Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
If you're listening, she is thevoice. The female alternative artist said,
(00:04):
you need to know here's your hostat ninety eight seven, LA's new alternative
you're listening to. She is thevoice right now. And I'm really excited
to have in studio with me.Nana. You will know her from of
Monsters and Men. Hi Nana,Hi Nana. It's so nice to have
you in studio. You just playeda sold out show in Los Angeles at
(00:26):
the Troubadour on Tuesday, so it'sgreat to have you in here with us.
Yeah, thank you so much forhaving me. Yeah. So what
I'd like to do is start offwith the listeners will know you the most
from of Monsters and Men. You'rean artist that we play a lot here
on A ninety eight seven and havefor quite some time. You guys headline
(00:47):
summer camp for US four years ago, four summers ago in twenty nineteen.
So I want to talk about yougetting your start in music and how that
happened for you and how and whatit just how did you I read that
you went to music school, Sowhy don't you kind of talk to the
audience about how you got started inmusic? Right? Yeah, So I
(01:08):
come from a town called and likekind of the south south part of Iceland,
and it's a pretty small town.And yeah, at some point I
just really gravitated towards music and especiallylike writing music. Yes, was music
around you growing up in your familyor is it something you found on your
(01:30):
own? Yeah, it wasn't aroundme and my family. There wasn't really
a lot of music like like that. Like my family is very like my
mom worked in a fish factory andshe was like in the kindergarten and like
you know, very much like Ihad a lot of different jobs and it
was very like a really powerful womanamazing. Yeah, and I think I
(01:57):
had a lot of time to justkind of day dream and I would spend
a lot of time on my ownand and so there I kind of discovered
music. Yeah, And what weresome of the first artists that you gravitated
towards? Some of the first artiststhat I gravitated towards, Like, there
(02:19):
were some people in Iceland that Ireally really liked. There was this woman
called Lalo, which she was playingthe guitar and making her songs, so
like I gravitated towards that. Butalso when I was a teenager, I
would kind of venture into the nexttown and there were there was this one
(02:39):
pub that bands would come and therewas this punk band called Isla which means
puke, Oh my gosh, andthat was my favorite band. I loved
them. Awesome. Yeah, soI started going to that pub and then
later just trying to play there andyeah, so awesome. Yeah. Can
(03:04):
you tell us a little bit aboutIceland? I personally have never been there
before, and I feel like probablya lot of our listeners maybe haven't either,
And it will be nice to hearjust how you would describe Iceland for
us? Yeah, I mean forme, Yes, how is Iceland?
Yeah, I don't know. Imean it's not it's we I feel like
(03:28):
we have a lot of space,and we live like on the coast Okay,
and kind of the entire country,but the middle is just like you
know, there's like placers and andso we're kind of we're always very close
to the ocean, and I wouldthink we're always very like drawn to having
space and and being close to nature. Yes, and yeah, I think
(03:58):
that's very much just in our ourDNA. Yeah, is it as cold
as one would think? Yeah,it's like it's it's kind of it's like
strange for me to be here,Like I am so used to layering.
I just love layering. I lovewearing like twelve pieces of clothing. Yeah,
and here I'm here, you're inan oven basically, Yeah, I
(04:19):
have I have five pieces of clothingon and that this is difficult for me.
Yeah yeah, yeah yeah. Thedebut of Monsters and Men album My
Head is an Animal. Talk abouta first album. I mean, beautiful
start to finish, the song's LittleTalks, Mountain Sound, King and Lionheart.
