In Conversation With.. Alex Maxwell
For our next ‘In Conversation With..’ series, we chat to BBC Introducing Artist, Alex Maxwell. Alex writes songs that are semi-autobiographical and since starting his musical career in Edinburgh in 2015, his music has shifted gradually from being troubadour-like to include upbeat singalongs. Alex's vocals are inspired his favourite bands in the the Scottish indie scene - including the energy and imagination from The Tallest Man on Earth, the punk rock sense of honesty from Frank Turner, the delivery from Villagers and Bright Eyes and the free flowing melodies of Vance Joy and Shakey Graves.
For those who know nothing or very little about you, please introduce us to Alex Maxwell.
I’m an indie folk singer songwriter from Dumfries. I started out playing solo acoustic testing out songs and cutting my teeth in the Edinburgh open mic scene then got the courage to start playing proper gigs and putting my own songs out. I write songs from troubadour introspective folk to indie folk rock anthems which has meant that I’ve been able to play solo, with a violinist often and sometimes with a full band like with the EP launch gigs.
A very poignant time, but do you remember the moment you discovered how cathartic making music could be?
Yes, when I was at university I had a lot of free time when I started and doodled about on the guitar until I was proficient enough to put some chords together then in time came the, at first, self-confessional songs, and I realised that I’d stumbled upon a medium to deal with everything that life threw at me. I could make sense of whatever I was experiencing and found it to be a healthy private release while having fun making my own melodies (which usually come first)... then for some reason I thought it worthwhile to release these private creations to the public, ha!
You are a very competent musician. Do you recall when you first picked up your instrument?
When I was 18 my sister had a guitar before I went to uni and I started playing it before I went… instead of taking her guitar away which I’d become completely attached to, I had the chance to get a guitar as a reward for going to uni and I’ve never looked back. I started off with the clarinet which helped building competence to just play music more generally and meant I learned a bit of general theory, but it wasn’t long until I was buying NME weekly at 16 then moved onto playing drums and guitar.
Some musicians are influenced by all sorts of aspects to life, what influences you and what you create?
I find the guitar as a creative outlet melodically. Whenever I pick it up on any given day there will be something completely different that comes out based on the emotions of that day and I find that really interesting. Knowing that and the energy you bring to it each time is completely different which can bring any kind of melody from wee folk ditties to very quickly having a riff and imagining a full band playing along to it. The lyrics come from there, both according to the emotions of the song, how I’m feeling, what I’m going through in life at the time and often what I’ve been reading/watching. I get pretty inspired trying different techniques to write from other songwriters I admire through listening to podcasts and YouTube videos. It’s great listening to the musicians I admire talk about their process and try to incorporate it into mine.
You have kept a very D.I.Y. process of making music, particularly the song writing aspect, do you have a particular template or guide to writing your music?
I wish I could say I did. I’m very busy with the PhD at the moment so try to write when I can. Generally, I work on the melodies of songs and let it flow until I have the whole structure of the song. This happens all the time and I have the skeletons of around say 30/40 songs right now which I try to have a list of priority in terms of how good I think they’ll turn out. Once the structure musically is in place I focus on the lyrics and try to bring a theme and work from there and around that. It is different every time as sometimes you just have a few lines and let it grow from there. Sometimes it’s immediate, other times it’s good to have an idea floating in the back of your head then to work on finding clarity in the song wherever it is taking me. Then you get the ‘uh-huh’ moments because you are seeking it out. It’s at the forefront of your mind and so you are picking up things from conversations, films, books, poems which help me solidify the idea and it writes quickly then. On the odd occasion I’ll write all the lyrics first and the melody comes pretty quick for those, it’s a much faster process, like for the lockdown songs I’ve written.
Undoubtedly, you are an exciting and staple sound within the local scene. From an artist’s perspective how do you view the Dumfries music scene and is there anything in particular that you feel would help build and prosper it?
I think it’s great. It’s quite surprising how many artists there are here and DMC has helped to foster that DIY ethos which I really believe in. We make music because we have to, the urge is strong, it helps us make sense of everything, especially during this crazy time. I think that there is definitely starting to be a good network of people with different talents making it more possible to fulfil a vision - be that a music video, photo promo or exposing artists to influencers at the conferences. I think taking DMC on the road would be great, putting together artists of a similar vibe and doing a mini tour across Scotland to both put DMC, Dumfries and local artists more on the map and expose us to different audiences. I think mentorship with similar successful artists (independent or major) is always important too if you seek to do certain things musically and have ambition to play more and release more.
COVID-19 has brought our beloved music industry to its knees, how have you been making use of quarantine, creatively?
Yes! Though I’ve had my head down working on the thesis I’ve written a few songs – a few folk songs and have to work on finishing lyrics to a couple of bigger sounding songs which quite excite me. I’ve actually spent a fair bit of time trying to get better at demoing my own tracks on logic so in the long term I can become more self sufficient. I love the idea of being able to record my songs to a standard I’m happy with so I can be more DIY and more self reliant, but I’m still a fair bit off that and so will head to the studio to record tracks after lockdown for now.
Your music has the ability to change your listener’s perspective of the wider world. Does creating music in any way affect your understanding of yourselves?
Absolutely. For me, writing a song is about finding clarity on whatever issue I am going through, or which I’m trying to make sense of. This doesn’t have to be providing an answer - it can be transparency on the journey to trying to seek clarity which has an honesty in itself, part of the journey. The way I look at it is I’m creating a trail of mini artefacts through songs, which while each telling a mini story in their own right, collectively create a bigger story and personal narrative. I started off being really self-confessional and though I still do that from time to time, in the last couple of years I’ve removed the blinkers and widened my lens to work on more universal themes and emotions to understand what makes us so connected.
Photo: Ruari Barber-Fleming
At DMC, we love discovering new music, who has been on your radar lately?
It’s great finding out new talent. Because I’ve been based in Glasgow for the past few years I found out about some acts who then later played DMC. I dig Megan Airlie’s tunes. I am also a massive Kathryn Joseph fan – a really unique act. More generally, of late I’ve really liked Ajimal, Ninth Wave, Foreign Fox, Damien Jurado, Waxahatchee, Kevin Morby and Joel Plaskett. Locally, new to me is Prussia and Robbies project - it sounds cool and fresh! The new North Atlas song is a banger so it will be exciting to see where their new direction leads!
Once we step out of these uncertain times, what is next for Alex Maxwell?
I’m releasing my single Inaction next. It’s an indie folk rock pop song which I recorded a year and a half ago with Rod Jones of Idlewild at Post Electric Studios. I went off to Uganda for 7 months shortly thereafter so just shot half the video before lockdown and will finish it and release ASAP when it’s over. Aside from that, I’ve been going over the material I have. I realised in lockdown that I have 85 songs written in total so it's all about arranging the keepers into EP releases and getting back into the studio to record them. I have a second EP half recorded and will look to try and get some funding so I can fully realise the vision of the songs I’ve been holding onto for a while and crafting live. My immediate aim is releasing more often and building this up until I finish my thesis in October and then try to start supporting bigger acts on tours in a solo/duo sense to build momentum, have fun with it and see where it leads.
