Expect the “Unseen”
Most of her believers impatiently await her upcoming debut album ... me too. To shorten the time of waiting I asked Ellie about what we can expect from her, from the album and the next months:
50K MM: What kind of Ellie Williams album can we expect?
Ellie: The album has 11 tracks on it, and I like to think they are fairly varied. There are some tracks that believers will recognize as we chose the three songs I had used originally on my profile. We worked really hard to keep the album true, which is more difficult than it sounds. This probably resulted in it taking slightly longer, as I wanted to put a band together who understood the songs, and not just use session musicians. (Although there is nothing wrong with that approach either). We haven’t tried to ‘rock’ up the songs or change them into something that they weren’t to begin with.
50K MM: Will it be a pure solo album or will we find something like "Sally Gardens", a song you recorded together with Banshee, on it?
Ellie: The album is a totally solo album. I had such a great time recording the vocals for Sally Gardens, but we had already decided on the full track listing. It was a realy hard to task to whittle down the songs, and you need to do this fairly early on so that you have a definitive plan when you go into the studio. Having said that a couple of songs that I wrote in the last month before recording made it on too. I got very inspired playing with other people and having the freedom to concentrate on the music.
50K MM: When will the album be released? Do have plans for a listening session or a release party?
Ellie: The album will be released on Tuesday, October 13th. We do have plans for the listening session, which we are still working on and trying to finalise-will let you know as soon as they are. As for a launch party, it is likely we are going to try and do a series of ‘launch’ gigs. Locally to myself and also in London. Who knows we may even make it across the channel too-watch this space.
50K MM: What do you plan for the rest of this year and maybe next year? Will we see you on stage soon?
Ellie: Absolutely. My plan for the next 12 months is to really get out there and do as much gigging as is possible. It is hard because there is no budget for this, and we need to look at the practicalities of tours. This is something we are working hard on at the moment, and we are trying to secure an agent/ promotor. In the next 12 months though, I would certainly have hoped to get across the UK and some of Europe too.
50K MM: Can you tell us something about the album production process - your experiences, impressions, ...? Did it meet your expectations?
Ellie: It is a hard question to answer as to whether it met my expectations. The truth is - I had no expectations. This was a whole new world to me. As my believers will know, I really was just singing and writing songs in my bedroom, and to suddenly be launch into this process was totally amazing and terrifying. I can tell you though, the first day of recording at The Angelic Union is a day I will never forget.
I walked into the live room, and saw this amazing white John Lennon style yamaha grand piano and my heart was in my mouth. I just wanted to sit down and play, and I honestly couldn't believe how lucky I was. I looked around the room and had an overwhelming moment of disbelief. I thought about the previous six months and everything and everyone that had helped me to get to this moment.
I never want to let that moment go.
Thanks again to all of my believers who have been waiting so patiently for the album. I can't tell you how quickly the 18 months have gone for me, it really just feels like a couple of months has passed. I really hope that you enjoy the album and I look forward to having a good old chat about it in the listening session.
Lots of love
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