5 Minutes With: Amy Shark
Your album is finally out! How are you feeling?
I’m just so excited for everyone to hear this album. I feel like [I’ve been] sitting on something that people need; I don’t mean that in a cocky way, I just mean I’ve got these beautiful fans and they write to me every day…I feel like everyone deserves some new music.”
What’s behind the name Love Monster?
When I was thinking about a title for this album and the songs, I [thought] it needed to be a big title. I just wanted it to sound huge and monstrous… There’s a side of these songs that are so beautiful and passionate and romantic and there’s a side that is full of bitterness and jealousy, and that’s just normal human behavior. So Love Monster just made sense.”
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You worked with super-producer Jack Antonoff on the record. How did that come about?
“I supported his band Bleachers on an American tour, so we became pretty fast friends…[and] he said, ‘If you ever want to jump in the studio…’ So I told my manager we needed to make this happen, like, tomorrow [laughs]. The process was sonew to me because I [usually] don’t write with anyone. I’m lucky because I didn’t have to work with a bunch of up-and-coming producers. I went straight to this guy who’s at the top of the game, and I realised why very quickly...He drew the artist out of me within seconds.”
You also collaborated with Mark Hoppus from Blink 182. Were you always a fan of his work?
“Yeah, I’m like one of the biggest Blink One Eighty Two fans you’ll ever meet… Mark reached out to me over Twitter and said ‘next time you’re in LA we should get a coffee,’ and in that meeting he [asked] what I was up to. I said, ‘I’m literally finishing my album,’ and he was like, ‘Aw man I’d love to be involved.’ I just thought ‘Jesus!’ That night I sent him a demo of a song called Psycho [that] I had in the works for ages. He hit me back and said ‘I love it, lets go and do it,’ so he organised the studio and now we have a song together!”
What did you grow up listening to? What would you say influenced your sound?
“I listened to a lot of sad songs to be honest; I was always drawn to really moody songs. My dad would always buy Silverchair [records] and I’d go straight to the cemetery [laughs]. Alanis Morissette, The Police… I was always connecting with the more melancholy sounds… I went through so many different phases, I went through loving Alannis and Blink 182 and Missy Elliot and Eminem… I’m not subject to any genre, I’m open to everything; it’s just got to be honest. I can sort of tell a song that’s been written by 15 different writers.
Many of your songs describe the highs and lows of relationships. Why do you choose to write about those themes?
“I don’t really choose. This sounds really spiritual - when you write a song it just comes out… It’s like an out-of-body experience, and because I always write about [myself] and things I’ve been through, that’s obviously just what I’ve been through… Everyone has had good relationships and everyone has had their heart shattered, so that’s something that I definitely still think about and write about.”
Do you think you’ll ever tire of performing your breakout hit “Adore”?
“No, I’ll never get over that song. [It] has given me such an amazing life. I’m so grateful that I wrote the song and people like it…It’s a beautiful thing. The second those guitar notes come on and everyone loses their shit—it’s the best.”
How did you settle on your signature look?
“I’m comfortable in skinny jeans and a tee, and I love Adidas. One day I just put that ensemble together…I couldn’t be an artist [who] travels with costumes and needs hair and make-up [done]...When you live the life I live, it’s easier knowing you have a strict procedure. I have a uniform. People can spot me a mile away when I’m about to play.”
It seems like now is a really good time for female artists in Australia. What do you think?
“I think we’re ruling the world right now. Every song that I’m hearing and Shazam-ing is a female artist; it’s super inspiring. And everyone ‘s got their own genre, I don’t feel like there’s many people in competition, there are no female artists that I look at and think I’m in competition with. Everyone’s got their signature sound right now and its awesome that people are digging for that.”
Love Monster is out now. Touring August and September; amyshark.com
