Holly Miranda‘s sophomore self-titled album had a lot to live up to. Coming off her 2010 debut with XL Records, The Magician’s Private Library, most critics love to qualify her talent by the high-profile male musicians who have given her the thumbs up. (Kanye West and Trent Reznor among them.) But even if Yeezy himself gives you a gold star, it doesn’t mean anything if you can’t back it up.
Luckily, Holly’s second record, out now on Dangerbird Records, managed not to eclipse the praise after the out musician took a hiatus from music, and the 11 new tracks show a more raw, personal side to Holly than most of us were introduced to before.
It’s wild to think Holly dealt with a bout of writer’s block and then came up with songs like “All I Want is to Be Your Girl,” the uncharacteristically upbeat single about surprising feelings and the fun of falling for someone. (A just-released video for the tune has Holly and a gender-bending circus performer circling one another in colorful intrigue.) But the time she spent in the deserts of Joshua Tree to write about the many feelings she’s experienced in the five years between releases has only made Holly Miranda a stronger album, and likely Holly Miranda a stronger person. (I think that’s safe to say considering she’s officially out of her Saturn Return.)
Besides her solo work, Holly has also recorded with the supergroup The Singles, with bandmates Scarlett Johnasson, Este Haim, Kendra Morris and Julia Haltigan, and leant her voice/general persona to Lady Parts Justice, a feminist political pop culture non-profit that uses humor to diffuse anti-women legislation.
We spoke with Holly about the new album, her friendship with the late Lesley Gore and how she feels her sexuality factors into her musicianship.
AfterEllen.com: I’m so curious. I feel like there’s a time in every musician’s career where they decide it’s time for the self-titled album. What made this one the “Holly Miranda” album?
Holly Miranda: I’m really, really terrible at naming things. And also, it’s just a very personal record. I produced it and it’s so much different and stripped down than the last record I put out. It just felt like the right thing to do. Also I’m on the cover of it, for the first time I have my face on the cover of a record. So yeah, I’m just really bad at naming things! I didn’t want to just pull a lyric if it wasn’t something that wasn’t really striking or coming to me. I just felt like it was a natural way to go with this one.
AE: It’s a lot of pressure after The Magician’s Private Library, which was such a great name.
HM: Right, which was something my schizophrenic uncle said when I played him Dark Side of the Moon in the middle of a lake in Michigan. So I can’t even really take credit for that one.
AE: I don’t want to say this is a “negative” album, but it’s very much about a push and pull, a longing. Is that something you felt while writing and recording this album, and even now?
HM: I wrote these songs-I didn’t write them all as a group. There were some songs that were written much earlier and then some were written together. So it’s kind of all over the map, like I can see different people’s faces in my head when I sing different songs. But I wouldn’t say-it’s not negative. I would say it’s more sentimental and honest, and definitely a very heavy love, loss through-line but I think that that’s what I’ve been going through the last few years.
AE: Is it a weird feeling to write songs knowing people will pick them apart and try to decipher meaning from them?
HM: Yeah and no. I think after a while, it just becomes a muscle. And also, I mean, some of the songs-what I actually wrote them about is probably not what anybody thinks it’s about. And I don’t really like to talk about what songs are about too much because I think that’s kind of the beauty of music-you get to hear it and make up your own interpretation. It’s so subjective; it’s not about me anymore and how people perceive them. The filters it has to go through in their brain-I have to relinquish any control because it’s not mine anymore. But I think definitely when I was first starting out-I was like 16, playing open mic nights in the Village, I would get so nervous about the words I was about to say in front of people. Like any performer, I guess, when you’re performing your own material, there’s that very vulnerable aspect to it that can be scary, but I think it’s also the beautiful part.
AE: When you’re recording or even playing live, I guess, what are you more vulnerable about: the actual musicality or the lyrics?
HM: I mean, depends on the song but I would say more predominantly the lyrics. It just comes out how it comes out sometimes.
AE: You’ve been playing music for such a long time now. Do you care about fan reaction and critical reaction? I guess I’m asking do you care about people’s opinions? [laughs]
HM: Not really anymore. I mean, maybe if I’m playing a song for the first time, like I’ve just written it, I’ll have that little butterfly moment but yeah, no, I don’t really care. [laughs] I think that’s the beauty of getting into your 30s. I look forward to 40, too, honestly because I feel like I really won’t give a fuck. I’m making a music video right now where I’m walking around with a Go Pro and a selfie stick through the airport and crowds so you really can’t care.
AE: Have you listened to your last album in a while? What do you think is the biggest difference from Magician’s Private Library and the new self-titled?
