Mayfly Kicks Off 2023 with Moody EP “HIDEAWAY Vol. I”
by Hannah Kozak
Hailing from Montreal, duo Mayfly is kicking off 2023 with the release of their new EP, HIDEAWAY Vol. I. The duo is returning after their 2021 release, ESSENCE, with a darker, moodier sound. Charlie and Emma self-produce music for Mayfly and show exquisite talent being only in their early twenties.
Q: What was the writing/recording process like for HIDEAWAY VOL. I? What is your favorite song on the EP?
A: HIDEAWAY was born almost two years ago. We had the idea to make this for so long and we truly took our time to perfect the right sound for this project. It had to be as powerful and striking as we’d imagined it. We took such a different approach to music making and writing with HIDEAWAY. It’s like we dived into a more complex, fun, dark side of music production and let some of our musical fantasies come to life. This cocoon that we created for HIDEAWAY, initially emerged in our home studio, with our roommate and close collaborator Jules Bonneville-Coulombe all throughout the pandemic. The last three months of this creative process were dedicated to expanding the sound and richness of the project with the help of Homy Studio (Gabriel Gagnon and Clément Leduc). Here, we were able to use proper analog gear and truly fine tune every layer to give the songs that organic feel. This final step of music production at Homy Studio helped give a much clearer structure and direction to each track and gave the project that magic touch.
Charlie’s favorite track: “ALL DREAMS FADE”
Emma’s favorite track: “Black Water”
Q: What is the significance behind the name Mayfly?
A: A mayfly is a short lived dragonfly that only lives 24 hours. The mayfly is a reminder that life should be lived to the fullest and that we must enjoy every moment because it may be gone sooner than we think. It also urges us to seize opportunities, as they may not last long. It also helps to keep faith in the idea that whenever you’re going through a rough pass, it is only temporary and there will be better days ahead.
When we learned about the spiritual meaning of a mayfly, we felt absolutely compelled by it–it resonated so much with the way we see life. Our music project is what allows us to feel like we are enjoying life to the fullest. This feeling is so important to us and it’s truly become the core of our project.
Q: How would you describe your sound, and why/how is your music meaningful to you as an artist?
A: Our sound is constantly evolving throughout the different projects we take on. We feel very free in our creation and we believe there’s no right answer to making music, nor do we have to fit in one specific genre or mold. We often find it difficult to describe our sound. Although we like to experiment, there’s something constant in our sound which is that melancholic, vulnerable and emotional Mayfly essence. We like to call it the “sad girl” sound.
Right now we are adventuring towards a darker electro/indie-pop sound. We’re making music that people can actually dance to and feel mesmerized by, but in a different way than how we’ve done it before.
Our music is our own safe space. It’s what helps us heal and let go of things that we need to make peace with. We want to share this safe space with our listeners, so that hopefully it helps them dive into their emotions and try to make sense of what they’re feeling instead of shying away from it.
Q: What is your dream show lineup and/or festival to play?
A: Playing in a festival like Coachella would be an absolute dream, it would give us this feeling of “we’ve made it”!!!! The idea that one day we’d play alongside (or on the same stage as) many of our inspirations who’ve headlined or played this festival, seems like the most insane achievement for us.
Q: Who are some of your favorite artists, and what artists do you take inspiration from when writing?
A: James Blake, FKA Twigs, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Claudio, Tora, Joji, SZA, Charlotte Day Wilson, Men I Trust, and many more.
Q: What has been your most rewarding moment thus far into your career? What do you hope to accomplish further into 2023?
A: So far, we’ve felt the most satisfaction through our release of HIDEAWAY as a whole. Each video clip and song release for this project has been astonishing in our eyes. We feel like we truly succeeded in bringing our creative vision for HIDEAWAY to life. And it’s been especially rewarding to get such amazing feedback on the project in the last weeks with the official release of Vol.I. We feel like our listeners truly understand and see the project as we intended it to be. There’s probably not a better feeling than having your art be received so gracefully by the world.
In 2023, we look forward to building a strong stage presence. Since the creation of our duo, we’ve worked a lot on our social media presence and developed a strong ability in the studio. This year, we really want to focus on bringing this world that we’ve created to our live shows. In parallel to this, we’re definitely going to be writing more music (that’s something we always keep doing), but we want to collaborate more with other writers and producers and keep creating without any rush.
Q: Anything else you'd like to add?
A: Stream Vol. I and stay tuned for Vol. II! Also, keep an eye out for Mayfly shows (perhaps near you)! Also also, we love every single one of you and so be kind and love yourselves too <3
