Black Pixels are an amazing new band on the block that I really love, after checking out their single Tides. I sat down with the singer of the band, Alanah, to talk a little more about their music. See how we got on below!
By Jane Howkins
You recently released a single titled Tides, which we reviewed. What can you tell us about the song?
It’s kind of wistful with the dreamy kalimbas. The lyrics are about trying to cling on to someone who just doesn’t want to be with you. I think there’ll be plenty of people who can relate. But more than that, it’s about how those emotions turn you into a completely different person. A person you look back on and think ‘oh my god… was that really me?’ It’s pretty exaggerated, but still. It can really make you lose yourself.
How has the reception to Tides been and where can it be purchased?
People seem to like it – which is a relief! It got played by BBC Introducing, which was very surreal. That was the first time we’d heard ourselves on the radio. We were all being pretty nerdy about it, whatsapping each other with lots of capitals and emojis when it came on. People can buy it at blackpixel…ndcamp.com as part of our Hazy Sky EP.
Has the pandemic hindered your work much?
Yeah – it definitely put a spanner in the works. We’d just recorded an album’s worth of songs and were about to release it. Then everything shut down. We couldn’t gig, so we were like – what’s the point of releasing all this music. We wanted to play it to people. So now, more than 2 years later, it’s finally getting out there.
You have an album called Hazy Sky coming out very soon! What can you tell us about the album and when will it be released?
We released our first EP Hazy Sky in early September. I can’t believe we’ve actually done it. It’s all a bit moody and dark lyrically, but musically there are some pretty jangly moments.
Have you started writing for another EP/album?
This EP actually started life as a full album – but then we broke it into 2. The other half of the songs will be on our next EP later this year/early next year. And we’re always writing new songs at band practice. We’ve already got a whole load more to record.
Do you plan to release any more singles in the near future?
We’ll hopefully be putting another single out in the next few months. I think we know which one it will be – and it’s a proper tear jerker. It’s a hard one for me to sing live.
You’re based in East London. What is the local music scene like?
It’s pretty eclectic. We’ve played with bands who sound quite a lot like us, and others who’ve had a full on brass section. And then there’s my favourite who had a whole song about giving a report to your boss by Tuesday. That still goes round my head a lot – “I want the report by Tuesday. Give it to me.”
Your music has a dream-pop/post-pop sound. What/who influences you most as artists? What have you been listening to recently?
As a band, some of our big influences are WU LYF, Radiohead and The xx. Lyrically, I’m pretty emo. I had one of those very swoopy side fringes back in the day. I’ve been listening to a lot of my favourite teenage albums lately – Mezmerize by System of a Down has been on repeat.
Do you have any plans to tour in the UK?
We’re usually gigging somewhere in London. We’ve got our EP launch at Strongroom Bar on 29 September and we’ll be playing at The Engine Rooms in October.
Any last words for the fans?
We hope you like what we’re doing! And if you do, it would be great to see you at one of our gigs. Playing live is our absolute favourite.