Levine and Fields are taking their Indie folk to the people
DEPENDING on where they are and the size of the venue, Laurie Levine and Josie Fields vary their line-up on different nights of the Tigerlily tour.
Some nights are for quiet, contemplative songs because it is a tiny, intimate venue. Other nights the raucous crowd turns it into a foot-stomping affair.
But, for every show, at some point, they feel compelled to explain the tour’s title, Tigerlily. So, they explain that the Peter Pan character just seemed the right name to reference: “We had this instrumental piece going all through the writing process. We just knew there was a place for it, but weren’t sure where it would fit in. In our work there is such a strong focus on lyrics and stories, so we thought it would be lovely to have this little break from that, have a musical journey to cleanse the palate.
“So, when it came to naming the album, we thought, ‘it’s the odd one out, it’s the title track’. It was a fit between the sound of the word and the beauty of the word. It just matched,” explained Levine about the instrumental track.
The two started touring together three years ago, and back on the Side by Side Tour they would sing each others’ songs and play around with covers.
“But, as we continued to tour, it became clear we needed to co-write something,” said Fields.
Levine: “What made it clear for me that it was good thing was when we got together for the first rehearsal. We had planned to back up each other, so as to teach each other our songs. We sat together and started singing and the harmony and the way our voices blended, we realised there was something special about the way our voices blended. Everything was just meant to be, or as Josie sings it: Everything is as it should be.”
They co-wrote songs on Tigerlily (which released on iTunes last year), either starting new work – like Lifetime on the Road – or giving each other incomplete ideas they’d worked on separately and expanding the lyrics and music.
“From my perspective, Josie has come up with some wonderful hooks and also brought in touches of the blues. She has quite a bit of blues and soul in her, and I feel that has influenced my sound,” said Levine.
Fields, on the other hand, thinks one of the wonders of working with Levine is her Americana influence: “I have never been able to express myself to that degree, so it is nice to explore the folk/country side more and learn about her songwriting process.
“From a business point of view, learning from another songwriter who is in the same boat career-wise, it’s great to be able to bounce ideas off her,” said Fields.
Sharing ideas is all good and well, and while Tigerlily received a South African Music Award (Sama) nomination, the proof lies in whether they draw a crowd for an actual performance.
“Playing live is important because it is one thing to listen to a recording and like it, but there is something magical about watching someone perform. It is so much more real, and for younger artists who want to make a career out of it, I recommend playing live so people can see who you are,” said Fields.
They make a point of connecting with the fans after the show and then sell their music: “CDs are still relevant in this country, amazingly. In other parts of the world, people don’t even have CD players so it is wonderful to share the music that way. Touring is necessary for the performing musician; it is a very important part of your stream of revenue. We both have songs on adverts, which is another stream, but you pool it all together in the end,” said Levine.
Indie folk is a tricky genre because it doesn’t really count as mainstream in South Africa – Tigerlily was nominated in the Samas’ contemporary adult category – and airplay is rare: “There isn’t really a benchmark. Radio stations are really supporting local music, but they support this kind of music on an international level if the artist has a big following,” explained Levine.
“There is scope for growth. It is a fairly small market in this country so it can be grown substantially, but that will only happen if the media get behind it. But, on the positive side, there are festivals that support us and social media shows there is an audience.”