You may have known her as one-half of folk/roots duo, Roger Roger, but singer-songwriter Madeleine Roger is out paving her own path and instantly enchanting all listeners with her own collection of songs.
Madeleine spoke with us about the intuitive nature of her songwriting process, her upcoming debut album, Cottonwood, and the value of creating an album with equal gender representation among its crew.
What sparked your interest in music in the first place?
My dad is a musician and a recording engineer/producer and studio owner here in Winnipeg, so growing up we were always around music. I guess throughout the years I was actually more drawn to theatre and musical theater but then near the end of my theatre degree at the University of Winnipeg, I started writing songs and I just completely fell in love with the process. I decided to jump the theatre ship and get on board with the life of a songwriter.
So what part of theatre sparked the idea to start writing songs?
It's funny. I was actually sitting in my theatre class just thinking like 'Man! I really wish that right now I was at home writing songs', and it was as simple as that. My mind was distracted. I was trying to focus on the thing that I had always been in love with, which was theatre, but I was being called in this new direction. It was so strong that I actually just sort of dropped everything in my life and started writing.
Can you go into your song-writing process a bit? Your songs are very story-based, so where does that come from?
There's never been a normal method for me. Every song has been written in a totally different way. I've written songs on buses, on my bicycle, I've written them where I've done all the lyrics first and then the chord progression and the melody has come later. I've written partial songs in a dream and then I wake up and hum the tune into my recording app on my phone and then deconstruct it later and figure out where the song is. For the most part though, when I know that I have this song in the making, there's this moment where I sort of realize what the song is actually about and from there everything just kind of unfolds.
Madeleine spoke with us about the intuitive nature of her songwriting process, her upcoming debut album, Cottonwood, and the value of creating an album with equal gender representation among its crew.
What sparked your interest in music in the first place?
My dad is a musician and a recording engineer/producer and studio owner here in Winnipeg, so growing up we were always around music. I guess throughout the years I was actually more drawn to theatre and musical theater but then near the end of my theatre degree at the University of Winnipeg, I started writing songs and I just completely fell in love with the process. I decided to jump the theatre ship and get on board with the life of a songwriter.
So what part of theatre sparked the idea to start writing songs?
It's funny. I was actually sitting in my theatre class just thinking like 'Man! I really wish that right now I was at home writing songs', and it was as simple as that. My mind was distracted. I was trying to focus on the thing that I had always been in love with, which was theatre, but I was being called in this new direction. It was so strong that I actually just sort of dropped everything in my life and started writing.
Can you go into your song-writing process a bit? Your songs are very story-based, so where does that come from?
There's never been a normal method for me. Every song has been written in a totally different way. I've written songs on buses, on my bicycle, I've written them where I've done all the lyrics first and then the chord progression and the melody has come later. I've written partial songs in a dream and then I wake up and hum the tune into my recording app on my phone and then deconstruct it later and figure out where the song is. For the most part though, when I know that I have this song in the making, there's this moment where I sort of realize what the song is actually about and from there everything just kind of unfolds.
You have a new album, Cottonwood, coming out in September, how has that whole process been?
It's been amazing! For the last couple of years, I've been in a full-time band with my brother called Roger Roger. My brother is focusing on guitar building and can't tour as much. I love touring, and it's not really wise to tour without an album or something to promote so I realized, if I want to keep doing this, I need to make a solo album. The process has been so much fun. I've worked with just an absolutely stellar crew of musicians, mostly from Winnipeg but also a couple from further abroad in Canada, who had lent their talents to the album.
I'm very proud to say that the album's been made with gender parity, so the musicians, the engineering, and production, everything is 50/50 men and women.
Oh, that's great! So that was always a goal in the process?
It was absolutely a goal. If you look at the liner notes of so many albums, it's so often you'll see it's mixed by a man. It's produced by a man, and all the musicians are often dudes too. That's fine and well but I also think that there are a lot of women doing really incredible work, and it's time to give them more of a space in recording studios. I don't buy the argument that it's impossible, and now I can prove that it is absolutely possible.
How has it been now that you've transitioned into being a solo artist?
It's been fairly straightforward because I'm just doing the same work that I was doing before. There have been a couple of things where I have to start from scratch, but for the most part, it's just been a lot of fun. I've really found some excitement in the fact that I can make all the decisions for my project on my own. There's no compromise that needs to be made, and I can move as quickly or as slowly with any decision or any creative process as I need.
It's been really rewarding. It was a bit of a process to be okay with being alone on stage because I'm used to performing with another person. I love collaborating with people. It's one of my favourite things about being a musician but there's something really cool about learning that it's okay to be alone and terrified and put a show on. You can learn a lot about the core of whether or not the songs are strong because there's nothing to hide behind; it's just you, the guitar and the song.
Can you talk about your most-recent tour - during it, you played a lot of house shows and more intimate venues. How was that?