HM: I mean, I think again, me producing it is probably the major difference. I’ve been really fortunate to work with some really incredible producers, I don’t really know a lot of tricks so I feel like it came out in a way that I’m super happy about that’s also really raw and really about putting the mic in front of a really great player and letting them do their thing. And also I really wanted to capture-I love the last record and what Dave Sitek did-but I never want to do the same thing twice. And pulling that off live, there were so many layers and so many different synth sounds. We ran keyboards through guitar pedals and all these horn sections and it’s great-and I guess live things are open to interpretation. You don’t really want to go to a show and see the record, but it’s difficult to try to convey energy and I wanted it to be more, just sort of like my band is live, which is basically all it is. There’s not a lot of additions besides maybe drum beats. But also I worked with an engineer and he was extremely creative and facilitated listening to me and facilitated the sound idea I was trying to go for.
AE: So now that you’ve done that, is producing something you’ll always want to have a hand in?
HM: I would like to produce other people. It’s not that I wouldn’t do another record of my own without another producer, it’s just experiences and experimenting. Like I said, I don’t ever want to make the same record twice. That’s really boring.
AE: Next time we’ll expect a rap album?
HM: Maybe, or a good ole’ country record. Where it’s all my normal talking voice. [laughs]
AE: I was listening to another interview you did where you said your parents only allowed you to listen to Motown. Why were you only allowed Motown?
HM: Well they grew up in Detroit and grew up on Motown and so that was acceptable. But they were very religious when I was younger. There was a lot of church so it was Christian music and Motown was okay, and there was always one Barry Manilow CD in the house, or Crystal Gayle or some random singer my mom liked. But I loved Motown. I lionized every single song. Do you remember when you used to go to Shell gas stations, spend 20 dollars and get a free cassette tape that was like a mixed tape? I collected all of those and had a boom box I would carry around with me, with my cassette tape holder and I knew every single word to every song on all of those tapes. I felt like I was going to be a DJ forever.
AE: I saw that you posted about Lesley Gore not long ago. What was your relationship with her?
HM: I met Lesley-I jumped on the Lady Parts Justice telethon that happened a year and a half ago, which I musical directed, and Lesley was our surprise finale so for the weeks leading up to it, she would have to call me and I would have to let it go to voicemail so I could compose myself and then call her back and talk about how many music stands she needed or whatever. So that’s how we met originally, and then she was just so lovely. I immediately felt very protective of her. Like there was somebody helping us from the venue and they were being snippy with Lesley and I was like, “Oh, oh no. Nuh uh.” And she and her partner came and they stayed for the whole show and she was just really incredible. She wanted to hang out and get coffee and I was like, “Sure, we’ll hang out and get coffee.” We did and she was just-I was trying to figure out the best way to put this record out and she was asking me for it, and I was, like, not getting back to her quick enough. She wanted to hear the record. She was just always on my ass to get it out and not give up. The last email I got from her was in December: “When’s the record coming out? What’s going on with this?” And she passed away. I didn’t know she was sick. I think it must have been pretty sudden. It was shocking. I still feel pretty fortunate that I got to know her for the time I did. She was really encouraging. She taught me a lot about how to behave for future generations-which I feel like I knew but she reinforced that it doesn’t need to be any sort of competition between women performers. Just being so warm and thoughtful. She’s a legend.
AE: Have you had the chance to meet a lot of your personal heroes in your career? There’s that saying not to meet your idols because they can disappoint you.
HM: [laughs] I would say meet your heroes. Everybody’s human. Just maybe don’t speak to your hero. I’ll leave it there!
AE: Have you had some interesting fan experiences? Tattoos of your lyrics or anything like that?
HM: I’ve seen a couple of lyric tattoos. That’s pretty crazy. I’ve had fan experiences across the board. Some of them have been super positive, and some real wacky folks.
AE: Some passionate people!
HM: Some real passionate people, sitting on your driveway. I’d say it’s like a 60/40, 40 being more positive. Maybe 70/30.
AE: So you’re heading out on tour soon.
HM: Yeah, I leave on Sunday.
AE: Are you doing just the States?
HM: Right now, the stuff I can announce is up through the summer which is just solo dates but I’m doing a full band show in Brooklyn on the 15th but some solo shows leading up to that. We’re gonna announce a big tour pretty soon. I really want to get to Europe this fall. It’s hard because the record just came out and summer is, like, festival season and it’s hard to have it just come out and jump on that. I’m going to have a little bit of chill time this summer, which I’m kind of looking forward to. I’m going to go to Detroit and hang out with my mom.
AE: Is there anything people don’t get about your music, or something you wish was talked about more?
HM: That’s hard. I think a lot of the time, like you said, people take things maybe a little sadder or melancholy than I mean. Like I’m very thoughtful, you know, and sometimes it can come across-I’m always like “Oh really, that’s sad?” Maybe I’m just dark and no one told me.
AE: You’re dark, Holly!
HM: I’m a little goth. Maybe that’s what people should know. I’m goth.
AE: Which is why it was so interesting to hear your song with The Singles, because it’s so much more happy and poppy than your usual.
HM: I felt like I was in The Go-Gos. I was just rolling with it. And also that song, if you really listen to those lyrics, it’s one of the dirtiest songs. It’s all tongue in cheek and about dirty things.
