It seems almost impossible or inevitable that when having a conversation about music in 2014, the words SoundCloud or Hype Machine will appear. The same applies here.
Goldbloc are a two-piece outfit, no stranger to the two aforementioned platforms. Their track ‘Days Are Dreaming’ shot up the Hype Machine chart like nobody’s business, so that seemed like a strong foundation to start my chat with producer Goldenhaus.
“SoundCloud and Hype machine are great and very pivotal in everything we have done so far. It allows us to reach people so easily and provides a great direct connection from the artist to the fan which wasn’t previously available. It’s definitely helping our music spread faster than if we didn’t use them”.
Upon first hearing the Soulful vocals from front-woman Solei built upon layers of woozy electronic waves and sampled hooks it’s easy to mistake the duo for being part of the rising London ‘neo-soul’ scene, however they actually hail from Boston, Massachusetts.
Their latest EP, a delicious four-track titled ‘Black Gold’ is available for free right now. When asked why, Goldenhaus says “All I really care about is that it’s out there to be enjoyed and good to listen to after it’s completed. The decision to release our music for free was pretty natural to us, we really just want it to reach out to as many people as possible, we absolutely are about getting people enjoying and listening for it over money”.
The dynamic, is gratifyingly simple. Down-tempo electronica built on vocal arrangements that become an instrument in themselves, so how does that affect the song-writing process?
“It (the process) usually starts organically on a guitar; the loops and samples happen on the spot rather than planned out. The production / beat is very much crafted to each specific song”.
The result is something very stripped back and piercing, but with such simplicity how do you know when it’s finished?
“I know a song is finished after I listen to it a huge number of times in different situations and environments and don’t get any strong feelings about something missing or something that should be changed. My style is very much ‘if music sounds good let it be and enjoy it’ rather than be more hands on and try and do too much – I try not to have too much of an ego and just see my role as a musician and producer to just make sure what’s getting put out there is enjoyable and a nice experience to listen to”.
Nice is a fairly apt word to describe Goldbloc’s sounds. Vocalist Solei has a delivery that can be hauntingly trancey, but up-liftingly dreamy within the same song. But ‘nice’ isn’t something that comes with no effort.
“Whether it’s an elaborate song that takes 100 hours to produce with complex programming involved and layers or just a very simple bass line with a few simple melodies it doesn’t really matter – all I really care about is that it’s able to be enjoyed by as many as possible”.
The Black Gold EP can be streamed and downloaded FOR FREE in its entirety above.
The band has a video for “Days Are Dreaming” on the way shortly. So watch this space. When the rest of the musical stratosphere latches onto Goldbloc, music fans as a collective really will have struck gold.
Thummbnail pic by Knar Bedian, used with permission. Visit www.cargocollective.com/knarbedian for more pics