Words: Frankie Ward
Photography: Katja Ogrin
His dauntingly dark Stanislavky EP is a huge U-Turn for former kids’ television presenter Iain Woods.
Recorded as a final project at art school, Iain Woods’ debut record is a sample-infused, soulfully performed and wonderfully produced piece of work, and yet Iain himself is effortlessly charming, despite having endured a couple of train journeys and a photo-shoot before making his way to be interviewed.
Four months after graduating, Iain discovered that he was nominated for the 4Talent Music Award whilst on work experience at London-based label Transgressive Records.
“I was saying to a guy that I’d been play-listed at BBC 6 Music, but didn’t find out until two months later. I asked him, ‘Could you give me some advice on how to stay on top of things?’ And as I said it I scrolled down the 4Talent website, saw ‘Iain Woods’ in the shortlist and thought, this is exactly what I mean!”
According to his MySpace page, Iain’s music blends grime and gospel – not exactly the genres that leap to mind when browsing his material. “I don’t really take the genre thing that seriously,” he shrugs. “It’s more to do with a sombre setting, than really syncopated Dizzee Rascal style grime beats.”
He once wrote that his work comprises pop songs about amphetamines and anal sex. So which tracks are about what? “It’s all a big web to be worked out by the listener, and not to be explained by me,” is his enigmatic reply.
“It would be really difficult and undermining to say that this song is about this, and this song is about that,” he goes on. “Some are written in ten minutes, others over a couple of months. They’re more about just general moods and feelings,” he reflects. So will enlightenment come with repeated listens?
“A lot of the people I listen to have really random lyrics, like PJ Harvey and Beth Gibbons,” he responds. They’ll often pointedly say something that’s completely nonsensical, and I really like that.”
This feels like a good time to raise the topic of his track 1994. On his blog, Iain writes in fragmented note form about the various happenings in that particular year – such as the death of Kurt Cobain, and Nelson Mandela becoming President of South Africa. “I’ve just got this thing about years, I’ve always found them really interesting,” he explains – this particular year having the significance of being the year his uncle was murdered.
“I’m quite a storyteller, but I don’t think you’d be able to tell what it’s about just by listening,” he reflects. “It’s about something generally dark: that was my first memory of something really, really serious.”
During the interview Iain says he’s not working on new material, but calls me later to apologise. “I don’t know why I said that; I’ve nearly finished a new EP,” he tells me. “I think I got carried away. You were my first interviewer.”
