Noush Like Sploosh Q&A

We ask the wonderfully talented singer/songwriter Noush Like Sploosh, from Dubai, some questions to find out more about her upcoming music-video-art project for her single '3 Act Circus'. Take a read and get an idea about the project and her music and what drives her.

Hi Noush! First of all, congratulations on the amazing project (by the sound of it!) – We can’t wait to see the final production this week. Can you tell us a little bit about how you’ve started?

I was living in Montreal - studying and working in theatre as a designer and an animator. I lived with a bunch of musicians and felt really left out and frustrated that I didn't play anything so I finally started playing the harmonica.  I've been writing for a long time and that's been a really interesting process because I remember the exact moment I started liking what I was writing. I remember what the line was, and where I was sitting. That felt like a breakthrough because for many years I'd been writing out of compulsion and then experiencing this disgust for the product - which was a really painful process.  I started writing absurd children's poetry, probably not very suitable for children, but stuff in a sort of nursery-rhyme rhythm.  Somehow that ended up connecting to swing when I later put it to music.

What’s the story behind the name?

It's how I used to get North Americans to remember my name at parties. It worked.

Your music is very earthy yet at the same time quiet playful and delightfully engaging. How do you get from point A to point B? What goes in your music writing process?

When I write, my main task is to focus on the impulse that caused me to physically pick up the pen - it's completely physiological. It starts as a kind of belly-butterfly-tingle that's usually attached to an emotion, and at the same time a bunch of phrases show up in the 'back-base' of my head very fast, often attached to a melody and I try to write it down very quickly. The first line or verse happens this way - sometimes I get all the way to what might be considered a chorus like this. The hardest part is to remain absolutely focused on the sensation in my stomach - often I get excited by the process or by what I've written and that distracts me which kind of messes the whole flow up.  The more complete the emotion is the more finished the story is.  I have a lot of open-ended feelings about things and god knows how many unfinished songs.

What inspirations do you draw from?

I really like analog mechanics and I love physics.  I had some weird psychic experiences happen to me, since I was a kid, so I turned to physics looking for an explanation - and the newer theories are considered pretty flaky but I don't really see a problem with them.  I like old stories & myths and I notice I write a lot about sailors and the ocean and fishing.

How’s the first album coming? We’re quiet pumped up for it.

It's been really difficult, actually! Trying to finish it, it's so very close to done, but I've gotten distracted by the music video and gigging and rehearsing so I haven't really touched it in a few months.  I've got access to live musicianship now, so I'm kind of inclined to use all my digital productions as references if I can find a good recording space. That process is going to be lengthy because I'm not really into the session-player kind of vibe, I like to have a framework for someone to really play in.  My brain has been really, really full with the release of this video. There's a lot of admin that needs to be done, which thankfully the guys in the band contribute to.  I'm hoping that since the summer's coming and it's pretty quiet generally, I'll be able to focus on recording. And maybe it'll just be an EP or a song at a time. I'm caring a lot less about the distribution flow right now even though I know how important timing is supposed to be. I'm just kind of sick of doing the strategizing side of it which I'm**** at anyway.

Interview continued here.