Tell us about yourself?
Hello, I’m a solo musician, and I perform and release songs under the name Acrost. The project aims to merge nature, particularly forest and woods, with music. On my Instagram page I share photos and videos that represent a particular mood that is on the same line with my music. My aim is to trigger emotions through music and images, and foster people to explore the world and live an adventure.
What is your songwriting process?
I usually start writing the guitars. These are the backbone of the track as they create the mood of the song and the background for the imagery that is going to be filled with the lyrics. Starting from that, I experiment with different analogue synths and drum kits and see what fits best.
During the same time, I write the lyrics, but this is where the timelines are interwoven because every little change in one instrument might mean a significant change for the rest of the instruments. So, in the end, the process is always different; some songs can take one day and other weeks.
Tell us about your latest release?
‘Brigmore’ is my first official single, and it came out on all platform on August 13th. It is a song inspired by folkloristic myths, and the lyrics are also influenced by the game Dishonored. This song felt like the perfect intro for the music side of this project, it makes people glimpse the moody vibes of the next songs and at the same time warns them that my music is not like the usual mainstream indie-folk.
For this and all the next single releases I’m putting detailed attention to the cover, every one of them is going to a representative of the song. For this one in particular, the cover was taken in Abruzzo by a photographer called Jacopo De Marco. The cabin in the pic was situated near to the woods I explored to get inspiration for my songs.
What message do you think your music conveys to your fans?
Emotion-wise, I always try to convey a sense of melancholy; this is my first priority. After that is a blank page for everyone, I try to do songs in a way that every person can feel something different from the music or the lyrics.
If we want to be more specific though, the message I hope people would get from Brigmore is that everything can be different from what you actually see. Every place has a story behind that you might ignore, and indeed that are many myths behind some of the forests I visited that I didn’t know in the beginning. Although they might not be real, every myth is actually based on a true story.
Who are your musical influences?
Being brutally honest, I’d say Deftones for sure. It might seem weird to read since they do nu-metal, but I try to create their same dark and mysterious vibes. Plus people might not know, but their acoustic sets are incredible, and they released an album with many acoustic versions of their songs.
Apart from them, I think that if I wasn’t aware of Bon Iver, this project would not exist. The raw aesthetic of his first two albums is incredible and impossible to replicate. Listening to his music was a slap in the face that kinda woke me up and made me think “I should do this kind of music too”.
Who are your non-musical influences?
Non-musically speaking, I’d say my outings in the woods, particularly in the center of Italy, and the stories I was told by people about different forests I visited in the past. Other big influences on my music are dreams and oneiric experiences as I personally suffer from different sleep disorders that strangely can also turn out on lucid dreams, which is quite fun.
What do you think are the biggest obstacles for bands/artists today?
I’d say that the obstacles are dependent on the band’s aim. Nowadays, musicians can earn money and make a career in so many different ways. There are loads of musicians that don’t play gigs, or just do them rarely, and earn good money from merch and streams.
On the other hand there a navigated touring bands, that travel the world non-stop for years, but at the end of the day, they don’t even have money for a beer. So, in the end, as I said, the obstacles are extremely subjective right now.
What advice would you give to other bands/artists starting out?
Do music because you have the urge of playing. If you want to get bigger and bigger and get famous with your friends and your band you just started yesterday you’re going to ignore the magic of just being with your best mates and play live shows just for fun.
I saw so many people taking their band too seriously, and I did it myself with my first band, looking backwards this is the best advice I’d give to my past-self and new musicians.
What are your hopes for the next two years?
I have different long-term plans that I cannot unveil right now, but I’d like to invite the people to follow me on Instagram, to see what it comes next. I will just say that my aim goes beyond music, and I already know that people that enjoy my music and the pics I share will be very into it. Just stay tuned.
FV Music Blog August 2020
https://www.facebook.com/Acrost
https://www.instagram.com/acrost.woods
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