Q&A: Cosmic Crooner Makes You Swoon with Groovy Ballad "Bolero"
THE MYSTERIOUS AMSTERDAM-BASED MUSICIAN COSMIC CROONER seems to have entered 2021 from a time machine. Unfettered by the pressures of being an up-and-coming musician, Joep Meyer, a.k.a Cosmic Crooner, seems to have himself well figured out.
Meyer has only two singles on his Spotify page, both of which he released just this year. His Spotify header, contrary to his newness, captures himself on film in a smart suit with a Gibson in hand, sitting in the dimly lit Schenk Studios. This picture may as well be dug up from a photo album from decades past. His debut single, “Deep Down in Jazz,” is the definitive Cosmic Crooner track, telling the tale of the musician’s origins in a third person narrative. One would be shocked to find out after hearing the deep, lush voice of the Dutch singer that he isn’t just a reincarnation of Scott Walker. On the contrary— this man is one of a kind.
Cosmic Crooner’s newest single “Bolero” is a slight pivot from his other two groovy, late night tracks. This track, still unmistakably groovy and playable in the late night, is a romantic doo-wop ballad. Its opening piano twips flutter like a music box, opening the floodgates to a twangy guitar and a passionate percussion that begs, “may I have this dance?” As a self-described music snob, Meyer is influenced by the likes of Serge Gainsbourg, Lou Reed, and Weyes Blood. His niche love for film scores and cinematic flair in music is readily apparent in each song he creates.
Cosmic Crooner sat down with Luna to talk films, loneliness, and his new single “Bolero” along with its video accompaniment, both of which are out now.
LUNA: You’re currently based in Amsterdam. Does living there influence your sound or songwriting at all?
CROONER: Yeah, I like living here. Although everyone cycles, I’m able to walk everywhere. I feel like it’s a city where all kinds of different people live. There’s not one type of person who lives here. It’s a pretty inspiring city. While walking, I tend to have a lot of ideas. I find myself running home every now and then, if I have an idea I want to record.
LUNA: I know you are heavily influenced by 60s and 70s artists and films. Was this inspiration a recent development?
CROONER: The 60s and 70s movies were like four years ago, but the music came first. I started playing bass, and you start with the classics, don’t you? The Beatles, the Stones, and everything else. But I’ve always really liked films. When I was younger, I always went from one [movie] obsession to another obsession. I think [when I got into] 60s and 70s movies was maybe three years ago, when I first saw the movie Il deserto rosso. It’s a very good movie by a director called Antonioni. When I saw that movie, it just completely blew my mind.
I'm a really big fan of film scores. Doesn't matter where the composers are from, but there are some very good composers from France and Italy. They made some very good film scores during the 60s and 70s.
LUNA: Yeah, there’s something about French music in general where it completely transports you. If I’m listening to a French artist or a French composer, it feels completely different for me.
CROONER: Yes, I think especially the 60s and 70s were a golden age for French music. It’s crazy the amount of good music which was made back in those days. The arrangements for French film scores are just very unique.
LUNA: Do you think the music of the 60s and 70s have a permanent residence in your music? Or is it only in the present that you’re inspired by it?
CROONER: No, no, it’s permanent. I've always really loved certain melodies, and now, I know where I can find those melodies. Certain sounds and certain melodies I just really love and they really touched me in a certain way, so I know it’s very permanent.
LUNA: Was there a definitive point in which you think you defined your sound?
CROONER: One of the first songs I wrote for Cosmic Crooner was a song called “Deep Down in Jazz,” which I already released. I think that moment was a realization… I think that was the moment when I knew this is what I’m going to do.
LUNA: That makes sense. For “Deep Down in Jazz,” you specifically call it your introduction song and you also talk about yourself in a third person narrative.
CROONER: Yeah, lyrically also. I tend to write very meta lyrics. I think that was an important moment in the history of Cosmic Crooner.
LUNA: So you have a new single out called “Bolero.” Can you tell me a little bit about it?
CROONER: Well, no day passes by where I’m not crooning a Roy Orbison song. I really like romantic songs and romantic melodies. I was channeling my inner Roy Orbison, I guess, and that evolved into the song. I really like these string arrangements from Jean-Claude Vannier. He’s a French composer, he makes scores for films. As for the strings in this song, I was very inspired by his work.
LUNA: What made you want to film yourself alone for this song?
CROONER: I think there's something very melancholic, and also a tiny bit romantic about being by yourself. As I said before, I like walking in Amsterdam by myself… I also really enjoy drinking coffee by myself. If I'm by myself and I'm just watching and looking at people, listening to their conversations, it’s a bit like watching a movie. I don't have to think about my own trouble. I'm just listening to other people's conversations, maybe looking at something I really enjoy if there's a beautiful view. So that's why I chose to sit there by myself eating, because I think that can be melancholic and romantic as well. Being alone, it’s easy to fade off and dream about stuff and wonder.
I also chose to film the video in Italy because of the directors I mentioned before, like Antonioni, who feature characters being alone—not being lonely—in a very big world. I like that part about his movies.
And I love Italian food, so that also explains the spaghetti I’m eating.
LUNA: When does the idea for a video or an aesthetic usually come about in your songwriting process?
CROONER: Sometimes while making the song, I’m already imagining myself at a certain place or imagining a certain shot. I knew, while I was writing Bolero for example, that I only wanted one or two shots because [the song] is very repetitive. So the ideas for the video usually come along while writing the song. If I have an image in my head, it also inspires me for writing.
I put a lot of effort into writing the songs. I love music, of course, but I also love movies. I want to show people what kind of music I like, but in the music videos I want to show people what kind of films inspire me while writing these songs.
LUNA: Speaking of films, who would you want to play yourself in a movie?
CROONER: I would say a young Al Pacino. I would love to see a young Al Pacino play myself, that would be amazing. I love him in Dog Day Afternoon, he’s amazing in that film. He looks so cool. When he just shouts and completely loses it, it’s amazing.
LUNA: And what character would you want to play if you were to insert yourself in a film?
CROONER: Ooh! That’s more difficult. I would love to play the lead guy in Le Boehner from Agnès Varda, she’s a French director. Not only because I would love to play the role, but I would love to see how the director makes decisions. I would love to just be there to watch her work.
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