Kali Holloway was in need of that missing half who would fulfill her musical desires. After putting an ad on Craigslist, a killer is not what she found (thankfully), but instead a guy by the name of Jeremy Wimmer. Together the two would become the solid duo who now flourish under the name of Easy Lover. We are proud to announce them as our first Highlighted Artist.
You guys are one dynamic duo. How did Easy Lover get its start?
The Easy Lover backstory is one involving a surprising amount of Craigslist. I posted an ad because I wanted to make different music than I was making, and I wanted to make it with just one other person. And Jeremy responded, along with a handful of other people (I’m not counting the people that sent files of themselves shredding on guitar), and we met up and were both like, “Okay! This could maybe work!” And then we just kept meeting and playing music until things stopped being awkward.
Was there a certain moment when you two said, “Yes, this is the time that we should take this project a step further from just writing great songs only few will hear, to writing great songs that will reach the ears of many?”
This question is kind of funny, because it presumes that the ears of MANY have heard us which, I dunno, seems a little generous but okay sure I’ll take it. I think the simplest answer is, every new song is light years better than the last, I think, and we are always hoping that as we get better, we can share those sounds with more and more people. I’m not even sure that I answered your question but here’s hoping that works all the same.
You just recently put out your debut self-titled EP on July 10th, how did the process go for making your first EP? Was it what you expected?
Well, we’ve both been in other bands, and so I think we both knew the drill with recording: You practice a lot to make sure the songs are tight and so you’re not wasting anyone’s time, you spend long hours in a studio trying to get things right and eating terrible food, you listen to things over and over and try to keep your ears from losing their ability to tell “great” from “fucking awful.” We were lucky to record those songs with Rick Kwan (Zambri, Hooray for Earth) and he was (and is) very nice, and very patient, and very helpful. I don’t love the recording process, because (SPOILER ALERT) it’s draining and sometimes tedious, but this was as good as it gets, and that’s mostly Rick’s doing, I think.
What is your personal writing experience like?
I (this is Kali speaking) write all the lyrics and vocal parts, and I think that things fall into two categories: Wrote itself vs. Painstaking. I think the results of both can be totally satisfying, but the way you get there is completely different, and that’s okay. For music, Jeremy usually brings in a part or creates something right there in the practice space, and if it resonates, I’ll just come up with something right then, or take it home and work on it on my own. Once we nail down the basics, we flesh things out from there.
Is your work ethic similar to each other? Do you ever fight over something musically or a business decision?
I was tempted to make up a story about how we have knock down, drag out fights over music all the time but that’s not true. (Or is it?) I think we’re honest about saying to the other person, “Yeah, no.” when something isn’t working, because who wants to work on a song they hate? Although, there are times when one of us will write something and it’ll take time for the other person to find themselves in it, but then they ultimately do and it all works out from there. (This can happen to me because I can’t play guitar or keyboards, so I have to describe music in the images it creates in my head to get my idea – how it feels or where it sits tonally or emotionally for me – across.)
Was there a theme you tried to keep throughout this album, or a certain message you wanted to convey to your listeners?
No messages. No themes. Although, I would say that all of these songs sound like songs made by a single band that, in this case, happens to be us. If that makes sense.
You guys are from Brooklyn, NY, which is more of the artsy laid back side of New York City. Do you get inspiration from solely where you were located? Do you think you would have created the same sound if you were in a different city?
This is a question I’ve gotten before and the honest answer is, I think there are so many factors that go into what music I – or anyone, really – makes (where you live, what you love, everything you’ve ever listened to, how you feel today and how you spent last night) that to say yes would be slightly disingenuous. It’s there, but it’s not the only thing.
If you could listen to one song on your new EP for the rest of your life (including remixes), which song would it be?
New Maggie. I love the way that song feels romantic in an out-of-date, almost ‘80s way, like some strange blend of the cover of “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You” by Lick the Tins (on the Some Kind of Wonderful soundtrack), and how it’s lo-fi but downy at the same time.
How did you feel when these big names (i.e. former member of Chairlift Aaron Pfenning, producer Elan Polushko, and DFA member Gavin Russom) all became apart of your music by remixing your song “End Of Season” in their own ways?
They are all SUCH awesome people who are actually super, super busy, so having them do anything with any of our songs was so, so appreciated. Like, who gets to have such great remixes on their very first EP? Almost no one. We were very lucky, and we’re so appreciative.
Do you foresee any big collaborations in the future?
SO MANY BIG COLLABORATIONS I DON’T EVEN KNOW WHERE TO START. Just kidding. I mean, not kidding but, who knows? We’re open to everything.
How have people responded to this EP?
We’ve gotten really, really great responses to the EP and to our live shows in general. I mean, we’re a tiny band from Brooklyn, so having, say, MTV Buzz tweet about us is pretty much a completely unexpected thing. It’s nice when people like the things that you make. Because so much of music making is so self-contained – it’s nice when you put it out to other people and they can find themselves in it.
Can we expect a tour any time soon?
We are very working on it. We’d really love to hit the road in the coming months!
Though your career is still young, what has been the “highlight” of your career so far?
Having this release come out and getting such positive feedback, even as we write new songs that I know are even better. Up and at them, as they say! And thank you for having us.
