Singer Núria Graham Talks About Her Latest Album, Influences and Time at SXSW

Spanish-Irish singer Núria Graham chatted with Off Record Blog before taking the stage at the Whole Planet Foundation SXSW Event.

On a surprisingly cold and windy afternoon, Núria Graham found herself at a table outside Whole Foods, chatting about the themes surrounding her latest project, Cyclamen, and her experience at the South by Southwest festival. 

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ORB: You said you were here five years ago, what differences have you seen since the last time you were here?

NG: I’ve noticed the change, but to be honest, five years ago was also my first time in the states. Everything was so new to me, everything was enormous and there were loads of people, so it seemed like a lot. Now, I got it a little bit under control I think, I don’t get stressed easily if I cannot see shows and I’ve rested quite a lot. There’s always a lot of things I want to see, but just don’t have the time. That’s how it is for us artists. The last time I was here, I saw a few shows, I actually saw Billie Eilish and that was nice.

ORB: You released your newest album Cyclamen, how has your songwriting and music creation techniques changed over time since you released your first album? 

NG: A lot of things have changed, personally, and in the way I write music. With this new record, I was trying to go back to this feeling of when I was a child. I don’t have a lot of technique and I am not a very organized person. This record was just about letting go and just following a process of not knowing and having no direction. It has been a very peaceful thing to do. I consider myself an ambitious person, but in a very disorganized way. I love the process and I’ll have the energy, but the feeling that I had with this record is like I’m sitting at the back of a cab and the other Núria, who is months ahead of me, is doing all the work. 

ORB: What were some of your musical influences for Cyclamen?

NG: While I was in the process of recording, I didn’t have a concrete influence on what sound I wanted. I did listen to records that influenced me a lot- not in sound specifically, but just in the dimension they existed in. Some records bring you to a place that is impossible to describe with words or with musical technicalities. Also, I wanted the record to feel as if it was a trip, which is why I did this circular story where it starts in the same place that it ends.

ORB: Your record has this overall message of new beginnings. Why does this specific album mark a new cycle for you? 

NG: It feels like a new beginning because I am at peace with the past, in a way. It is also why I incorporated the classical guitar, which I started playing when I was six or seven years old. I had left it and started playing the electric guitar because it was cooler for the sound or whatever. But I just wanted to go back to the roots and do songs the purest way possible. I was just letting myself go from all of the sound expectations and just following the song. The production works itself out, but the song is the most important thing. 

ORB: In the atmosphere of letting yourself go. How does that translate in your live performances of the new songs? 

NG: It’s also a big change in terms of live performances because for many years, I was playing with the same band and same sound, which I really liked. But at some point I was not in touch with the music, maybe because I played it so many times. It was too easy for me, I guess. While performing I was thinking about what I was going to buy at the supermarket later or things like that. I wanted to do something new and to start discovering new instruments as well. For example, wind instruments, now I’m working with a clarinet player, which is great. Also, I am playing piano live and I have never done that before- and it’s not my first instrument, so it’s all a challenge. I need the challenge when it’s a live show, because if not, I just get bored.

ORB: Are there any fan favorites off the new record yet? 

NG: It’s funny because you never know which ones are going to be the favorites before the record comes out. I don’t think I make hits specifically, so there’s never one song that stands out as the favorite for me. Everybody has a different opinion on it too, for example, Disaster In Napoli, which is like the most different song of the record- was the least favorite of some friends of mine and some others it was their favorite. Sonically, it’s the most dirty song and It’s weird, but some friends of mine when they heard it were like “Are you sure this has to be on the record?” And I said, “Yes, of course.”

ORB: In this SXSW atmosphere does anyone come to mind that you would like to work with in the future, whether it be collaboration or some kind of creative session?

NG: Yeah, of course! The most exciting thing when you come here is that there are loads of fans and musicians that you admire. The most important thing, aside from the industry connections, is getting to know the artists performing. I haven’t seen as many shows as I would have liked, but I did get to see Madison Cunningham. I’m such a big fan, so obviously I would love to work with her. I’m open to all kinds of things, but yeah, Madison would be the most obvious answer for me.

ORB: Just a fun little question – you’re from Spain and soccer is very big there. If you like soccer at all, which team do you support? 

NG: Oh, of course Football Club Barcelona. I Respect everything and I’ve never been like a soccer person, but I’ve always been surrounded by soccer, it is very much a community thing. From the city where I’m from, if you’re not for Barça, you’re pretty much screwed. 

(NOTE: ALL OF OFF RECORD BLOG INTERVIEWS ARE MINIMALLY EDITED FOR LENGTH)