After returning with their much-loved comeback single 'gardening' at the start of the year, Boston-based outfit Video Days are back on the grind once again to deliver their euphoric new single 'Split'.
Capturing more of that raw and emotive shoegaze-inspired aesthetic they are known for, 'Split' makes for a dazzling return to form for them. With its broad and driven textures, lofty atmosphere, and powerful production throughout, they return to us with one of their more impactful efforts to date here.
So with the new single available to stream now, we sat down with them to find out more about their origins and what has been inspiring them most over the years.
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What was the first instrument you fell in love with?
Tim: I started playing the piano when I was 8 and it’s still to this day my favourite.
Emma: Piano. I was 7 years old the first time my teacher cancelled on me before a lesson and I cried then lied on the floor and stared at the ceiling for 2 hours.
Jacob: I played trumpet starting in the fourth grade up through highschool.
Sam: Piano, playing Bach c#m fugue over the summer before senior year of college.
What kind of music did you love when you were younger?
Tim: Lots of classical and jazz.
Emma: Nina Simone.
Jacob: Basically anything my parents, or my brother was listening to at the moment, lots of metal/classic rock, and 80s pop hits.
Sam: The Strokes
What was the first album you remember owning?
Tim: My mom gave me a classical compilation CD when I was little.
Emma: Arrasando by Thalia.
Jacob: Black Sabbath - Paranoid and Genesis - The Hits were my first two cds given to me.
Sam: Train hey soul sister
What is the one song you wished you could have written yourself?
Tim: Bedside Table - Bedhead
Emma: Mysterons by Portishead
Jacob: Make Out Music - 12 Rods
Sam: Robot Hero by Tujiko Noriko
Do you have any habits or rituals you go through when trying to write new music?
Tim: A soul crushing event that changes the outlook and trajectory of my entire life.
Emma: Complex interpersonal relationships.
Jacob: Listen to any genre besides the one I'm aiming for, and try focusing on little details/moments around me.
Sam: Mental breakdown.
Who are your favourite artists you have found yourself listening to at the moment?
Tim: Eric’s Trip, Astrobrite, Broadcast, Low, Saint Etienne.
Emma: Hydroplane, Sneaker Pimps, Brigitte Fontaine.
Jacob: Endive, ee, Dosser, Into It. Over It. Dirty Nil.
Sam: A Frames, Southpacific, Robert Schumann.
If you could open a show for anyone in the world, who would it be?
Tim: maybe Beach House.
Emma: Stina Nordenstam
Jacob: It'd be cool to open for Slint.
Sam: Dean Blunt
What do you find is the most rewarding part about being a musician?
Tim: Being a musician.
Emma: Public confession while still maintaining the intimacy of a secret.
Jacob: The connection you get to make with so many people, leads you to a lot of cool places too.
Sam: Destroying all of my relationships.
And what is the most frustrating part?
Tim: Internal struggle.
Emma: Truth is unavoidable.
Jacob: Time and scheduling, trying to make time for everything can be such a struggle to communicate.
Sam: Destroying all of my relationships.
And what is the best piece of advice you have received as a musician?
Tim: Ideas are like fish. If you want to catch little fish, you can stay in the shallow water. But if you want to catch the big fish, you’ve got to go deeper. Down deep, the fish are more powerful and more pure. They’re huge and abstract. And they’re very beautiful.
Emma: To think of a song as a microscopic moment.
Jacob: My grandfather told me to carry backup equipment in case something breaks or someone needs to borrow it.
Sam: Not quite my tempo.
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Video Days' new single 'Split' is available to stream now. Check it out in the player below.