ifitbeyourwill Podcast
“ifitbeyourwill" Podcasts is on a mission to talk to amazing indie artists from around the world! Join us for cozy, conversational episodes where you'll hear from talented and charismatic singer-songwriters, bands from all walks of life talk about their musical journey. Let's celebrate being music lovers!
Season Four runs from September 2024 to December 2024
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ifitbeyourwill Podcast
ifitbeyourwill S04E28 • Garlen Lo
Garland Lo takes us on a personal journey through the vibrant musical landscape of his youth, growing up amidst the eclectic sounds of his London household. With a nod to nostalgia, Garland recalls his auntie's love for country tunes and the bold Britpop rebellion of Oasis that shaped his songwriting vision. Discover how iconic albums like the Beatles' "Revolver" and the swagger of the Gallagher brothers fueled his creative fire, leading to a rich tapestry of over 180 songs. Garland shares the serendipitous moments of inspiration that drive his songwriting, highlighting the delicate balance between catchy melodies and compelling storytelling.
But the journey doesn’t stop with Garland’s past. We explore his current artistic endeavors, from crafting evocative music videos with a DIY flair to ambitiously planning future releases. Garland's commitment to releasing four singles a year pushes him to explore new musical frontiers, leaving us with a sense of anticipation for what's next. As he reflects on his evolution from teenage aspirations to pushing production boundaries, the excitement in his voice is contagious. Don't miss the chance to hear directly from Garland about his growth and future plans, as he invites listeners into his world of nostalgic and hopeful love.
One, two, three, four. Don't believe when you say pretty baby, you're not right for me, but I know what I know, so come on pretty.
Speaker 2:So here we are episode. I don't know what episode it is. Sorry, garland, I know it's season four and uh, today I have garland low coming in from his beautiful home in London and we are going to talk about his pretty impressive journey thus far. But there's much more to come, I'm sure, which we'll hear about that at the end. So, garland, thanks so much for hopping on here and joining us for a chit chat.
Speaker 3:Yeah, no pleasure.
Speaker 2:Pleasure to be here.
Speaker 3:So, Garland, my first questions are always like can you recollect some memories from when you were a kid where music kind of like slapped you in the head and was like, hey, this is cool, I like this. Like, do you have some early recollections of those experiences? Musical household, uh, so I grew up my auntie and uncle and they had three children who are all older than me and, uh, they, their three children, my cousins, had their partners also living in the same house together, so there was a lot of people in this house so there was, and there was so, and everybody liked music, um, so my auntie loved country music, so I heard a lot of that, uh, and especially when on drunken nights there were a lot of drunken nights not with me, I was a kid uh but there were a lot of drunken nights amongst the adults
Speaker 3:and the country music would be played a lot. That's, that's my memory of my auntie. Uh, in terms of my cousins they had like various tastes and their partners, so it would be rap, uh, dance, um 60s stuff and it was. And you asked me like if there was one sort of moment, yeah, that I really got, really got into music, um, it would be there were two moments. I'd say it was first oasis, so yeah, yeah, so in the 90s you had the whole Oasis, blur Britpop thing going on and that just took over the culture of the UK and I was prime age to be taken over for that culture. I was like about 14 when the whole Blur Oasis rivalry.
Speaker 1:Their target audience really right, Exactly, exactly, yeah.
Speaker 2:Get those teenagers young, get them coming to shows. Yeah, right on.
Speaker 3:So that really got me into it, because even though there was already a lot of music in the house, I wasn't really taken to any of the music that was being played to me. Much Right, right, and it was only for Oasis that everybody in the house disliked. So maybe it was my way of rebelling against what they liked and kind of finding my own thing Right right.
Speaker 2:What was it about Oasis that resonated with you Like? What was it that spoke to you so much?
Speaker 3:Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's a great question. Well, firstly, I would say the songs, great songs, great melodies, and so Noel Gallagher, as a songwriter, was my first musical hero. And then so, aside from the great songwriting, there was that whole image and everything that the Gallagher brothers brought to being a rock and roll star.
