We had the pleasure to sit and chat with Still Woozy about his sophomore album, Loveseat, at °1824’s latest press conference on Friday, July 26th.
Still Woozy is the moniker of Sven Gamsky, a singer/songwriter/producer based in Portland. Creating music through this solo project since 2017, Sven puts his heart and soul into his genre-bending medleys. The release of Loveseat on June 28th warranted praise for Woozy’s vulnerable lyrics about love, loss, and humanity. Here’s what Sven had to say about the creation of Loveseat from beginning to end:
“How did you decide on the cover art for Loveseat?”
“My wife (and the mother of my baby) actually has done all the art!”, Sven states. “She is always making and doodling things, and when I saw this piece of artwork she made, it immediately captivated me.” He knew it would be the perfect cover for an album all about humanity and love.
“How can If This Isn’t Nice, I Don’t Know What Is and Loveseat be compared?“
Lyrically, every song on Loveseat‘s tracklist is about someone he loves. His first album, If This Isn’t Nice, I Don’t Know What Is, was about both longing and loss. After putting out two full-length records, Sven realizes that he is only going to put out music that he likes. But, it was nerve-wracking to put out Loveseat because the sound is very different than his last project. In Sven’s words, “Left to my own devices, I can make pretty weird, crazy music. I have country songs and all these other experimental songs and I don’t know if I’ll ever put them out. My hope is that by introducing enough variety in the albums I put out, people won’t be surprised if I put out a curveball.” Hopefully sometime soon we’ll get a glimpse of Cowboy Woozy!
For the first record, there was a focus on how songs felt when being listened to. This time around, Sven wanted to experiment with storytelling more. He said, “It is so captivating when someone can take you on the journey of the song lyrically and sonically. I wanted to push myself to be more personal and vulnerable.” While there isn’t an overall message for Loveseat, Sven believes that in the subtext of the subtext of the music, there’s a lot to say about releasing bottled-up emotions and living authentically.
“Was there a set order and anticipated release date for Loveseat?“
“It was just trial and error,” Woozy said. “A lot of the songs are so different, so when I went to go put the album together it was like trying to fit a round peg into a square hole.” Coming up with an order is difficult because you need to pair songs in a way where they flow together, otherwise the energy dies fast, he explained. The last song on the tracklist, “Rid of Me”, was a game changer for the album’s journey. His manager suggested Woozy move it to the end, over the middle where it was originally placed. It helps that it’s Sven’s favorite Loveseat song, and that it feels like a cathartic end to the album.
As for a release date, he had a big deadline: the birth of his first child, Shaia! ” I knew that I had a limited amount of time before the baby came to finish the album, so it really made me get my shit together. ‘Cus I was like ‘Oh my god, I’m gonna be out of commission for like… months.’” He has only released singles for the past few years and plans on going back to singles for a while post-Loveseat. Still Woozy had two major milestones this year – a baby and an album!
“Can you describe your writing and production processes for this album?“
“I need to be relatively grounded to make music. I have a home studio, and when I can wake up and go down and work, I feel like I can get into a really good groove. When I’m on tour, like I’m on tour right now, waking up in a new place every day, it’s really destabilizing [to write and create]. It’s not the right environment; I need quiet and a familiar place to access my deeper feelings”, Sven says of his songwriting process. He sees his new album as both an evolution and a fresh page. Some songs are reminiscent of the first album, but he made a conscious effort to not do it all the same. “I want to make different stuff to push sonically so I can release music without a cap on it.”
Why did we get a second full-length record from Still Woozy? It’s pretty simple: Sven wanted to find a home for all the songs that wouldn’t do as well as singles. While he enjoys the less-committed aspect of releasing singles, Woozy knew that he needed to find a place for these songs – and Loveseat was born. And his process? It normally starts at his home studio. A lot of this album started with guitar chords or piano, and then he would find a way to layer quicker beats on top. However, Sven never approaches anything the same. It’s all by chance when things sound the similar on a Still Woozy record. When it came to mixing and mastering, Sven annoyed himself with how many revisions he made to each mix and master, and confidently stated, “I would do it differently next time. It’s not sustainable!”
“Are there stories you’d like to share about the songs on the album?“
Many of the titles were simply working titles that he kept, one of which being “Big Fish”. Based on Tim Burton’s 2003 Fantasy/Adventure movie of the same name, “Big Fish” is about the relationship Sven has with his dad. Songs like “Again” and “Frida Kahlo” are written from Woozy’s iconic dream-like state, with lyrics including “This can’t be happening / I must be daydreaming” and “You’re goin’, you’re gone, goodnight.” Track four, titled “Run it Back”, was written two weeks before the album was due.
“Who influences you as a person? Did you have specific musical influences for Loveseat?“
Sven cites older music, like The Beatles and Marvin Gaye, and contemporary hitmakers like Mac Demarco as influences. While he “can’t get enough, honestly” of Tame Impala’s synth textures, Sven noted that that he has a lot of contemporary influences and for that reason, he cannot put out a record of just one sound: “No one is ever just one thing. If you are trying to capture a snapshot of somebody, there are gonna be some curveballs and crazy shit in there.” For Still Woozy, genre-bending is the way to go in order to produce a full-length record.
Sven’s process is inspiring for anybody, but as young creators, it is even more impactful. Starting a career in music and entertainment is hard, but Woozy’s advice acts as a helpful guide: It’s always good to be true to you. Ask yourself the same questions Sven did while creating Loveseat: “Does this feel like me? Does this feel good?” Still Woozy reminds us to stand behind the decisions and things we make, and to grow and evolve as time moves on.
Listen to Still Woozy’s new album, Loveseat, available everywhere now!
Thanks to Sven and the °1824 team for having us out! Keep up with Still Woozy below!
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