Published: August 15, 2010 2:15 AM EST
By: Isaac Davis Jr., MBA (Juniorscave.com)
New Music Spotlight August 2010 Edition
Ryan Powers Boyle
Music Now Artist/Band Spotlight Weekly Series
Ryan Powers Boyle
Indie Artist Ryan Powers Boyle makes beautiful music that one can easily fall in love with especially his excellent songwriting skills and amazing vocals. Our Webzine was particular thrilled to interview Ryan Powers Boyle in this week’s music spotlight so that our readers can discover the magic of Ryan Powers Boyle as we have already. Here is the online conversation we had with the Singer/Songwriter as he reveals many wonderful things about his music. Enjoy!
Isaac: Let’s get started with this interview. I wanted to thank you for this second interview with our Webzine. How has 2010 been for you so far?
Ryan: Thanks Isaac, it’s great to talk to you. 2010 has been an amazing year so far -- I finished recording my first full-length album, self-titled Ryan Powers Boyle (released on 7/20), and I produced a completely unique film project to accompany it, It’s All So Beautiful, It’s All So Strange. We found 10 amazing filmmakers and animators who made 10 short films based on songs from the album. Rather than being 10 narratively unrelated films, they’re linked, essentially 10 chapters of a single film. The whole thing will debut this September, and we’ll be on tour with it for the next year at least.
Isaac: Out of all of your influences, who would you enjoy working with and why?
Ryan: Who wouldn’t want to sit down and write a song with Bob Dylan, or even just play a show with him? What a great day -- step into the ring with Bob (I hear he boxes daily), then play a set with him. Get my ass kicked physically and musically in the same night.
Isaac: What can you say has been the biggest accomplishment so far with your music career?
Ryan: Accomplishments are relative in this business. I’m sure it would feel great to win a Grammy, but I can’t say there’s any higher honor than a random fan pulling you aside and telling you how much your music means to them, and how a particular song spoke to them like it was written just for them and what’s going on in their life. To really connect with someone through music is the big trophy, I think.
Isaac: Are you happy with where you are at with your music career at the moment?
Ryan: I’m happy, definitely, but I won’t be satisfied until every person out there who might appreciate what I’m doing has been exposed to it and given the chance to interact with it. And I do mean interact -- good music is like its own living, breathing organism, and when you stumble across music that resonates with you and your life, it’s not a passive thing. There’s a definite back and forth going on when you’re in that moment of hearing something great for the first time. It’s like meeting a new love.
Isaac: What draws you to want to play the type of music that you do?
Ryan: I think of my music as a sort of exploration of life. Regardless of the actual style of music I might cloak a particular song in (though it does tend to largely come across as an indie folk rock-type of thing), its purpose is always to try and dig to a little deeper understanding of its subject matter. So while I’m not drawn to any particular genre (hell, I might do a Tibetan Throat Singer song someday if it feels right), I’m drawn to my subject matter simply because I’m alive and I want to expand my understanding and contact with life. Every new song is a realization.
Isaac: What do you feel it takes to play this type of music that you play?
Ryan: Unquenchable curiosity and an open mind. And lots of caffeine.
Isaac: How do you handle people in the music industry who promise you things but do not
deliver?
Ryan: Man, everyone’s got a story don’t they? When I first went out on my own as a solo act, I put a couple demos on MySpace and almost right away had a guy from Atlantic Records offering me a deal. But six months later he’s telling me the music business has changed too much and the offer was gone. After that, I don’t believe anything until I see it.
Isaac: If you had the opportunity to do one cover, what cover would you do and why? How would you put your own spin on this cover?
Ryan: I actually try to do a cover on each album. On Ryan Powers Boyle (that just came out), I did a cover of the Dixie Cups’ “Chapel of Love.” I did it as a sort of self-reflective folk song and changed the lyrics to make the narrator uncertain about his getting married. Nothing autobiographical, but I liked flipping the song on its head.
Isaac: What does it take to be a good songwriter?
Ryan: Still figuring that one out. Right now I’m learning there’s a balance between not holding on to the song too tightly and imposing your will on it -- that’ll almost certainly squeeze the life out of it -- and letting the song go where it wants to go and capturing that spontaneity. It’s a tightrope line.
Isaac: How difficult is it to juggle music, family and work obligation, and life in general? Explain.
Ryan: There are only so many hours in the day, and a person only has so much energy and attention to go around. Eventually you have to figure out what your priorities are -- decide what you’re willing to sacrifice for music -- and then constantly fine tune to keep everything in balance. Luckily my significant other comes with me on tour, so I don’t have to worry that she might not be there when I get back. Same with my dog, Chloe. She’s the tour mascot.
Isaac: What is your definition of being an Indie artist/band?
Ryan: To me, the Indie ideal doesn’t lie in a particular sound or whether you’re signed to a certain type of label, it’s a freedom to take your music down whatever road you want to go with it. It’s not necessarily a lifestyle or a business decision -- though it can certainly be that -- but a statement of creative freedom and an unwillingness to sacrifice artistic vision for lesser things.
Ryan:... the year of the It’s All So Beautiful, It’s All So Strange tour. It’s one of those things where if you do it well enough you’re rewarded with more work. If the North American leg goes good, then it’s on to Europe, then who knows? I’ll also be recording a new album in the downtime (if I get any), so 2011 will be a very, very busy year for me. Just the way I like it. : ]