Speaker 3:So it had that swagger, that confidence, that rock and roll basically. So I was drawn. I was drawn to Noel's songwriting and Liam's presence and I think, yeah, if you spoke to every Oasis fan, that would be the tooth. That's what the magic of that band was.
Speaker 2:Right, and did you? You, because it influenced you so much, do you find that you carried that into when you started writing your own songs of the personality and the melody and all those things that kind of inspired you from them? Did you, did you try to incorporate those into what you wanted to do as well?
Speaker 3:yeah. So when I first started songwriting they were all the songs were just basically copying oasis songs. Naturally you just that's what you like, so you just kind of end up mocking copying that um. So a lot of kind of uh, sort of very lean gallagher sort of lines where, like, like um, where you draw out a sound, so a lot like a typical thing that he might say would be like, uh, like world, so you draw out this, this word, and so a lot of my like a typical thing that he might say would be like like world, so you draw out this word. And so a lot of those early songs that I wrote which long drawn out words had drawn out words and, yes, the melody of Noel Gallagher which comes naturally to him and he was influenced by the Beatles.
Speaker 3:Right, right so that was kind of my second uh sort of in in some in some music I read Revolver was a big one for you, like that was the first.
Speaker 2:Beatles. That was like wow, like what's going on here?
Speaker 3:yeah and that the story. So that, well, is that, that's that. So my second way I got into music was Revolver, so first it was this Oasis and then two was Revolver. It was because my cousin's this oasis and then two was revolver. It was because my cousin's uh boyfriend partner uh, had had a massive vinyl collection and um, so I just kind of flicked through things and uh, and there was this band called the beatles and I said I don't remember. Oh yeah, oasis mentioned the beatles. I think they like what's this what's this beatles band?
Speaker 3:and, um, the cover was just a brilliant cover, so that just stuck out. Yeah so, um, so I would, when, um, everyone was the adults were working um out of the house, I would just put on, uh, his record. He, he didn't like allow me to touch his vinyl, but when he was out of the house.
Speaker 3:No one knew so I put it on the thing and I have a funny. I'm going to tell you a silly story and it's the fun first time I think I've ever told anybody's story. I've been meaning to say it to him. So this is my cousin's boyfriend, I don't know. Anyway, I'll be as quick as possible.
Speaker 3:So he came back one day and said have you been touching my record player? I was like no, I was like I had uh. Because he said because the needle's broken. And I was, oh shit, oh, no, no, no, no, uh, and basically I just lied. I just blatantly just lied to him. I didn't, and I, what I've been doing was I've been playing revolver just non-stop, uh, and I've been, and I'm like 41 years old now and I still had. I haven't had the guts to tell him. So this is the first time I've told anyone and uh, so we'll see if he watches this and see what his reaction will be anyway, yeah, so playing revolver just on the loop was my second big sort of discovery of music. And then, through through that, it was basically everyone, from like the kinks to the stones and anyone who played guitar right, right and like how did how did music like fit into your, into your history?
Speaker 2:because I know that you, you're, you're a vlogger as well. Like you have this great modern grand tour, um, uh, youtube's site where you travel around, or you traveled around over three months and recorded all this stuff and put it out over a few years. What, where is that timeline fit? Like? When did you start actually getting serious about writing music and and less doing the vlogging like? What was your? Was it a transition into, or can you, can you fill in some blanks?
Speaker 3:yeah, um, so the music was in terms of like music versus vlogging. The music was definitely came way before the whole vlogging, I think. So, musically, I discovered Oasis in my teens and then wanted to be in a band, and then it wasn't until I was about 21 that I joined a band, and then I was in that band for a very short time and then, once I left that band, I decided to form my own band and then I met um, a bass bassist, and we then auditioned loads of type like well, it seemed forever for the right chemistry to find a bassist sorry, a drummer and a lead guitarist, and then, once we found, once we got that together. So by this time I'm now like 20, let's say 24. And yeah, so, and that was my. That was a great memory to like being young and being a band. It's just a brilliant experience.
Speaker 2:And then, how long did that go? How long did you guys stay together, like you said that it didn't? It didn't survive that long after kind of going through all these auditions and stuff, what, what, what was the demise?
