Ash Grunwald Interview - "Fish Out of Water"

A 2009 Interview with Ash by Simon from Perfect Pitch Sydney Music Marketing

Ash Grunwald's Delta Grooves

Independent, inspirational and at the time of talking, in Canada; Ash Grunwald has become recognised as one of Australia’s truly unique artists.

Constantly plying his trade on the Australian festival and club circuit, the release of his last album ‘Fish Out Of Water’ has seen this one- man blues dynamo enjoy a whole new level of recognition, both at home and abroad.

Battling a temperamental phone connection, Our Manly caught up with Ash on the eve of his return to Australian shores after an exciting tour abroad.

OM: So Ash, you’re just winding up the overseas leg of this tour, having taken in the UK and Canada. How’s everything been going?

AG: Well… it’s been pretty fun. I did a lot of festivals in England and one here in Canada as well. Then we’ve just been traveling around and doing some smaller shows.

In summer the solo shows you do in a lot of places overseas are often smaller than usual because it’s all about festivals at that time of year. And in Canada in particular, a lot of people hibernate in the winter… then in summer they just cut loose and do loads of outdoors stuff.

But in its way that’s been really good because I’ve been one of the people doing all that outdoors stuff!

OM: Any particular highlights that stand out on your travels?

AG: Well yesterday was probably one of the highlights of my year. It wasn’t really music related but it was the music that brought me to it.

We went to this place called Lake Louise and it’s just absolutely amazing! There are these turquoise waters in the lake… there’s this walk to these glaciers that are there and I’ve just never seen anything like it… it was just awe inspiring mate.

OM: With this tour and on the latest album, you’ve been playing with a new line up. I was wondering how that has changed the touring experience for you, especially given your long history as a solo artist?

AG: I guess it’s just that ‘being with the whole band’ thing. You’re right, I’ve toured around by myself lots, but I’ve always loved it when I’m doing double bills with a band and you can hang out and stuff.

For the set-up on this tour I’ve got this big motor-home and in Australia we were traveling around… just the boys in the band…and it was great fun.

And with these shows, because I’ve got these amazing percussionists, the feel of the show is still quite similar to my solo shows. I do like to try to keep it like I’m playing solo in a way. Playing solo gives you that advantage in that it’s very free and you can really get off on the energy of the crowd and go in different directions. So what I’ve tried to do with the band is just try to keep that same energy.

I’ve kind of said to the boys that it’s up to them to try to follow me… it’s taken time but it’s proven to be really good fun.

OM: The reception for the new album has been really impressive and seems to have continued to grow over time. You’ve had great album reviews and also awards for the singles (Fish Out of Water was voted Best Song of the Year at the Blues Music Chain Awards). Do you feel a change in terms of how you’re seen as an artist?

AG: Well, I guess with any musician it’s kind of a long road you’re on, and it just happens bit-by-bit. You can kind of get used to the incline that you’re walking on you know… so you almost don’t notice it.

There was a bit of a steepening of the curve just after the album came out, but one thing that kind of shocked me was that while the album got my best reviews by far… crowds at the gigs themselves didn’t really go up at all on my first tour. In a way it was a bit disappointing initially… you know, on the back of all these good reviews.

But then, much later, I went around again on tour and all of the gigs were just heaps bigger. And the best thing about that was that it was a really pleasant surprise.

OM: So the word of mouth got things going?

AG: Yeah, and it’s kind of bizarre when you think that the pace of the world has quickened so much. I mean you wouldn’t think it would happen like that anymore. But it took a year for the record to really bed in there and for me to see a difference.

But honestly, I’m glad that I went in that direction and experimented and worked with different producers and got this reaction.

OM: I know a lot has been made of the fact that you incorporated elements of hip-hop and electronic beats into this album. There’s no denying however, that the sound has retained your signature raw blues groove. Was it a conscious decision not to stray too far from this sound?

AG: Yeah! I don’t want to ever abandon the core of what I’m about, you know. And in the main it’s what I’m good at and it is my main thing.

I guess what I’m trying to say is… you want to make something that’s uniquely your own and I kind of feel like what I do doesn’t sound like anything else out there at the moment… which I’m pretty happy about!

I want to keep that happening as well. I think it’s good to stick to your roots in one area, especially when you’re branching out into another.

But that’s the trick. As an artist you want to progress, but you also know that people also want to hear the old songs… which is the flip side of the coin. But then you’ve got to progress to keep it fresh for yourself and to kick things over and keep things alive. It’s always a ‘Catch 22’ really, but you can’t be too obvious and just try to progress for the sake of it.

Really I just try to kind of follow my own attention span… because by the time I’m getting bored it’s probably the case that everyone else is too! (laughs)

OM: And on that point it seems that when you perform live you always have a desire to have a good time… and to feel that the audience is having a god time as well. Is that a real measure of success for you?

AG: Well, I’m pretty old school in that sense. I really did come from the blues scene, where it was all about gigging. So a big part of me thinks in the live way, you know… and it is important, yeah.

But in saying that I do think working in the studio is very different and I’m starting to enjoy that more. For example with this last album, where I basically spent a month full on doing it, I fell in love with that whole part of being a muso. It was kind of cool.

OM: From your music it’s pretty clear that you have a strong affinity with the old Delta Blues style of music and that’s not overly common in our generation. I was wondering where that interest was first sparked?

AG: I just really got into it because early on I had a few things that crossed my path that contained stuff I liked. And I began to realise that it was that genre of music that I kept hearing… all these little bits in songs… they were little bluesy bits. Then once I knew that it was blues I could go check it out.

As to why I did that, I don’t really know… it was a bit of a bizarre thing for my generation, I guess. I still feel it now though… I just love those bluesy kind of sounds and I love things that are soulful.

OM: I noticed that there is actually an Ash Grunwald iPhone app. that fans can download. As an independent artist how important has the use of this type of technology been for you?

AG: I just sort of roll with it you know. I mean, I’ve been getting a bit pro-active with my Facebook page and things like that. Really though it’s all just a way of allowing the message to spread further and be better… which is great for the fans….

At this point, our troublesome phone connection finally gave up the ghost and died, leaving Ash to enjoy his time in the Canadian countryside.

For more information visit:
www.ashgrunwald.com or www.myspace.com/ashgrunwald