‘I WANT TO HAVE SOME KIND OF POSITIVE IMPACT TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE’ | INTERVIEW WITH KATE NASH
Kate Nash, the multi-platinum-selling and BRIT award-winning performer, will play at New Century Hall in Manchester on Tuesday, November 26th. The tour is in promotion of Nash’s most recent album, ‘9 Sad Symphonies’, which is her debut for the venerable label Kill Rock Stars but her fifth studio album overall. Nash makes a triumphant comeback to the top of the UK music industry with ‘9 Sad Symphonies’. It’s not just any record; it’s a monument to Kate Nash’s tenacity, inventiveness, unwavering devotion, and timeless charm. We sat down with the singer-songwriter to discuss a hectic 2024, her new album and more!
INTERVIEW By Keira Knox
Keira : You’ve spent nearly twenty years in this industry, creating some musical masterpieces along the way. You’ve just released your latest album ‘9 Sad Symphonies’, for fans who may not have heard this album yet, how does it differ to your previous releases?
Kate : I think it’s quite soft in a way, it’s quite like cinematic sounding and there’s some really beautiful string arrangements on the album. When me and the producer, Frederic, made it, we purposely wanted to make something that sounded beautiful and so we focused on things being a little bit softer than I’ve made previously. But in a weird way also I feel like it has a connection to ‘Made of Bricks’ because it was sort of going back to piano and orchestration in a way that I hadn’t for a while and storytelling because I’d been working on a musical in New York and that really inspired the song writing process. So, it has a bit of a theatrical influence as well.
Keira : What are some of the main influences on this album? Are there any particular artists or genres that have shaped your sound?
Kate : Musical theatre definitely. I listened to a lot of the ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Once More With Feeling’ episode. I feel like ‘Millions of Heartbeats’ is like my ‘Going Through the Motions’. I listened to a lot of classic Disney musical stuff. You know the songs in a Disney musical that the girl is realising something about herself and needs to break free from something? I listened to a lot of that. Mulan and Moana. I love those songs where women are discovering things about themselves. And then I was also listening to a lot of country music. I listened to a lot of Blaze Foley, Townes Van Zandt. I was living in California and going through the pandemic and listening to a man and a guitar and a mountain kind of feeling stuff.
Keira : It’s your first album with the legendary label Kill Rock Stars. How have you found the transition from being an independent artist to once again, working alongside a Record Label?
Kate : I’ve loved it! I’ve really loved working with them. It’s been amazing to have a team of people that care about what you do and get involved and actually give me more time to focus on my job. I feel like I have more space for creativity because I have a team and I feel really supported by them!
Keira : Tour starts this week, with a huge show at New Century Hall in Manchester on the 26th, how excited are you to perform at such a renowned venue?
Kate : Wherever you play in Manchester, you’re going to have a good time because the crowd is always just so up for it. I feel that I’ve got quite an emotional relationship with my Mancunian fans. I feel they’ve been really open with me. I remember fans from the area and stories they’ve told me and stuff when I played there. It’s always some of my favourite shows. I remember every time I played there! I have really good memories of Manchester and being younger, the nightlife after shows is always so fun and really cool bars. I actually have friends who have a coffee shop in Macclesfield called Yas Bean, which is this really cute pink, very gay coffee shop. Their Instagram is incredible. You should follow them! So we’re going to stop for coffee there before seeing some friends. I just love playing shows in Manchester, I’m really excited.
Keira : Manchester crowds are known for being some of the best, are your expectations high for this show?
Kate : Yeah, I think it’s been a while since I’ve been on tour with a record, so it feels really significant. I’ve just got back from a North American tour. We’re really prepped and hot. We’re tight, we’ve been touring our arses off across the US, and so that gets you really ready for a show. I feel like we’re going to be able to give our best, which means that you’re already… It helps the crowd. You both help each other, do you know what I mean? It’s a two-way thing. The crowd being hyped and in a good mood makes you obviously have an energy, but what you bring is so important. You can always turn anything around if anything was weird, but it’s Manchester, so it’s going to be wicked!
Keira : Have you got a favourite memory of being on tour? Are there any insights you can give us into a day in the life on tour?
Kate : Day-to-day life on tour is much more chaotic than people realise. I have loads of nightmares about showers I’ve had to have in venues. I feel like when you really know you’re on tour, when you’re in flip-flops and a weird towel, and you’re trying to escape a pubic-covered shower curtain, and you feel like you cannot get clean, and you’re baring your soul every night. It’s gross! (laughing)
Touring is gross. It’s not clean, it’s not pretty, it’s hard work, it’s laborious, but I feel like it makes the whole thing… You get this camaraderie with your gang that you’re on the road with, and you get through all of that stuff, and you all care about the show so much. So you get to have these moments of celebration, and then you’re just dealing with grime and venue during the day, and trying to get equipment to work, and setting this whole show up for this special one and a half hours you play. I just love it. I don’t think there’s anything like it, and I think it really is such a fun way to live, because you get to make shows happen with your mates, and what’s better than that, really.
Keira : I have to mention ‘Foundations’ in this interview, an iconic track that I think women across the UK can relate too. What does that track mean to you, looking back is there anything you wished you had changed with ‘Foundations’ or your debut album?
Kate : I don’t ever want to change anything in the past, I think it shapes who you are in the present. I’m so grateful that song changed my life, literally, and gave me the foundation for a whole career. It’s also a really special thing to have a hit song that you know the crowd is going to feel every time. I know it’s going to be a euphoric, exciting, fun party moment. It just always lifts people up, and everyone sings every word, and it brings people back. It’s a very of its time song, so it brings people back to a certain place, do you know what I mean? It’s kind of got gang vocal feel to it when we do it live, people being like, oh, I’ve sung this so many times, and my mate’s drunk at karaoke. It’s really fun to play live!
Keira : How do you hope your legacy as a female artist will continue to impact the industry?
Kate : God, I hope I can make some kind of difference for working-class artists coming up, because I think the industry’s wrecked. I think the millionaires have fucking wrecked it, and I think that we need diversity in the arts, and I want there to be space for working-class people to be in bands and be artists. At the moment, I think we’re creating a world where they can’t afford to do that, so I want to have some kind of positive impact to make a difference to that.
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