(04:42):
These are all songs that we stillplay to this day that are really
big for the radio station. AndI mean, did that come I imagine
that kind of success right away outof the gate. Were you guys blown
away by that? Like? Howhow was that for you? I mean
this is probably twelve years ago,yeah yeah, yeah now, and it
was a bizarre time for us.It was like because we were just friends
(05:09):
in Iceland making music together and wewould The way that that whole album was
made is that we were playing itfor people. You know, we hadn't
recorded the album. We would justgo to the bars and we would play
and wow, and then we wouldkind of feel you know, it was
such a conversation with people and theaudience, and I think that influenced the
(05:30):
album so much. And so whenwe recorded it and then you know,
we were suddenly touring, I meanthat that idea alone for us was very
far off, wow, you know, because we're just like on this island,
and so we came to America andthen things just kind of started to
(05:51):
you know, like this ripple effectand people seemed to like the music,
and it was a very bizarre time, and I think it took us a
lot of years to kind to catchup, like in our heads, yes,
understand what had happened. You know. That's kind of what I imagine,
because yeah, when you come outof the gate your first album and
the success comes that quickly, itcan be disarming in a way, like
(06:13):
wait, what is happening? Yeah? Wait away though, Yeah, we're
loving totally. We toured for Wetoured that album for about two years or
so, and then when we gotback home and we were going to make
another album, it was a verystrange feeling, you know, yes,
and a very like just this thingof being so always on the road and
always with people, and then youcome back to Iceland and it's quiet and
(06:35):
yes, and yeah, it wasan interesting time. Yes, Nana.
One of my favorite songs that youguys have ever done is Alligator And the
first time I heard it, itgave me chills. Just your you sound
so powerful and that song I'm goingto tear up actually because it just it's
to this day, it's one ofmy favorite songs and we're going to play
(06:56):
it here in a moment. ButI'd love for you to speak about that
song and what it meant to youwhen you were writing it. Anything you
want that song, Yeah, thatthat song is on our our latest record,
favor Dream, And well, Ijust remember, like the memory that
I have around writing that song isbeing at home and my downstairs neighbor.
He was a older man who likewas a drummer, and so his drums
(07:23):
would leak up to my apartment allthe time, and I really liked it,
and I started seeing that melody ontop of what he was doing.
So I don't know, like Ithink I was writing something when I didn't
feel like I believed the words orsomething at that moment. It's like kind
of speaking to yourself in a way. Wow, So why why did you
(07:46):
name it Alligator. Well, Ikind of just name my demos something all
the time. But it also feltlike it made sense for the song because
it's like it feels I don't know, like I can't really describe the feeling,
(08:07):
but it does feel like I knowwhat you mean. It's a very
powerful song. I mean, itreally is a lot of monsters and men
music. It's beautiful and it's lightand it's pretty, and this song it
is just a driving force. Imean, it's I keep coming back to
that word powerful it is. Andyour voice is just insane. You just
put out a solo album in May. How to start a garden? Let's
(08:30):
talk about that. What was thatprocess like for you writing? I mean
I guess you already write music whenyou write with your band, But how
is this album? What does thismean to you? Yeah? So when
I started this journey of making thisrecord, like I you know, I
had had this idea in my headfor a long time, Like I actually
(08:52):
before the bands, I had mymy solo like I would be writing a
long bird. Yeah yeah, Iwould be writing on my own and performing
on my own, And so italways felt like it was this huge part
of me that I wasn't really maybeshowcasing so much anymore, you know,
(09:13):
But I mean I write all thetime just for myself, and and some
songs really feel like they fit withmost as a man. And some songs
and so sometimes what would happen isthat I would just like you know,
things would to kind of fall tothe to the side. Yeah. Yeah.
And then you know, when thepandemic happened, it was just like
(09:35):
a moment where I felt like Icould focus on this, you know,
yes, on myself. Yes,yes, I think we all kind of
yeah, went through a self reflectionand yes, yeah, but it also
felt like I really had something thatI wanted to share. And so this
this album just became like me documentingthose this time in my life very which
(10:00):
was a time of a lot ofchange and kind of turbulence and and and
I'm really glad I got a chanceto document it, you know, yes,
yes, no, no, no, you're on tour right now.
Yes, you just played a soldout show in Lway, brilliant. You
also just played the Newport Folk Festival. How was that? Oh? There
was I mean such a great time. Yeah, I love that festival,
(10:24):
and of most of the man playedit like how many like eleven years ago
or something, and so it wasreally cool to come back. Yeah.
Do you love the setting? Doyou like the artists? Like what is
it that you love most about?Yeah? I love the artists that are
playing there and like this, andit all feels very like, I don't
(10:45):
know, there's like a everyone justfeels like they're happy to be there,
and they're also I think, reallyrespectful to all of the like you know,
like people watch all of the SATskind of and their music people their
music, Yeah, exactly, andthey want to discover something new. And
I really really like that festival.That's awesome. You played Pappian Harriets,
(11:09):
which is a really cool venue.I love that. And you'll be playing
outside Lance in San Francisco, greatfestival Iceland Airwaves. That'll be fun.
