Hi everyone and welcome back to another Artist
of the week: Q&A series.
It’s been so long but worth the wait to share
with you all my special guest that I had the privilege in interviewing
recently.
Andrew Bitto is singer-songwriter and record
producer of Spectoral based in Melbourne Australia.
His genre is a mixture of Future Soul, Deep
Indie R&B and Urban Pop.
Spectoral’s influences are quite eclectic such
as Daniel Johns, The Weeknd, Etta Bond, Jamie Isaac, and River Tiber just to
name a few.
In this exclusive interview Spectoral speaks
right from the heart.
I have to say this is the first interview where
I felt the rawness is that a word, well it is now in a very long time.
I have interviewed so many amazingly talented
artists in my 4 years, but I have never come across someone who tells you their
real story, no bullshit, but straight up honesty.
Check out Spectoral’s latest ‘Old Way Love’.
Please welcome my special guest Spectoral.
Please
tell our readers who you are and where you’re from?
A:
I’m from Australia, though I’m proud to have a pretty rare cross of Mauritian
and Slovakian parentage.
What
is the meaning behind the name of Spectoral?
A:
It’s a bit of an enigma. As a little kid, I loved the idea of being seen as
this unknown otherworldly hooded being and so I used this name online a lot.
When
did you know you wanted to be a singer-songwriter?
A:
Soon as I was given my first Yamaha keyboard and left to work out what all the
buttons did and every sound it could make, I began to write instrumental music
and slowly over time I realised my vocals would work over a lot of them.
You’re
latest new single ‘Old Way Love’ has a smooth eclectic feel. What does this
song mean to you? And what was the process like in bringing this song to life?
A:
Thanks! Yeah ‘Old Way Love’ is this crossover where I wanted to mash up the
soulful R&B world with textured electronic indie pop. Old rough demos of
this song are really old though, the hook and chorus has been around since
like…2010…and the lyrics are definitely personal to me. It’s been on my “gotta make this track someday”
backburner for years, evolving over time like a lot of my ideas.
Each
of the songs you have released over time, all have a story including ‘What You
Want’. What was the inspiration behind them?
A:
‘What You Want’ is about my struggle
as a creator who goes through bouts of intense self-doubt and depressive
spells. Like most artists I talk my work and my image up and hide my insecurity
from everyone and just keep fronting.
It’s an admission that I don’t know what the
fuck I’m doing sometimes and dealing with all the doubts in my own head.
‘Old
Way Love’ on the other hand is about the idea of coming
to terms with not being with somebody you always saw yourself with, and
learning to be cool with their happiness elsewhere, even if it hurts you.
Even though a lot of my tracks are about the
idea of relationships, I guess I try to explore other parts that kinda don’t
get written about as often, you know? Songs shouldn’t always be about the lust
of just meeting someone new that you’re into, or about the catharsis of a break
up.
There’s drama worth exploring in every part,
even people who’ve been together for years. I released a crazy future-bass
R&B song called ‘Forever’,
recently with a producer named Johnny Moss, and that one’s made for couples
who’re still going steady after years together…maybe one of them has some
doubts about their partner getting over them but the song is super reassuring
that thing can keep lasting.
Which
song do you love singing when you’re up on that stage?
A:
‘Old Way Love’ and my newest single ‘Love Somebody Else’, are absolute jams to
sing live, the crowd really get into them and I love that.
If
you could describe your music in 5 words, what would it be?
A:
Future Soul, Textured Indie Pop.
In
the coming months what should we expect? An album release?
A:
I just dropped a final single (Love Somebody Else) ahead of my long-time coming
sophomore EP. That’s out next month and I’m soooo excited. Six tracks, all
killer no filler. It’s called ‘An Incorruptible Dream’. Make sure you’re
following on Spotify and Bandcamp for word of the drop.
Throughout
your career to date, what has been the most memorable that you remember and
why?
A:
the last two live shows I’ve done have been incredible. We had a single launch
last month at Horse Bazaar in Melbourne, followed by a huge production at Arts
Centre Melbourne’s Hamer Hall a couple of weeks ago as part of an event called
RESONATE. You can see some highlights on my Instagram (@spectoral)…totally the
best shows of the year by far.
What
would you like to say to your new and current fans?
A:
Thanks for sticking around and being patient in the lead up to this EP, and for
all of your support. It’s a struggle to build up a fanbase as an unsigned
indie, but I adore all of my fans – new and old – for all the amazing things
you say about my music. Keep spreading the word.
Thank you Andrew for doing this exclusive
interview with me and sharing the love of music.
If you enjoyed this exclusive interview as much
as I did you can purchase all of his music now on ITunes and you can listen on
Spotify and SoundCloud.
Make sure to keep up to date on all things
music by heading the artist’s website and social media.
Website:
https://www.spectoral.com/
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/spectoral/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/spectoral
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/spectoral/
SoundCloud:
https://soundcloud.com/spectoral
Thank you all so much for your love and support
and please do continue to support indie music. It’s your support that helps
these artist’s to continue to produce good quality music for your easy
listening.
See you all in my next entry!!
Much love to you all and ciao for now!
Hanan xx
