aaron x lily

[lily mccarthy]

LILY It's smart, but tiring. Very, very, tiring. Hotel room, tour bus, never been a good sleeper to begin with. Well thanks. I'll say both - always seen a bright side, for better or for worse. Also don't drink much, so I'm a pretty cheap date. What's your drink of choice?

[aaron eklund]

Aaron Yeah, same. I slept on a Greyhound once, didn't feel like getting rocked to sleep like everyone said. You a night owl or light sleeper? That a preference or a rule? I'm on a sour beer kick lately, otherwise if I were there I might have whiskey and ginger ale. Do love a mint julep though. I don't know what all Jack told you. I'm 30, I have a dog, I'm an only child, never been married, no kids. I like most types of music, movies and food. I take hobby classes, most recent being metalsmithing and soldering. Quit smoking in July.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Night owl. Insomniac, unofficially. The drinking? Preference, and when I'm tour one day out of commission and I'm chasing everything for a while. Never a good feeling. Haha I got a little bit of that. No idea what you've gleaned either but I'm 28. Singer/songwriter...well, duh. I have an older brother who's a guitarist in Cat's Cradle, I've been getting into foreign films lately, I just bought a house last year and have acquired one too many plants that I hope are alive when I get back. I knit or read on the bus, mostly. People think it's very uncool I still carry around a vape but trying to let that go, too.

[aaron eklund]

Aaron I’m a card-carrying member myself. Just curious. Makes sense with the voice stuff, never really thought about that. Gotta protect your money maker. I'm familiar with the band, should mention I know Taylor and Niko. And I happen to like foreign movies, gardening as much as one can do in LA, and reading old American classics. Haven't tried knitting, looks relaxing though.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY I'm starting to see why they thought we should talk, haha. It's not really even that - vocals are basically a muscle you can strengthen, I don't worry about my voice much. It's the rehearsals and the press and the fittings and whatever else is on the schedule. That's when being hungover hits the hardest.

[aaron eklund]

Aaron Almost too good to be true. Gotta get down to the nitty gritty - what's wrong with you? I don't like leaving my couch if I'm hungover, can't imagine being put under bright lights and people talking at you every which way. But I guess you put up with it to be able to put out the music. You have a nice voice, by the way.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Hahaha I'm too forgiving and typically have a knack for liking toxic men. What about you? You put up with a lot to be able to do that, that's for sure. Touring is grueling but it's such a tangible way to see the results of your product, it's the highlight of it all. And thank you, though I am terrible with playback of my own songs. I finish them, can sing them, but then have a hard time hearing them again.

[aaron eklund]

Aaron Well now I have to think if I'm toxic. I'm workin on some anger problems, and it's hard for me to trust people or let them in. Is it your favorite part then, the reception and performing? I'm trying to think of the other stuff, like the creative process or recording or whatnot.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Well you're not in jail, don't front a band and don't know my brother, so. Decent start. Yeah, it all comes down to that. It's so hard to describe, but all other processes lead to that realization that someone can scream every word you agonized over back at you. And it's a good place to put my feelings, because someone out there can relate.

[aaron eklund]

Aaron No jail, no priors. Can't believe I'm boastin about that. No band but I do like to pick up a guitar every once in a while. Learned in 2020 or so. I hope you got nice fans. That why you don't like listening to it back, reminds you of why or when you wrote it?

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Strange world we live in. Are you left or right handed? So far so good. They're very...dedicated? Yeah, a little bit. I'm usually in a different place by the time they come out so it drags me back. This one was more of a quick turn, so it's better. It's also just a weird feeling sometimes, hearing your own voice but not.

[aaron eklund]

Aaron I play right. You? Don't tell me left, instantly much cooler. Yeah that must be a trip. I don't really have anything to compare. After I make a piece of furniture I just think about all the hours it took or what I did or didn't do. Then off it goes.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Haha no, also right. Though that sometimes surprises people. Are you a perfectionist, do you think?

[aaron eklund]

Aaron I do more things righty, some things lefty though, usually sports. Lefty hitter, bowler, that type of thing. Might've heard that before in therapy. Or sometimes I just feel real creative, so what's another hour of fiddling on top of the 60 or so that goes into some pieces.

[lily mccarthy]

LILY Oh, same. Kind of. I snowboard left first. Next thing you know it's an entirely new piece. I guess that's possibly another flag of mine - I'm one when it comes to my music, sometimes to a bit of an extreme degree. Insomnia and creative bouts are a bit of a dangerous combination.