Yeah. How's it been performing solo? Do you enjoy it? I do
enjoy it. Yeah, I meanit's it's very very different and I but
it's also like the music is prettydifferent from what I've done before with my
(11:33):
band. So it's been like,you know, I'm kind of finding myself
in this, but I also feelit's been really nice playing these songs and
I feel like I'm I'm very closeto the audience. Yeah, and it's
been a very positive experience. Yeah, it's nice because you're playing intimate rooms
(11:56):
like the Troubadour and Pappian Harriets,and then you get to play the festival,
so you kind of get the bestof both worlds, and I imagine
being in the small room with yourfans is really nice. Yeah, yeah,
it's been. It's been really great. Awesome. I don't know if
I'm allowed to ask. This isa monsters and men working on new music.
Yeah, yeah, we're we're kindof we're working on some new stuff.
Awesome, awesome, So hopefully that'scoming, you know, in the
(12:18):
next year. I can't wait fora new album. I did want to
ask you, and I I justhave to because I love New York so
much and when I think about Iceland, it's like I can't help but think
of her. Have you met her? Is that? Are you friends?
Like it's such a small community,less than and like a country that like
you kind of run into people allthe time. So yeah, yeah,
(12:41):
like we I mean, you know, we're kind of around cool. Yeah,
but but it's I mean, it'sjust very like we make fun of
it all the time, where likeit's such a normal thing to see someone
that you you know, like anybodyin the pool, Like, yeah,
that's the place where everybody right,So yeah, if you want to if
(13:05):
you want to see people, goto the pool, that's where you go
go to the pool. Yeah.Are you a fan of hers? Yeah,
okay, of course, yes,I'm as ave fan. Yeah.
Yeah. I grew up just absolutelyloving the Sugarcubes then went on to loving
her, and I just to me, she kind of put Iceland on the
map and away with music for me, Oh yeah completely. And I think,
you know, like we didn't havebefore PR, we didn't have like
(13:28):
a lot of people, you know, like kind of venturing out like that,
and I mean that was a hugething, and I think she did.
Really people were like Iceland, whatwhat is that? You know?
And she has this very like specificbeautiful sound exactly. You know, people
really connect to Iceland. And thenyou have you know, like say,
(13:54):
what I was coming after that,and so there's this That's what I was
going to bring up now, Yeah, so there is this kind of fund
that I think people recognize one,yes, yes, And I just going
back to New York she's just such. She's an icon in my in my
eyes, and it's everything from theunique music and her voice and her style.
(14:16):
I mean, it's just it's justshe's a trailblazer and I absolutely worship
her. We've had Nana from ofMonsters and men with us all night and
Nana. Something I love to askour guests, is there any advice you
would give to young women and oryoung girls who are trying to get their
start in music. I think whenI was starting out, I mean it's
(14:39):
not even that long ago, butI did sometimes feel like I didn't see
enough like women where I could like, you know, kind of see myself.
And that's why I do think thatit's important, you know, to
always feel like people are being representedthe like you can kind of mirrory yourself
to people. Yeah, you know, And what I had sometimes felt when
(15:00):
I was starting out is that Ithought that I didn't know as much as
some of the guys. You know. But but that's because you know,
it's like it's so easy to kindof if you are in an environment that
is very much you know, likeyou can mirry yourself all the time,
then you are afraid you're not afraidto like step outside of your comfort Yeah.
(15:24):
So I think that's something that Iwould always say, like to anyone,
really, is like, just don'tbe afraid to constantly step out of
your comfort zone. Yes, youknow, it's like the only way you're
ever gonna learn something. Yes.So if you just do that enough times,
then you know, it starts tofeel a little bit easier. It's
time. That is great advice,and you're right in music and in life's
(15:46):
really good advice. Nana. It'sbeen so nice having you with us tonight.
Nana has a solo album, howto Start a Garden. I encourage
you to go listen to that.And she's also on tour and hopefully new
music from a Monsters and Men soonerthan later. Thank you for coming in,
Thank you for having me. Sheis the voice the female musicians that
(16:07):
are creating tomorrow Sound. She isthe voice on All ninety eight seven,
Ellie's new alternative