It turns out the real Paloma Faith isn’t always stone cold sober. During her recent whirlwind press run of Australia, the talented and eccentric UK songbird dropped into Darby Day, experiencing Australia’s Spring Racing Carnival in ‘true blue’ form. By Jordana Borensztajn.
“It was fun,” she tells Nova, describing her crazy weekend. “After about two and a half glasses of champagne I was really excited. It doesn’t take much for me to get tipsy. I love Australia. I really want to come back and play live here.”
The very quirky songstress caused quite a commotion lately with her recent delivery Do You Want The Truth Or Something Beautiful? For a debut, it’s an impressive release which boasts soul-inspired tracks that ooze with self-doubt and self-discovery.
Backing up her first single “Stone Cold Sober” with the recent release of “New York” Faith is once again bouncing around Aussie airwaves. “New York,” much like the rest of her songs, is intriguing, layered and full of metaphors. Faith admits she documents everything and anything that could possibly turn into good song material.
“There’s load of things mixed in my music. There’s fantasy and nostalgia from the past. It’s like a hybrid of those things. I think especially in times of recession we should all free our minds and have time to escape,” she says.
“I generally keep a note book and write about life experiences. I keep notes and then I tend to co-write with musicians. I go in and say ‘I want it to sound like this’ or give them some images and make them watch a clip of a movie, to make sure we’re on the same page.”
Music isn't Faith’s only art indulgence and expertise. The 24-year-old studied a masters in theatre design, used to work as a magician’s assistant, performed in a burlesque show, is a trained contemporary dancer and still works as an actress. She quite clearly combines her very creative and colourful background into her current craft, and says all of those experiences shape the material she makes.
“I moved to music because I thought it was one of the only non-elitist art forms. I don’t know what it’s like here, but in England only rich people go to the theatre. I wanted to do something that was accessible and didn’t have a class divide,” she says. “I did all those jobs as something, really, just to make the rent without having to do a normal rubbish job. I never really wanted to do any of those jobs as a career but they all informed what I’ve done; informed my lyrics and my imagery, and I’m pleased that I did it.”
Faith says moving into music was the right decision for now, though it has its up and downs. “I’m having a nice time sometimes, and other times I’m feeling tired and disgruntled. As with most of life, no-one’s got a job that’s smooth-sailing all the time. At the moment I’m working seven days and a week with no evenings off so I do sometimes feel like… (sighs).”
While this starlet might feel exhausted at times, she’s definitely got her fans fooled. not onyl does she top off her wild package with a crazy dress sense and cabaresque-style hairdos, but the rumour surrounding Faith’s live shows is that crowds are hit with such a massive spectacle that by the end of her gigs, jaws are dropping right across the room. Faith laughs when asked about this and explains that the truthis she doesn't like to hold anything back.
“I try to make as much of an effort as I can to make it a theatrical experience. A lot of people come to shows dressed up and get involved, and they sing along. People enjoy it because it’s more of experience than just a gig. Everyone’s really into it and people want to know style tips and all that stuff.”
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