Interview: Marc Smith
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What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today? I guess that the biggest influence to get me into the music scene is my mum. She got me into The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, etc.
What do you like to do when your not playing music and how does that influence your creativity? I spend a lot of my time songwriting, and it involves a lot of concentration so I try to do things to ease my mind and gain strength for the next songwriting session. I take long walks and ride my bicycle a lot.
How long has your band been around? I was in a punk rock band in Spain called No Children from 1999 until 2013. That is when I decided to move to London and I've been a solo artist since then.
Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music? I'm based in London since 2015 and living here has been a mind opener for me. I guess that's what happens after living in the same place for 35 years. London is also one of my favourite cities in the world, and haven't stopped writing songs ever since I've been here. I think there's something about this place that I never found anywhere else.
How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you? I dont have a name for a band as right now it's still a solo project, so my releases are under my name Marc Smith.
Tell me about the best and worst shows you have played. I would have to say that my favourite show was when we supported Avril Lavigne in Barcelona. We played really well, we were very well taken cared of and there was ten thousand people.
The worst show I remember was in Luxembourg. Just before jumping on stage I hit my head really bad and every time I was singing it felt like piece of glass inside my head We had to end the show after 25 min.
Tell me about your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you haven' t already? One of my favourite venues was Gruta '77. It's small place in Madrid but we've always played and sounded great when we played there.
I guess I wouldn't mind to play at the Madison Square Garden. If we're gonna dream, let's dream big.
If you could play any show with any lineup who would be on the ticket? If it was me without a band I would love to do a tour supporting City and Colour. They've been a big influence for my during these last years. And if I had a band I'd like to do the same thing with Yung Blud. Discovered this and a couple of months ago and saw straight away they were gonna make it.
What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band? To always be passionate.
If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be? Don't be in a hurry to get old.
Of your songs which one means the most to you and why? I would have to say that Brother is a very important song for me. Obviously it's dedicated to one of the most important people in my life. Confessions also has a lot of meaning to me, as it was the 1st song I wrote since I'm in London. I just came out from a very dark place emotionally and that song helped me to get rid of a lot of demons from the past.
Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most? It happens a lot that the most requested songs are the ones you're most tired of playing. People request Confessions a lot, and even though that is a very important song for me, it's not the one a like performing the most, as it reminds me of a painful period of life.
I don't have a song I like to play the most, but I enjoy playing happy positive songs rather than the ones with emotional baggage.
What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music? I can happen in different ways. Sometimes you're just come up with a cool guitar riff that tells you what the song should be about. The lyrics just flow and the song actually writes itself. I love when that happens. Also you can have a clear idea of what a song could be about and just start singing a couple of verses and then figure out what the guitar will be. In my case there's no formula I follow for the songwriting process.
What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music? Music to me is therapy. Something I need to do because it makes me happier and that's why I put my heart and soul to it. So besides sharing my stories and visions, the message to get across is for people to see how important it is to find your place in the world and be the person you want to be.
Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them? Fortunately, that doesn't happen as right now I don't have a band. But I still have a lot of disagreements with myself!
What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that's coming up? I have high hopes and expectations for this year 2021, but I never plan to long ahead. Even though this global pandemic has had a big negative impact on all levels, it has been an eye-opener for me. It made me realize that some things are not as important as I thought they would be, and made me appreciate the things that really, showing us that we cannot take things for granted.
Creatively, I feel really happy that I've written a lot of songs and I just can't to record them as soon as possible!