1. If I knew absolutely nothing about Amy MacDonald,
how would you describe your music to me?
-- Well I play semi acoustic guitar and my band play
drums, electric guitar bass and trumpet, harmonium and piano. I think the
music is uplifting pop which is quite rocky with a touch of folk. People
have said I have a distinctive voice and that they find it hard not to
tap their toes to a lot of the songs. I try not to be too inward looking
and self absorbed but rather I like to have a good time listening to memorable
songs. I tend to write about normal everyday things so hopefully there
is something in the lyrics that people of all ages can relate to.
2. If I were to buy your new album This Is the
Life,
what songs should I pay particular attention to and why?
-- Gosh that is a hard one-I particularly like
the song Run on my album as it was inspired by a Killers gig I went
to see and I thought what song could I write that the Killers would
not seem out of place playing. I wrote it really quickly-I always tend
to get inspired to write after watching great gigs.
3. When did you decide a career in music was for
you, and does it pay the bills yet -- I always used to sit round with my friends
at someone's house and play them new songs I'd written and they'd end up singing
the songs with me as we passed the guitar round. I've always loved music but
it was only when I was offered a deal did I really think-gosh I have to make
a decision here about whether I go to university or take a risk to do music.
My mum is really down to earth and she said I had nothing to lose as if I took
a year out of my studies to see how things went I could always go to uni a
year later if it didn't work out. It might sound a bit practical but these
days there always seem to be a lot of bands that don't always last.
4.
What was your worst on stage experience? What was your
best?
-- I think it has to be right at the beginning
of my live shows in Europe- maybe 12months ago and I was doing a big
showcase in Finland infront of all the important people in tv and radio
and they had brought a local guitar tech in to get my guitars ready-and
I was being compared to another live band and I went on stage, did my
introduction and my guitar was handed to me and had been completely detuned
by mistake and sounded so awful-I then had to apologize and spent what
felt like ages trying to quickly tune it up on stage while everybody
sat in silence watching me-I was so embarrassed and everyone was so serious.
From that point on I have always had my own guitar tech travel with me!!
The Best has to be last Dec I played at a famous venue in Glasgow
called Barrow lands. It used to be a ballroom where people would come to
dance in
the 50's and 60's and many famous people have played there-it holds just
under 2000 people. It was such a special evening actually standing on that
stage where I have watched so many of my favorite bands play. I also was
presented my first platinum disc that evening which was a complete surprise!
5. Do you think that the Internet (whether it be Internet
radio, legal downloading, MySpace, streaming audio, etc.) is a good tool
for musicians or is it a bad thing because it hinders profits?
-- think it is a good thing because it get music out
to people to hear and share really quickly and easily.it also means that
musicians starting out have a chance to build fans and create a place to
be heard. I am a massive fan of itunes and download so many songs to my ipod
before I go on tour so I have loads of different playlists to listen to depending
on what my mood is.
Does it hinder profits-only if artists are ripped off. I still like buying
physical albums as well as downloading. I love reading lyrics from a real
cd and album covers used to be like art to collect in themselves. There will
always be new technology and you can't just ignore it and downloading is
so convenient. I can't imagine a time though where people wouldn't want the
choice to either buy physical albums or have digital. I think if you couldn't
buy physical albums at all I think people might want them more.
