A QUICK CHAT WITH KEZRA

KEZRA! Congratulations on the release of your ‘Fortress’ EP 😊 

Last time we spoke we were talking about your first single off the EP, ‘Back Home’, mid-last year, has this EP been a long-time in the works? How does it feel to finally have it out in the world? 

Thank you! Yes, it has been in the works for quite a few years, I started recording the record pre-pandemic with the intentions of releasing other music which didn’t include, ‘Fortress’, ‘Back Home’ or ‘Insane’. Using those couple of years to ponder and reflect gave me so much time to focus on my song writing and a better sense of direction for what I wanted this EP to sound like and who I am as an artist. 

‘Fortress’ is a beautifully intimate record, can you tell us a bit about the themes behind it? Was it typical with your writing process or was there a few things that were a bit different?   

The whole theme of this EP was channelling nostalgia and reflecting on my 20s, through heartache, loss, hope and new love. For the production side of things, you can hear this through the different sounds and effects used throughout the songs, whether it’s the crackly tape recorder, layered harmonising vocals while still sticking to my roots of being a singer/guitarist with delicate finger picking and hooky guitar riffs. 

Mark Zito (Fractures) produced the EP with you, how important was that creative relationship in writing and arranging these songs? How easy or hard was it to find what each song was meant to be?  

I have 110% faith in Mark’s creative input when it comes to my music, he knows exactly the sound I’m going for. When it comes to recording music, you need to have a good relationship with the producer you’re working with, trust their guidance, but also still feel like you can speak up if you hear something that you don’t like. In the end, it still needs to sound like you. With Mark, we have always been able to build songs together quite effortlessly with good communication. 

With the intentions this time of making the record more of a ‘singer-songwriter’ vibe, it gave him a clearer direction of where to go with each song. Some songs were harder than others, trying to work out. For example, should this one stay more acoustic, or should it be a big anthem song? It’s hard to know, because there’s no right or wrong decision, as honestly it can be whatever we want to make it. But in the end, you need to go on your gut feeling, don’t overthink and just enjoy the process! 

You’re launching the EP on Saturday, August 19 at Gods Bandroom, that’s exciting! Are there anymore plans for live shows later this year? What can fans expect to see in your live shows? 

Always working on new shows, but I can’t wait for my single launch show as we have the best time on stage playing as band and all the little banter in-between! My fans can always expect big energy, slow swaying and then then witnessing my hair whipping around a lot ha! I have an exciting support show coming up which I cannot wait to announce and next year I’ll be heading over to Japan for some shows too!

You’ve previously performed at massive sporting events like the Australian Open and the F1 Melbourne Grand Prix, what were those experience like? Were there a lot of nerves playing in front of massive, largely unknown crowds? 

You would think when there’s so many people around, it would feel nerve racking, but to be honest I get way more nervous when it’s a small intimate show because of the silence and knowing that everyone’s attention is on me, I feel like with bigger shows I can really let loose a bit more, have fun and just dance around on stage with my guitar. 

You mentioned last time that you draw a lot of inspiration from artists like Holly Humberstone, Phoebe Bridgers and Maggie Rogers, are there any Australian artists you think sit in this space / are doing cool things? If you could share the stage with any artist, who would you choose? 

Oh definitely! I’m really loving Phoebe Go, Kita Alexander and Mia Wray, they are all epic Aussie’s making waves internationally and I feel like I really resonate with their song writing styles. Share the stage – my gosh, this is hard… I feel like the HAIM sisters would be big femme energy I’m all about, and I would totally jump into their choreography on stage and groove around. 

Any last words you’d like to leave readers with?  

Thanks so much for taking the time to read my ramblings today, have a listen, cry, sing and spread the love xoxo