Speaker 3:Yeah, we just imploded, like like bands do. Basically, we were together for about a year and a half and, um, what we were together for about a year and a half and towards the end we all had, we were all kind of slightly going separate directions. I know, for me, I wanted to do more traveling and I wanted to go. When I travel, I like to travel for long periods. So it was like, okay, I need to take a break from the band.
Speaker 3:And then for the other members, um, that one particular member of the band had, like a had a personal issue which which meant that once he left so he was the first to leave it meant that we'd have to audition for this another guitarist. And I thought, oh man, this is gonna, this is, we've been off, been through the pain of already auditioning for a guitarist, and so when he left, it felt like a really big blow and we did think about staying together as a three. But then I was planning to leave anyway. So I thought, let's see, well, let's just have a break. And then by the time I came back, it was just everyone had moved on.
Speaker 3:So it was a real and it's like my one, if I think back upon my my 40 years of life it is my one of my biggest regrets of not actually continue with that Cause I felt towards the end we got to a point where we were pretty hot.
Speaker 2:We were pretty good, what was your style? Like what was that style?
Speaker 3:That first band that we were like so it was around the time vampire weekend was breaking out, I think okay, uh, so we had that uh, jangly indie pop sound.
Speaker 3:So I was the I was the main songwriter for that band. So we can you can hear, still hear that all the indie pop stuff that I do now, uh, but I would say the difference between my that band and what I do now is we cause the other three guys were just brilliant technicians, they were brilliant musicians uh, way better than I am as a musician, and so I I could have, I could say my songs would just Excel to the maximum level of quality, whereas I feel with my own stuff I'm doing what I can to make it decent. But I know that if I had like better guitarist or a better keyboardist or drummer, it could be another level, um, so, yeah, so it's a shame, and I did think about. There's like a few songs that we, you know, we have on our laptop that I did think, oh, maybe we should just put them out and see what people think, um, but yeah, yeah, so that is one of my.
Speaker 2:Can you share what the name of that first band was called?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so we started off being called the Robot Pirate Dinosaurs. Wow. I don't think there's much on the internet, and then we changed our name to the Secret History. So, chris, you can go and do some digging up and see what you can find. I think there might be some sort of older YouTube, maybe like one or two things on YouTube. I'm not sure. I've not checked it, but see what you can find. In fact if you like I can send you one of my songs. Oh, I'd love that.
Speaker 2:And then you can just have a listen. Yeah, I'd love to. I love looking at histories of and the shifting of music and your process as a songwriter. Could we like? What's your process to come up with songs and has it changed over time?
Speaker 3:no-transcript uh, how do I get from nine to a song? Um, for me, um, songwriting, I for me, I feel songwriting comes very easily to me. It's, of all the different aspects of music, it's my strength, um, and it's the thing I enjoy the most. And I would happily, um just be a songwriter and give the the raw, basic music song to other better musicians and let them perform and do whatever they want to do. Um, so, but to answer your question, how do I come up with a song?
Speaker 3:Um, I might just be watching the tv and I have a like I'm guitar in hand, just like twiddling away, not really focusing on anything particular, and then I'll be like what's that? That's a little hooky, and then I'll have to stop the tv and I'll get the phone out to record, and then I might come back to it later in the week and work on it, and it might take several months before I get to finish it. Or if I'm really keen on the song and I've got the time and the day, I'll just work on it right there and then and just finish off.
Speaker 3:So you hear a lot of the time musicians say it wrote itself in 20 minutes and that's when they knew it was good. So sometimes it happens like that, sometimes they're really quick, uh, and other times a lot of the time in fact. Um, I will just record something and it will just sit on my phone for absolutely ages um yeah, yeah, because I read that you have 179 songs.
Speaker 2:Now maybe that's changed. That was what I was reading, that you had and you have about seven or eight singles that you've put out. Is that is?
Speaker 3:that accurate? Yeah, yeah, so now I think it's about like 180 something. Yeah, it's eight singles so far.
Speaker 2:Yeah right, right and and like, how do you know? Like when a song, when you're on to something like what reveals itself in the song, that that you say, okay, I'm this is worth, like saving it, or like building on, or okay, I'm going to take the afternoon to write this out like what? What is it about your songwriting that sparks inside you when you know you're onto something?
