Guestlist Issue 88 | Page 35

HIP HOP & RNB 35 ISSUE 88 / 20016 INTERVIEW ECHOES London songstress Echoes has steadily been gaining critical acclaim, like being named Q Magazine’s ‘Best of May, thanks to her powerful blend of R&B, electronica and soul. We caught up with her amidst the release of her new single ‘Blue Deep’ to find out what else she’s got in store for us this summer Christina Dean | Guestlist Hi Echoes, how’s it going? Ready for the summer? Yes! It’s when London comes alive. What’s the story behind the name Echoes? I really believe that everything we do echoes forward, and our life today is the residual echo of everything that has gone before. We are all echoes. We’ve only just discovered you and your music so give us a bit of background – how did you first start out? After music school (which was a waste of time) I bounced around from group to group, until I realised I wanted to go solo. Then I bounced between different collabs, different sounds until it clicked into place. Your music incorporates elements of R&B, soul, electronica, and ambient. How do you describe your sound? That’s pretty accurate actually! Your new single ‘Blue Deep’ is beautiful. What was the inspiration behind the track? Any situation that you know is no good for you, but the current, the tide keeps pulling you back in. The passion and the pain become a bit addictive. The video is also very striking – how did the visual concept come about? I sat down with the incredible animator Matt Oakley and explained that I envisaged something hypnotic, fluid and sensual. The power of the water versus the inevitability of the sinking stone. By chance he has really similar music taste to me so he just got it straight away. It was so much fun to see it take shape, we’d send each other ideas but also just ran- dom underground songs that we think the other would love. It was really organic. as much as possible - I’m really ex