seitz On the Making Of “The Web”
What was the initial spark or idea that led to the creation of "The Web?"
I was thinking about social inequality and injustice, and then my thoughts drifted to the animal kingdom, where being born a member of a species already determines whether you're predator or prey, whether you spend most of your life hunting or being hunted. You have no say in the matter. Or do you? God knows what's going on behind the scenes! But could it be that hierarchies and pecking orders are as illusory in nature as they are in society? In the end, we're all the same, we'll all walk, crawl, slither, swim through that tunnel of light into a shared nothingness!
What was your favorite moment in making the music video?
The music video is a collage of stock footage and images. My original idea was to simply find a video of a spider weaving a web and slow it down to fill the three-and-a-half minutes of the song. But the more I scrolled through spider and insect footage in stock libraries, the more I felt inspired to create a more elaborate story. I had no idea there was so much amazing stuff available for just a few dollars! There were several moments when I saw an animation or illustration and immediately knew how it would fit with the music and carry the narrative forward. Those were the best moments. The video kind of wrote itself!
How does "The Web" fit into your overall artistic vision?
“The Web” is a bit of an exception, my work is usually less theatrical and 'seasonal', more art-pop. My producer Kostia Rapoport listened to my first draft of the song, which was just vocals and piano, and said the overall vibe reminded him of Danny Elfman's scores. We watched 'Corpse Bride' for inspiration and Kostia came up with the rest of the arrangement: delicate strings, xylophone and eerie 'insecty' noises. “The Web” is certainly a Halloween special, I don't intend to stick to this style from November to September. But I may have another spooky tune to release this time next year. 🎃
Can you tell us more about you as an artist?
As a teenager, I was really into drawing and painting. The desire to get away from my desk and get involved in something noisier and more collaborative eventually led me to music. When I left school I applied to both an art school and a music college. The art school turned me down, the music college accepted me. So I abandoned fine art altogether to concentrate on developing my musical skills. After graduating from college in Germany, I moved to Bristol, UK, threw myself into the vibrant local music scene and set up my own business teaching voice and piano. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed with long COVID three years ago and it's still very difficult for me to sing and play. I won't be performing live any time soon, but I'm looking forward to creating more videos for previously unreleased tracks like “The Web.” It's been wonderful to be visually creative again and I'm realising how much I've missed playing with colours, shapes and textures.
Can you walk us through your creative process when writing and composing music?
The lyrics and message of a song are most important to me, so I usually start writing away from the piano and laptop, often in cafés. Once the words develop rhythm and meter, a melody begins to form, and then all I have to do is drape harmonies around it and come up with patterns on the piano to represent those harmonies. I looove patterns, so another approach is to improvise on the piano until I find a pattern I like and then be receptive to the moods it evokes. The lyrics are then derived from those moods. I prefer the first method though. The first verse and chorus often come very easily to me, I struggle with bridges and building powerful endings to songs.
