Exclusive Interview with Bethany Weimers

Bethany Weimers is a self-produced artist who creates atmospheric alt-pop delights that combine her folk-influenced narrative style with infectious choruses and hypnotic instrumentals. She makes music in her home studio in Oxford, UK and her latest releases have been made thanks to a grant from Help Musicians. She’s performed live across the UK as well as touring Europe. Her music has been heard on 6 Music, Radio 3, Amazing Radio and BBC Introducing Oxford, amongst others. Check out the exclusive interview below:

1. Your roots can often shape your journey. Can you share a story or moment from your early life that had a significant impact on your path into music?

Bethany Weimers: Just after I started school, so around the age of 5, we had a school trip to see a piano concert one afternoon. All I remember is peering between white wooden posts from a balcony down onto the stage and being utterly mesmerized. I’d loved messing around on my grandparents’ piano since I was tiny, but this was a new thing – I wanted to be like this person playing piano on stage! Years later I realized that the concert was at the amazing Holywell Music Rooms in Oxford, one of the oldest concert halls in Europe. It’s a special place that still gives me chills.

2. Did your musical journey begin with formal training, or was it more of a personal exploration? How has that shaped your unique approach to your craft?

Bethany Weimers: Both. I’d always loved music but following on from that concert, I must have badgered my parents for a piano and then piano lessons because eventually both happened. I can vividly remember the excitement of the piano arriving in our house and those first few piano lessons in school. I carried on with piano lessons for my whole childhood and studied music composition at university. My guitar playing is self-taught though. So yes I had formal training which gave me certain skills, but alongside that music was everywhere in my life – in old family videos for example there’s always music of some sort playing in the background.

3. Who were some of the most influential figures in your early musical life, and how did they inspire your sound?

Bethany Weimers: Early on I’d say it’s particular songs and styles that had the most influence on me. I became obsessed with 1950s rock n roll as a child and had cassette compilations – yes cassettes(!) – that I wore thin. Songs like The Platters ‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’ and Eddie Cochran’s ‘Summertime Blues’ come to mind. The 1950s phase gave me a love of melody. Later my obsession changed to Blues music, Nina Simone, then the 1960s. As a teenager I bought a load of vinyl someone was getting rid of, amongst which were several Joan Baez & Joni Mitchell albums. Both ended up having a massive influence on how I approached singing.

4. What do you believe sets your music apart? How would you describe your sound to someone discovering you for the first time, and what emotions or experiences do you hope to evoke in your listeners?

Bethany Weimers: I describe my music as ‘atmospheric alt-folk goes pop’ with haunting vocals, vivid lyrics and catchy choruses. When playing live I usually perform solo, accompanying myself on either piano or guitar, but on record my sound is filled out more with thicker textures and more interesting instrumentation. For example some of the tracks on my new EP ‘The Story I Breathe’ have ended up being pretty synth driven, even though the songs’ origins may have been a folkier sound with just acoustic guitar and voice. And what sets my music apart? Well I guess my musical influences are quite vast which hopefully shines through in the way I write and produce my tracks. I also love layering up my vocals, a technique that will always sound unique to each individual.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as FOLK?

Bethany Weimers: My earliest forays into songwriting were very much trying to emulate artists like Joan Baez, Janis Ian and Nina Simone. I then had a few years of performing live before I recorded and produced my debut album Harpsichord Row. I’d say that was the point I started to find my own style and being free to play around in my own studio space was an integral part to that. Listening to other artists is still very important to me though. I love trying to work out how they’ve created a particular sound, or breaking down a song to the bare bones to really understand it.

6. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?

Bethany Weimers: It’s been a long time since I performed live on a regular basis so at the moment I can’t wait to be performing again and connecting with live audiences. There’s nothing like it. Having said that, I also get a real buzz from creating music in the studio so that’s equally exciting to me.

7. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?

Bethany Weimers: I love it when somebody completely ‘gets’ what I’m trying to say in a song as you suddenly feel this unique sense of connection with a stranger, but I don’t think it’s essential and obviously everyone is free to interpret my songs in their own personal way – that’s art

8. Can you walk us through your creative process? From the first spark of an idea to the finished track, what’s the most essential part of your process, and how do collaboration or external influences shape your work?

Bethany Weimers: It does depend on the song but typically I might play around on the piano and sing whatever comes into my head

or use sketches I’ve written in my notebook. It’ll then be a case of going back and forth between bursts of inspiration and crafting lyrics, chord sequences and accompaniment. Starting the productions is a whole other matter. I might be lucky and things just click like on my latest single Tabula Rasa where I kept things simple with layers of piano and vocals plus a subtle kick drum. That track came together in a few days. Or it might take me years to refine the production like it did for Heartbreaker Police which I released earlier this year – I made the first demo of that production in 2016.

9. What’s been the most challenging hurdle in either your personal life or music career, and how has it shaped you as an artist?

Bethany Weimers: The greatest hurdle in my music career is striking the balance between creating music as an artist and being a parent, all whilst needing to earn a living. It feels harder than ever to make a living as a music artist, so I feel lucky that I also work in other creative fields (directing audio dramas and composing educational songs). It’s a juggle and I don’t have as much time as I’d like so I’ve had to adapt by making faster decisions and fighting my perfectionism.

Also, I’ve just remembered the entire sound of my new EP was shaped by the fact that I could no longer play acoustic guitar in the evenings as I had a baby who would wake. It forced me to produce ‘in the box’ in Logic rather than recording live instruments in the productions. That’s partly why I ended up going back to an old demo from 2016 and playing around with it.

10. On the flip side, what moment or achievement in your career so far has made you feel the proudest, and why? And let’s talk about your latest release and future plans.

Bethany Weimers: Getting funding from Help Musicians to develop my skills in producing and mixing whilst finishing my EP, plus getting the funds to release the EP itself, felt like an amazing achievement. Pretty sure I did an air punch on the train when I read the email. There were then 18 months of hard work finishing the productions before I signed off on the masters and by that point I just felt weirdly numb. I’m hoping I get that air punch feeling once again when I release the EP on June 13^th!