Fionn Questionnaire: Brianne

Age / Birthday: 20, March 9th 1998

Where do you live?

White Rock, British Columbia, Canada

Who are your greatest musical idols/influencers?

Hozier, Sinead O`Connor, Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Mitski, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, Florence and the Machine

What are your top 5 albums of all time?

Very hard to narrow it down to just 5, but for this moment in time I would have to say:

Hozier - Hozier

Melodrama – Lorde

Blue – Joni Mitchell

Bury me at make out creek - Mitski

Gone Now - Bleachers

What are 10 songs you’re listening to right now?

Drew Barrymore – Sza

Put your money on me – Arcade Fire

Solo – Frank Ocean

I miss those days – Bleachers

This is America – Childish Gambino

Dress – PJ Harvey

Hopeless – Halsey

Dead Fox – Courtney Barnett

Salad Days – Mac Demarco

Supercut - Lorde

How would you describe your sound to someone who hasn’t heard you?

Folk pop/ indie rock (I have a hard time with genres) 

What themes do you explore on this album? What do you hope listeners will take away from your album?

All the songs on this album were written between the ages of 17 – 19. I entered my ongoing existential crisis and began questioning everything I thought I knew and had been told. Leaving my small catholic high school and delving into the unknown of the music world was equally exciting and terrifying. The anxiety I was feeling at this time is definitely a theme in a few of the songs, as is observations about my first relationships, insecurities and the way women are treated in this world. I really hope that listeners will relate to the songs on the album, and hopefully feel less alone in their confusion and anxieties. I also hope that songs like “Magazine Face” and “Skeleton” can draw more attention to things like the “Me Too” movement and how women are treated, especially in this industry.  

Do you consider this record a feminist one? 

Yes, Alanna and I are both feminists and it is a common theme throughout the record.  Really the record is about the shattering of our reality and finding out life isn’t the way it was painted by school teachers and Hollywood movies. Women`s rights issues was a huge part of this awakening as we had never really noticed the subtleties of sexism.  We both hate when people try to sweep issues under the rug or turn a blind eye to what is really going on, so we tried to be as honest as we could about our feelings and our views.

Can you name a few "aha" moments from your life that set you down the road to music?

I can’t think of a particular moment where I realized I wanted to be a musician, music has always been a part of my life. Our mother is a piano teacher and our dad immigrated to Canada in an Irish showband. They met teaching piano at the same school. We grew up in a very musical environment and always told our parents we wanted to be singers, even making our stuffed animals into a family band, pretending they were touring in the US. I think a really important moment was when we were 12 and our mother convinced us to get a busking pass at a place called “Granville Island” in Vancouver. We would go every Sunday and busk in the food market. This was where we got all of our first gigs and started averaging at about 100 shows a year. It was a really great way to destroy any stage fright. Going to Nashville when we were in our early teens was also very important for our song writing development and only furthered our determination to make singing and song writing our career.

What was your first “I got this” moment as an artist?

I think it was when we got our record deal in March of 2016. We had written a list of career goals about a year prior, one of which was that we wanted to be signed with a label in March of 2016, the year we graduated high school. Watching it manifest was incredible. 

What is a story related to this album do you think you'll still be telling people 10 years from now?

I think I will always remember the day we recorded a string quartet at "The Warehouse Studio" in Gastown, the old part of Vancouver.  The studio itself is one of the best in Vancouver, absolutely beautiful, with large windows letting light into the big open space. I can remember listening to the quartet record and feeling absolutely ethereal. I have told almost everyone I know about this day and how spiritual it felt. In that moment I knew I was on the right track.

How has growing up as millennials in this era defined your music/songwriting/identities as artists?

Growing up in a time when the media is constantly trying to tell us that we aren’t good enough as we are, and that we must buy what they are selling to feel good about ourselves, worked its dark magic on me when I was younger. I went through an intense period of insecurity, always looking for the next product that would make me feel better about myself. It took until I was 18 to really see through this, and it has given me a lot to write about ever since. In other ways, it is a wonderful time to be alive. The world is more inclusive and open minded than it has ever been. We are on the right track, but have a long way to go. I think it is important if you are writing that you have something to say. Growing up and observing this weird yet wonderful generation of mine has given me a lot of material.    

From the music you were hearing to personal anecdotes, what was going on in your life that made its way onto the album, either intentionally or unintentionally?

We started writing for this album during a time in our lives where we were experiencing the most change we ever had. The questioning about life, first relationships, anxieties and feminism intentionally made their way onto the album as I’m sure most people, especially our age, could relate to what we were going through. I wrote the song "Castles" about the fear of losing my mind and being blinded by anxiety. We go through a lot in this life, loss being the worst of all evils. I wrote this at a time where I sat and wondered if I could handle it all. I wrote "Robert" and "A Pagans Prayer" about my first relationship. I was taught at my religious school how to love "properly" within the boundaries of the church. "A Pagans Prayer" was about letting go of these ideas and loving without fear. It was really inspired by Hozier’s "Take me to Church". I wrote "All I Need" about letting go of everything that everyone tells me I need in life, and finding freedom in what makes me happy. I wrote "On to the Next" and "The Horns are Fake" about my experience and feelings towards today's raging hookup culture. We were also exposed to a lot of new music when we met our producer ``Louise Burns``. Listening to different genres I had never thought to delve into really inspired me. When it came to writing for the album, I started experimenting with open tuning on my guitar after my dad showed me a video of Irish singer `Paul Brady` playing some traditional folk songs. It was a major discovery for me; I ended up writing 5 of my 6 songs this way. The Paul Brady videos surprisingly and unintentionally restarted my creativity after an intense period of writers block.  

