All good songs are born out of the inspiration that comes from the highs and lows of life experiences. And, whether it be romantic or platonic, artists are looking to the painful intricacies of human relationships to help them craft popular releases, now more than ever. One band proving this to be the case is Mansionair as they unveil their deeply emotive track “Don’t Wait”. Comprised of indie sensibilities, listeners can enjoy moody vocals and tormented confessions courtesy of the Grammy-nominated trio. A thudding bass and rapid production drag the track into the charged electronic genre. And, with the piece boasting a feature from artist Yahtzel, it is made all the more impressive.
“It seems most of what is interesting to talk about in songs are relationships, whether it’s relationships with people or objects or ideas,” explains the Australian collective. “Most of our growth as people comes from our relationships and there is a lot of juicy stuff in there, especially when a relationship is coming to its end. The song explores how to deal with those moments and how to be content with letting go of a relationship.”
Upon the release of their new single, the band sat down with Wonderland to discuss the pandemic, the making of their new single and future projects. Head below to check out our interview with Mansionair now…
Hey guys! How has this past year been for you?
Like most people, the last year has been a strange one. We have had to adjust and adapt slightly from what it means to be a functioning band, but luckily we had planned to spend this time bunkered down writing anyway, so comparatively, we were in an okay spot.
With everything that happened last year, was your creativity affected?
I don’t feel like our creativity was hindered too much. If anything, having that creative outlet gave us something to spend our days doing and something to work towards. Maybe the intake of art and the outside world was lessened which normally helps with the creative process but I think it challenged us to really just work with the tools that were in front of us.
Talk us through how you all first met, what sparked the interest?
We all met through friends of friends at different music festivals. The interest was sparked when we realised we had similar music tastes which seemed like a good foundation to start a project. We didn’t have any grand plans but we wrote together which clicked and we haven’t really stopped since.
You guys are from Australia, whereabouts? Do you think your area impacted your sound?
We are all from an area about an hour north of Sydney. It’s a pretty chill spot, mostly just lined with beaches. Recently though, we have all been urbanised and live in the centre of Sydney. I think originally our location affected our sound, especially with all of the amazing electronic acts coming out of Australia but nowadays I feel the band has moved away from our sound being identified with one particular place.
You’ve just dropped your new single “Don’t Wait”, talk us through the production process!
The song originally started a few years ago when we were writing with Yahtzel. The bones of the song were written at that time and then became a process of gradually adding parts to it, mostly while we were touring. Synth bass parts were written in the backs of vans and mini studios were set up in hotel rooms so we could track guitars. Once we got the song to a solid spot we sent it to Jon Gilmore to help elevate the song to that final level.
It’s about past relationships and the final stages of their demise, what made you focus on this?
It seems most of what is interesting to talk about in songs are relationships, whether it’s relationships with people or objects or ideas. Most of our growth as people comes from our relationships and there is a lot of juicy stuff in there, especially when a relationship is coming to its end. The song explores how to deal with those moments and how to be content with letting go of a relationship.
What do you want people to take away from your music? Who are your main inspirations?
We try to explore a few complex questions about our experience of life and hopefully we help people to feel less alone when trying to answer these questions for themselves. Having said that, if someone just wants a song to dance to and feel happy to then that is just as meaningful.
The inspiration question is always a really hard one. There seem to be too many influences swirling around to pinpoint any one influence. Personally, I get inspired by people outside of the music sphere, especially great thinkers and speakers who are exploring the same questions we are.
The single follows recent single “More”, is there a larger project in the works? If so, what can we expect?
Yes, there is! We have been working the last year writing a bigger body of work. “More” was the opening of that chapter and is a statement of what is to come but sonically and lyrically. We are super excited to share it with everyone.