Q&A: Meg Elsier Emerges as an Indie-Rock Powerhouse in Debut Album “spittake”
EMERGING FROM THE VIBRANT AND EVER-EVOLVING INDIE-ROCK SCENE – Meg Elsier has released her debut album, spittake. Blending elements of grunge, contemporary pop and indie-rock, Elsier’s musical prowess shines through in this eclectic and dynamic collection of songs. Her ability to seamlessly fuse these genres not only showcases her versatility but also solidifies her place as a rising star in the indie music landscape.
Spittake is an 11-track journey that delves into the complexities of human emotion and experience. From love and death to nostalgia, anxiety and depression, Elsier’s lyrical content is as diverse as her musical influences. What sets her apart is her uniquely self-deprecating touch, offering a refreshing and relatable perspective in an industry often dominated by polished personas.
Juxtaposing her sweet vocals and opulent melodies with grungy guitars and weighty production, Elsier is carving out a sonic lane all of her own. Her wit and self-awareness shines through in her lyrics, seamlessly weaving into the fabric of her ethereal shoegaze sound.
“The story isn’t necessarily linear,” Elsier says. “But the main connection throughout is this unreliable narrator that you as a listener determine your view and trust of. They are incredibly inconsistent with their statements but I believe they think they’re telling the truth.”
This intriguing narrative device adds depth to Spittake, inviting listeners to engage with the album on a more intimate level, questioning the veracity of the narrator and, by extension, their own perceptions.
Spittake opens with a gritty, grunge-infused track that sets the tone for what’s to come. Elsier’s raw vocals cut through the heavy instrumentation, drawing the listener in from the very first note. As the album progresses, it seamlessly transitions into more pop-oriented melodies and indie-rock anthems, each track offering something new and unexpected.
“The creation of spittake was the biggest and scariest thing that I’ve done,” Elsier says. “It’s something I built up and something that seemed somewhat impossible to even imagine how to achieve, but it happened. Ryan McFadden and I made this record by getting to know each other’s intentions, taste and brain processes. I know I wanted to record an album because I felt proud of these songs and I really was craving for people to hear them. What I really was searching for was an introduction as Meg, not someone I’m mirroring or someone I’ve been trying to become, just who I am genuinely at this moment.”
LUNA: Thank you for sitting down and talking to Luna. Our readers would love to get to know you and your music more. For any readers who aren’t familiar yet, what inspires your artistic style and creative persona?
MEG: It's just anything that tickles my brain. I think in any genre, you can have sprinkles of little, intimate moments.
LUNA: Say if someone hasn’t heard of your music yet, which song would you introduce to them that best encapsulates your sound and artistic maturity?
MEG: I think my gut goes with “ifshitfuq” because I love that energy and how fun it is, but “eastside” is more like what my brain sounds like. It's more spacey and seems more reflective of the moodiness of me versus me being on stage and performing.
LUNA: What atmosphere or emotional space do you hope to create for listeners?
MEG: It depends on each song. I don't like anyone telling anyone what the songs really mean. It's definitely for something to project on and that to be their own. I tried to make sure I leave space for me to have freedom in my emotions and what I feel and to not try and stop it halfway because there are uncomfortable feelings that arise or it’s tough to listen to. I want there to be a sense of freedom in that atmosphere.
Photography Credit: Jacq Justice
LUNA: You are about to release your debut record spittake later this month and a huge congratulations is in order. Can you walk me through the inspiration behind the record?
MEG: I never planned on making a record. I had been writing and making demos for so long by myself and it felt like it was time because I was playing shows and everyone was asking where they could listen to me. It’s all the songs that I had stockpiled or that I was writing that came naturally. I grew in and of myself by learning how to make the music that I wanted to make and how I wanted to sound. I found the right people who wanted to champion that instead of producing it in a certain way. I made really good friends and got really lucky and the timing was just awesome.
LUNA: What did the creative process look like for spittake, either lyrically or instrumentally?