AE: I don’t know what chocolate from above is! I need to know.
HM: I’m not sure. You’ll need to ask Kendra.
AE: When you’re taking new songs out on the road, do you try to do anything special with them other than recreate it from the studio? Like, “This would be fun to do with the crowd!”
HM: I never have much luck at the crowd singalong stuff. Not everybody has the best rhythm. I try to initiate, for example, in “Pelican Rapids,” there’s that “Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh, oh oh,” trying to get a crowd to sing that for me so I can sing the rest of the song never really works. So when I go up solo, like you saw at the show in LA, I’ll have multiple mics so I’ll loop in different mics to create multiple layers. And also, I’m trying to figure out a way to figure out guitar loops so I can have those layers going on as well. And there’s a freedom to being solo where I can just improvise and change things on a whim. I have my band here rehearsing for the Brooklyn show and I hope we can improvise, but I don’t want to mess everybody up. There’s a freedom to playing solo but also I can get a little bored with myself, so I’m trying to switch between acoustic, electric, piano, try to make it as interesting as possible for me and, hopefully, other people.
AE: What’s the weirdest comparison you’ve ever gotten?
HM: I’ve gotten everything. I think sometimes if you’re a singer and you have a vagina, people tell you you sound like every other singer with a vagina. I’ve gotten it all! I’ve been told I sound like Julianna Hatfield. I’ve been told I sound like Jewel. I’m like “Okay!” That’s their thing and it has nothing to do with me. I’ve learned to not take anything personally.
AE: Without going down the “How does it feel to be a woman musician road?”, has the industry gotten less misogynistic since you’ve started in music?
HM: Yeah, I think in some ways it is. I feel like people I’ve worked in the studio with, musicians that I’ve played with, people that I work with professionally, I feel like my voice is more recognized. I feel like when I started, I would have people kind of pat me on the head and be like “That’s a good idea but no, that’s not how we do this.” Looking back, I’m like, Oh my god, I just didn’t have the wherewithal to trust my own instincts.” But I’ll still have an encounter with, like, a sound guy who decides after a show to tell me which guitar tones he liked better. I’m like “Uhhh barf.”
AE: So is it fair to say you don’t see a lot of women sound people while you’re touring?
HM: I see more now but yeah, not a lot. But sound is a hard thing. I feel like a lot of frustrated musicians end up doing sound at clubs. They’re not always the happiest people because they’re not really doing what they want to be doing. But it’s a different experience when you have someone like that or when you have somebody who loves what they’re doing and is really good at it. It’s a hard job, and I just always assume they have to deal with so many asshole bands coming through who maybe don’t treat them very well. I always try to create a story for someone so that I can experience more empathy. [laughs]
AE: Do you love tour life? Are you the kind of person who is into being in the back of a van or always on a plane?
HM: I enjoy getting to see the world and I think I’m much more present now than I was maybe 10 years ago when I was just starting to tour and nervous about a show. And now that I’m not nervous, I can really appreciate where I am and the city I get to be in and I have friends all over the place because I’ve been doing this so long I get to see people. But the flip side is it’s hard to have a relationship or life or keeping up with-I see people again and now their babies are years older. So kind of being around for that stuff for your friends-it can get a little lonely but I think I manage it pretty well.
AE: After touring on this album and taking a little time off, do you have a plan to start writing the next one?
HM: I’ve already started working on another record. I feel like momentum is a big thing and after my last record, I really needed a break. I was pretty burnt out. And so I just did that-I just took that big break and now I feel like I should probably keep trucking on for a little while and benefit from the momentum of, hopefully, what’s going to happen with this album.
AE: What’s the dream scenario for you? Is there something you want to do with this album that you haven’t done yet?
HM: Have it be successful.
AE: How do you measure that?
HM: I don’t know. I feel like it’s successful already because I’m really proud of it. I really like it. I have goals, like I’d like to work on other people’s records, I’d like to produce, I’d really like to try my hand at scoring a movie. Stuff like that where I could maybe be at one place a little more. I think the measure of success would be how much charity work I can do or how much I can use from any sort of profile to benefit another people and my family.
AE: How does your being queer factor into your songwriting or your performing? Do you see it fitting in in any kind of way?
HM: I mean, if I’m writing a love song it’s going to be about a lady. But I also don’t really like songs that make things gender specific. I think you lose the universalness of it, although I still do that sometimes. It’s part of who I am but I don’t think it defines the music. I’ve never not been out, but I’ve never made it what I’m relying on to promote myself. Maybe that’s the difference. I don’t see them completely mutually exclusive because I’m writing very personal things but at the same time, I don’t think they always have to be displayed together.
AE: I’m still waiting for your big gay anthem, like “Firework” or something.
HM: “All I Want is to Be Your Girl”!
AE: That’ll work!
Holly Miranda is available now. Visit hollymiranda.com for tour dates and more.