Oh, it was amazing. I love house concerts because it's really the way that the songs are meant to live, in a way. They were written in living rooms, and we get to perform them in living rooms. There's no barrier. There's no sound system. There's no foreign building that people have to go to. They're really beautiful evenings. For the most part, I can remember every single house concert has a really true genuine connection with the audience, and every now and then you'll speak to somebody after the show and their story really sticks with you. I find that people are a lot more comfortable talking about their own life experiences in a house concert setting. We really see a bit better what the effects of the songs are on people.
So you're playing Harvest Sun...
This is the first time [playing] as a solo artist. Logan McKillop and I will be together for all the performances, and we'll be playing our own songs.
I love Harvest Sun. It’s such a great festival. Last year when [Roger Roger] played it, it was the first time I had ever been, and I couldn't believe I had never been before. In my mind, that size of festival is the absolute perfect festival. There's one stage so you can't have a fear of missing out on some other band you wanted to see. There’s always amazing music and great people. It's such a friendly festival, and a lot of people come in from the towns surrounding the area, so there are a lot of people who already know each other, and it's just like such a great feeling.
Catch Madeleine Roger at The Harvest Sun Music Festival in Kelwood, MB - August 17 - 19th. Early bird tickets are available until August 1st.
Follow Madeleine Roger on Facebook, on Instagram and on her official website.
Be sure to check out @harvestsunmusicfest on Instagram on July 17th, as Madeleine takes over our account for the day!
It's been amazing! For the last couple of years, I've been in a full-time band with my brother called Roger Roger. My brother is focusing on guitar building and can't tour as much. I love touring, and it's not really wise to tour without an album or something to promote so I realized, if I want to keep doing this, I need to make a solo album. The process has been so much fun. I've worked with just an absolutely stellar crew of musicians, mostly from Winnipeg but also a couple from further abroad in Canada, who had lent their talents to the album.
I'm very proud to say that the album's been made with gender parity, so the musicians, the engineering, and production, everything is 50/50 men and women.
Oh, that's great! So that was always a goal in the process?
It was absolutely a goal. If you look at the liner notes of so many albums, it's so often you'll see it's mixed by a man. It's produced by a man, and all the musicians are often dudes too. That's fine and well but I also think that there are a lot of women doing really incredible work, and it's time to give them more of a space in recording studios. I don't buy the argument that it's impossible, and now I can prove that it is absolutely possible.
How has it been now that you've transitioned into being a solo artist?
It's been fairly straightforward because I'm just doing the same work that I was doing before. There have been a couple of things where I have to start from scratch, but for the most part, it's just been a lot of fun. I've really found some excitement in the fact that I can make all the decisions for my project on my own. There's no compromise that needs to be made, and I can move as quickly or as slowly with any decision or any creative process as I need.
It's been really rewarding. It was a bit of a process to be okay with being alone on stage because I'm used to performing with another person. I love collaborating with people. It's one of my favourite things about being a musician but there's something really cool about learning that it's okay to be alone and terrified and put a show on. You can learn a lot about the core of whether or not the songs are strong because there's nothing to hide behind; it's just you, the guitar and the song.
Can you talk about your most-recent tour - during it, you played a lot of house shows and more intimate venues. How was that?
Oh, it was amazing. I love house concerts because it's really the way that the songs are meant to live, in a way. They were written in living rooms, and we get to perform them in living rooms. There's no barrier. There's no sound system. There's no foreign building that people have to go to. They're really beautiful evenings. For the most part, I can remember every single house concert has a really true genuine connection with the audience, and every now and then you'll speak to somebody after the show and their story really sticks with you. I find that people are a lot more comfortable talking about their own life experiences in a house concert setting. We really see a bit better what the effects of the songs are on people.
So you're playing Harvest Sun...
This is the first time [playing] as a solo artist. Logan McKillop and I will be together for all the performances, and we'll be playing our own songs.
I love Harvest Sun. It’s such a great festival. Last year when [Roger Roger] played it, it was the first time I had ever been, and I couldn't believe I had never been before. In my mind, that size of festival is the absolute perfect festival. There's one stage so you can't have a fear of missing out on some other band you wanted to see. There’s always amazing music and great people. It's such a friendly festival, and a lot of people come in from the towns surrounding the area, so there are a lot of people who already know each other, and it's just like such a great feeling.
Catch Madeleine Roger at The Harvest Sun Music Festival in Kelwood, MB - August 17 - 19th. Early bird tickets are available until August 1st.
Follow Madeleine Roger on Facebook, on Instagram and on her official website.
Be sure to check out @harvestsunmusicfest on Instagram on July 17th, as Madeleine takes over our account for the day!
Interview by Janet Adamana
Janet Adamana is the Founder/Editor-In-Chief of Sound, Phrase & Fury Magazine - a Winnipeg-based digital publication dedicated to promoting independent artists and industry professionals from all over the world. More than just about inciting hype, she interviews/writes to capture an artists’ essence and their greatest passions to ignite meaningful connections between fans and really great bands.
Janet Adamana is the Founder/Editor-In-Chief of Sound, Phrase & Fury Magazine - a Winnipeg-based digital publication dedicated to promoting independent artists and industry professionals from all over the world. More than just about inciting hype, she interviews/writes to capture an artists’ essence and their greatest passions to ignite meaningful connections between fans and really great bands.
RSS Feed
