Ryley Patrick Releases His Second EP [Q&A].
Interviewed by: Sarah Evangelista
From being a vocalist and guitar player in a band who are on hiatus, the Canadian artist went to discovering his own unique sound. About two years ago, Ryley Patrick travelled to Europe to find inspiration for his debut project, and he recently released his second EP, titled Kenopsia. Read my interview with him below.
You've recently released your second EP, how do you feel about the project being out into the world?
It's super cool-kinda surreal to be honest. This record took a really long time to come to fruition, so it's pretty special to see it out there in its final form. I'm just happy people are digging it and relating to it. Anytime I release music it's always super personal and usually sheds light on specific moments or experiences in my life. Almost like anytime someone listens, it's like they're flipping through the pages of my diary y'know? It can be really nerve wracking to give people that part of yourself, but oddly enough it's one of the best feelings ever. Sort of like a giant weight off my shoulders. It's really quite special.
It's pretty funny how the songs off of the project are so upbeat, when the name of the project means something different!
Haha It's interesting you say that because i've actually never thought of it like that. Kenopsia is basically the feeling you get when you're in an empty place that is normally busy or filled with people. Like an empty airport or something like that. It's quite the eerie feeling that has always resonated with me. A peaceful bliss I can never seem to shake, yet always seem to crave haha. Lyrically a lot of the record is about feelings of loneliness and despondency, so for me it made perfect sense. I think some of the synths add an extra cool spookiness too, that in ways goes hand in hand with the title.
When you listen to your first project, then your newest, you hear a change in sound, but which change stands out the most to you?
A lot of people will say the production- and they aren't wrong. But, For me, it's definitely the maturity level and focus of the record. The Disaster Plan was my first time ever writing "solo" music, and at the time I was really confused about what direction I wanted to go in musically.. Although I still love that record dearly, at times to me it can sound unfocused and jumbled. Kenopsia is the polar opposite to me. I think the songs are a lot stronger and sound like they all belong together. In many ways the Disaster Plan sorta acted like a catalyst for Kenopsia. Although definitely genre hopping, DP definitely helped me solidify the dark alt rock sound that is so prevalent on Kenopsia.
Which song off of Kenopsia took the longest to bring together?
Honestly once we got rolling, most of the songs came together pretty quickly. If I had to pick one probably "Baby Wants a Cola". I was absolutely obsessed with finding the perfect guitar tone that it definitely delayed the tracking of that song quite a bit. It's one of the more heavier layered vocal/guitar tracks on the record, so we spent a long time trying to get those sounding right. I'm really stoked on the way it turned out. It was definitely one of my favourites to write and record. Definitely- my own little ‘baby’ if you will. See what I did there?
In the past, you were in a band, what are the biggest differences between being in a band and making solo music?
Definitely the decision making. I'm really lucky in the sense that I have an amazing live band to fall back on for musical ideas, inspirations, and support-yet never feel pressured. When you're creating music you sort of always have this vision in your head of what you want your music to bloom into. Often when you're in a band that vision can be easily corrupted or compromised to please each individual member. For me, I'm really lucky that I never have to compromise. My band has a really great understanding of how personal my music is to me. They are always there to lend musical ideas, advice, and talent- but ultimately let me focus on making my ‘vision’ come true. Shoutout to Jared, Dave, & Max. Ya'll are seriously the jam!
Who are your favourite artists on the rise?
There's this super sick band from Toronto called Nightwell. They are this almost Mathy-Rocky punk band that I find super relatable and will surely be selling out stadiums sometime soon. Also Bodyhorror, another toronto cat. He's got this 3 song EP called Between Years that I find myself bumping constantly. His hard work and dedication to writing and creating truly amazes me and inspires me on the regs. Check them out!