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by: jasongutierrez
KT Tunstall can rock. The Irish-born singer-songwriter took the U.S. radio waves by storm with her debut single “Black Horse and the Cherry Tree,” in 2006. Since then, Tunstall has proven to be an artist fully capable of rocking out while keeping her lyrics intensely insightful and emotional.
A fan of Beck, The White Stripes, The Killers and Cat Powers, the Grammy Award nominee’s favorite color is turquoise, which coincides with the color of the throat chakra and the color of the ocean. “I’m so rarely asked what my favorite color is,” she says. “I think I’m going to get asked that question all the time, but this is the second time in an interview ever. Turquoise reminds me of some of the most beautiful oceans in Scotland I saw growing up and on vacation still.” Weeks before her second album, Drastic Fantastic debuts, KT was settling back into her life in the states and making her way through countless interviews. Luckily we had the opportunity to chat about success, fame and the environment. 
Envy Man: In 2006 and 2007 you had some amazing success and attention given to your debut album, Eye to the Telescope. When you sat down to write and record the new album, did you feel an immense amount of pressure or feel like you needed to duplicate what you had already done?
KT Tunstall: I would definitely say there is a progression that is connected to the first album. I have not completely departed from what is recognizably my stuff. But the success of the first one is still so bizarre to me. That it has done so well as it has, I don’t think I’ll be able to digest that properly for a long time. So, as far as selling a lot of albums, I almost feel that I have achieved so much more than I had expected that it almost took the pressure away. I don’t know, in six months I might tell you that I’m disappointed that it hasn’t done as well. However, I think this album is better than the last one. EM: Overall, is there a message of sorts on Drastic Fantastic that you are trying to get out there that you may not have done on the first album?
KT: I hadn’t toured with a band on the first album and that was always the dream, to rock out up on stage. When I made Eye to the Telescope, I was probably more of a ruckus musician than came across on the first album, but when I go back and listen to the album I’m always really pleased it happened the way it did—those songs really suit the vibe of where they are at on that album. On this album, it was really important for me to inject the three years of touring and the bands’ live feel into this second album. In doing this one, it was much easier for me to switch on my voice the same way I do when I get onstage. I don’t think I quite nailed that on the first album. EM: When you go into the studio to record, do you feel any commercial pressure and worry if “this one” will be the number one single?
KT: No. It doesn’t remotely cross my mind. People coming in and out of the studio, I’m sure it crosses theirs and that concerns me. It’s not always easy playing songs for your record label. You don’t want to see their faces all drop because they don’t hear a number one radio single. But that has nothing to do with why I make music and I have never had a number one song. It means much more to me to have the entire album on the charts. The top songs don’t have much value anymore in the modern music industry. It doesn’t feel real. It’s quite contrived.
EM: “Hold On” is the new single. It’s absolutely fantastic. What do you think about it?
KT: Thank you! I love it. It’s inspired by dance hall music and it permeates the neighborhood in which I live. I just love that big fat beat that pumps out from every window and car around me. It comes from a real groove, a real physical place. The lyrics are basically a warning, too.
EM: What has fame been like for you in the United States versus overseas success?
KT: I’d say here in the U.S. it’s slightly different because Britain is such a small country. It’s where I am from, so I’d say there’s an intensity there that I don’t have here. The attention is different. It’s still amazing for me to think about the position I am in here in America. There’s a sense of disbelief for me in America. For example, I was walking down the street of Boston today and this guy recognized me and said he likes my music. I get very taken aback because I feel I’m not as recognizable here. I went to the Grammy’s announcement for nominations. It was very early in the morning and one of the first things I had to do was stand in a photo shoot lineup with Mary J. Blige on one side of me and Justin Timberlake on the other and I felt intensely uncomfortable. It was the first time in my life that I wanted to say, ‘Do you know who I am?’ in terms of saying ‘I really shouldn’t be here, this is weird.’ It felt like a whole different league that I felt very removed from . . . like I had won some competition to have your photo taken with them. The whole music scene is a whole bigger beast here in America.
EM: Did you always want to be a musician?
KT: For many years I wanted to be an actress. I was part of a little grassroots theater company when I was eight years old. I always liked dancing and performing. As soon as I joined the theater group, I fell in love with performing and being on stage. I love the transaction of where you enjoy yourself and enjoy watching other people watch you. It’s a great exchange. At 16, I started writing my own music and playing guitar. It then dawned on me that I wanted to be a musician. After all, every girl within a 15-mile radius wanted to be an actress but not all of them could play guitar. So there’s a bit of Darwinism in there as well.
EM: How would you describe success?
KT: Underneath all of it, I would say success is a table full of friends and family enjoying a meal and having a good night. Over and above that, I would say being respected, having self-respect and doing what you are passionate about for a living. So I’m very happy.
EM: What do you like to do with your free time?
KT: I absolutely love to go to the cinema. It can be a cheesy blockbuster or a weird foreign art film—I just absolutely adore film. It removes me from myself and I find it relaxing, inspiring and moving. Everyone needs a break from time to time.
EM: I know “going green” is important to you. What have you done to help save our planet?
KT: I’d love to. I think you have to keep sharp. I carbon-neutralized Eye to the Telescope when it first came out and have done so since then. I did a program with a company called Global Cool, which gave a percentage from each record that would go toward tree planting. So now, I have this forest of about 6,000 trees in Scotland gently eating all the carbon from my first album. Now, as time has gone on, it turns out that tree planting isn’t necessarily the best way to offset your carbon because it doesn’t always follow the guidelines of biodiversity. Because once those trees are cut down, the carbon is released so it really is just a storage solution. With this album, I’m putting the money toward renewable energy. I tour on biodiesel buses. The real good initiative I have coming up is there is an extra dollar added to ticket prices that allow me to carbon-neutralize your journey to my gig. Global warming is very obvious and I was so pleased to be a part of the Live Earth day. With so much awareness, the issues will become negligence instead of ignorance on our part.
EM: Before I let you go, I’d like to ask you, if you could change one thing about the world, what would it be and why?
KT: I know this might sound really corny, but if everyone in the world treated everyone else the way they wanted to be treated, we’d have a fucking happy planet. {EM} |
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