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10 Questions with ... Bipolar Sunshine aka Adio Marchant
October 17, 2022
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1) Thanks for taking the time to answer 10 Questions for All Access. Where does this interview find you today? What's on the agenda besides this interview?
I am at the Farmers Market in LA right now but heading back into the studio to create some content around a song called "Romance" that dropped today (10/14) that's been added to the album and put some content pieces together for it. The song is a waterfall track that has been added to my new album 3034.
2) Let's start at the beginning. How long have you been playing music and when did you decide you wanted to make music for a living?
Music has always been a huge part of my family. My Dad was a drummer, played a lot of reggae music and my Mom was heavily into reggae music and really loved the Carpenters and played a lot of their records. So, I grew up in this melancholy mixed with their music and live reggae. It really helped me write my music because I think Karen Carpenter was an incredible musician. She was definitely one of my early inspirations. I was really into poetry and writing poems in school. It wasn't until I took a trip to Jamaica when I was a kid, there was a tropical storm, we all had to stay inside and I wrote this poem and because I wrote it so quickly, I spent the day into the evening figuring out melody to no music. From there I was always writing and adding melody. It became something I was constantly doing; I wasn't seeing it as if I was going to make a song, it was just something I did constantly when I was 12-13 years old. When it came to making music, I started making some garage music in the UK, it was like a UK type of thing. I really just found that was simple to do, then I focused on writing the songs, and it all just came to me, just melody. It's something that's always just been in me was to write with melody. I play a little bit of piano and slapping on the guitar but mainly everything has come from understanding drum syncopation. I would write with a simple drum syncopation. I would write the songs with no music and the melody, and with where everything was meant to go and walk into the studio and just sing the song.
3) How much has the growing up in Manchester, UK's music scene and artists from there influenced you?
I grew up in Manchester in an estate where there was just lots of different types of people. We spent most of out time outside, figuring out things. From there some of the older kids who were hanging out at that time, there was a lot of indie music, so you had things like The Smiths, Stone Roses, Oasis, Happy Mondays mixed in with Acid House. It was an amalgamation of constant beat patterns, vocals blasting most of the time. So, I grew up listening to that along side everything else. That was my first introduction to music. Then other people introduced me to Sade, this UK Band called Eternal, and we had this thing called Top of The Pops, a British TV program that was on every Friday where the best Top 40 songs would be played. I was introduced to many bands through that show.
4) I was truly inspired by not only this record as a whole, but your message at the heart of your music "to better yourself and the world." Your name Bipolar Sunshine is so in alignment with your messaging. Can you tell us more about how you created it?
I was in another band called Kid British in the UK and we did a lot of SKA music. I always said once I do my own music. I'm going to call it Bipolar Sunshine. People asked why would you call it Bipolar Sunshine? The fact is when you live in a place like Manchester, UK, there's constant drizzle, and it's constantly gray. For me Bipolar was to look at any situation from the highest to the lowest spectrum, and the sunshine was the light at the end of the tunnel. So that's why I put the two together as Bipolar Sunshine. It felt like the best way for me to describe all things real. We go through so many different things in life. It enabled me to talk about whatever was needed. The way that we are as people is that we are rounded, we have ups and downs. Some days you have high days and some days you don't. I wanted to create that energy, that synergy that when people came to see me, they didn't know what they are going to get. I am going to take you from the lowest spectrum to the highest.
5) What was the inspiration for your current focus track "All Kings?"
In writing this song I was inspired heavily on the notion that we have of Kings of Queens that the pedestal they/we are put onto. I wanted to create something that said these things are attainable but, the line says, "all kings die." At the end of the day, we have a very short time here, and it's what we do within that time that can live on longer than our names. That's why the first line "They say it's all in the timing…May not like a diamond…But the pressures reveal the truth." Things around you reveal your reality. I just wanted to have a piece of music, that when people go back to listen, people say Bipolar delivered a full-fledged album from front to back…All Kings die. "All Kings" at the end was just my moment.
6) You have also released 3034 the full-length record. What can you tell us about this new release?
3034 is the lens with which I look through life, not 20/20 and it's also the year of when we see things end, and how would music or art be seen in that year. I wanted to create something that stands the test of time because we are leaning towards it.
7) There's a definite difference between making a record and going out and playing it live in front of an audience. Many feel that the real work is making the record, and the fun part is playing it live. What's your take on both of these processes?
Both are two incredible processes. Playing live you get a tangible feeling that sends back what you are doing from the audience…like an instant gratification. I spent the time in the studio to create the music and now I can see how it reacts to someone in full form and life. The studio is an amalgamation of experiments. We allow ourselves to try and figure something out. Today we might figure out, the next day we won't. It can come when I'm at breakfast and tap in one toe and everyone goes – that's it, and we have to capture it quickly. That's what excites me about the studio. It's the experimentation, and when you find it, and everyone can see it and feel it. OK now let's go create it! The live experience is so energizing and to see the looks on people's faces when you said to yourself "I know what's going to happen at this particular moment when I play this particular song at this time." Then it happens – it's incredible.
8) Speaking of playing live. Do you have any tour plans for this year?
We are planning some live stuff. I am definitely thinking for the New Year for sure. We are in the process of planning some shows to showcase the album and do some stuff like that.
9) Who are some of the older and/or newer artists who inspire your music?
I really enjoy that in the UK there's a big resurgence into Jungle, Garage, and 2-step music which is something I grew up on and I really love. I've been listening to a kid called Riovaz from NY who I think is incredible as a new artist. Really interesting music. For some reason I've been listening to The XX again, there's also a girl from the UK called Nina Cobham. I think she's an exceptional singer/songwriter, with a beautiful voice. There are different producers I've been working with too – a kid called Benji Miller. This is what's coming to mind right now, I am sure there's many others as I am always jotting sounds down.
10) Finally, on a personal note, what do you like to do for fun and relaxation when you're not in your "Music" mode?
I try to relax, I like to play what you guys call soccer but it's really football. like to play football, I do that as much as possible. I go on walks in nature. I was recently in Monterey Bay with the family and saw the aquarium. The stuff I don't do music wise gives me a lot more material to go into the studio and write music. Life is the best driver for me, and having conversations with random people, that's what I like to do. I could literally write a song just talking to somebody. I always try different places and be outside for hours.
Bonus Questions
First Record Ever Purchased:
The first single I bought was Brandy & Monica "The Boy Is Mine."
First Concert:
This group in the UK called Heartless Crew
Favorite Band/Artist of All Time:
That's a tough one. Prince, Michael Jackson, Pink Floyd, Pharrell, and the Beatles – I can't pick just one. Prince & Michael Jackson are the top of the list for sure.
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