For Noah & The Void, music is a way to make sense of grief, growth, and the quiet resilience of everyday life. With his stunning new single 'Icarus', the rising artist offers a soaring preview of his upcoming debut album 'Relief', a project shaped as much by personal healing as it is by heartfelt homage.
Behind the melodies lies a story that stretches far beyond the studio. After losing a close friend, Evan, to paediatric cancer, Noah made a promise: 100% of his streaming revenue would go to supporting paediatric cancer research through evanscrew.org. That act of generosity is the emotional root system of the entire Noah & The Void project.
So with the new single out now, we sat down with him to find out more about his origins and what has been inspiring him most over the years.
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What kind of music did you love when you were younger?
Growing up I was surrounded by a big ol smorgasbord of sounds, when it came to music. From things in the alternative genre, to R&B I listened to a lot of different artists. It wasn't till I was in middle school, that I started to doing musical theatre - and getting into show tunes as well haha - High School Noah then finally started rounding out his listening with everything in between, with bands like Young The Giant, Nothing But Thieves, Little Joy, Toro Y Moi and Pinegrove.
What was the first album you remember owning?
My prize possession, as a teenager, was Arctic Monkey's debut album, "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" - It made me want to pack my bags and move to England haha. I hadn't heard Garage Rock executed in such a fashion before. They were so, so tight in their recordings. That drummer! The whole band sounded amazing, and the lyricism was profound and complicated. Just a really well put together piece of work - with a cool style of recording for the whole album.
What is the one song you wished you could have written yourself?
If I had to say which song I wish I could have written, it'd have to be "When The Sun Goes Down". It is SO dynamic, with such great storytelling - makes me want to run through a wall.
Do you have any habits or rituals you go through when trying to write new music?
When it comes to writing, I tend to find myself going about it in a multitude of different ways; and I guess this depends on a couple of important things - where is this writing, I'm doing, coming from? Is it a form of venting? A free write? A Prompt? For each of these thoughts - I would find myself attacking the song differently. The only thing that stays the same is my lack of fear - I'm not afraid to write something bad, only for the reason that there is a chance I could inspire myself to write something better out of that garbage haha. I, somewhat, will keep silobolic structure in mind and other classic things, like ABA structure as well. But not to the point where it's the law, if that makes sense. What is more important to me in the early stages is dynamics.
If you could open a show for anyone in the world, who would it be?
Wow, tough tough question... I'd have to say; Young The Giant and I.. They are entertainers, on top of being really good songwriters. We would definitely put on a good show!
What do you find is the most rewarding part about being a musician?
That's gotta be community building! When someone reaches out to me because a song I wrote impacted their life in some way; I feel successful as an artist, yes, but as a person too. My music isn't just for me, and I've come to realize that.
And what is the most frustrating part?
I'd have to say, the social media/business aspect of it all haha, as lame as that sounds. Nowadays, I feel like I need to be a social media savant/influencer, on top of making my music. It's hard to reach out to find new contacts in times like these; the internet has made it almost impossible to reach Labels, Venues, Magazines, etc. simply because they're being flooded. Anyone with an IP address can send them their mixtape. It's a double edged blade.
And what is the best piece of advice you have received as a musician?
The best piece of advice I ever received was in terms of performing... "Nobody cares if you mess up, if you don't care'... That sounds silly, yeah? But it couldn't be more true; if you are confident enough to literally laugh off a mistake, the audience will forgive you. That is because your confidence is infectious and world saving when you're on stage. A forgotten lyric or chord, does not mean that your show is a failure!!
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Noah & The Void's new single 'Icarus' is out now. Check it out in the player below.