"It’s Not Quite Telepathic, but It's Close": Still Corners on Their Chemistry as a Duo

Kyle Mullin | Apr 1, 2019 1:00 pm | Add a comment | 1743 reads

British dream poppers Still Corners don't just want to get you dancing at their Apr 5 Omni Space gig – they also want to strike your emotions. After over a decade together, the London-based duo, made up of vocalist Tessa Murray and multi-instrumentalist Greg Hughes, have honed their loose, Americana-tinged sound, working so intimately over the years to have developed a relationship that is "not quite telepathic, but it's close."

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Below, Murray and Hughes tell us about creating moods with their warm medley of instruments, drawing inspiration from cinema, what it was like to be signed by legendary music label Sub Pop, and more.

On setting the mood with their music.
Greg Hughes: Creating a certain tone or atmosphere is important as it sets a mood that can shift you out of the current reality you're in. You come to the show and you feel one way, then you are immersed in the dark, there's beautiful projections, big sound from the speakers, music and other people dancing, so you feel transported away and you feel different, hopefully good.

When you go to the movies it's the same thing – the lights are off, and you are totally immersed in the film thanks to this combination of lighting and the film setting the tone. John Carpenter's Halloween has extended sequences of leaves crunching under feet, and you can hear the wind through the trees – it’s not there by accident, it's to conjure up the atmosphere of autumn while you're watching. So music, melody, and its delivery, whether edgy or smooth, create a feeling and so does lighting. It all works together.

On their song "Sad Movies."
Greg Hughes: We wrote that song together in two writing sessions and it felt great. We both watch a lot of films, so we wanted to reference something along those lines.

On touring the US.
Tessa Murray: It’s a hypnotic experience because the roads are so long and straight and, for the most part, empty. The pros and cons of that experience can change from day to day. Sometimes it feels very free, sometimes you feel alone and isolated, it can also be beautiful and strange. The UK is much smaller and there are a lot more people on the road, so it's very different. You often don't get the dramatic views of emptiness you'll find in the States. But it has its own, different beauty.

On being signed by legendary label Sub Pop.
Tessa Murray: It's very exciting when you first sign a record deal. They flew over to London to see us play, and afterward, we went to the local pub and signed a recording contract. It was a great experience. But we're also people who like being involved. We like steering the ship and doing things like speaking with the vinyl pressing plants, organizing distribution, choosing mastering places, and basically getting involved with all aspects of making and putting out an album. We've always written and recorded everything ourselves so it felt natural to continue with these parts of the album process.

On their chemistry as a duo.
Tessa Murray: We've worked together for a while and because of that, we have a pretty good idea of what we're both thinking. It’s not quite telepathic, but it's close. Now when we write music it goes very quickly, we have developed more intuition about ourselves and what we want from the music. So when we sat down to do [2018’s] Slow Air we moved quickly and it was a great experience. It's wonderful to have a musical connection with someone like that. It takes time to develop, but it's worth it.