Q&A: Varley

For every band with talent and great songs, there is a time when the public recognition doesn't match the potential. Although with perseverance, work and a bit of luck, it is a matter of time before the number of fans grows and the equation balances. I'm sure this may be the case of the Berlin-based band Varley.

This indie-pop trio, made of Dublin-born Claire-Ann and German band mates Joschka Bender and Matthias Heising is going to release on September 17th ‘Smalltalk & DMCs’, an album written and recorded in the shadow of the first Covid lockdown. With four songs already released, the record’s tracks are imbued with an-all-too-familiar sense of inner turmoil: a series of relatable missives for over-thinkers everywhere. Initially influenced by Bon Iver, and citing the likes of Fleetwood Mac, The Cardigans and Phoebe Bridgers as other notable touchstones, what lies at the core of Varley’s affective, heart-on-sleeve music is its willingness to be vulnerable. Their music is an honest and raw outlet, and the cathartic nature of their songwriting is one to be championed.

Just a few days before releasing the new album, the band took some time to answer some questions. Find what they said below!

How did you guys first meet and what's the story behind the first steps forming what today is ‘Varley’?

Varley: “We first met over 10 years ago at an International Songwriting Week, where musicians from all over the world came together to make music and have been friends ever since. We all moved to Berlin in 2016 and re-connected and started writing and playing music and released our first single ‘Roamer’ in 2018.“

If every crisis is also a moment of opportunity, without any doubt you have been able to take advantage of these last few months of restrictions. Because I have really enjoyed listening to your new album. Looking back, and leaving aside all the negative that the pandemic has left us, how do you evaluate the last year and a half compared to the plans you could have before March 2020?

Varley: “Obviously no one could have seen this coming, but for us it quickly became a very creative and liberating time in terms of the band. Who knows, maybe we wouldn’t have been able to make this record if it wasn’t for the first lockdown. Maybe it’s also a little lesson in making the best out of a bad situation. That being said, we also want to say we know that we are very privileged to have been able to make a record in these times. We know a lot of people who are really struggling since last year, and we don’t take it for granted what we were able to do.”

This album comes preceded by the ‘Phantom Studies’ EP released in 2019, what differences are there between that EP and the album you are now about to release, on a musical level and as a band?

Varley: “With the Phantom Studies EP we looked at it more like a collection of songs and we tried out a lot of different things, both in the sound and the lyrics. Whereas Smalltalk & DMCs feels more cohesive and round. We knew we wanted more of a band sound and less of an electronic, overproduced one and once we decided this, the process of making the record was really easy as we felt comfortable in all of our decisions. With this record all of the songs work together.”

Matthias Heising, Claire-Ann and Joschka Bender aka ‘Varley’ (from left to right) captured by Max Zdunek

There is authenticity in your music. Maybe that's the reason why it's easy to connect with it. It is also ironic to write about your fears and insecurities as it happens in 'Bubble Up', because there are few things as brave as sharing with others what happens to you. Is it liberating or in some way cathartic for you to put out what you feel or on the contrary increases the feeling of insecurity due to the social exposure?

Varley: “Songwriting for us is almost like a form of therapy. It’s a great way to get all of the doubt, fears and worries out of our heads but it can definitely be nerve-wracking to put that out in the world. Once the song is released and we see people’s reaction to it or they write to let us know that they are feeling the same, that makes it all worthwhile. At the end of the day, connecting with people and starting a dialogue about uncomfortable topics is our ultimate goal.”

And if your lyrics are easy to empathize with, your music sounds emotional and upbeat and is full of catchy melodies. And somehow your songs also contain a certain vulnerability but at the same time they also transmit self confidence . How do you imagine the future when you close your eyes and fantasize?

Varley: “We are so looking forward to things opening back up and playing all of the new songs for a live audience. We’ve also been collecting some new song ideas, so we can’t wait to start working on the next songs.” 

With a bunch of beautiful songs out there with carefully filmed music videos, an obvious talent for songwriting and a great album about to be released, how difficult is it to make a living from music? How are your lives nowadays?

Varley: “It’s definitely not gotten easier in the past year to make a living, especially with live shows not being possible. But we feel really lucky to be able to work with such talented people and a really great label.”

Everyone has experienced the situation when someone gives you advice that no one asks for. And I read that this is precisely what ‘Push Pull’ is about. In your own words the song is “your tongue-in-cheek response to the unsolicited and sometimes disheartening advice we have received over the years”. What would be your best advice to someone who has a regular job but makes music in his/her spare time and dreams of getting a career in music?

Varley: “Keep doing what you love and write what you know, not what you think people want to hear. The songs that are honest and heartfelt are always the ones that get us. This might sound simple but it’s easier said than done in a world where it’s so easy to compare yourself with others. First and foremost making music should be about only that: making music. Success may or may not come, but shouldn’t be taken into consideration in the creative process.”

With ‘Smalltalks & DMC’s’ being released next September and the live music finally starting to come back, do you have any upcoming plans to go on tour that you can tell us about?

Varley: “Unfortunately it’s still not easy to make solid plans for live shows. We are playing one show on September 4th at Open Flair Festival, but apart from that we think it’s gonna take a while until we can manage to play a small headliner tour in clubs. But we are sure hyped for that, as we just rehearsed the new set, and it’s so much fun playing the new songs live.”

To start finishing this questionnaire, festnoise is about music but we pay special attention to music festivals so in this regard, do you have any good, bad or fun memories of experiences in a music festival you want to share?

Varley: “We once saw Hozier playing at Maifeld Derby and it was such a great show, it started raining, but somehow that just fit perfectly to the show, so no one cared. It was great.”

Which are your favorite festivals as music fans and in which ones do you dream of playing at?

Varley: “We love lots of them, to name three: SXSW, Glastonbury and Sziget.”

Follow Varley on Instagram and Facebook and listen to his music on Spotify.

Cover photograph by Jen Krause