On this episode, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer Maia Sharp gets Al acquainted with Lord Huron’s 2018 album Vide Noir. (Maia was previously a guest on Ep 124, when she and Al talked about Historian by Lucy Dacus.) Maia explains why Vide Noir is on heavy rotation at her home and how this album—and Lord Huron’s music more generally—has informed her own songwriting. She also discusses the making of her latest album Tomboy, delving into some of the lyrical themes, arrangements and songwriting processes.
Learn more about Maia and her music at https://www.maiasharp.com/! To hear exclusive songs, previews and much more, check out Maia’s Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/maiasharp.
You can also follow Maia on Instagram at @maiasharpmusic and on Facebook at @maiasharpofficial.
At the end of this episode, Al mentioned the song that Maia co-wrote as part of the Songwriting With Soldiers program. To learn more about the making of “Strumming Hand,” see the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDhW4szERds. To learn more about Songwriting With Soldiers, visit their website at https://songwritingwithsoldiers.org/.
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1:19 Maia’s introduction
2:19 Al had heard of Lord Huron before…barely
6:03 Maia explains why she picked Vide Noir for this episode
11:02 Maia talks about songwriting lessons she has learned from Lord Huron
16:04 Al and Maia compare the experiences of listening to Lord Huron and Bon Iver
21:20 Al and Maia talk about the lack of action in Ben Schneider’s story
24:51 Maia loves the slackness of the drums on Vide Noir
30:16 Why doesn’t Maia usually like music that sounds theatrical?
32:18 Maia and Al note the album’s blend of retro and futuristic sounds
34:21 Maia appreciates how listening to Vide Noir is a full experience
39:04 There’s not much suspense as to how the protagonist’s story is going to end
40:13 Maia took a different approach to listening to Vide Noir in preparing for this episode
43:13 Maia talks about the use of percussion on Tomboy
48:08 Maia recounts the process of writing “Better Story” with Matthew Perryman Jones
52:30 Maia talks about her upcoming plans
Outro is from “Strumming Hand” by Maia Sharp.
