Salt Ashes Talks New Single, Musical Influences And More
Salt Ashes, the enigmatic dark synth-pop artist also known as Veiga Sanchez, returns with her new single, ‘Bad Things Right’. She chatted to us about the track, her musical influences and more:
When did you begin songwriting?
I remember writing my first song when I was about 8 or 9 but I didn’t take it seriously until much later, when I was about 18/19.
What is your earliest musical memory?
I used to always get my girlfriends to form bands with me in primary school during break time and then force our teachers to let us perform what we’d rehearsed in the assemblies. I was going to say that this was the start of me being a performer but actually I have videos of me from when I was about 3 or 4 singing and performing for my dad over and over again. Always a performer I guess!
Your new single ‘Bad Things Right’ is out now. What was the inspiration/story behind the track?
It’s quite an honest song about my school days. I’d sometimes get accused of things I hadn’t done – like getting with a friends boyfriend or something like that. It felt so isolating when no one believed me. So this song is spun from that time and thinking why not be bad when everyone thinks you are anyway.
Where did you record the song and who produced it?
I recorded the song at my friends studio, Louis Souyave. We’d been working closely together for a couple years as he produced my second album.
Do you have any interesting, funny or memorable stories from the recording sessions?
Other than the fact we finished it and thought that it would never actually get released. We were told it wasn’t “single worthy” which actually crushed me at the time as I thought it was good! But that’s on me… I should’ve stuck with my gut and pushed for it.
Who created/designed the single artwork?
Like a lot of my artwork I designed it. Steph Alexis took the photo in my bath tub at home. We did a mini shoot around my house and this one looked interesting to me. In the bath tub, behind the shower door. Sometimes you don’t need a big budget just what you have in your house.
Which of your tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) angriest and c) most reflective?
My happiest is probably “Didn’t See it Coming”. I think I was in my element here. Career, love, life was all in line, work was beginning to pick up again after Covid and life was good.
Angriest – “Lucy”. I wrote this around the Sarah Everard case and it’s about sexual assault and women being commodified and objectified. This subject, like most, makes me so angry but most of all upset that people have to be subjected to these kind of behaviours every day.
Most reflective – Probably “Stains” as this was a letter (or song) to myself, a self-reflection on allowing myself to move past the pain and trauma and allowing myself to heal from it all.
Was it a difficult song to write?
I think maybe the question above was meant to be about just one song, and I gave you 3! But let’s refer to the most reflective song as yeah it was hard in a way; in the sense that being honest with yourself sometimes is the hardest and I felt quite raw writing it but I also had a sense of catharsis and reinvigoration – almost a shedding of dead skin that had been clinging on for too long. So in that way, it kind of flew out of me and was easy to write.
What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?
I want the audience to be left buzzing and rushing with emotion. I want to have left a mark on people’s nights and weeks and months!!
Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, pedals, microphones etc?
I love my TC helicon voicelive vocal pedal. I always have 2 mics on stage, one for my lead vocal and one that’s plugged into this pedal to give me a heavily effected or harmonised voice. Just so cool to play with different effects and sounds to give dynamics to my vocal performance in moments.
Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?
Hailsham, East Sussex. Town, countryside, car-boot-sales!
How do you look after your voice?
Well at the moment I have some kind of vocal issues which the specialists are trying to figure out. But when I was in good vocal health I’d do a lot of steaming, a good vocal warm up and cool down before and after performances or recording, not talking over loud music or crowds, good sleep and healthy eating to support good digestion.
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?
I recently read Magician trilogy by Raymon E Feist. I reckon I could write some easy and weird for that.
Who are some of your musical influences? Do you have any recommendations?
My older influences are Jeff Buckley, Giorgio Moroder, Change, Annie Lennox and some more recent influences or people I’ve been loving listening to are Lola Young, Billie Eilish. I’ve been loving this techno brass band called Meute too – awesome live.
Do you have any live dates planned in the UK/Europe in 2024/2025?
Whilst I’m working on getting my voice back there are no planned dates but I’m hoping to be back to full strength soon.
Do you have any future music releases planned for 2025?
As I’m unable to sing and record atm I’ll be releasing some unreleased material, which was actually what Bad Things Right was. So I’m looking forward to having material out that I never thought people would hear and see how they are received. Bad Things Right has been received so much better than I ever expected so sometimes you just don’t know what is going to hit people.
What makes Salt Ashes happy and what makes you unhappy?
I’m happiest with the sun of my face and in nature with no stress around me knowing my friends and family are all safe and well. I’m unhappiest when bad things are happening in the world and I see more and more dramatic separation and divide.
Feature Image Photo Credit: Supplied By Fifth Element PR
Salt Ashes’ latest single ‘Bad Things Right’ is out now via Radikal Records. Listen: https://lnk.to/badthingsright
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SaltAshes/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saltashes/
