Category: Interviews
Dasha has been described as the-girl-next-door meets the-devil-you-pretend-you-don’t-know. Drawing on a wide range of influences, Dasha unleashes powerful, piano-centric rock songs with surprising strength and emotion.
After gaining success fronting Vancouver band SoWhatNothing, Dasha has made the move to go solo. Her first full length CD, “It’s Just a Number”, was released back in February. Dasha's powerful, personal vocals and melodic piano style is supported by a solid band. Listening to her, we discover a full rock sound that grabs you with its power and then treats us to some interesting arrangements. It’s classic, but not at all predictable.
Dasha took a few moments out of her busy schedule to chat with Project Opus and give us a little insight into her music and her life.
Valentine (single release)
Project Opus: You grew up listening to a wide variety of music, and wrote your first song at 13. Did you know from early on that music was going to be your career?
Dasha: Well, when I was about seven, my mom and dad brought home a piano. Apparently (and I only vaguely remember this), at daybreak the next morning, mom and dad heard me ‘playing’ the piano downstairs trying very hard not to wake them up. Shortly after, they put me into piano lessons. When I was in Grade 4 (Conservatory) Piano, I tried desperately to let them let me quit playing. All of my friends were playing after school and I was doing stupid scales and arpeggios. Luckily, my dad is a bit of a joker and he told me that “if I did not complete my Grade 4, I would have to pay him back for all the lessons, books, festivals, recitals and the piano” to that point. Being 11 (and believing everything dad said, while knowing that my bank account held about all of 20 dollars) I conceded. It got easier after that, and I never regret continuing.
Your list of musical memories run from classical (Chopin) to pop metal (G‘n R), and your describe your style as a little bit of rock, a little bit of aggression, a little bit of hook and a whole lot of passion. Where do you find most of your inspiration for writing?
Shall I name the bastards?
Okay – so is there a little bit of revenge in the words? Would the “bastards” know the songs are about them?
Depends on their level of ignorance…haha. Honestly, though, sometimes songs are truly an elaboration of a single feeling that is spurned by a specific event, or similarly, a song idea may come from a conversation that I have had with a good friend. It could be something that I see happen in a social situation.
Anything that makes me emotional (either happy, sad, angry as hell) will often almost force me to sit down at the piano and get something onto paper. Of course, if no piano is around, I usually just write thoughts and chords onto random scraps of paper until I get to an instrument. For anyone who has ever seen my purse, they know that there is truly no money inside, just loads of paper shards with notes, chords and lyrics.
After being part of local Vancouver band SoWhatNothing you decided to go it solo. Stubborn personality aside, was this just to try something different, or do you really prefer the independence to being part of a band?
I think that there is good and bad in both. I certainly enjoyed a lot more collaboration with the guys in SoWhatNothing. It was also easier on the pocket book as we split everything financially. But, as far as creative control, now what I want to do is what I get to do. I have a great band supporting me on this project, fantastic musicians and friends at the same time.
Sometimes, when recording, it is fun to have other input as well. I have used musicians to record songs on the album and demos, like Jesse from State of Shock and Tommy from Hedley.
Do you think you will ever go back to playing and writing with a band?
I still write with others on occasion. Two of the songs ("The Last Time" and "Atheist") on my CD were co-written with Alec Brietzke from Sugarblade, and the guys in my current band do contribute a lot of ideas and suggestions. If the right opportunity arose, I would definitely like to write with a band.
You recently released a full CD. What was that experience like? Was this the first time you’ve recorded a full set of songs?
We released a 5 song EP with SoWhatNothing, but this is my first full-length CD. It took a lot of time and effort, a lot of rehearsals, a lot of late nights. Overall, I am very happy with it; it feels like a real accomplishment. I would really like to thank all of the musicians who recorded on it as they contributed a lot of their time for beer, pizza and cookies. We have SO many talented people in this city! The touch that each one added to each song was amazing and, in my mind, brilliant.
Playing live or recording in the studio. Which do you prefer?
They are so different. I love recording so much, especially sleeping on Tricky Timmy’s studio couch and when his lovely wife brings us chocolate almonds. I like to have a product in my hands so that I can scrutinize it. However, playing live is a bit of a rush. It’s great to meet new people out at shows.
