Eliza Carthy Interview

I chat to the Mercury Prize nominated folk musician at this year's Big Session festival...

Rosanna: How are you enjoying your weekend so far?

Eliza: It’s great. I’ve had a big long drive and I’ve got another big long drive, but apart from that, it’s always nice here and the weather was much better this year than the last time I was here.

Rosanna:  Because you played five years ago at the first one?

Eliza: I did yeah and then I played again last year as well.

Rosanna: And how’s this year comparing... do you think it’s getting better progressively?

Eliza: Oh, totally. The nice weather helps. Last year was really rainy. But yeah, it’s a lovely festival, it’s nice to see it so packed with people and it’s a really good bill as well.

Rosanna: And it’s a real range of people isn’t it?

Eliza: Yeah, hardcore Oysterband fans, and hardcore Billy Bragg fans, who I’d suspect are about the same age. And then there are younger people as well, and me and the inbetweeny types [smiles].

Rosanna: You started gigging when you were thirteen. Did that have a big impact on your teenage years, having a musical career?

Eliza: Yeah, it really did. And I certainly did go pro too early, ‘cause I got really, really tired for a long time. But yeah, it is a good life.

Rosanna: If you could change how you did it, would you have done it differently?

Eliza: I would have finished school. I ducked out of my A levels at 11^th hour, just before my exams... I left when I was seventeen. Since then I’ve been offered the chance to teach at universities and I’ve always felt a bit inadequate [laughs] because I never actually did any degrees or finished my A levels. I was rubbish at the coursework- I just hadn’t done any of it. I wish I’d been less distracted, but as I say, it is a good life, going all over the world.

Rosanna: Did you always know that that’s what you wanted to do?

Eliza: No, I didn’t. It was something to distract me. I always wanted to do something with music, but initially, when I first started gigging it was to distract me from the fact that me and my best mate had had a big fight. And my mum said, oh why don’t you just come on the road with us (in the family band), do a few gigs, it’ll cheer you up.

Rosanna: Do you think that folk music is having a bit of a resurgence?

Eliza: I think these things go in cycles, I really do. This is the second folk revival that I’ve been a part of. There was a very strong youth movement at the beginning of the 1990s, and a lot of people were experimenting with dance music and electronica and that kind of thing. I really enjoyed that and wanted to be a part of it. I think actually that the rise of the arts centre culture did two things, it helped it and then it hindered it. It helped it in that it gave us all stages to play on, and then it hindered it by just making the ticket prices really expensive. So we were part of this massive youth music scene that were basically just playing to our parents and their friends. When you start charging £15/£16 a ticket, there’s just no way that young people can come and see you.

Rosanna: So how do you think that folk music can begin to appeal to more young people?

Eliza: I think that the really strong festival scene at the moment is really, really helping. There’s a massive youth dance movement that just concentrates on the dancing and the hanging out outside kind of vibe and I think that works really well for younger people. But that really only works in the summer. And a lot of those kids are second and third generation folkies that are bringing their mates along and that is really good and it is working, but I’m not sure how to sustain that through the off-seasons.

Rosanna: You’ve been travelling quite a lot- would you say that your travels have a big influence on your music?

Eliza: Yeah, having a broader of the experience of the world and music. When you’re a musician (or when you’re anybody) your horizons are broadened by what you see. I’ve been to South America and Australia, Hong Kong and Japan, the Czech Republic and all sorts of odd places, so it’s bound to have an influence. I really fell in love with Latin American music for a long time, and I like African traditional music and African pop as well. I’m a big fan of Balkan singing and big gypsy bands and Eastern European stuff I really, really like.

Rosanna: What advice would you give to people wanting a career in music?

Eliza: I’m the wrong person to ask about that kind of thing, but just try and meet as many people as possible and never let any opportunity pass you by.

Rosanna: Thank you very much for your time and it was really nice to meet you.

To see the interview in full...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6satuFxB-3E

To find out more about Eliza...

http://www.eliza-carthy.com/eliza/index.cfm

By Rosanna Pound-Woods