KATE NASH
The SiS Interview by Miriam Lamey

Strong-willed and snarky, charming and engaging, Kate Nash’s personality is as colorful as the tunes on her debut release, Merry Happy. This lively lady fears no issue and explores her views on the human condition through her punchy lyrics. Her perky, gently accented vocals project “awkward” situations and past experiences with cheeky dexterity.

Before her Boston gig last month, Nash sat down with Stranded in Stereo’s own Miriam Lamey to discuss her music, life and personal observations.

SIS: I’m curious as to how you would describe your music

KN: Oh, God, I’m really rubbish at that! Err, I just kind of describe it as storytelling…it’s all about connection with human beings and communicating. I’m like, fascinated by the awkwardness between human beings, like, when someone’s in love, or when they’re embarrassed, or when they fancy someone. Like, things that you feel are weird or upsetting but can actually be positive. I think [my music’s] quite opportunistic, quite hopeful. And I think it’s a bit simple: simple riffs, simple melodies…simplicity in the tunes really.

SIS: How much of your lyrics are based on your experiences, or stuff that you’ve observed? I can relate to a lot of it: going out for a girls night out, issues with boyfriends…and certain situations I can definitely relate to.

KN: Cool! Well, I always think you should draw on your own experiences but also you can steal other people’s. I’ve borrowed stuff from my friends. Like, one of my friends especially; she used to drive us around and go to the pubs, there was one [friend] at Uni, I still love talking to her and getting loads of stuff. It’s just really funny. Er, yeah, I think it’s a mixture of just learning – you can learn from stuff that hasn’t even happened to you, but you’ve seen or heard or read about or felt, you know? Especially, we’ve all been teenagers and we’ve all been daydreamers and all this stuff just happens; you’ve been to that party when someone’s snogged someone else, you know.

It’s the best inspiration.

SIS: What sort of, well, I don’t want to say “problems” as that’s too strong a word, but challenges have you faced being a solo female musician?

KN: Yeah, well, the obvious one is that it’s a really sexist industry. I mean, the first time I really noticed, my mind kind of tuned into it because everybody I was having a meeting with were men – everyone was a man. I feel that I love to do certain things and there are certain propositions and ideas that are suggested to me that I don’t feel would be suggested to like four boys in a band.

SIS: Yeah, like what?

KN: Well, I dunno, there’s loads of things. There’s bits of press I have to do, bits of TV, certain magazines…I don’t mind doing press as long as it’s part of the job and it’s like I want to be able to talk about my feelings and what I’ve done. Certain things, I feel like I’m not trying to be that artist, I’m not trying to sell out and be conformist, I’m actually trying to be something different. And also stuff to do with…like, everything, you know? Like every business – it’s a very sharky business. I’ve got to be really on my toes about it. When it comes to like, stuff, with the lawyer and figuring out, I dunno, who gets what and this and that. I dunno – I’ve never cared about money, my mum’s a nurse I’ve not been brought up to believe in that but I need to make sure that I’m not being ripped off. For me it’s always about the dignity of what I’m doing and I don’t want to be pushed into any corners. Even if they like you, they just want to do it sometimes because it’s they way things have always been.

SIS: Do you think having to deal with these kind of challenges strengthens your music and gives you a different attitude?

KN: I think so. Yeah, definitely. I’m excited to see what my second album will be like. Sometimes I think this industry is built to destroy. There’s a lot of pressure – I’m not moaning either! – but I think there are certain things that are put there to kind of…it’s no wonder people go crazy, kill themselves, start freaking out, all this stuff happens, they become alcoholics. It’s a fucked up industry. Everything you heard about it is true. All the best stuff in the world is true. All the dark fucked up stuff, all the drugs, all the fucking seediness, it’s all there, it all exists. And you’ve got to try and like build – what I try to do is build my own…I don’t feel like I fit into it. I don’t wanna fit into the easy pop girl machine, lose 20 pounds or whatever and like start wearing designer clothes and do this and feel ok and enjoy when I go to some crappy party or award show that sucks, that’s full of all these dead hangers-oners who just want to bitch about you and take loads of cocaine. And I’m just like, “I hate you and I think you’re disgusting and I just wanna die being here.” The thing I’m actually talking about – I went into the studio the next day and me and my friend were hating it so much we set the fire alarm off and ran out on it. [Laughter] We like ran out and were like “we hate everyone, grrr!” And the next day I went in the studio and wrote this song called “Model Behavior” and it’s a B-Side and it’s up on my MySpace. It’s this really angry, like, punk song, and it goes “you don’t have to suck dick to succeed.”

SIS: [Laughs] Oh, that’s great.

KN: [Laughs] Yeah, it’s really funny. It’s like angry but it cheers me up and I just want to get in and be like “You don’t have to suck dick to succeed AAAAARGG” [laughs]

SIS: That’s fantastic. Well, you’ve obviously got a very strong personality, how do you put that into your music?

