As incredibly passionate music fans, we all have our niche. Whether this be your indie anthems, your country tunes or your sweaty punk jams that have you thrashing about in public places but… regardless of where you throw your heart eyes genre wise, I think we all have a soft spot for the pop-rock anthem. The debut album Wildfire, from Illinois rockers Ashland, is pretty much guaranteed to have you belting out tunes and fits the bill perfectly. In the wake of the release I caught up with Asia Woodward and Aaron Wood to chat about their debut, music, beef jerky and the perks of the creative process.
Congratulations on your album Wildfire, which is set for release on the 17th of March; when did the writing process begin?
Aaron: Thank you! We’ve put a lot of work into it and we’re very excited to finally get it into people’s ears. We began sporadically writing after Interim’s 2015 release, but steady writing started January of 2016.
There’s definitely a running theme of this dystopian love story throughout the record, was that your initial intention or something that surfaced throughout the song writing process?
Asia: I honestly didn’t even realise that until you asked. Most of my love experiences have been dystopian. I guess that was my muse during this writing process.
Apart from “Got Love”, Wildfire really has this strong early 2000’s rock vibe, but with a fresh take on the genre, what is it about that sound you love so much?
Aaron: That’s not exactly what we were going for, but we’ll take it! That era of music is what we both listened to when we were young so I have no doubt that its influence has rubbed off into our music.
Tell me about the story behind “No Good”, it’s a really great comment on the toxicity that can come with relationships, was it inspired by any event in particular?
Asia: It was inspired by an entire past relationship. I gave everything to keep it alive. The other person was completely emotionally absent and it really tore me apart. I’m not sure what else to say about it. It’s difficult to talk about.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tnk2X4CurL4
Tell me about your song writing process, what was the last thing that really inspired you to write?
Aaron: We bounce little sections of songs back and forth to each other until we get something that really excites us. Once that happens we sit down and turn it into a full song. We try to constantly experiment with different things, which either yields great results or just a really bad song. It’s definitely important to me to try those things though – last thing we want to do is write the same record over and over again.
Why is it that you like to make music?
Asia: It comes more naturally than talking for me. Which isn’t always healthy. But it’s very spiritual. I feel most secure when I’m writing and performing. To be able to lay your emotions out on the table and connect with people through music who feel the same way you do is a truly magical and powerful experience.
Tell me more about meeting through Craigslist, what were your initial expectations before finally coming together?
Asia: I was scared about meeting total strangers, and I even thought about not going on the day we were supposed to get together. Being in a band and playing music was always something I wanted to do, but I was very shy and had a fear of not being good enough. In the end, my Aunt talked me into going and I’m so thankful that she did.
Trolling through your twitter account, you all have a bit of a thing for Beef Jerky, is it a staple for Ashland whilst on tour?
Aaron: Yes! Very much so. Anytime we stop we try to find a new brand of jerky we haven’t tried. So far, Old Trapper has remained our favourite in term of quality and value.
Your cover of Taylor Swift’s “Bad Blood” is phenomenal, I feel like your take gives so much more to the lyrics of the song, why did you pick that particular track to cover?
Asia: Thank you so much! We actually just looked at the Billboard top five at the time and we felt that was the song we could vibe with the most.
Your sound has been compared to some heavyweights like the Veronicas and Pvris, but who are your major influences?
Asia: I’ve always been into No Doubt, Christina Aguilera and Katy Perry. Their big, powerful approach has always been an inspiration to me. More recently I’ve really enjoyed The Weeknd and I’d love to touch on that style a little bit.
Aaron: My influences are very eclectic. I’d say my most prominent musical styling comes from the fact that I love synth heavy modern pop and also am a huge fan of The All-American Rejects. Although, 90% of the time I’m listening to classic country so that rubs off a little bit.
How would you personally describe your sound?
Aaron: Describing your own sound is always so difficult! It’s definitely in the vein of pop/rock. Big vocals, pretty synth heavy, but there are still guitars and drums.
What’s next for Ashland, particularly post release of Wildfire? Will you be heading out on tour?
Asia: Yes! We plan on touring as much as possible starting late spring. We also hope to put out a few more music videos and covers throughout the year.
What’s one thing, as an outfit, that you would all love to achieve this year?
Aaron: Honestly we just want to play in front of as many new people as we can, and get our music in the ears of as many people as we can.
Ashland’s self-released debut Wildfire, is set for release on the 17th of March.
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