Plant Dad On the Making OF “Ophelia”
What was the initial spark or idea that led to the creation of "Ophelia?"
I always start off songs with musical ideas on the acoustic guitar (very poorly I might add). I was playing around the house with these jazzy 7th chords. I wanted to have a song with a bouncy “surfy rhythm” after watching this Colatura, Jupiter Rex, Lefty Bey, and Adjective Animal show in the Crown at Baltimore. I was super inspired after I watched itttt!
After locking in the initial rhythm that is in the piece, I recorded it for a loop and sang some random words and what came out was sort of like the chorus “Something’s in the corner - they’re watching - aw man” haha!
What was the creative process like for this particular "Ophelia?"
I always start off with demos that I do by myself in Logic Pro X (again very poorly). It went through a lot of passes with different band members. One iteration kind of sounded like a cheap version of Dayglow haha!
But the band that got it right was the one I have now Jake Fine on drums, Matt Hurd on guitar, and Jack Jahries on bass. They just knew to complement the song to its fullest potential. I just told my guitarist, Matt, that I wanted something “surfy and indie” and the rest is history. But also with my awesome producer Sean Mercer and mastering engineer Mat Lefler Schulman that just takes the cake.
With lyrics, I kinda take my time to build a story. “Ophelia” sounds like a love song for a girl named Ophelia, but in actuality, it really serves to be a personification of being lonely and depressed. A lot of Ophelia’s actions kind of mimic my own feelings about people and the world.
Were there any memorable or standout moments during the recording sessions for "Ophelia?"
The recording sessions were so fun! We took the whole day to record “Ophelia” and while no particular standout moments came to me, it definitely serves in my core memory of my love to my most recent members of the band. We had a whole day of just playing around / collaborating on ideas and that to me is really why I love music.
We did a separate day to do the guitars and keys (which I did separately) and those were magical. I wanted something shimmery and dreamy but also with some grit. I gave those notes to Sean and BAM (in his words) he did it!
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started in music?
Well.. I’m Ralph. I come from Baltimore, MD. I came from a classical musical background having done choirs, jazz groups, choral octets, piano and voice recitals, things like that. I even majored in music with a background in classical and jazz voice at a local university in my hometown of Baltimore.
During the pandemic, I was really doing a lot of soul searching of what I really wanted to do creatively. I was already in a band called The Wontons (a folk band with my good friend Hannah Cugle), but wanted to do stuff on my own.
After a good push from writing, I created my first song ‘She Got Me High’ with my friend Jason Alford (Adjacent Music) in Baltimore. The rest is history haha.
Now, I’m backed by my band Jake Fine on drums, Matt Hurd on guitar, Jack Jahries on guitar and sometimes bass, and our dear keyboardist Noelle Acaso on keyboard.
Where do you find inspiration for your songs or musical ideas?
I really find my inspiration from the people around me. I believe in the saying you are what you listen to when it comes to inspiration.
I really owe it to my friends and colleagues for my songs. Especially Sean Mercer, N A E, and Mat Leffler-Schulman. But to name a few of the people that mostly inspire me in the scene it has to be N A E, Micah E Wood, Thunder Club, Fetcher, Hannah K, Noelle Acaso, Eyas, Still Fine, Sleepy Gary, Modern Nomad, GIJI, Peach Face, many more… They’re actually all in this playlist that I made Spotify
