A Quick Chat with The Moving Stills
Half Moon Bay feels like a very reflective and expansive body of work. Can you talk us through the creative journey that led to the EP, from the LA sessions to discovering the town of Half Moon Bay?
We were writing a lot of music, unsure of what point to stop and say “I think we've got a body of work here.” We made one last writing trip to sunny LA where we spent 2 weeks making music and then another 2 weeks driving through California’s national parks and sleeping in a Subaru Outback. At one point we stumbled upon a town called Half Moon Bay. We liked the name and the town felt like a similar energy to the feel of the EP we’d just finished.
Tsunami is a standout track that captures a real longing for change and escape. What was going through your mind when writing it, and how did it come together sonically?
It came from a state of climate anxiety. I want to explore the world and experience mother nature's gifts before they're destroyed by climate change. I was feeling down but wanted to write a song that makes people want to dance even in the face of something so doomful like climate change and natural disasters that ensue.
There’s a strong sense of place and atmosphere across the EP. How did your travels and time on the road shape the tone and storytelling of these songs?
Being a band that had toured extensively and also personally being fond of a road trip or a hike… travel tends to be a consistent occurrence in our lives. We've found ways of finding time for writing, but sometimes songs come to us when we least expect it.
The line between nostalgia and progression seems to be a constant theme in your music. How do you balance looking back with looking forward, especially in this release?
Nostalgia is always nice to play into and we love that feeling in general so I guess it comes out in the music. Not too sure how the balance looks from the outside but from the inside it feels right and comes kind of naturally.
Having just come off a huge run supporting Spacey Jane, how did performing live shape your perspective on the new tracks? Did the audience reactions influence how you see Tsunami now?
Yeah we saw the songs got a positive reaction and that made us pretty happy. It’s always nice to see some phones go up on a new song and I guess we assume people like it enough to record a video. But yes, overall it’s kind of validating and nice to see.
From Wabi Sabi to Half Moon Bay, there’s been clear evolution in your sound. What do you think Tsunami represents about where The Moving Stills are heading next?
Yeah I guess as we mentioned before that we have more music in the works from the stuff we did in LA and other songs we’ve been sitting on too. The EP is definitely a reflection of some of the flavours we've been cooking up for what's to come.