Melbourne based songstress Tanya Batt has just released her latest single ‘Fools’, and is preparing to captivate audiences along the East Coast. Tanya caught up with Tomatrax to answer a few questions.
What made you want to be a musician?
The spice girls, no just joking. My dad is a singer, and I grew up watching him and his singer partner tour and play and I wanted to do it even though I was tone deaf as a kid, so I started with acting and then one day I wasn’t tone deaf anymore and changed careers. Haha
You’ve just completed your Fools tour, how did that go?
It was a lot of fun! The Melbourne show was sold out packed! I couldn’t believe it I was extremely overwhelmed. Sydney was rad I got to play with Sea Legs and a few Sydney bands and Vaudeville Smash! Was epic! And I drove for the first time in 4 years. My band thought they were going to die.
What was the inspiration behind the Fools video clip?
Haha I guess it’s kind of based loosely upon nights that led me to write fools in the first place.
Your about to release your EP A fool once wept, how will the rest of the EP compare to your previous release?
It’s not quite ready yet so I can’t say, I’m still finishing writing, I have more than enough songs, I just want to have the right ones, and I still feel I’m writing them, the EP has a theme, and I feel the chapter I am writing about has only just kind of ended, so I think the last ones are still to come, but there will be some huge contrasts in moods etc, uplifting and dark and dancey and chill all revolving around the title.
You’ve also got a remix of the single Fools coming soon, what’s it like to have your work remixed?
It’s the most amazing thing!! Especially because my best friend Stax Osset is remixing Fools and I’m like her biggest fan and she is mine, so it’s just been the most incredible thing combining both of our styles together, she is one of the main reasons I do music. I can’t express how much I love her and how excited I am to share this, Fools is her favorite song of mine so she knows it better than anyone else and has made It sound insane, we can’t wait to release something with our names side by side.
When will the EP be out?
This is a tricky one, I don’t want to rush it, I had dates and deadlines and I have kind of thrown them aside. It will definitely be this year, but probably within the last 3 months, but I’ll be releasing a bonus track and a new single before then.
You entered songs on Triple J’s Unearthed, has this had any impact on your music’s exposure?
Oh it definitely has, Triple J Unearthed is a great platform! It has given me so much, lots of new fans, a great support, main station Triple J play and so many connections.
You’re about to go on tour with Elliot the bull, how did this tour come about.
Oh man, I’M SO EXCITED!! My old manager is really good friends with them all, and we all thought it would be a rad idea to tour together, we can’t wait! It’s going to involve tattoos, yoga and a lot of fun times J
When writing songs what generally comes first, the music or the words?
It’s honestly different every single time, it’s rare music comes first though, melody is normally the first thing I come up with when just randomly singing and then I’ll be like oo I like that! And then I’ll hear all the instruments around it, or the lyrics come first and I’ll write with those.
Do you listen to your own music?
Yeah, sometimes I’m in the mood to hear my own music, a musician friend once asked me, ‘Is it weird I like my own music’ and I turned around to him and I said, “mate if you don’t like your own music you’re doing something wrong” Think about it you’re inspired and influenced by your favorite artists and music you listen to daily, so those elements you love will be in your songs too. So yeah I do sometimes J
What other music do you listen?
Oh god, there is so much, I listen to a lot, it’s rare that I’m ever in pure silence. However, Daughter, Stax Osset, The Delta Riggs, Sigur Ros, Olafur Arnalds, Five Mile Town, Rhian Sheehan, James Vincent Mcmorrow and Temples are probably on my most played list at the moment.
What do you plan on doing after your tour with Elliot the bull?
Laying low! I’ll be locking myself away for the winter months, finishing the EP, preparing to release a new single, and learning how to use all my new toys I purchased like my vocal pedals and new guitar and pedals etc, a winter of writing and rehearsing. Then things will be getting crazy, so some much needed rest and restoration to prepare for it all. However, there will be the remix and the winter warmer bonus track coming out so you will all definitely still hear from me.
Check out Tanya Batt’s Unearthed page to find out more!
