Artist Advent Day 14: MOSAICS
Written by: Keyali Mikaela
Welcome to the 14th day of Next Wave Magazine's Artist Advent Calendar, where each day brings forth a new discovery in the vibrant world of music. Today, we have the pleasure of diving into the artistic universe of MOSAICS, a band whose melodies are crafted with passion and whose lyrics resonate with the complexities of the human experience.
In this exclusive interview, MOSAICS opens up about their musical journey, influences, and the challenges of navigating the ever-evolving music industry. From the inspiration behind their pursuit of music to the intricate details of their creative process, this conversation promises to unveil the layers of creativity that define the essence of MOSAICS.
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Next Wave: What inspired you to pursue music?
Mosaics: I think we’ve all been deeply musical people from an early age. Our singer sort of fell into it after pursuing a career in theater and performing, but music is a universal truth. There’s something deeply human about it and to be able to create it and play our songs live for other people, see them moving and vibing to ideas we’ve had is - there’s nothing else like it.
Next Wave:Who are your musical influences or role models?
Mosaics: Our influences vary in the band depending on who you ask, however we’d say our primary collective influences are Sam Fender, Inhaler and Stereophonics. There’s strong elements of grunge, emo & country that find their way into our sound too, often unintentionally! We’re massively into Holly Humberstone too, her style of writing & production is absolutely class and definitely inspires us when developing a track in the studio.
Next Wave:What's the most challenging aspect of breaking into the music industry?
Mosaics: In this day and age? Absolutely everything! It’s not financially rewarding at our level, there’s less money than ever in the industry itself, but that’s never why any of the greats have done it. It’s about passion and love for the art form more than anything else. If you’re looking to break into the music industry and make money when you start making music, that’s pretty unlikely.
Next Wave: How do you go about promoting your music and building your fanbase?
Mosaics: Play as many shows as possible and write as many songs we love as possible. So much of it is chance these days. We’re upping our social media output, but it’s always got to be the art first. Hopefully, the rest will come.
Next Wave:How has technology and the internet impacted your music career?
Mosaics: It’s a bit of both. In the past without a label to back you, no-one but whoever is in a pub on a Saturday night would hear you, but with advancements in technology, producers and studios are more accessible than ever and anyone can upload to the global network that is streaming platforms. Saturation is absolutely a problem, but you’ve gotta trust that the songs themselves will break through and stand the test of time.
Next Wave: Do you have any advice for other up-and-coming musicians trying to make it in the industry?
Mosaics: Write, practice, perform, repeat. As we’ve found, you won’t get better at any of the aforementioned things without repetition. Playing a show the best you can, or hearing a song finished that you could never have dreamed of writing five years ago is the best reward you can wish for.
Next Wave: What are your long-term goals and aspirations?
Mosaics: We aren’t pie in the sky, we’ll never be the Beatles. To be on the festival circuit is a big dream of ours. But essentially, to be able to make music full time and have the music connect with as many people as possible would be a dream come true, you can’t ask for more.
Next Wave: Can you share a memorable moment from your musical journey so far?
Mosaics: We sold out our second show at a 100 cap venue in Lincoln, having just released our first single. We played the song and had 100 people singing back the words. That was possibly the most moving experience ever. And something that wouldn’t have been possible for a small band ten years ago, without Spotify. But that moment of connection is something we’ve been chasing ever since. Nothing comes close.
Next Wave: Can you share a little about your creative process and how you come up with new ideas for songs?
Mosaics: Our primary songwriters are Owen (lead vocals) and Stu (lead guitar). Usually one of them will have had an idea for a title, or some words or a bit of guitar, and bring it to the other. With a couple of glasses of wine and two acoustic guitars something good will usually come out of it. And from there you build. Sometimes it’s the melody and music first and the meaning of the song will come with the lyrics, other times the end goal of the song is already there and it’s about navigating towards that. There’s no set way, really. Sometimes it’s almost there in 45 minutes, sometimes you work on a song for 4 years, like with our last single Jackie Brown, but it’s all in the craft.
Next Wave: What song, ep or album of yours would you recommend to someone who is listening to your music for the first time?
Mosaics: ‘Technicolor’ is a great jumping on point. It was the first song we wrote and recorded after our Covid enforced hiatus and really started us back off on our new creative journey together. But, I must say, our most recent single ‘Tears on the Underground’ is probably the culmination of five years of creative graft and our most definitive track so far. Check it out on whatever platform floats your boat, we’d really appreciate it x
