Miracles released debut track ‘Pieces of You and Me’ earlier this year.
Starting out is never easy. But Miracles – a new South London duo – are taking it all in their stride.
Perched atop a swivelling stool in their South London studio, lead singer Heather Vansaint explains the most daunting part is actually finding the right people to form a band with.
She said: “I had been aware of Joe’s music for a while and followed his old band.
“When I knew he wasn’t playing with them anymore I got in touch as we have a similar taste and approach to song writing.”
Joe Phillips, the other half of the deep electro duo, adds: “We’re both creative people with lots of ideas and opinions and luckily we come at things from the same angle most of the time.”
They also cite a shared admiration for acts such as M83, Calvin Harris, The xx, Four Tet, Hercules and Love Affair as another reason why they work so well.
Miracles released their debut track ‘Pieces of You and Me’ earlier this year, which was played on BBC Radio 6, XFM and numerous regional stations around the country.
Gaining exposure as a new band takes time and a lot of resilience – would they ever consider jumping on the Xfactor bandwagon with the hope of fast-tracking the process?
Heather responds: “I’ve never seen a TV show that I thought was particularly about nurturing the artist or the songs.
“What I worry about are the kids watching – do they think that’s the pinnacle of musical talent. Do they go to bed thinking an acoustic version of a Rihanna song is as good as it gets. That prevents them discovering gifted artists such as The Smiths or Dylan.”
Do they think London is the best place to be for a band starting out?
Joe answers: “There are definitely pro’s and cons. The good thing is you’re never going to be short of places to play live.”
Heather adds: “And you’ll never be short of inspiration here either, it’s so vibrant and fast-paced. The only downside is there’s more competition to try grab people’s attention.”
My eye wanders to the huge pile of paper on the table – some with drawings and others with lyrics scrawled on them.
Heather responds: “We’re currently brainstorming ideas for a video for our track ‘Something Cuts’ that we’ve just finished recording.
“It’s quite a dark tale of a relationship break-down and that moment that reality hits and you realise everything’s gone.”
Joe adds: “It’s quite bleak but there’s a beautiful honesty to it.”
Does heartache form the basis for most of their music?
Heather states: “Relationships have had a huge influence – heartache always sparks ideas. I think losing a parent at a young age gave me a lot of drive, I think it makes you sit up and realise how short life is.”
Both acknowledge how difficult it is to establish yourself in the music industry but are determined that 2013 will be their year in London.
Miracles play their next gig January 17th at the Good Ship in Kilburn.
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