Q: Hey, can you tell us a bit about where you come from, and what made you want to start a career in music?
A: I’m Liverpool born and raised but I’ve spent the last few years in Newcastle upon Tyne. I’ve played piano and guitar since I was a kid but I wasn’t very good! I’d always wanted to be a rock star but it was something that always felt out of reach until I was dared into writing a song by a girl. That song came about within 5 minutes and I loved doing it so the same night I wrote 2 more. That’s where the dream of being a rock star was reborn and the drive to share my songs came from.
Q: Did you have any formal training, or are you self-taught?
A: I still remember going for my grade 5 piano exams after doing lessons when I was a young kid but the passion was to play guitar. I got my first electric guitar when I was 15 and had some lessons but, to be honest, I struggled. After that, I self taught myself and developed my own style.
Q: Who were your first and strongest musical influences, and why the name ‘ne=ro’?
A: I’m a massive U2 fan and I’m a huge fan of Oasis. I’m sure I’ve read somewhere that your musical tastes are formed at the age of 14 and when I was 14 I remember watching reruns of U2 on MTV and this also coincided with the Britpop battles of Oasis Vs Blur. Those 2 bands dominated my tape cassette and CD player at the time. As for the name “ne=ro”… coming up with an artist name was so hard – my actual name is probably the least rock and roll name going. “ne=ro” contains my first name and the first part pays homage to where my musical career really started. I’d originally wanted to be Nero like the Roman God and also a good coffee shop but that was ready taken. Other variations were also being used so I arranged my artist name to be what it is because I couldn’t think of anything else!
Q: You have just released your new single, ‘Shine To Me’. Is there a story behind it?
A: Shine To Me was written during one of the best periods of my life. I’d recently moved job, made new friends and relationships and my football team was starting to do well again! Shine To Me was born from just feeling euphoric in general and being on top of the world. It’s also partly a love song in that it showcases how someone can light up your life.
Q: Can we expect a new EP or even an album from you in the near future?
A: I’m half way through my debut album “Four3Two” at the moment. I’m aiming to release this in 2023. I’m fortunate to have a day job (can’t complain about that in the current world) but it also takes up my week. I may release an EP beforehand, I’ll make sure to flood my social accounts with any information as it comes.
Q: What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
A: I’ve always liked music with emotion and feeling in it, songs with lyrics that mean something or an instrumental track that captures your heart still. I have a varied musical taste this way in that I like certain rap artists as well as opera and ambient artists. I’ve always tried to write lyrics that mean something to me rather than just nonsensical jibberish and my songs seem to follow the basic idea of 4 chords and a melody. As I’m a 80s and 90s fan, I prefer my songs to sound more raw and unpolished. My producer Ian Sidgwick always says that songs can sound too perfect and then lose their sparkle. This resonates with the music I loved as a child in that the U2 and Oasis track I grew up loving were raw and edgey and I hope my tracks emulate that era. The post punk to alternative rock and indie sound is where I hope my music sits because I’m pretty awful at rapping.
Q: Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it, or are you expecting something more?
A: That’s a very good but hard question. Truthfully, I’m not fulfilled at all. I’d never sang in my life until I started recording these tracks, even when I wrote them, I never imagined recording them. I’ve put a hell of a lot of work into learning to even attempt to sing and I’m proud of the tracks that have arisen but I still don’t know if anyone will like them. I’m happy that the tracks are there for people to listen to but are they any good? Hopefully your readers may help answer that! 14 year old me would like my stuff but hopefully they’ll be thousands (or better yet millions!) of people out there who might tbknk it’s decent. Time will tell.
Q: Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song?
A: I can only talk about how I write songs. I’ve heard some people keep a pen and paper next to their bed and songs come to them in dreams. That’d be great but it’s never happened to me get. Typically, I’ll be messing about on the guitar and a certain chord progression or riff comes out and I’ll find myself humming a melody over it. If the backing is strong then words just seem to come out. I can honestly say that most of my songs were written in about 10 to 15 minutes minus tweaks in recording. The stimulus for the songs can be random. The best example is my song The Flowers of the Morning which I wrote on a Saturday morning and there was an advert for flowers on the tele!
Q: What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
A: Confidence. Or lack of. I’m not an extrovert and I’m not from a musical family. I’ve always had the musical dream but singing was never something I ever thought I could even attempt until recently. I’m still learning as I go so hopefully as my recordings evolve, my tracks will get stronger and stronger.
Q: On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
A: My proudest moment is easily the birth of my baby girl. I can’t believe how much I can love a little creature who kicks me in the face most mornings and then shouts in my ear but she is amazing and I’m so happy to have her. Musically, when I saw my tracks playing on Amazing Radios playlist I felt fulfilled in that someone must like my songs a little bit. As Noel Gallagher said St the Brits though – “Am I happy with that.. no I’m not, I want more!”
LISTEN TO THE ARTIST:
Follow ne=ro:
Spotify – YouTube – SoundCloud – Instagram – Website