Being on the road is their inspiration. Ophelia, made up of Sam Taylor, 32, and Rebecca Van Cleave, 29, were friends first, then the music came later. The duo are celebrating their debut album this year by taking the 13 tracks on the road around the UK.
How did you and Rebecca meet? It was at a Michael Malarkey gig. We were playing some shows and doing our own projects. I’ve been releasing stuff and playing the guitar with various artists for 15 years. We later started playing some shows together. I’m from Sheffield originally and Rebecca is from Staunton in Virginia.
What instrument do you play? It is mainly guitar but I play most instruments – not the fiddle though. I was always musical and was about 11 when I started playing guitar and writing songs. Rebecca plays the ukulele and writes songs. Her father was a singer-songwriter and there was always music in the house.
Tell me about the music on your album. The songs were written over a couple of years. We were in places like Los Angeles, Nashville, New York and the UK. We wrote on the road and were influenced by it.
How long does it take you to write a song? It depends on what the song is about. Sometimes it comes together quickly. It is our first album. The EP is released on May 5 with more later in the year.
Where are you going on your tour? We are working downwards from Aberdeen, along the length and breadth of the UK. Some of the gigs are intimate with just us as a duo and some, like in London and Sheffield, have a full band. It fits the record having the full band sound but the songs work great stripped back.
Have you played in the north-east of Scotland before? We have done a few gigs in Aberdeen and Ullapool. We have always felt Scotland has a different scene and there is more of an appreciation for live music. I’m excited and lucky.
What should audiences expect? In Aberdeen we will be playing the live album as a duo. It will be a great evening with stories about the songs and travel.
Who is your biggest musical influence? There are so many but we are both influenced by Fleetwood Mac. They have the male and the female vocals but there are so many artists.
Follow the duo on Facebook (
https://www.facebook.com/pg/OpheliaMusicOfficial
), Twitter (
) or head to their SoundCloud (
).
Sam Taylor and Rebecca Van Cleave are playing at Underdog at BrewDog, Castlegate, Aberdeen on April 19. See
http://opheliamusicofficial.com/events/
