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- July 6, 2022
Riley Pearce Sits Down to Chat with Glasse Factory
On June 10th of 2022, Riley Pearce celebrated the release of his debut album The Water & The Rough. Here at Glasse Factory, we were lucky enough to get to talk to him and find out a little bit more about his music, latest album, and his inspirations.
Where are you located? What is your favorite part of living where you’re at right now? I live in Fremantle in Western Australia. I absolutely love the friendly neighbourhood, being close to the
beach, the cafe’s music scenes, dogs everywhere. It’s amazing.
When did you decide to pick up music? Tell us about your origin story as an artist. Riley shares how he used to watch his dad in cover bands and how that inspired him to pick up the guitar. By 17, he was busking at local farmer’s markets, playing covers but sneaking in a few original folky compositions about what he saw around him as well as the relationships he had formed.
Who inspired you as a musician and what were the songs you practiced when you learned to play? Who or what is your biggest Muse in your craft lately? There was always Eric Clapton and James Taylor on in the house growing up but I think my first real musical inspiration when I started writing music was artists like Ben Howard, Gregory Alan Isakov, Boy & Bear, and anything Justin Vernon was a part of. Biggest muse…probably my daughter, she’s only 6 months old at the moment but this whole chapter of my life is providing me with a lot of songwriting inspiration.
How has the pandemic affected your creative process as a musician? It’s really forced me to pivot, I’ve started writing a lot for other artists. It’s great because I’d often be the sort of person who’d write A LOT so it’s nice to direct some of that energy to what other artists are working on. The pandemic was also a great chance for me to dive into improving my production skills.
How do you think your music has grown or changed as you’ve developed in your craft? It’s a strange blend of everything becoming more natural but also becoming more intentional. Over the years and from music release to music release there’s always something I’ll want to do different next time or small subtleties that I’m only aware of after the fact. I’m never looking back regretfully on my craft, I’ve learned to let that go, close the chapter and channel that drive to want to try something different on the next record.
What are some themes that arose in the writing and creation process of your album? Any inspirations you would like to share? I was massively inspired by Jose Gonzalez, the Secret Life of Walter Mitty movie, and it’s soundtrack andalso the work of Siddhartha Khosla on the show This Is Us. Themes…dreams, success and failure, nostalgia, youth, self discovery, learning how you cope in a crisis, relationship growth, making tough decisions, honesty, regret, doubt, and a whole array of highs and lows.
How will this release influence and inspire your projects in the future? In recording this album we did so down in the south west of Australia, an amazing part of the world where the weather is wild and untamed. We hired a house, and all those involved in the project came and went as they contributed to the album, often staying at the house for a few days at a time. The process of everyone living communally whilst we worked on the album was such a big part of it all and it’s something I want to try to replicate with each recording experience.
What do you have planned next? (tour, album, etc.) I’ll be touring the album around over the coming year. Starting off with shows around Australia in September. I’m always writing so there will no doubt be plenty of music on the horizon.
The Water & The Rough is an incredible debut with beautiful instrumentals and soothing vocals. There is something for everyone in this album, and if you haven’t listened to it yet, make sure you do so before the day is over–you will not regret it.
You can keep up with Riley Pearce through his social media channels: YoutTube, Instagram, and Facebook. For tickets to his upcoming album tour, you can go to his website to find tickets to a show near you! For more interviews with your favorite artists, keep checking back with Glasse Factory!
