Right On Time: Shadowlark interviewed

Those inaugural days of a new band are a heady time, and not least for Leeds-based Shadowlark, who’ve launched themselves with an impressive fervour. Comprised of Ellen Smith (vocals, synth, guitar), Chris Quick (bass and synth), and James Warrender (drums), the trio have gained a following for their 80s-synth-meets-modern-day-indie-pop. Already attracting attention from the likes of BBC Introducing and Live at Leeds, Shadowlark have also bagged slots at a string of high profile summer festivals including The Great Escape, Bluedot and Glastonbury. 

Although this sounds like a rise to success of meteoric proportions, the true story of Shadowlark has been bubbling under the surface for some time now. Having met while studying at Leeds College of Music over ten years ago, the three-piece have been part of numerous different bands both together and separately, covering ground within punk, indie, emo and folk. They started writing music together in their current guise about a year ago, carefully nurturing their sound until they felt it was time to share it with the world. So, now that the timing is right, just what is it about them that has captured the attention of industry tastemakers?

At the root of Shadowlark’s being is a sound that’s luscious, rich and synth-laden – and firstly we’re keen to find out what drives their fascination with 80s synths. “I’d been working on some songs and I just wasn’t really sure what to do with them,” explains Smith. “We were just sat in Chris’s bedroom messing around with old 80s Casio synths and got really into programming drums and trying lots of different sounds.

"The synths sound kind of terrible if you don’t manipulate them in any way, but then we started putting them through guitar pedals and plug-ins on Pro Tools, which made them sound great. It was so experimental for us – it’s really the basis of our sound.” Warrender adds, “It was a bit of an accident in a way. We had one at first and it just sounded cool and then Chris started buying loads of them! When we first set out we were listening to things like Bat For Lashes and Lana Del Rey – records that we thought sounded lush and full and interesting, but where the vocal and melody were still king.”

In terms of their songwriting process, Smith often comes up with the initial idea for a song – lyrics and melody – which are then built upon. The process of who’s playing what is fairly fluid, leaving any artistic constraints at the door. “It’s nice to not be stuck on one instrument,” admits Quick. “Sometimes I’ll work on the bass part and Ellen will add ideas with synths – by the time we’re ready to record we often can’t remember who played what! It’s a really interesting process which keeps the songs evolving. There’s no egos over who’s playing which instrument, which is nice.”

Shadowlark's carefully crafted sound hasn’t gone unnoticed. For a band who haven’t played many live shows, the calibre of their appearances has been credible to say the least. One of their first gigs was at the industry-leading, metropolitan music festival Live at Leeds. Finding the right shows and impressive festival slots so early in your band’s career is no easy feat – so just what has been the secret behind Shadowlark’s success so far? 

“One of the most important lessons has been that timing is absolutely key," Warrender explains. "Whether that’s turning up on time, or releasing something at the right time. In the past, we’ve received some good exposure for our bands, but it’s been far too early and we weren’t ready for it, and we weren’t capable of dealing with it. Getting your team around you in time is vital.” 

Shadowlark have just finished a spate of recording at Vada Studios in Alcester – a residential studio based in a historic chapel founded in 1260. Building on material already recorded in their home sessions, the trio have been working at Vada with producer Dan Austin – an experience which they say has had an indelible impact. “It’s an inspiring place to be,” enthuses Smith, “and then working with Dan too – he really pushes us. We all work well together but the studio is an absolute bonus because it sounds fantastic, it’s a great place to be making music.”

Quick goes on to tell us about the ethereal stories that come with a site of such historic stature – it’s based near an Iron Age fort where they found 250 bodies buried in the back garden, and the studio itself is haunted too – by a little girl apparently. Smith is swift to reassure us that it’s “nice haunted” – and it sounds as though the place is intriguing, full of other-worldly mystique, rather than bone-shakingly spooky. Quick concludes: “It’s not like we had any conversations with the seven monks who are buried under the live room or anything, they just left us alone. Perhaps they liked our sound.”