Do you change up the songs for a live performance?
We do change the songs a little bit for live. Some we speed up by 3 or 4 BPM, some we add parts that were ultimately ‘removed’ on the recording, that kind of thing. A perfect example is the song “Downhill” – in the recording there is no guitar at all until the onset of the bridge. When we play it live, my guitarist (Andrew) comes in during the second chorus just to add a bit of depth. As well, we double the bridge and add a couple of bars to the outtro.
What type of show can fans expect to get when the come to see you live?
I believe that we are all accomplished and passionate musicians. The show is generally a bit more energetic and raw than the recordings. I have had people approach me after a show and tell me “that song is so much better live”, which is a great compliment to us! I suppose that it is a matter of opinion. I play a lot more piano in this project than when I played in SoWhatNothing, but I do front about half of the songs at this point (no piano).
You’ve had a couple of clothing sponsorships, currently with Apartment Clothing. As far as musical partnerships go, fashion is a little different from the typical alcohol or musical instruments sponsors. How did that come about? Does it make for a good match as a musician? Is fashion a part of the image you are working to create as an artist?
We are very lucky to have hooked up with Apartment. I think that it is every girl’s dream to be outfitted with wicked clothes! Their clothes are gorgeous and their team is wonderful. I saw their line through a friend of a friend and I contacted their CEO. They have provided me and the guys with a great assortment of shirts, belts and accessories. They are also getting into jeans this fall!
BTW – if anyone is LOOKING to sponsor us with booze, I prefer Jack or Gin, Jason likes CC, Andrew is into Guinness, and Tobi likes it all…haha.
Is touring something you want to do more of? Do you have family or anything that ties you to Vancouver?
Ideally, I would love to live my life on tour. I love music and I love travel. Combining the two would be a dream come true. My family does live in Vancouver, although I think that they would be more than happy to visit me on tour in, say, the south of France?
What do you think of the Vancouver music scene? Have you found it to be supportive of your music? Is Vancouver a good place to be based out of, or are you looking to move anywhere else?
Musicians support musicians in Vancouver. It could definitely use a revival though. I think if you play at a good club with a great sound guy (i.e. The Roxy), you can draw out a lot of people. Some of the other clubs don’t garner as much support as they are a little out of the way, or the shows go on at midnight on a Wednesday.
What other artists are you listening to these days?
- Tool (my favourite band of all time…Maynard makes me melt)
- Imogen Heap (if you haven’t heard this girl, you are truly missing out)
- Veer
- 3 Days Grace
- Tori Amos
- Kelly Clarkson (she is too talented to pass up)
- Tina Dico
- System of a Down
- Brad Paisley
- Keith Urban
That’s quite a mix. Obvious talent aside, Kelly Clarkson gets a bit of grief because of how she “made it”. Do you think that the concept of American Idol style shows is good for the music industry?
It’s good for the pop industry for sure. As long as there are writers (like the Nashville crew, or the Matrix, etc.), there will always be artists like Kelly Clarkson (although I do believe that she had input into the writing of her album). Some people are better at performing than they are at writing, and there are phenomenal people out there who make a great living writing songs for the pop industry.
You have a web site that you keep up to date, a MySpace profile and, of course, you participate in the Project Opus community. By all accounts you’ve really embraced the online world for artists. Do you feel that it makes a difference in how you relate to your fans?
Absolutely. I have made a lot of fans AND friends with the online communities. They are great networking tools, and fantastic ways to keep people up to date on what is going on.
How much of your time do you spend online managing this aspect of your career?
Too much. I don’t rock climb and hike as much as I want to anymore. I think that sometimes you really get caught up. Hmmm, if only I had money, I could hire somebody…
You’re playing the Random Acts of Arts Festival in North Vancouver on June 25th, and you have a show at the Buffalo Club July 8th. What’s next for you?
Other than playing shows, I am currently shopping the album to Labels. It’s a slow, tough go, but anyone who plays knows that. I also hope to do a Spring 2007 tour across Canada. Music has given me a thick skin…maybe I will write a song about it.
Thanks Dasha.
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