A completely independent and DIY artist based in Nottingham, familyfriend. knows a thing or two about making in on one’s own in the industry. He’s shared his thoughts in the matter through his debut album, popculture.
By Graeme Smith
Feature photo by Rae Dowling
“In a weird way, I can’t say it was a conscious choice – I think the meaning I’ve prescribed is a little retroactive,” says familyfriend. about the album’s meaning. “The songs came first and foremost. I tend to write lyrics in a stream of consciousness; it’s a very unregimented process. I think I just harbour a lot of frustration and condemnation towards the industry at large, and that’s bled through lyrically whether I like it or not.”
With big beats, quirky textures and soulful vocals, the first bars of album opener Head Out prove intoxicating. Familyfriend. has an easy storytelling style in his lyrics, slightly hedonistic, slightly dark, reminiscent of Billie Eilish’s Bad Guy.
Things evolve into some ’90s psychedelia through Kids of The New Generation. A rumbling bassline brings to mind The Breeders’ Cannonball in the verse before things get freaky in the chorus.
“There’s a lot of personal stuff muddied in [this album] too, and I’ve tried to keep things fairly ambiguous so people can assign their own meanings to each song,” familyfriend. explains. “With lyrics, I love small phrases. Little tastes of sentences that conjure up strong images in my mind. Kids of the New Generation is probably the best example of that; it’s basically just a string of random buzzphrases put together, yet somehow came out fairly coherently. It’s a bit dada, maybe a little Bowie.”
As the album progresses, we get more genre twists and turns all held together by familyfriend.’s charm and laidback style. There are elements of Radiohead, blue-eyed soul, and wistful indie pop in an eclectic mix.
Superking Blue is a chanting late album highlight while C’est La Vie closes things in vibrant and triumphant style.
With such an wide range of influences, it’s difficult to pigeon-hole the album genre-wise. The artist himself calls it ‘anti-pop.’
“Again, I don’t think I had much agency over it. I’ve tried to write to a brief so many times; ‘Oh, I want this song to sound like Jeff Buckley or Radiohead or…’ and it just never works out for me. It’s really hard to pick a lane and stick with it. I think there’s also a strong element of writing ‘in the box’ – meaning on my computer in Ableton – and the scope which that allows you to have, even as a small artist. You’ve got thousands and thousands of sounds, samples, synths, reverbs, and I love the exploratory side of making music.
“I think sticking to one genre would limit the scope of what you can reasonably make a record sound like, which means I get FOMO [fear of missing out] over not using that one really weird bass sound or whatever. Freedom of choice is really important and you want as little guardrails going in as possible to realise that vision in your head.
“I like the idea that every songwriter carries an essence, a character. If you’re comfortable in your character, then your character will always prevail through whatever genre or sound design choices you make, whether you like it or not, for better or for worse. I think it’s important for longevity, it makes you adaptable and means that audiences can’t ever get too comfortable with your direction.”
It’s perhaps, in some ways, a golden age for being an independent artist with so many tools available for those to construct and produce their own music. Yet, the industry is more saturated than ever as a result, and cutting through is difficult. I asked familyfriend. if he had any advice for independent artists.
“I’m far from having a sustainable career in music, so I can absolutely empathise with anybody who wants to do this whole DIY independent thing,” he says, “but really, it’s a game of patience, as with most things in life. The only time you ever lose is when you give up. Go and support your local scene. Make friends with people who have a similar ethos to you, even if not musically. Those are the people who will keep your head above the water when you’re feeling bad about your progress, and the people who will show up to your gigs.
“I’d also say probably stop thinking in patterns. Something that might have worked for someone else might not work for you, and that’s okay. We live in a world of near infinite possibilities and there is guaranteed to be something out there that gives you more motivation or pushes you further in your career; you just have to look inwards and find it. Maybe you’re not a content person, maybe you hate TikTok – that’s not a negative, that just means you spend more time doing the things that you’re passionate about. Passion and persistence will always override any amount of marketing prowess, PR or whatever. At least, I hope it will.”
Speaking of local scenes, when I left Nottingham it had a thriving one. I checked in to see how things are now.
“It’s my favourite place in the world,” says familyfriend. “The music scene feels as vibrant as anything. I’m pretty sure you could comfortably go to a decent gig every single evening. It feels like a very supportive place, and every show I’ve played here has felt like home. Really attentive crowds, really respectful people and more importantly I think very open minded.
“I go to JT Soar, an old grocers converted into a DIY gig space, pretty much every Friday for bUTTONpUSHER gigs. You never know what you’re going to get. One week it’s a Mathcore band from Ireland headlining, the next it’s some insane electronic noise punk stuff, then you’ve got a band that sounds like Primus next in the lineup. If you fancy something softer then you can hop down the road to The Grove and see some gentle acoustic singer-songwriter thing or some pop punk, or even head to Rescue Rooms for the bigger acts. The big gigs are also great; I’ve seen Jeff Rosenstock, Mannequin Pussy and Foxing in town and they were all phenomenal with great crowds.
“It’s so inspiring to see so much diverse music concentrated into what is a fairly small city, and I can’t imagine being anywhere else. Seems to be growing too – there’s the Mist Rolling Inn now just outside the city centre that puts on a lot of DIY stuff – shout out Simon! The only sore point is the old venue The Chameleon – very beloved but sadly shut down. Though the void is being filled elsewhere, I do miss those sticky floors. I did manage to snag the Super Nintendo they had though before they shut down. Cheers John and Lauren.”
I’m glad to hear things are still going well down in the East Midlands.
From this interview and his album, it’s pretty clear that familyfriend. has a clear passion for his work and an enthusiasm when talking about it. I wanted to know what he had planned next.
“I can’t really stop making music, it feels like compulsion,” he admits. “I’ve got an EP already 95% of the way there that I want to follow up the album with, born through frustrations at work and a general sense of apathy. That’ll probably be a late 2025 job.
“After that, I really want to try and push my own boundaries. I’ve got a notebook full of songs that I wrote just after I sent off this album for mastering, which I’d like to record ‘old school’ – get a few musicians, get in a room and get the meat of the tracks recorded live, on the spot. The songs sound quite ‘90s, think The Bends meets Screamadelica, sort of quintessentially British music. It might come to fruition, or I might get distracted and record some more bits at home. Who knows?”
It seems appropriate to end this article on one final note about independent music. One thing familyfriend. encourages listeners to do is “move away from streaming. Go buy the records you like on Bandcamp, grab some merch while you’re there – you can be the change this industry needs, away from manufactured successes and algorithmic force-feeding.
“I feel it’s particularly important now, more than ever. If you can’t afford to buy a record then I completely understand, but album and merch sales really are the lifeblood of us DIY musicians.”
On that note, you can get your copy of popculture. on Bandcamp now. You can give it a listen below.
Supported by Musosoup #SustainableCurator
