Spotlight On... Goodnight Louisa

It’s been three years since Louise McCraw released Human Danger, her debut album as Goodnight Louisa. The follow-up has been teased now for almost a year, but it's finally time – Marathon arrives tomorrow. Weirdly, we’ve somehow not spoken to McCraw since we premiered her Hollow God single in 2019, despite Human Danger being one of our favourite albums in 2022. Of Human Danger’s songs, McCraw said it was about “different aspects of human danger, of how dangerous the world has become when we disregard others so easily, and put our own desires ahead of them.”

With that statement ringing scarily true today, her latest record has been a test of human endurance, its title referencing "the exhaustion of creating a new body of work". With six of its 12 songs already out, the full album arrives on Friday 26 September with a deluxe version due in November. We catch up with McCraw to talk about the new record, her inspirations, moving to Glasgow and find out if she's ever actually run a marathon.

In a recent press release you were described as ‘femme mysterieuse’ which translates to mysterious woman. Why does this description resonate so much with you?
Personally, I don’t feel like I am much of a mysterious person… I’m probably a bit awkward really, but I like to think that the music I make is creating this world that seems mysterious. A world that people can step into and get lost in.

Your music is being described as synth-noir – a genre that feels mysterious in itself. Who are some of the artists that have helped inspire your sound over the years? And how do you feel your music has evolved since your earlier releases?
I definitely think that Madonna has been a huge influence on me from the very start. I love how she evolves with every record, reinvents herself. Depeche Mode are another huge influence, Hot Chip – that golden era of electro indie was super influential for me too.

I do feel that my music has shifted quite massively since the first record. In terms of production and sound, even songwriting. I feel more confident in my choices. I wasn’t bothered about making it too ‘perfect’ which often happens with debut releases.

Since releasing your debut record in 2022 you’ve upped roots and moved from Edinburgh to Glasgow and have seemingly been working on music more than ever. What does the average day/week/month look like for you in terms of music now?
Things have been pretty quiet until quite recently music writing-wise. Over the summer I’ve just been working and gearing up for the release of the new record. But when I first moved I dedicated a lot of days and nights to just writing in my living room. I was meeting and working with a lot of new people too. I can’t wait to start the writing period again though, and see what's next and who I meet this time.

Your new album is named not for your love of running marathons, but rather for the exhaustion felt when creating a new body of work. How did you manage to overcome such an intense feeling to get the record finished?
I think it’s more the stuff I was going through at the time of this record. There was a lot of shifts, a lot of changing jobs, getting let go from jobs, running out of money, trying to scrimp and save to get the record done. I was dealing with a lot of personal battles, I was your classically insecure 20-something year-old trying to find her way in the world. It did feel like it took everything I had at the time to get that record done.

And for a bit of fun, what are your genuine thoughts on marathons… have you ever run one?
I actually ran a half-marathon and few 10ks. I really like it. I ran a lot through making this record. My Dad is a really talented ultra-marathon runner so I guess needlessly driving myself to exhaustion is in my blood!

Back to the music. Visually, there’s a very strong aesthetic running through all of the singles’ accompanying music videos, and I particularly love the video for Jennifer Aniston. What was the inspiration behind the single and how did the concept for the video come about? Looks like it was fun to shoot...
My lovely friend and talented director Jagoda Tlok came up with the idea for the video. The concept behind the song was the fear of growing old. Jagoda came up with the idea of having me pose as a rich ‘woman of the manor’ who traps young women in her big home and steals their youth, by turning it into drinks or potions. It was very Death Becomes Her. It was so much fun to film, an amazing time really… I had a dress made for me, an amazing makeup artist, an incredible team. Everyone was lovely, and I was happy to get to be pushed out my comfort zone a little.

As well as Jennifer Aniston, there are odes on the album to Drew Barrymore and Grace Jones. How did the idea come to place such iconic women in the centre of the Goodnight Louisa universe?
It honestly happened by accident. The names of the songs kind of just fell out of me after I finished writing them, I thought 'wouldn’t it be funny to call it that?'. I guess I wanted the songs to feel relatable to the listener, drawing a familiarity between the message of the song and an eye-catching song title.

Of course not all songs across the album borrow their names from the rich and famous. What would you say is the central theme of the album that ties together its 12 tracks?
There’s a sort of sense of every song having its own personality, and its own world. Each of them is kind of like a episode in the greater series of Marathon – like the message behind Jennifer Aniston and the insatiable hunger to stay young forever, or the story behind Michael, that was named after my great uncle who died in a car accident at 17.

You’ve worked with some superstars yourself on this record which features violin from Zoe Graham, brass from Craig MacMahon and drums from CHVRCHES’ Jonny Scott – how did these collaborations come about? And what was it like working with them?
I loved working with Jonny, we met through a mutual friend and he just threw himself into the project. He’s such a talented drummer and musician. He’s a massive supporter and just lives and breathes music. I hope we get to work together again soon. Craig and Zoe are just amazing multitalented musicians also, I had a lot of fun recording and working with them both. I feel very lucky to have worked with everyone on this record.

With the album due out at the end of the week, what does the rest of the year, and next, look like for Goodnight Louisa?
I’ve got a few shows coming up over the next couple months. I’ve got two instores at Assai Records on 26 and 28 September, then in Wales at SWN Festival on 18 October and Live at Leeds on 15 November. But definitely more to come!

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Marathon is out on 26 Sep; the deluxe version arrives 17 Nov
Goodnight Louisa plays instores at Assai Records, Glasgow, 26 Sep, 5pm and Edinburgh, 28 Sep, 2pm

Follow Goodnight Louisa on Instagram @goodnightlouisa