aaamusic | On 08, Jan 2016

Who are you and where are you from?

Hi, we are James and Ursula, aka Blue House. We’d admired each other’s former bands for years before inevitably coming together to work on some ideas that James had lying around when we were living together in Brixton. Mostly, we just sat in arm chairs and drank peppermint tea.

What inspired you to get into music?

For me, working on these songs was inspired by a very special moment in which we found ourselves living in a very musical household. I was hearing all sorts of sounds coming out of every room, literally from dusk till dawn. That was very infectious. It really made me want to play. I’m not sure how Blue House songs were affected by what we were listening to – James had Ben E. King on repeat, and I was having a moment with some very abrasive noise stuff – our music came about somewhere in and amongst that.

What have you done?

We have recorded an album and released our first single ‘Hot Air Balloons’ on the 18th December. We are very proud of both.

What are you like live?

The Eurythmics, apparently.

What makes you different?

We are both left-handed and have the best drummer in and out of Denmark.

Physical vs Downloading vs Streaming…How do you listen to music?

I listen to music on vinyl, I listen to music on Spotify – my experiences with music on vinyl are undoubtedly more profound than when I’m listening to music on Spotify. You can’t replace the energy of the physical, but sometimes Spotify is just oh so convenient. I don’t ever really have an ‘experience’ with music when using Spotify though – I usually use it for background music while doing something else, like cooking or hoovering. Vinyl demands your attention in a way that I don’t find music in digital format does at all.

What have you been listening to?

I’m not very good at actively seeking out new music. I need to go and see The Comet Is Coming one of these days – I hear they’re incredible live. James definitely recommends. The newest thing that I can think of that I really love is Joanna Robertson’s album Black Moon Days. I’ve been listening to a lot of Marvin Gaye and Blue House demos recently. James and I both really dig Loose Meat – their  song ‘Inside the Sun‘ is something that you should go and find …Laurie Anderson, Cocteau Twins – not new to the world, but could be new for some….

What are your aspirations for the future?

Releasing our first album next year is probably the main aspiration for the future. I’d also like to build some instruments.

Questions answered by Ursula of Blue House…