When we premiered Daniel Wilson’s debut song “Will You” in December of 2013, we were immediately struck by his unique, effervescent voice, but we had no idea if the excellent song would be a one-off. Now, with his second EP just released, it’s clear that Wilson is a talented songwriter who is keen to explore different styles with each new song. Whether it’s airy folk or driving synth-pop, everything Daniel Wilson has released so far his been top quality, so we invited him in to perform a song live for us, and then sat down for a chat about his new EP, his influences, and his plans for the future.
The Boy Who Cried Thunder EP is out now. Buy it here.
How would you describe your new EP?
Well, it’s bigger than the first, and it just has this overall theme of relationships gone wrong. The first EP had a similar vibe, but I wanted to dive into that a little more with Boy Who Cried Thunder. It’s about one relationship I had last year, and the words mean a lot to me, even though they might come off as simple.
So you write a lot from personal experience?
I guess with Boy Who Cried Thunder, I liked the idea of roles being reversible. A theme with a lot of the songs on this EP is going back and forth between myself being the misguided one and sometimes the ex being the misguided one. I feel like with that, it’s relatable, but not in a cheesy way. I wanted all the songs to have a raw feeling.
What kind of artists and genres have you been listening to recently that have inspired you?
Lately, I’ve been listening to a lot of Kate Bush. Like, some songs are so out there that it takes me several listens to really understand. Also, I’ve been listening to a lot of Dionne Warwick lately. The arrangements are so amazing. Almost every song she made is about heartbreak, but because of the Burt Bacharach arrangements, it sounds really amazing, they’re so complex.
Can you talk a bit about the beginning of your journey as a musician?
At first, it was difficult. I don’t know how to play the keyboard, I don’t know how to read music, so I just started out with this demo and some basic software. I kept going from there, started on Soundcloud, and people started actually listening to my tracks. I met another musician who suggested my song to a friend of hers and out of nowhere I had the Soundcloud track of the day! Then the label Zap Records found me through Soundcloud—I don’t know how—and I didn’t even believe it was real at first. Me and my siblings can be very cynical at times, and when we saw the message, we thought it was just a joke, but it turned out that they were real and they were just getting started with their label.
Are there plans for an album?
I’d love to make one. We’re building towards that right now. I have several ideas, my main problem is just picking the right ones, because I don’t want to go backwards from where I am now. I’m definitely hoping to in the future!
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