20th August 2012 06:00:00
Introducing...Kristina Train
Hitting the music scene back in 2009 with her debut album Spilt Milk, a critically well received album that didn't quite break into the mainstream, American-born (but London-dwelling) singer-songwriter Kristina Train has spent the last couple of years on her follow-up. She found time to chat with us about her plans, experiences and influences...
Who is Kristina Train?
I am an American living in London because this place feels the most like me. I’m from Savannah, Georgia which is a wonderful town but I got cabin fever when I hit my teens. It had always been singing and music which kept me going and when I first got to London, there was something in the air. I knew this was the place where I would find my feet.
Your debut album Spilt Milk was critically well reviewed - what did you learn from it?
Spilt Milk was and still is a very important album for which I am very proud of. It was bad timing though, with all that was happening at Bluenote / EMI and perhaps with myself. I learned from that whole experience that if you want something really badly, only you can make it happen. You have to stick by your instincts and never stray from them.
Who would you say are your biggest influences musically?
There is so much music to love. I grew up listening to great vocalists and players and I think that the music you hear when you are that small, stays with you your whole life. I love a voice that is full of life experience. My standout musicians are Joni Mitchell, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Bing Crosby, Neil Young, Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Carole King, Scott Walker, Chet Baker, Patsy Cline, Glen Campbell, Herbie Hancock, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Elis Regina, The Lennon Sisters, Miles Davis, Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, and many, many more!
Do you like performing live? Do you have any memorable experiences from touring?
Performing live is why I do this. It's a very powerful feeling to connect with people and interpret the songs in a fresh way each night. I also love the lifestyle of being on the road. I can wake up in a different city each day and I often don't know what the days and nights have in store for me. It's surprising and unpredictable and always fun. When I first joined Herbie Hancock's band, we played a show in Peńíscola, Spain whose name alone provided the guys with endless material for some really bad jokes on the tour bus.
I had just bought a pair of really great heels and was wearing them for the first time that night. Our dressing room was three floors up from the stage so I thought I'd take the elevator down to spare my feet. The elevator got stuck! I pressed the emergency button and the operator began talking very quickly in Spanish, which I understood very little of. I finally explained where I was and sat in that tiny hot box waiting for help. I had my in ear monitor on so I could hear exactly where the guys were in the set and I knew I was running out of time. I heard Herbie introduce me and...nothing. He called for me again then I heard him burst out laughing and tell everyone I was stuck in the elevator. I eventually got out and decided never to wear those heels again. The next day at a festival in Germany, our show was delayed for 45 minutes because Herbie got stuck in a Port-O-Let. I'd take the elevator any day.
You were born in the US, but now live in London - do you think your American heritage comes across in your sound?
Absolutely. There are obvious jazz tones in my voice and as a child I heard and sang a lot of gospel. Georgia has incredible musical history; James Brown, Little Richard, Gladys Knight, Otis Redding and Ray Charles are all from there. At this point, I really don't know what continent my music leans more toward. I grew up in the States, bouncing between the American North and South. I've been all around the world in the past five years. I chose London as my home and love soaking up as much of it as I can. There are a number of influences from many different places and cultures on my album.
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Alive: Bruce Springsteen; Dead: Alexander Scriaben.
What does the EP mean to you?
My EP Dream Of Me means a lot to me. It represents a new page and a fresh start. I would find it very hard to write songs which were detached from my experiences. I would probably find it harder to sing them all that well if I didn’t connect with the place they were coming from. The songs on the EP and on my album Dark Black are very personal. They tell my story and resonate the dark truths that are a part of human life but hopefully whisper of its deepest promises. I just want to sing great songs. Either I write them or they are written specifically for me by a select few writers who know me and my voice well. The songs fit me like a tailor made suit.
The EP is out in August, what are your plans once it's on the shelves?
I'll be out on the road playing shows trying not to get stuck in any elevators!
Kristina Train's new EP Dream of Me is due for release on August 27th. Her album Dark Black follows on October 29th
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Who is Kristina Train?
I am an American living in London because this place feels the most like me. I’m from Savannah, Georgia which is a wonderful town but I got cabin fever when I hit my teens. It had always been singing and music which kept me going and when I first got to London, there was something in the air. I knew this was the place where I would find my feet.
Your debut album Spilt Milk was critically well reviewed - what did you learn from it?
Spilt Milk was and still is a very important album for which I am very proud of. It was bad timing though, with all that was happening at Bluenote / EMI and perhaps with myself. I learned from that whole experience that if you want something really badly, only you can make it happen. You have to stick by your instincts and never stray from them.
Who would you say are your biggest influences musically?
There is so much music to love. I grew up listening to great vocalists and players and I think that the music you hear when you are that small, stays with you your whole life. I love a voice that is full of life experience. My standout musicians are Joni Mitchell, Dusty Springfield, Nina Simone, Bing Crosby, Neil Young, Nat King Cole, Frank Sinatra, Carole King, Scott Walker, Chet Baker, Patsy Cline, Glen Campbell, Herbie Hancock, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin, Elis Regina, The Lennon Sisters, Miles Davis, Bill Withers, Marvin Gaye, and many, many more!
Do you like performing live? Do you have any memorable experiences from touring?
Performing live is why I do this. It's a very powerful feeling to connect with people and interpret the songs in a fresh way each night. I also love the lifestyle of being on the road. I can wake up in a different city each day and I often don't know what the days and nights have in store for me. It's surprising and unpredictable and always fun. When I first joined Herbie Hancock's band, we played a show in Peńíscola, Spain whose name alone provided the guys with endless material for some really bad jokes on the tour bus.
I had just bought a pair of really great heels and was wearing them for the first time that night. Our dressing room was three floors up from the stage so I thought I'd take the elevator down to spare my feet. The elevator got stuck! I pressed the emergency button and the operator began talking very quickly in Spanish, which I understood very little of. I finally explained where I was and sat in that tiny hot box waiting for help. I had my in ear monitor on so I could hear exactly where the guys were in the set and I knew I was running out of time. I heard Herbie introduce me and...nothing. He called for me again then I heard him burst out laughing and tell everyone I was stuck in the elevator. I eventually got out and decided never to wear those heels again. The next day at a festival in Germany, our show was delayed for 45 minutes because Herbie got stuck in a Port-O-Let. I'd take the elevator any day.
You were born in the US, but now live in London - do you think your American heritage comes across in your sound?
Absolutely. There are obvious jazz tones in my voice and as a child I heard and sang a lot of gospel. Georgia has incredible musical history; James Brown, Little Richard, Gladys Knight, Otis Redding and Ray Charles are all from there. At this point, I really don't know what continent my music leans more toward. I grew up in the States, bouncing between the American North and South. I've been all around the world in the past five years. I chose London as my home and love soaking up as much of it as I can. There are a number of influences from many different places and cultures on my album.
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
Alive: Bruce Springsteen; Dead: Alexander Scriaben.
What does the EP mean to you?
My EP Dream Of Me means a lot to me. It represents a new page and a fresh start. I would find it very hard to write songs which were detached from my experiences. I would probably find it harder to sing them all that well if I didn’t connect with the place they were coming from. The songs on the EP and on my album Dark Black are very personal. They tell my story and resonate the dark truths that are a part of human life but hopefully whisper of its deepest promises. I just want to sing great songs. Either I write them or they are written specifically for me by a select few writers who know me and my voice well. The songs fit me like a tailor made suit.
The EP is out in August, what are your plans once it's on the shelves?
I'll be out on the road playing shows trying not to get stuck in any elevators!
Kristina Train's new EP Dream of Me is due for release on August 27th. Her album Dark Black follows on October 29th
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