Speaker 3:yeah, uh, a little hook, it's just it. Just. All it takes is just one hook and I go that. That that's nice, that's interesting, um, that's memorable, um and um, yeah, um, that's it really if it's. If it's hooky, it's it. And there'll be loads of times where I'm twiddling away and, uh, nothing comes out. Um, so I have those times too.
Speaker 3:Loads of those experiences sure, and then suddenly you go this golden moment where you go oh, that's, that's really nice, you know, make sure. And then sometimes what I've done in the past is you go oh, that's really nice, I'll remember that. And then you do something else. You come back and go oh, what was it?
Speaker 2:Oh, philosophy, and then you feel like, oh damn, so yeah, and so you're saying that you're noodling and playing around with the. You know a couple of chords will inspire. Where do your lyrics come in? Because I noticed that they are very storyteller-like right. They're almost third person all the time, where you're observing, kind of from an outside perspective, what informs your song, the actual songwriting, lyric-wise, like, is it daily things that happen, experiences that you've had, like where do you, where do you draw your lyrics and your stories from?
Speaker 3:yeah, well, I think I think over the time of my songwriting it's changed. So, as a younger person, when I first started songwriting, um, it would be made up stuff because I didn't really have many experiences to actually put into song. And, funny enough, when I remember, if you asked me this question when I was 17, let's say I would have told you lyrics aren't important, it's all. I would have said melody is the most important thing and I can sing absolute gobbledygook and the key thing is melody. But now I would say they're both important. I would still say melody is still king for me, um, but uh, lyrics wise, that that's another way for the listener to get into the song. So, even so, I feel that if the, if the melody doesn't grab you instantly, there might be a lyric in there which makes its way into your brain and then you can appreciate the song more, or another way to appreciate the song.
Speaker 3:So, yeah, so to answer your question, where do I, as an older person, my own experiences? Yeah, my own experience.
Speaker 2:Right, and do you tend to revolve around similar themes or do you do you want them to be always very individual, always very like an individual theme that you're putting into the song?
Speaker 3:Can you say that question again?
Speaker 2:Well, when you're writing them, like, what kinds of themes do you tend to dabble in?
Speaker 3:Oh, okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So my eight songs I've produced so far they all have, apart from the first one. I would say the theme is love and the theme is nostalgic love and that comes from my time right now of being a single guy and wanting love and thinking about old love. So I think if you take away Captain Elon, my first song, they all, they all have, they're all very strongly about about love and should I, when I find my partner, suddenly there will be really happy songs about love. So I think the last seven songs kind of are kind of they're hopeful songs about love.
Speaker 2:Cool. Yeah, I enjoyed your videos too. I mean, they're they're very, um, you know, like DIY for sure, but they have this charm to them and I think that it's your like.
Speaker 3:You built all those videos right, like yeah, yeah, I just, I made them all myself. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Right, right, and like what? What inspires your video creation? Cause I know, like I mentioned before, that you've that you had a vlog where you have tons of these really cool travel videos that you made. What's the difference between kind of doing that, where you're kind of reporting on the history of something, to creating a video around a theme of love?
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Well.
Speaker 3:I suppose I suppose the difference in terms of like vlogging and when I'm making my music video uh is I can be much more creative uh in my music video, because there's, there's, I can do anything I want. Uh, a vlog has a certain format. Uh, and you're, and you're, you're wanting, you're wanting to, also, because my mom's quite educated, my educate, my vlogs are quite educational, right? Um, there's, I'm sticking to a, there's a script and it's.
Speaker 3:It feels like a much more formal process right um, with the music videos I can just let loose and do whatever I want, uh, so they're, they're quite different, like. So the last one is this kind of weird animation thing and I've had a lego one and I've had ones where I'm, where I'm in it in a park and uh, it feels like a vlogging style one. Uh, the i1, where the i1, where I'm in my house, in my flat, uh, I think the, the one thing I would say about my the I think they're quite. I would say about my music music videos they're quite creative and the reason they're creative?
