"There's a hell of a lot more noise out there": Sam Calver opens up about his new single and the crowded streaming space
Sam Calver's new single 'Don’t Tell Me You Love Me' is out now, and the track has been getting rave reviews from fans and critics all over. The singer and songwriter seems to be extremely excited about his project, which has been produced by The Wildcatz and mixed by Josh Gudwin.
When Meaww got talking to Calver about his new song, he said, "Buzzing to finally release this track. It’s been two years in the making and is my favorite track to date. Usually, you get tired of hearing your own songs after a while but this one is really special to me, and just has such a euphoric vibe to it. I hope you all love it as much as I do."
In the interview, Calver gets really candid about his upcoming projects and his taste in music, especially on how he has been building a loyal following in his hometown of Hastings over the last year.
What’s the story behind the name of Don't Tell Me You Love Me?
It actually started off as a love story and was called ‘Tell me you love me’ but it just felt a bit obvious and didn’t feel exciting. So I flipped the meaning around to being basically afraid of commitment and explored that area and came up with ‘Don’t tell me you love me’.
When did you first start performing?
My first ever show was at primary school in our leavers assembly! I think I played ‘Wonderwall’ [from Oasis] and ‘All Along The Watchtower’ [Jimi Hendrix].
Who are your biggest influences?
Ah, there's so many. I loved Bon Jovi and Jimi Hendrix growing up along with Blues and soul music. Then came hiphop and heavier music like Linkin Park, Limp Bizkit etc.
What kind of music do you like listening to? Can we have a link to a playlist/mixtape that you particularly enjoy?
I listen to literally everything, I’ll go from listening to G-Eazy to Chris Stapleton to 30 seconds to Mars. Mike Posner and Blackbear started a project called Mansionz their album dropped last year and I’ve still got it on repeat, it's a vibe! You can listen to my favorite playlist here.
If you had to pick just one artist/band that you would like to collaborate in the near future, who would it be?
That's a tough one, but I think I will pick two. In the US, I’d love to do something with Jack U. In the UK, I’d love to work with The Gorrilaz.
Who produced the single? What was it like in the studio during the production?
The Wildcatz produced this single along with my last EP. I actually wrote this track in my studio a couple of years back with just guitar and piano, the guys then got hold of it and done their thing, they’re geniuses.
If you had to pick one favorite among all your tracks to date, which one would it be and why?
‘Don’t Tell Me You Love Me’ without a doubt, I like all my tracks and my sound is continuing to develop but this track just has something special to it I think.
Any new collaborators that you’ve been working with/plan to collaborate with?
There are some cool things in the pipeline and new tracks coming which I’m super excited about, but that's all I can reveal right now.
What were some of the challenges that you faced while recording your music?
The greatest challenge as always is myself I guess. Getting the best possible content, lyrics, and melody. I’m always putting a lot of pressure on myself to come up with something undeniable. The only person that holds me back or pushes me forward in those situations is myself.
What is music to you?
Without sounding like an X-Factor speech, music is everything to me. It's been a huge part of my life from a young age and it has opened up some amazing experiences for me. I can’t go a single day without listening to something.
Vinyl or digital — what’s your preferred format and why?
Well, vinyl sounds so much better because it has a much wider frequency range, but it’d be tricky to listen to a vinyl in the car! So it's vinyl for quality, digital for accessibility.
What do you think about music streaming? Do you think it’s helpful or harmful for up and coming artists?
I think it has its pros and cons like anything else. It's a lot easier to get music out now but that comes at a price, there's a hell of a lot more noise out there and it's harder to get heard.
Do you any plans of touring soon?
No official tour on the cards yet but plenty more shows coming up around the UK. They will be listed on my socials/website as soon as we have dates locked in.
What can we expect next?
More music very soon, lots more shows and some exciting collaborations! Watch this space.