So you’re currently in the middle of a European tour, how’s it going? Do you feel the love on this side of the pond?
I don’t think it could go any better. The first time we crossed the pond was in 2014 and it was a bit of a struggle. No one really knew who we were yet and we were roughing it for six weeks. This time around we have a new European label, and people have had time to digest the music. It’s still so surprising to see a room full of people singing our songs. We are humbled by the reception thus far.
Originally you were employed as touring musicians, what was it that made you give this up to start writing your own material
It was all kind of a happy accident. Kelsey and I met when we were employed as backing musicians for a Danish band’s US tour. We started writing some songs together just to pass the time and found that we had a pretty easy and special chemistry. We also wrote the entire first album by the time the tour had ended. Even at that point we didn’t know it was going to turn into a band but once we recorded it there was no turning back.
Is there anything you miss from the ‘touring musician’ days?
The first couple tours you go on are magical. Everything is new and exiting and you get to see so many things that you’ve never seen before. I think I miss the overwhelming excitement of looking out the window while you roll up to say, New York, for the first time completely wide eyed. Nowadays, we’ve toured for so long you don’t get as excited about your surroundings. Emphasis on the states. We are wide eyed being over here.
In the early days of the band Alexander and Kelsey penned the music as a song writing duo. Since the band has expanded in numbers, is this still largely the same song writing process or is it more collaborative now?
Yes and no. We write the skeletons of all the songs and as a band we put the meat on. We like to leave a lot of room in the songs now for the rest of the band’s ideas and interpretation of the songs. We have such a strong band and have been doing it for so long together that we’ve learned how to communicate really well during the song writing process. Sometimes we’ll have an idea for drums and then Tom will throughout a different beat and the entire song changes for the best.
Residing from the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’ Austin Texas, is there a sense of comradery there or does its heritage make it hard to stand out from the crowd?
There is so much comradery. Everyone knows everyone and everyone helps each other out. We were lucky to break into the scene with a bang when we started. I really do think Austin is a magical place to start a new project. Others might disagree but that’s definitely been our experience.
Your second album ‘The Runaround’ was funded mainly through a Kickstarter campaign, do you think this is a way forward for artists to get their music out there?
Yes, of course. We struggled with whether to do it or not because it can come off as blagging but it was kind of our only option to make the record we wanted to make. I like to think of it more as a glorified pre order. I will say, in my opinion, you can only do something like that once in your career so choose wisely when you do it and make sure to only as for what you need not what you want.
What format do you prefer to listen to your music in, vinyl, cd, streaming etc.
Vinyl is my preffered choice, I just love everything about vinyl, the way it sounds, the process of flipping the record, the scratch. I feel like I pay more attention to the music when I’m spinning records. I would say though, that my primarily I use Spotify. Mostly for it’s convenience. It’s pretty amazing that have most of the world’s music at your fingertips. It’s also a great way to discover new bands.
How important is hi-res music to you and what do you think of streaming services and their effect on the music industry?
I don’t really care about hi-res music, I care way more about the songwriting. A shitty low fi recording of a great song will always beat a pretty and polished tune. I love streaming services, I think the majority of fans discovered us through Spotify.
What’s on the radar for Wild Child in 2017, what can we expect to see from you this year?
Expect a new record. Expect it to be the best one to date.
Fools is now out on Spotify, make sure you give it a listen!