Speaker 3:because I've got no budget right so I've had to, like think outside the box. And then what can I do? With no budget and basically no crew to help me out? I've just got one camera and a tripod and me. Uh, there were a couple of times where I did manage to. So I think on um, lover's, lover and London, tell Me why I had my friends, one friend helping me each time. But yeah, I think on all the other times it was just literally me trying to work it out.
Speaker 2:Well, Pretty Baby, that's the one, your animation, one which I just find so charming. That must have taken forever too, though, to snip it together like that. It's like those aren't? Those aren't small. There's so many photos in there so so actually no, okay explain forever no uh, I tell you the one that took forever.
Speaker 3:Yeah uh, steve rogers, the one with the Lego.
Speaker 2:Right, right, that's impressive.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's cool. Yeah, so Steve Rogers took forever because I had to buy all the Lego and I had to buy the right Lego. And then it was me. I set it all up and it was just me holding the camera but trying to move the Lego at the same time. And it was just like and sometimes because I'm just not strong enough and like I'm holding the camera for ages, I'm holding the lego for ages and my arm was just wanting to die. Uh, and that took for that took a long time and that, but that was worth it. It was the best bit, my thing on my best video um, oh, it's really entertaining.
Speaker 2:I mean, they're all entertaining and and like, what's exciting is that you don't know what you're going to do. You know, like the video starts and you're like, okay, what's he going to do now? It's like they're very, very creative and everyone is its own kind of little capsule into in time for you and you mentioned before that you would rather just races, write songs and then have somebody else perform them. What, what have you played, like your stuff live, yet, um, in front of people, um, at a show or anything like that. Has that happened?
Speaker 3:no, I've not as, as in the last two years, as a solo artist I've not ever played live. I tried, I tried to form a band last year. I just found that quite hassling Because for me it has to be the right chemistry If I'm going to be hanging around with these people. I want us to get on.
Speaker 3:That's really, really important to me. So yeah, so I tried to form a band. That didn't quite work out, and then I thought it might just be easier just to do it alone. I know I'd love to be able to go. I'd the dream would be to get the old band back together.
Speaker 2:Uh, like they say, let's get the band back together right yeah well, I'm excited to hear this track that you're gonna send me, for sure, and if, if it blows my mind, you know I'm going to start hassling you, garland, like, get the band together, come on we did.
Speaker 3:You know what we actually? We uh, we had um for the. So, yeah, we all went our separate ways. We all live in different parts of the country, but we actually had a zoom call. Uh, there were the three of us.
Speaker 2:There was four there were so four in the band.
Speaker 3:but the three of us had a zoom call about a few months ago in the summer and, uh, we did talk about it and um, and it was I think I, we, I, I wanted the four, I wanted our guitarist to back and I, I said to him it. It wouldn't feel right without our guitarist and uh, so if, if we can get our guitarist back in, I would be.
Speaker 2:I would travel the distance the miles to get that band together, uh, but it's just getting him on board. So, yes, well, I mean, there's lots of time still um yeah who knows?
Speaker 2:you know these things you know it's interesting that you mentioned that too, because I've been kind of thinking about why bands have kind of disappeared almost in a sense, like sure, reunion bands, oasis, come back big and you know, like that still exists, like these resurgence of, but there seems to be like if you look at billboards and like you know the charts, it tends to be a lot of individuals in very few bands. Do you think it has to do with that? Just that um, relationship problem that happens in bands, like if you don't love each other or aren't friends, it really can start to affect what you're trying to, what your purpose is um well, I suppose there's.
Speaker 3:I mean, there's been bands all throughout, well, since bands formed to to up to up to now, where there's not many bands. So the question would be why now?
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:What do you?
Speaker 2:think. What is your feel about that?
Speaker 3:Yeah. The question to why now, this moment in time, I don't know. Maybe it's just a shift in musical taste. So every period goes through a period and maybe this period is more like a singer-songwriter kind of style as opposed to heavy guitar rock sounds, and maybe in a few years' time the next kind of musical wave will be that heavy rock sound and bands will make a resurgence. Uh, not yeah.
