Q&A: meet Skymachine, New Zealand band evokes feelings of nostalgia
New Zealand band Skymachine recently dropped their new single Tangier, and it has revived an 80’s pop sound but with a modern twist. The second instalment to their Saturday Night Sting series takes you on a journey of infatuation as it evokes a sense of nostalgia. If life was a movie this would 100% be the song in the scene where you’re running to find your high school crush and lay on your first smooch.
Blending together falsetto melodies and glamorous beats, Skymachine is the alt-pop act led by New Zealand producer Brydon, formed when a friend needed an act for a last minute show at a local venue. The group has quickly risen to new heights as they begin to gain quite the following.
The alt-pop group have such an interesting sound and unique writing style that glistens with strong influences of 80’s pop romanticism.
We caught up with Skymachine to chat about what influences their music, the process of creating music videos and touring.
Check out all things skymachine below:
For those of us who aren’t familiar, tell us a little bit about you guys?
Skymachine is a project that has been going for about 4 years now. We started when a friend needed an opening band for a show and I told him I had a band that could do it. That was two days before the show, but I managed to call in some favours and get a band together. Since then the lineup has always been a group of friends playing songs I’ve mainly written myself. It’s a lot of fun and it’s a very fluid project.
After growing up in NZ and living in London, how has this inspired your music? How have you found the music scene in London compares to NZ?
I find I am a lot more creative when I’m moving. I get a little complacent if I stay put too long, so coming to London has been amazing for being inspired and challenged. The pace is quicker, but ironically, I’ve mainly been stuck at home because of the lockdown restrictions in the UK.
Tell us about your new track Tangier.
I actually started writing it when I was working as a chauffeur. Being a musician, I tend to go through some really random jobs to help pay the bills. I had this job taking a van load of tourists round the South Island of NZ. Every day I would drive and show them round, then in the evenings I would crash at a dirt cheap hostel and write music till late. So Tangier was kinda inspired by this weird state I was in, about travelling to foreign lands and being lost in this imaginary world.
Your music videos are very #aesthetic. What’s your process behind them?
Ha! Thank you. Well I do really see the visuals and music going hand to hand. When I’m writing I normally have some kind of visual reference in my head, and in this case, we developed the video at the same time as the song. It was a major headache for the guys, because we’d shoot some stuff, then I’d come back the next week and say ‘oh hang on, I’ve changed these lyrics now so that’s not gonna work.’ I wouldn’t recommend doing it that way, but it did mean that everything developed in unison and I produced the track almost like I was scoring for a visual work.
Your music seems very 80s pop synth inspired. Who are your favourite icons from the 80’s?
Oh man where do you start. I’ve been getting back into Michael Jackson a lot, and want to explore some of that hair metal guitars mixed with the drum machines. Toto, Queen, U2, Tears for Fears, Steve Winwood, INXS. Also been listening to a lot of Peter Gabriel recently.
What is your Saturday Night Sting series and what is it all about? What do you want to achieve with this series?
It’s a collection of tracks coming out throughout 2021, based around a central theme of the highs and lows throughout a lifetime, from birth to death. The goal is really just to keep creating art and connecting with people through that.
In your Secret Spots Tour, you’ve travelled to some amazing parts of NZ. Performing at geothermal waterfalls, WWI bunkers and seaside cliffs. If you could pick anywhere in the world to travel to where would it be and why?
Oh man such a hard choice, but I’m going to say Africa. I would drive the whole thing over a few months and enjoy as many different cultures as I could. I was born in Cameroon, and would love to go back there one day.
Shuffle your music. What are the first three songs to play?
Lost in Yesterday - Tame Impala, If You’re Too Shy - The 1975, Magic Trick - The Night Game
What can people expect to see from Skymachine in the future?
A lot hopefully! I’ve just finished a remix for a good friend of mine Robi Mitch which will be coming out soon, a couple of new singles from us in the coming months, and then the rest of Saturday Night Sting. Beyond that, not a clue.
Taking music on the road and performing in a different city or town each night would be living the life. Skymachine bring something different to the table other than just your standard pop song. We very much dig it.
Check out their new track below or head to our I’m, So Indie You 🌞 playlist to hear more songs like this one.
By Samuel Seedsman.