Maya de Vitry Talks New EP, April 2024 UK Tour And More
Words by Glenn Sargeant
Photo Credit: Kaitlyn Raitz
Nashville based singer songwriter Maya de Vitry will embark on a UK headline tour April 2024 following her ‘Infinite’ EP release. She sat down with JLTT for a quick chat about her new music and more:
Your latest EP ‘Infinite’ is out now. How did you want to approach the making of the record?
We recorded Infinite in Nashville, TN at a studio called the Parlor. It’s right on Music Row, so it was a very vibrant and exciting place to record. Driving down those streets, you can kind of feel the magic of all the songs that have been written and recorded around there over the years. I produced this collection myself – I had a clear vision of wanting to capture a very raw and whole and immediate portrait of 4 musicians. We played and sang live, and that was really important to me, too. I wanted to shine a light on our interactions, our breath, the space between the notes. It was engineered – and mixed – by Lawson White, and it was wonderful to have such an enthusiastic and grounded and skilled set of ears to navigate the technical side of the process.
Who plays on the EP with you?
Joel Timmons is on acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and harmony vocals. He’s my right hand man these days – he was with me on the duo tour opening for the Wood Brothers, and he’ll be with me for the duo tour to the UK this April. Ethan Jodziewicz is on upright bass and electric bass – he is extraordinarily versatile, and can play simply and supportively, or step out front in really evocative ways. Hannah Delynn is on harmony vocals, background vocals. We called her “Synthy Delynn”, because I encouraged her to use her voice like a full instrument, or to play “something like a synth line” with her voice. I have toured with all of these folks, so we already had a nice bond going into the studio.
Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?
My hometown is Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Even more specifically, Silver Spring, Pennsylvania. In 5 words – corn, soybeans, tobacco, meadow, sky.
What music do you enjoy listening to? Do you have any recommendations?
I love some of the recent roots music that my friends and peers are making… folks like Paper Wings, Mighty Poplar, Caitlin Canty. I love John Craigie’s new record – I toured with him in the UK in January, he’s just brilliant. I also love Brittany Howard, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Big Thief/Adrianne Lenker, Tom Waits, Bobby Charles, Anais Mitchell, Courtney Marie Andrews, Sheryl Crow…
How do you look after your voice?
I try not to talk too loudly, like if I’m in a really loud bar and my voice is feeling strained, I try to make an escape. Loud bars are the worst thing for my voice.
What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?
For myself to feel more free, for my bandmates to feel more free – and for the audience to feel more free.
What makes Maya De Vitry happy and what makes you unhappy?
Happiness is feeling understood, being in a patient and dynamic conversation, feeling time stretch because I am absorbed in writing a song, or arranging music, or walking on a beach. Happiness feels like alignment, balance, giving and receiving. Unhappiness for me is losing autonomy, feeling trapped in a situation.
Feature Image Photo Credit: Kaitlyn Raitz
Maya de Vitry’s new EP ‘Infinite’ is out now.
In addition, Maya de Vitry will embark on a nine-date April 2024 headline UK Tour.
Tickets are onsale now here: https://www.mayadevitry.com/
The tour will visit the following venues:
Thurs 18th – Pocklington, York
Fri 19th – The Live Room, Shipley
Sat 20th – The Stables, Milton Keynes
Sun 21st – The Green Note, London
Mon 22nd – Prince Albert, Brighton
Tue 23rd – Retro Bar, Manchester
Wed 24th – Hug & Pint, Glasgow
Fri 26th – Cluny, Newcastle
Sat 27th – Sudbury Arts Centre, Sudbury
