone, and Sam has Cheesy Snacks. You can check them out on all platforms and they also are constantly adding new stuff to their Bandcamp. Dan and Joe have also been writing and demoing new songs for Lemon of Choice so there is some really great stuff to be expected from Lemon soon. Also our friend/housemate, Brian Masella is about to release an absolutely killer album. I don’t want to spoil the name or announcement of it just yet cuz I don’t think he’s made an official announcement, but it’s awesome and should be on people's radars. I also play bass in the band Stella and the Reptilians. Stella’s got a number of releases scheduled for the month of May, including a music video and the single “Better For Me” that was released 5/14. As far as Lily, obviously, we have the album coming out. At this point, it could be out tomorrow or in two weeks, but again follow @lilybandny on Instagram and Facebook for updates on that. As I said earlier I’ve been working on new songs and started demoing new material to put out this summer!

RRX: Do you see a brighter future for the upstate music scene?

NS: I sure hope so! After losing spots like the Low Beat and other venues it may take a while to get the ball rolling again but I think there is always a need for music, and I think music will continue to come from Strose and the rest of the upstate scene. I know when I first came to Albany, I was so surprised by the whole DIY scene. At least in Maine, a lot of the scene was shows being hosted in vet halls, but certainly not as frequent as upstate. My first two years at Strose there were multiple shows every weekend between The Rice House, The Rat Den, The Orange Peel, and other house venues. Plus the fact that B Sides could fill three consecutive days with artists, shows me that there is no lack of art being made in or around the upstate area. I also know that every single show I ever went to at the Byrdhouse was packed wall to wall. Again there will always be a need for music. I’m sure people have been busy creating quarantine so there will probably be a lot of new projects being unveiled soon. People are also pretty eager to get back to live music so I’m hoping the turnouts will be better than ever as we all try to get back to normal. 

RRX: This question is open for anything else you want to say!

NS: First I just want to say thank you so much for having me do this interview! I had a blast thinking about the answers and it’s obvious y’all put a lot of thought into the questions which is neat and appreciated. The only thing left to say is if you’re reading this get the vaccine, or if you really don’t want it at least wear your masks when you need to and just do your part to help get us back to live shows! 

Check out Lily’s debut Honesty Hour when it drops and follow here:

Instagram: @lilybandny