FaithNYC Talk New Album, Hometown And More

Felice Rosser’s FaithNYC reveals another facet of the seemingly infinite diamond of Black American music, whose new album ‘Love Is A Wish Away’ is released on Friday 22nd November 2024 by Good Deeds Music. We chatted to them to learn more about the new album, hometown and more:

Who is in FaithNYC, what do they play and how did you meet? 

The line-up of the band has evolved over the years and now includes:

Myself, Finley Hunt on drums and percussion, Al Maddy (Ivan Julian/The Nitecaps) on guitar, and Kenny Margolis (Willy Deville/Cracker) on keyboards. I’ve known Al since the early CBGB days. Over the years we’d run into each other on the street and talk about music we both loved. I met Kenny through Fin, who has known him for years. Finley is my husband and stepped in to play drums in 2019.

When did you begin songwriting?

I’ve written little poems and songs since I was a child.

What is your earliest musical memory?

“The Man who shot Liberty Valance” by Gene Pitney

One of the tracks is ‘Useless’. What was the inspiration/story behind the track?

I was let go from my job in 2008. I’d been on that job for several years, supporting myself and my son, while still playing music, gigging and going out of town to play on weekends. I had many good friends at the company, and was surprised and hurt to be suddenly let go, and this by an employer who was new to the company herself. On my last day my friends in the department gathered around my desk giving me flowers, small gifts and cards. I left the building with my best friend. We went to a hot yoga class (we were really into hot yoga). I put the plastic wrapped bouquet and the gifts in a locker, sweated, and then went home. I sat on my bed in the dark, trying to digest all that had happened. I felt sad, like I’d done something wrong, but I thought also that maybe I’d somehow be more of my true self after leaving that position.

Your new album ‘Love Is a Wish Away’ will be released on Friday 22nd November 2024. How did you want to approach the making of the album? 

During the 2020 pandemic Finley and I lived in a very small apartment. We made some simple GarageBand recordings. Our friend Malu Halasa heard some of what we were doing and wanted to put us together with Justin Adams. I knew of Justin through his work with Robert Plant, Juldeh Camara and Tinariwen.

Malu proposed Fin and I coming to the UK and working with Justin in a small studio. She believed in us. I had my bass lines and songs, and Fin had his percussion ideas, but we wanted to remain very open to Justin’s input. Justin, in turn, wanted to stay very close to the simple melodic guitar ideas on the demos he heard. He thought they very much fit the songs.

Where did you record the album and who produced it? 

We recorded in Box, UK in a small studio. It was produced by Justin Adams.

Who accompanied you on the album? 

Finley Hunt played drums and percussion. Justin Adams played guitar. Patrick Philip played keyboards.

Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories from the recording sessions?

Seems there are a lot of magpies in Box and Bath, so I learned the magpie rhyme, learning to say, “Hello Mr. Magpie, how’s your wife”, and another magpie would magically appear. I loved going for lunch sandwiches and chips at the shop up the road. Patrick Philip’s girlfriend made him a nettle quiche one day, I’d never heard of nettle quiche. Drinking tea all days, all café’d up at night, getting up happily to do it all again the next day. Feeling that something was wrong with the bassline of Useless (as I’d been playing it all along) and deciding to “Robbie-fy” it, as Robbie Shakespeare had just passed away. Seeing people riding horses in the streets of Box, feeling somehow sacred as Fairfield House (the residence of Haile Selassie in England) was nearby.

 Did you use any particular instruments, microphones, recording equipment to help you get a particular sound/tone for the record?

 Not that I know of. More of a Justin question.

Which of your new album tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?

Happiest – Overpass

Angriest – Useless

Most reflective – Silent Way

What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?

I hope that the music has brought people together and made people feel less isolated.

I hope to have my myself feel better by getting close to the sounds that I love.

 Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, pedals, microphones etc?

My favorite instrument is my Fender Jazz bass although now I love it when I get a chance to play Fender Precision’s because they feel great.

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?

Detroit is my hometown. Soulful, un-pretentious, hard-working, fun-loving, being-reborn.

What are your memories of living in Detroit? Any particular stories that stand out from that time?

One summer I worked on the General Motors Cadillac assembly line. I had to be to work at 5:30 am and saw first-hand the work my grandfather and my father had done for years. I wore a work suit and welded wheel housings from below as the car bodies passed on the line overhead. I worked with a Polish man who never spoke and was rumored to have 25 years in. I watched the sun come up through the window high up in the plant. I played numbers (which is like an illegal lottery) with the women in the paint shop. I prayed for my 18 minutes of relief in the morning, for my lunchtime in the afternoon and for quitting time at 3. A man would come by some afternoons and discretely collect donations for the League of Revolutionary Black Workers. I donated when I could and drank thermos whisky with some of the guys. At the end of the summer, I was glad to go to back to school.

How do you look after your voices? 

I need to take better care of my voice. I need to do vocal exercises every day.

You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?

One of my favorite novels is “As I Lay Dying” by William Faulkner. I love it because it talks about Southern people. When I first read the book, I was struck by the similarities I found between the book’s white characters and many of the black people I grew up with in Detroit.

Who are some of your musical influences? Do you have any recommendations?

My influences include Bob Marley, Black Uhuru, The Stooges, Planxty, The Twinkle Brothers, Public Image Ltd, Television, Liquid Liquid, The Bush Tetras, The MC5, Motown, Fela Kuti, Mamou Sidibe and Coumba Sidibe.

Recommendations

Depends on what you like.

Fatoumata Diawara is very good. Justin Adams and Mauro Durante. The Twinkle Brothers. The Temptations.

 Do you have any live dates planned in the UK/Europe in 2024/2025?

Not yet but hoping some stuff will come up.

Who created/designed the album artwork?

The photo is by Marta Ponsa and was taken at the Jeu de Paume in Paris. The sleeve was designed by an artist named John Bennett, based in Bristol.

Was it a difficult album to write?

No. It’s just a collection of songs that we had when we got the chance to record.

 What makes FaithNYC happy and what makes you unhappy?

Nice clothes, a good bass sound, travel, a new song, nature, and yoga make me happy. Narrow-minded people, racism, sexism and arrogance about the environment make me unhappy.