MEG: There were certain songs like “ifshitfuq” and “saturdaymorning” that I mapped out sonically in the demos and navigated how I want to keep it or what world it lives in. Others were harder to figure out where I couldn’t hear it so much, but a lot of the references we used were movie scores. It was more like a movie and atmosphere versus specific records. “Iznotreal” was so sci-fi and I was watching Blade Runner a lot and it was inspired by industrial noises. It was non-sonic references that made it – whether it was books or movies – that was the atmosphere I wanted to get across through the record.
LUNA: What was your favorite part of the process or a favorite memory from bringing spittake to fruition that you would like to share?
MEG: I'm someone who was so incredibly nervous while playing live – it’s super vulnerable – but going in and recording and knowing I wrote all of this, no one has heard it and I'm now supposed to tell you how I want you to perform it or anything like that. That was how I first thought it would be, so working with people was really scary to me and was the biggest hurdle. I'm surrounded by a lot of people and was working with a lot of people where all they wanted to do was to make good music and champion that. It was learning that you can collaborate with someone and it'd be completely your own and nothing gets taken away from that. That was the best part, truly going into the studio so scared and then leaving being more empowered with a clearer vision.
LUNA: What was the biggest lesson or breakthrough you’ve had while creating spittake?
MEG: I think a lot of artists or specifically people in creative ask realms are like, it's really easy to be a chameleon and flow with the crowd and go with the flow, but it's hard to figure out who you are when you're doing that. I think that releasing music and why I think it was so scary is because it’s terrifying to let people in like that and have them really see me and hear music that’s so me, but it ends up being so worth it. When you're scared of something, it means that you have something to say. It's that and recognizing or learning that nobody's going to like everything and that's a fabulous, awesome thing.
Photography Credit: Jacq Justice
LUNA: What is your favorite song from the record and why do you love it? Is there a certain lyric or message that stands out to you the most?
MEG: It's super funny because when I try and go through it, I have a lot of favorites for completely different reasons and for specific things whether it's like one is fun to play live or this one is fun to dance to. I'm really proud of “spittake” which is a minute long. I brought that to my producer Ryan McFadden and I finished writing it out because we wanted it to be longer, and then we recorded it and it didn’t feel good. I didn’t want to put it on the record but it held the record’s title, so we didn’t know what to do. That song is just the demo that I made, so I'm proud to have a production credit, but it's cool to realize this was something that I was scared of sharing with my producer. Now I get to share that and I feel comfortable and fine with it. I like her a lot.
LUNA: Was there any intention in the way you structured the songs in the way you did with “spittake” being the opener and “LA” being the closing track?
MEG: It was a natural process, but during the “spittake” song, we've never had a concept or what's going on with this album, but the one thing that I realized after writing the song was that it's a super unreliable narrator with a super nonlinear timeline of what's going on with the record. “Spittake” for sure needed to be first because it’s it's all in my lies, but I'm telling the truth, like that's the setup of you don't know what if I'm being authentic or if I'm going to be mirroring someone or if I'm just manic and feeling something. “LA” being the closer feels right because it’s dramatic; it just felt like the right move.
LUNA: I absolutely adore your maximalist style and how you tie it into your visual storytelling when it comes to your music. Is there a character you step into or channel or do you create your own designs? How does your fashion play a role in your music?
MEG: Fashion for me has always been healing and an outlet for me exploring myself. If I wanted to switch into a completely new person, I would wear costumes. Also for inspiration, it's not really going to be specific models, actors or magazines. It’s always a cartoon character or an anime that rocks. The record shows this too, but I love paradoxical stuff. I like wearing really tight, weird, sexy dresses and like a Martin's barbecue hat and then dumb boots. I’m like that, so why not show it through my clothes?
LUNA: How are you feeling in this current era of your career and what does the rest of the year look like that you would like to share with Luna?
MEG: I've never toured before and we are touring, which is so exciting because I've spent so much time and love in Nashville and with the community, especially the DIY community, it's just incredible and like no other. I like meeting new people. I've never explored that realm before so all I want to do is play for people and that's all I really want to do. I'm super excited to do that. Where my career is now, I'm working hard and having fun and I'm happy that I made this record. This record does feel like an intro and one that I can sustain a career in a genre, it just feels like me, so I know I can build on that. I'm very happy that this was the right time to release and to build off of this versus if you were to see me five years in the past, it would have sounded so different and that would have been awesome, but I love the stage right now.