KN: I think that probably comes naturally. I don’t really think about that especially…when I’m writing, I think you should think about what you’re writing…any stream of consciousness. I don’t just wanna write shit that doesn’t mean any thing but I don’t think – I don’t analyze when I write. I’m not a “first-drafter.” I don’t think, “I’m going to say this now and then this later,” it just kind of spits out. But I always say, if you didn’t like the album, you wouldn’t like me, really. If you think that’s annoying, wait till you meet me in person. I’m much more annoying in real life! [laughs]

SIS: [Laughs] So, do you consider yourself to be any kind of a feminist?

KN: Yeah. It’s become really important to me, actually. I really hold on to it just because my mum is a strong character. She’s a really strong woman, she’s got independence and opinions and she likes complaining in a restaurant or if something’s wrong. She’s taught me about politics and ethics and morals and she’s a nurse, she’s practical. She’s a good nurse – there’s no fucking about. And she’s argued with my dad in front of us, not that there’s some domestic problem in the home or anything, but my mum is not afraid to like express her opinion or have an argument. I grew up just thinking that’s pretty normal…when I was little I used to run around, fall over in the playground, get sweaty, graze my knees all the time, climb trees, play in the mud, not care, you know? And then suddenly you get to high school, you’re like, “oh my God, I’ve got to be thin, my hair’s got to not be flicking out all the time, oh my God, I’ve got braces.” And then you’re deluded about what is beauty and how shit you feel about yourself all of the time because of what the media portrays and about sex and about how…it just sort of…I dunno. There’s just a lot of things wrong with the way things are.

I think like, if a girl is having sex and none knows about it, it’s ok. But if a girl’s 16 and gets pregnant, it’s like woah. And if a girl’s 16 and doesn’t want to have sex, and doesn’t want to give it up, then she’s frigid, she’s a bitch and stuff. And I don’t believe in those things. And then also realizing a lot of girls – I thought it was just old hat that girls were quiet and wanting to please and be polite didn’t want to fuck things up. Because of the people I’ve looked up to and got excited by, I realized there are a lot of girls that feel like they can’t eat in front of boys, they don’t want to sweat and I was like, “fuck you that’s just weird.” And then coming into the music industry, you meet all these sexist people who wanted to like screw me over a bit – it’s suddenly become so important to me. Then I look out at my gigs and there’s so many fucking girls all at the front row as well, and they’re intrigued. First of all, they’re connecting with the songs, they’re excited by that, they’re laughing because…I always, always have songs with lyrics you can sing along to where only a boy can get in the joke, and only a boy could have said that kind of line. And I think that girls are kind of thinking out of my songs there are lines they can say about boys that boys can’t say about girls, just because boys and girls are different and they have their own stereotypes and stuff. And also some of them are intrigued because my live show is really - I really get into it. I scream and I shout and I move about and I get sweaty and slam my fists down on the piano and it’s really raw. I think some of them are like, “oh wow, ok, this is different.” Like, you can do this – intrigued by it – some of them are quite scared by it, I think. Some of them are excited and are like, “yeah, I wanna be like her, I don’t have to be like a size 8.” I believe in saying I can be, I can eat, I can live, I can be happy. I can be angry and I can spit and swear and I can climb trees, but I can also be really sensitive and be coy and feminine and then other things as well – still sexual and this and that. You totally have the right to feel those things because you’re a human being. It’s not like, “you’re a woman, you have to hide all these things, to suppress these feelings.” I don’t believe in that. I think you can express yourself and be happy and be fancied by boys, you know what I mean? And have relationships and stuff and you don’t have to be that, like…you don’t have to read those magazines that just tell you how to lose weight and how to please a man.

SIS: Exactly! Like Cosmopolitan. [laughs]

KN: [laughs] “Instill anorexia in girls since 1912 or whatever.” [laughs]

SIS: [laughs] Right, right. It’s a completely ridiculous industry and it’s really refreshing to hear someone who is talented, who can put this together in song form and inspire people, you know? Brilliant. Anyway, I just have one last question. You did start mentioning your second album. Could you just talk about that a bit? What are you planning, is it top secret at the minute?

KN: I don’t know. I’ve been writing these songs and singing them on tour and I’ve been doing demos by myself, just on my laptop. I’m writing a lot of stuff. I’ve got my fanzines so I’m writing a lot creatively anyway, not just songs. And also I’m doing some demos with Gonzales – he did Feist’s album.

SIS: That’s fantastic!

KN: Yeah, I’m really excited and it’s in Paris as well, so that’s a nice place to be creative. I dunno. Basically, my dream for the end of the year is that I wanna have a house, I want a home with a studio in it, to record myself, do stuff, see my friends again, go to exhibitions, see films, see things to get inspired by, go to the theater, then just demo with loads of different people. Well, not loads, just a few people I think might be cool, and then see what happens. And then decide who to do an album with and do it…I want it to be raw, like, I wanna do demos with Jack White!