My Q&A With: Loper

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Sometimes the world feels like a very small place. After coincidentally being in the same place at the same time on multiple occasions, budding singer-songwriter Loper and I finally stumbled into one another. Who is Loper? He is a teenager from the Philadelphia area with vocals that sound strikingly similar to many prominent artists currently reigning at the top of the electronic/synth/pop realm. Completely on his own, Loper is managing to make a name for himself, playing shows in the suburbs of Philadelphia and continuing to blaze forward with a fervor for music. Loper and I had the chance to talk about his music and what he hopes to learn and achieve in the future.

What initially sparked your interest in music?

I started out at age 4 in a professional theater company doing musicals so I guess I’ve just always been interested but I only started writing songs at 14.

Who would you say your biggest influences are, both in music and general?

I’ve always listened to a lot of jazz so like Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald are definitely major influences but some more modern influences would be MØ, Alt-j, Lorde and Jessie J.

How is it working on your first official EP?

It’s crazy watching the songs I plucked out on my piano in my room become real. The process is slow but rewarding. I wish I could be in the studio making music 24/7 but sadly that’s just not realistic but overall it’s been a blast.

What has the reaction to “Poppin Pills” been like?

People seem to really dig it. I barely did any promo for it and it got a great response in my opinion. When I sang it at my most recent show everyone knew the words which was a little nuts. You never really think that the words you’re singing at the keyboard next to your bed will ever be sung by other people, or at least I never did.

I can hear similarities to a lot of musicians such as James Blake, Sam Smith, and Troye Sivan in your music. Do you begin working on a song with a particular sound in mind or does it evolve as the process progresses?

I normally start with lyrics after which I kind of wrap the piano around it and then the full produced version just kind of falls into place in my head. I never really know where I’m going with stuff until it gets there and then all I have to do is flush it out. Also those comparisons make me happy because those are artists I love and respect a whole bunch.

What do you hope to accomplish within the next few years?

I honestly would just like to promote this upcoming EP as long as its relevant to me, maybe tour it if it gets to that point and then hopefully I’ll be in a place in my career where I’m able to record a full LP and maybe by then I’ll have a bigger following. Those are my hopes n’ dreams anyway.

If you could tour with any three musicians, who would they be and where would be you most want to play?

Lorde, Tove Lo and probably Thomston. All three are in my lane and all three seem like hella cool people. I would love to go play AU & NZ. They seem like they have a great appreciation for live performance down there.

https://soundcloud.com/lopermusic/poppin-pills

Let’s Talk About: Literature & Lana

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This is a small snippet and very rushed version of a post I should have made a long time ago.

I will be the first to admit that I talk about the copious amounts of literary references Lana Del Rey incorporates into her songs much too frequently, but I simply cannot help myself. In actuality, I think this is one of the reasons I admire Lana’s music so much. On the surface, her songs can appear as though they lack meaningful lyrics, but in actuality her lyrics are very representative of her intelligence. In my personal opinion, I find Lana to be very well educated and an intellectual, although it might not always seem that way. A lot of people are not aware that she studied metaphysics, an extraordinarily intriguing (and my personal favorite) branch of Philosophy, at Fordham University in New York. Once you are keen to the fact that she includes works of literature in most of her songs, the references begin to become more obvious and clear. I’m certain there are references that I have missed, but will discover over time. The way she incorporates literature, in my opinion (maybe because I’m an English major), is sublime. Here are some examples I have stumbled upon (I hope I’m not forgetting any):

Album: Born To Die

Track: Off to the Races; “Light of my life, fire of my loins” – Opening line of the pre-chorus// Opening line of Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Track: Carmen; not necessarily literature, but relates to the opera Carmen by Georges Bizet

Track: Lolita; see the aforementioned novel by Vladimir Nabokov

Album: Paradise

Track: Body Electric; ode to “I Sing the Body Electric” by Walt Whitman

Album: Ultraviolence

Track: Ultraviolence; Lana dedicated the album title & title track to A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess; “Hit me and it felt like a kiss”- not literary, but a reference to the song by The Crystals

Track: Money, Power, Glory; “The sun also rises”- The Sun Also Rises- Ernest Hemingway

Track: Brooklyn Baby; References to beat poetry for days

That is all I can remember at the moment, wew that was exhausting. I know it may not seem as though the list is that impressive, but many artists would not even think to make one literary reference, so I celebrate Lana for her efforts. Also, moral of the story, 1.) Don’t criticize someone’s work before really taking the time to analyze it. 2.) Books are your friends. 3.) I’m a book loving nerd.