Interview with one of our fave new duos from Melbourne, nyck.
Written by: S.Y
One of our fave new duos from Melbourne, nyck, know exactly how to strip back a song till you’re left only with an inescapable sense of vulnerability. We asked Nick and Dom exactly how it feels to share such intimate musings with the world.
I've read you began working together via email for another friend's film project. How did it feel the first time you both sang together in the same room?
Yeah, we did some work together via correspondence and then about a year later Nick asked me if I would sing with him on an EP he was writing. It was a great feeling! I mean, I had never heard him sing before, so it was great to listen to someone who had crafted so many great songs with such a unique sounding voice.
The lyrics you write are undeniably raw, and then there's the inclusion of Nick's grandmother's musings in 'The Summer Inside'. How does it feel releasing something so personal into the world? How do others involved in your experiences feel about their presence in the songs?
That's such a great question. It's really hard when you have something really personal that you want to get across. Because there's always two people in every emotional situation and often when you write, you only tell your side of the story. You look back on certain lyrics and realise you were being a fuck head, too, or that your judgement was off. I was really wary of hurting the other people that were featured in our songs, and I changed a lot of the lyrics at one stage. But then I realised that to make something honest you have have to hurt people. And I think that's been the theme with everything Dom and I have done. I'd listen to the lyrics the day the songs were released and think, "fuck, this person's going to be devastated." But that, I suppose, is why people feel something. It's the point.
Your next headline show is inside a gorgeous church in Melbourne, it sounds like it's going to be quite a special one. Have you played in a venue as unique as this before?
We are so excited about this!! It’s not very often you come across such a beautifully unique venue. We have only ever played in standard ‘band rooms’ most of the time; because our music is so intimate, we struggle with really getting our music across to people. So, we chose to do it in an intimate beautiful room.
I also read that you're working on your debut LP. Will the themes from 'Alive' carry through to the next record, or was that chapter of your life closed with the release of the EP?
Funny you ask that. Dom and I have talked heaps about the LP and what the themes are, and we actually settled on the theme for it before we even finished our EP. It's still very early stages in writing. Just scraps and bits. But yes, we're essentially telling part two of the same story. We also want to expand our wings a bit and write about stuff that isn't so personal. Dom and I have been writing together a lot, too, so she is telling her story, too. We want to make sure the EP and LP live together as one story, but also show that we can have some fun, find some grooves, maybe write something happy (FFS).
Anything else we should keep an eye out for from nyck?
At the moment we are working on our live show. We are trying to go for something completely new to us! Also, our album is in the early stages and we will be jumping in the studio very very soon. Oh, and we are playing Big Sound!
nyck - ALIVE EP SHOWCASE
Fri 14 Jul | The Church of Bang Bang Boogaloo, Melbourne VIC (18+)
For more info, click here
