Whos Playing the Running Down to the Ground Again

One of the most pop songs of the past year is the indie folk tune "Riptide," a global hit performed by Australian singer-songwriter James Keogh, who is better known by his allonym, Vance Joy. Here, Keogh discusses Riptide's pregnant line by line, touches on his exploding fame (including beingness recently covered past Taylor Swift), and why epiphanies while writing songs are better than any success he's had thus far.

Cheers for talking to me, human being. Showtime off, what should I phone call yous? Vance? James? Mr. Keogh?

I usually innovate myself to people as James, unless they're like, "Hey, Vance." Then I'm like, "Hey, what's up?"

So when you go back abode, do yous say to your friends, "Hey, listen… phone call me VANCE."

[Laughs] No, I'd get a few raised eyebrows if I did that.

When did you start going by Vance Joy? It's a catchy name.

Probably in 2012. I was playing a few modest gigs at a cafe on Sunday afternoons and I started using that allonym because I picked it out of a book I was reading at the fourth dimension. I liked the sound of the words and I thought it was quite a memorable proper name, and it stuck.

What book was information technology?

Elation past Peter Carey.

Well, congratulations on your success. "Riptide" is an amazing song; the heights that information technology's risen to are just incredible. What's the origin of the song? Where did information technology all begin?

The song started in 2008. One day I only picked upward the guitar and started playing the chords for the verse. I had the commencement two lines but really didn't think much well-nigh it. I kind of shelved them. At that point I only uncovered a small portion of the song, then it wasn't clear to me where it was going to get. Four years later in 2012, I was living with a friend and I would spend a lot of the afternoons writing while he went to work. One solar day, I tried working on it, and then stepped away we went to the shops to buy some stuff for dinner, and when I came back I started playing this melody on the ukulele. That melody wound upward becoming the instrumental bridge, and that led me to write the melody for the chorus. Once I had that charted out, the words came easily, kind of like a stream of consciousness. All the words I needed were at my fingertips, and from that signal I put the song together in a couple of days.

I accept the lyrics in front of me, and then let's talk about the words. The showtime lines of the song are, "I was scared of dentists and the dark/ I was scared of pretty girls and starting conversations." Does that come from your ain life?

That'south all pretty biographical. When writing, you just spurt things out without being too conscious of information technology. "Dentists in the dark" sounded right, particularly because of the alliteration. Plus, it's also true in my childhood likewise. The "pretty girls" line is me for sure, I was a shy kid.

I heard that you got the title for "Riptide" from a cabin you used to stay at when you were younger and in the chorus you sing, "Oh, lady running down to the riptide." So are you referring to the motel or are you referring to the bounding main?

I think at first you write these words without really thinking if they make sense or not. In my listen it's the body of water, but my whole sensation of that discussion existing is staying at a cabin called Riptide.  That's why it was in my caput since information technology's not the most ordinarily used expression. And for that reason, the give-and-take has a special significance and a special retentivity for me.

The funny thing is that I was talking to a lifeguard almost the word "riptide" non long ago, and he was saying that the discussion in itself is a misnomer. The phenomena that the give-and-take is referring to is "rip electric current," but I guess that doesn't have the same ring to it.

Totally. It doesn't rhyme either. In Australia we refer to it as a "rip," because a rip is the undercurrent that could elevate y'all out into the bounding main and it'southward unsafe. So yous'd say, "Be careful of the rip." But a lot of pop music is like that; it'southward not well-nigh making sense information technology'due south about the sounds of the give-and-take with the melody and getting that balance correct.

The first line in the second poesy is, "At that place's this movie that I think you similar/ This guy decides to quit his chore and heads to New York City/ This cowboy's running from himself." Are you referring to an actual movie?

Yeah, the movie is Midnight Cowboy. I must have watched that film 2 or three years earlier I wrote that lyric and don't fifty-fifty know how that came into my head. It'southward cool how a vocal could put yous in a mindset and y'all kind of just follow the clues to a judgement. It's really interesting from my perspective as a songwriter to think where lines similar that came from, and why they come out and then easily sometimes.

I honey the line, "I swear she's destined for the screen/ Closest affair to Michelle Pfeiffer that you've ever seen." She hasn't really been around in a trivial fleck; are you just a fan of hers?

I'one thousand a massive fan. I love her and I love her films. When I was a kid I watched Batman Returns a lot; I thought she was an amazing Catwoman. She's also in a motion-picture show chosen The Fabulous Bakery Boys that I similar. I think that line comes from her existence the epitome of a sexy woman. That's what was I aiming for. In the 90s she was a massive bargain, but I guess it takes a flake of time for the mythology of a person to take shape.

When did you realize "Riptide" was going to have on a life of information technology'south own? Was this dorsum in Australia?

Well, I put it on my personal SoundCloud in 2012 and it had a few thousand listens inside a very pocket-sized of group of people. My first bear witness was that in October of that yr and when I played it, people were singing forth word for word and it was only a room of like 180 people. If it was that infectious, I knew that there was something special about information technology. After that first gig, I just idea of it every bit office of a grouping of songs I was really proud of.

The chart success of "Riptide" is astonishing, just you lot know y'all've truly arrived when Taylor Swift covers information technology as she recently did for the BBC. That must exist pretty weird.

Yeah, I really loved her cover. Information technology was clear to me that she was enjoying herself. She pulled a lot of emotion out of the song. Of course she's a huge star, only information technology seemed similar a very personal and intimate performance. I like hearing the song in that mode,  it's cool to hear it as a slow carol. She's super talented, so can she do so many different things.

If I know how Taylor Swift works, mayhap she's trying to finagle a relationship out of it. Has she called you lot up?

[Laughs] Haven't got that phone call even so! When I first heard it, my director showed it to me. She was covering the screen so I couldn't who was singing, and I was similar, "This sounds really good! Who is this?" And she pulled her hand away and I saw it was Taylor. It was exciting; my team is especially excited about having this new audition "Riptide." Information technology reached a lot of unlike new people past her covering it.

So the song and you every bit an artist have risen to astonishing heights, so I'thousand wondering what the coolest part of information technology has been so far?

I become the almost joy out of songwriting and those unexpected moments when yous're recording a vocal and you brand information technology amend, or when you're playing live and do something without thinking about what you're doing. So those moments are less specific in terms of some exact matter happening, merely that feeling and sensation I remember is the best. In terms of exact moments, it'd have to be playing big festivals similar Glastobury or Lollapaloza, or playing (on the BBC show) Later… with Jools The netherlands. Those kind of things are milestones.

What near meeting people you admire?

Well, I get really shy around people I admire. When you adore someone's work, you create an idea of who they are before you lot even meet them. Only I haven't really had that take a chance; at that place are a lot of people I'd similar to meet. When I do, I hope I'm normal and chill and don't embarrass myself.

Along with "Riptide," all of the songs your anthology, Dream Your Life Away, are crawly. I also especially honey "Mess is Mine." Tell me about putting together the anthology.

Well, the album is made up of songs written between the start of 2012 to the outset of 2014. It pretty much comprises all the best songwriting I got out of myself during that fourth dimension.

Thank you then much for talking to me man! This was fun.

Yeah, this was a very chilled-out conversation. Information technology's nice to talk and experience so relaxed. Cheers!

Thanks, human being. Cheers again. I'll run into you at the rip.

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Source: https://americansongwriter.com/riptide-vance-joy-james-keogh-behind-the-song/

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