Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how your childhood impacted your musical direction?
Deves: My two earliest childhood memories are watching Michael Jackson’s Dangerous Tour on VHS until the tape wore out and watching my very African Dad singing and dancing as the frontman of his band. I grew up admiring great entertainers, who also made great music.
I love the pageantry of what being a musician can be.
Keats: I grew up in a house full of music and harmonies. I could sing before I could talk. My dad would sing us Beatles songs as lullabies. So, music has always been a part of my life.
Deves: We’re a band that got together by complete accident. It’s the magic of the Halifax Music Scene.
Q: How are you planning on growing your fan base and sharing your music with the world? What message do you have for anyone who is about to discover “Casual Cries For HELP”?
Deves: By being a safe space and not taking ourselves too seriously. I have a motto and it’s “EVERYBODY EATS”. It means all are welcome. No one is excluded from our table. You know … within reason.
Keats: Bullies and trolls can eat outside.
Q: Who is the most inspiring artist for you right now? And where do you find inspiration for making music?
Deves: That’s a tough question. There are so many great artists doing it right now. I’m sure every person in pop is saying Chapelle Roan. I love someone who is unapologetically queer and despite what the current cultural landscape is, she still managed to be the biggest pop star on the planet.
Keats: Probably, Hozier for me.
Q: Can you tell us about the story or message behind the song, “Words.”?
Deves: Long story short: I wanted to write a platonic love song for my friends who probably don’t hear those three words as often as they should.
I have some friends who are unlucky-in-love and they are hands down the most wonderful people on the planet. I also have friends suffering from anxiety and depression. They deserve to hear that they are loved and cherished. They deserve the words.
Q: How would you describe your sound in one word for potential listeners?
Deves: Nostalgic.
We’re not quite rock and we’re not quite pop and we’re not quite R&B. We’re the kind of pop that existed in the late 90s to late 2000s. It was loud, it was fun, it was funky and it was full of electric guitar. But also because of where we are in our lives, there’s also an underlying self awareness in everything we write. Our sound is pop music through a memory.
Q: Did you face any challenges while writing or recording “Words”?
Deves: The biggest chance was Letting go. I had so many ideas going into recording it. Words had a much stronger 2010s Paramore vibe going for it with some cool Quincy Jones elements when I wrote it, but I didn’t really know how to achieve that when we started. We were new to recording. At the end of the day, I think it was more important to sound like Casual Cries For HELP than to throw everything, but the kitchen sink into it trying to sound like someone else.
Q: What is the message of your music? And what are your goals as an artist?
Keats: Live and Love Hard.
Deves: Have a party while talking about your feelings.
Q: Who is your dream artist to collaborate with? (dead or alive)
Keats: Oh, definitely Michael Buble. I would love to do a loungey duet with him. I think our voices would blend very well together.
Deves: Josh Ramsay of the Canadian band, Marianas Trench. That band is a huge reason I picked up the guitar and started writing. I just love how they create and collaborate and they challenge themselves with every album. They don’t let genre be their prison, which if you’ve heard our first album, you can tell neither do we.
Josh Ramsay an incredible vocalist, musician and songwriter, who’s also got a voice that blends into any genre like mine. I think we could make some really special stuff. Just two goofballs from two different Canadian coasts doing sick harmonies.
Q: What is your advice for people interested in pursuing music as a career or for those trying to enter the industry?
Keats: Know your music’s worth. Playing with others is one of the easiest ways to grow and get opportunities. It doesn’t have to be perfect as long as it’s fun.
Deves: What she said.
Q: If you could go back in time and give a younger you some words of wisdom, what would they be?
Deves: You’re bi. Just be bi.
Keats: What he said.