Speaker 2:So yeah, that's yeah, but yeah, I've never really yeah, I think too, like the pandemic still is kind of like we're still feeling that aftershock where people had to go back into their bedrooms and record their stuff and, you know, would put it out via band camp or on youtube or they'd find social platforms to put it, so you couldn't really be in a band right for two years or so, like it just was impossible for it, and that that's kind of like carried through where it's now. Just, you know, our biggest stars now are not bands. You know there's no big u2s or you know the who or the beatles or um, we have like very like singer, songwriters, like what you were saying.
Speaker 2:I just find that kind of interesting that what are all the factors that contributed to that kind of shift in our, in our landscape?
Speaker 3:of music. That's a really good point, but I'm not something I thought of before, but it's really such a it's such a good point because Not something I thought of before, but it's really such a good point because that's how I kind of started. There was this time, it was the COVID period and I had loads of time so I could go on my laptop and finish these half-baked songs, and I'm sure there must be so many other musicians like me who basically, yeah, went the same route.
Speaker 2:Yeah, absolutely, that's super interesting. I like these reflections that we're having here. Garland so, as we kind of bring things to a close here, what can we look forward to from Garland Low? What's coming down the pipe? I mean, your latest single is great. Are you assembling or amassing an EP or a record? Are you going to hit the road? Are you going to do a show? Can you tell us anything about the future from what's? What's looks the rest of 2024 into 2025 for you?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so well. 2024 now musically is, is done for me and I think the the the format so far, the formula I've stuck, I've stuck to is four singles a year. So I've done eight now. So there'll be another four coming next year and three have already been recorded, so I'm happy with them.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I kind of impressed myself really with the new three if I can say so myself because I've tried to kind of push the boundaries of what I can do a little bit more. So I would say, the ones that you've heard previously, I've kind of been very safe, especially the Pretty Babies, like a song I wrote when I was 17. So it's a very safe song, it's kind of what I do, whereas the next three they're a little bit more. I've pushed myself a bit more in terms of musically and production wise. So yeah, you've got that to look forward to Amazing, amazing.
Speaker 2:So we have four singles that are surely dropping in 2025.
Speaker 3:Yeah, well, three. So three have definitely. They've been made. They were already to be pushed out. I just need to make the music videos and then the fourth one will be recorded, once I find the time to.
Speaker 2:But yeah, amazing, amazing. Well, garland, this has been a really fun chat. I love your enthusiasm and your thoughtfulness. I really enjoying your singles as well. Keep it up. I love this kind of concept you have of launching singles and they're all numbered and you have your own videos that go along with it. Just the aesthetic is really cool and your storytelling is great. I I mean, you're such a great uh great writer, so please continue doing it, and I look forward to seeing what's next. I'm uh excited to hear this single from your band, your old band, and your next singles that come down the road. And if ever you want to hop back on and share more stuff, hey, I'd love to have you back well, brilliant, I've enjoyed.
Speaker 3:I've enjoyed every second of this as well. So, thanks so much. I'm really like so pleased just to be like doing stuff like this.
Speaker 1:Yeah, this is my own musical journey, so, uh, yeah thank you, thank you so much, cheers man okay, nice one cheers don't believe when you say pretty baby, you're not right for me, but I know what I know. So come on, pretty baby Put a little faith in me.
Speaker 2:Give you the world if you want it. Pretty baby Girl, I'm on my knees, what do?
Speaker 1:I have to do if. I want to get with you. Could you draw a picture please? It doesn't matter what the others say, it's what we do, cause you're my pretty baby and I really don't mean. Maybe when.
Speaker 2:I say I want to spend my life with you.
Speaker 1:But she said baby, you don't get in for free. You gotta learn the rules like the ABC. You better slow down. You're only 17, don't be hanging signs on me. I make you smile when I call you pretty baby, but it's not of the kind I want. You're just laughing at me, failing me truly. Maybe it's the time I'll stop. It doesn't matter what the others say, it's what we do, cause you're my pretty baby and I really don't mean maybe, when I say I want to spend my life with you. But she said baby, you don't get in for free. You gotta learn the rules like the ABC. You better slow down. You're only 17, don't be hanging signs on me. Then she said Baby, you don't get it for free, you gotta learn the rules Like the A, b, c, your battle. Slow down, you're only 17, don't be hanging signs on me.