How does being sisters and having so many shared experiences influence your music/creative process?

I think that being so comfortable and familiar with each other allows us to be very honest when we are creating together. I’m not afraid to tell Alanna if I don’t like one of her songs, and she isn’t afraid to tell me the same. This is a good thing because you can become very biased in your own head and lose perspective when writing a song. Having an unbiased honest opinion is a good asset and keeps you grounded when you feel like you're losing your mind.   

Do you both sing, play guitar and write songs?

Yes! Our album unintentionally turned out to be 6 of Alanna’s songs and 6 of mine

What was the first show you ever played?

The first time we ever performed a song together was our fourth grade Christmas concert where we sang `Take a Winter Walk with me`. The first gig we were ever hired to play was for a Christmas party at a mining company when we were 13

Who is your dream collaboration?

This is a tough one, there are so many! I would have to say Hozier for songwriting and Jack Antonoff for production

What was your first musical community? Was there a scene, or set of venues/bands in your hometown or elsewhere that nurtured you?

There is a very loving and supportive music community here in our hometown "White Rock". Just a lot of genuine music lovers looking to give young people the chance to play in front of a crowd. We were so fortunate to be embraced by our community from a young age receiving various grants and opportunities to further our performing experience. We would spend our summers busking on the waterfront and trying out new songs at various open mics.

As you explore on “Skeleton,” what have your experiences been like as young women in the music industry been like?

Luckily, our current experience has been wonderful! We are surrounded by genuinely good people at our label. Of course, looking good is a pressure that every girl feels in this industry. It’s something our current label has never brought up or discussed with us, but I remember when we were in Nashville for an NSAI writing session years ago, a man told us that our "window" of time to "make it" only extended about 10 years, and that as female artists, our "window", is a lot smaller than a male artist`s. Once the looks go, everything goes. That’s something you nod your head and accept when you’re a shy 14 year old. I wouldn’t be so ready to smile and nod anymore.  

What are your creative spaces — the places where you created the songs and recordings for this album? Where did you record it, and why there?

My creative space for song writing has always been in my bedroom. I close the door, put on my essential oil diffuser, sip on a cup of tea, and write a random stream of consciousness into a book until something feels right. It’s almost a meditative process. I’m very much in my own head at this stage. Other times though a song will start with a lot of guitar noodling, it really just depends on how I’m feeling. Alanna and I will write separately, and then bring our finished songs together where we work them up with harmony. 604 studios in Vancouver was also a very creative space for us. Production and recording was all very new, creativity had always been about melodies and lyrics. Any experience I had in studios prior to this had all been very mechanical. Hearing parts come to life, displaying all the emotion I had written in the lyrics of a song was mind-blowing for me. My favorite part was always sitting with our producer Louise Burns and creating multiple harmony lines and backup vocal parts.     

Are there any childhood stories or memories that find their way into your music?

I think maybe the sprinkle of Irish folksiness we have in our music would have come from our dad playing traditional Irish music around the house on Saturday mornings when we were kids. I can remember dancing around the living room in my pajamas just loving it!

You guys were born in White Rock, British Colombia - what is your relationship like to your home today?

White Rock is a beautiful place filled with beautiful people and memories, but I feel as though I belong elsewhere at this point in my life, and I am ready to move on.

What is a typical weekend like for you?

We’ll usually catch up with our friends downtown on a Friday or Saturday night. 80s night at a place called ``The Fox` is usually where you’d find us. Sunday we work on writing and sometimes will play at a local Irish pub for some fun and a bit of extra cash.

Do you work with any charities or non-profit organizations? What causes are you passionate about?

I don’t currently, but would love to in the future! I would say I’m most passionate about Women’s rights around the world.

Hobbies? Passions?

I love reading, especially poetry. Beat poetry is my current obsession.

Do you collect anything?

I have a pretty large tea collection

What are a few things you don't leave the house without?

My phone and my headphones, I’m constantly listening to music.

How do you describe your style?

I would say I like to dress up a little more than Alanna

What are your favorite clothing/make-up/lifestyle brands?

I’m not much of a brand name person when it comes to clothes, for makeup though I really like MAC and Laura Mercier

What are your favorite brands for equipment/tech/headphones/speakers etc?

I would have to say Apple; I’m not very tech savvy though.

What is your exercise routine like?

I try to run every second day

Do you have any health or dietary preferences (vegan, vegetarian, etc)?

No