“I want to be someone who, like, changes the zeitgeist of the way music is going,” singer-songwriter Sam Ashe says in our Monday afternoon interview. Ashe has just released newest single, “Hair Dye,” a pop-rock track that recounts the desperation of a situationship. Ashe is an up-and-coming Denver based artist with a sound unable to be confined by genre. Ashe is forward with this; honoring rock and electronic influences, but never admitting to adherence to genre.
Hey Sam, can you share your name and who would play you in a movie about yourself?
I am Sam Ashe, a full time musician and producer. I make music and play all kinds of gigs full-time. And who would play me? Jeez, I don’t know. I’m trying to think of someone who looks like me. Yeah, um, I mean if I could do anyone I’d do me in thirty years played by Joaquin Phoenix. If I’m like 40-something, how do I deal with that? I want Joaquin Phoenix to capture that.
How has it been since releasing your single “Hair Dye”?
It’s been good! It’s the first single I’ve released as a solo artist. I used to be the frontman of an indie band. This is my first single since then and I was able to lock into my own sound more. How I was able to present and market, and that’s been really good. I’ve been a lot more productive. Everything moves faster this way.
How does coming from a band develop your sound now as a solo artist?
I mean, for me, my background is where I learned how to make music and whatnot. Terrible garage bands and stuff like that. I definitely have a certain rock influence in my sound. Now that I’m solo, I really do enjoy a lot of pop music. Lady GaGa is a huge influence for me. Marina and Grimes. I’m a decade late! I like alt-pop and I get to lean into that more as a solo artist.
There’s a line you repeat in the single: can you be more like me?
How did that develop into the song and where did it come from?
Initially, on the lyric side, I was in this situationship ordeal. You, kind of, start to mimic and I started to adopt [her] style. It was like “notice me” and “I’m cool too” and that’s where the lyric came from. Can you be more like me is just can you be more communicative? Match my energy? That’s what I thought I wrote it about. The song is more about, in the overarching sense, what it’s like to be a small indie artist. You’re constantly putting yourself out there and putting your heart on your sleeve. You gotta play the viral game, and you’re trying to be authentic. You’re trying to put yourself out there over and over and over again. And if you’re not blowing up or taking off, you aren’t getting any of that validation. Can you be more like me is more like maybe we can work this another way – an anti-popstar.
Can you share more about the process and influences behind the track?
I wanted to be between pop and rock. So, the goal was to be guitar-driven with synths and the fake drums . . . [with] vocal performance . . . on the pop side. I did it in this apartment. There’s a screaming part at the end. I ended up tracking that in my car. I just hit this parking garage really late and did that screaming part. The limitation helped shape the sound of the song. It lended to be a good in-between kind of space. If I can define my sound between pop and rock, it gives me freedom. That’s something that’s important to me.
Is there a specific moment that the concept for this track came to you?
This one, I wrote the whole thing in fifteen or twenty minutes. I did it on acoustic guitar and got my phone notes out. I had chords I was playing around with. Melody came pretty easily. I was sort of playing with sounds that felt good with the melody and developed that into some lyrics. It’s important to get into a flow state. It can be pretty meditative. When you stop the constant monologue, you’re able to be really creative. I mean, it’s not all great. I do like this one. It felt authentic.
Sam Ashe’s single, “Hair Dye,” is now out wherever you stream music.
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