SEYE ADELEKAN - GORILLAZ // SOLO
(Aarhus, Denmark) July 28th, 2023. Seye Adelekan is not just a multi-instrumentalist, but a multifaceted artist. And the Nigerian Born, South-East London-raised musician is now ready with a new solo EP called ‘A River’.
The title track is out today on all major platforms.
Besides his new solo project, Seye Adelekan (@Seyemusic) is also the long-time bass player in Gorillaz. And has previously been part of various Damon Albarn projects, while also having toured with/recorded with musicians such as KT Tunstall, Ellie Goulding, Lana Del Rey, Emili Sandé, Birdy, Mumford and Sons, and Paloma Faith.
Guardian – “..exactly what any omnivorous modern music listener would want from a solo artist”
Hot Press Magazine – “..I found myself transfixed as he sang about love and yearning.”
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5 MINUTES WITH SEYE ADELEKAN.
Baum: Congrats on the new release, Seye! The title track gives me vibes of both a cinematic track with Paul McCartney influences. Can you tell me more about how this song started?
Seye: I wrote this song in Iceland overlooking the cold ocean on a dark morning. It speaks of the need to help someone, to dive into them, but with the uncertainty of whether you can swim in there or not. Should you try and fix someone when you’re broken yourself? Sometimes you just need to be there for them. I recognise this in my healing journey as I have been helped by professionals but, very much so by the quiet love of a positive presence. Someone just there, sat in it with me.
Honestly, the words just came out of my mouth along with the melody. I didn’t know where it was coming from until I sat down to write it properly and realized it’s a song about Hope in dark times.
Baum: That’s beautiful. Will the other racks follow this theme of mental health and help, or will we explore different themes throughout the EP?
Seye: There are themes of Sobriety, Love and lost memories so it takes you on a journey in 4 songs.
Baum: How did going to a remote location like Iceland and the input from that studio shape the outcome of your music?
Seye: I think writing while overlooking water and mainly in the dark (we wrote in November) meant that the songs all have a bit of a melancholy feel, even the brighter songs on the EP. I can’t help but be influenced by my environment
Baum: Playing your own songs live for the first time at a sold-out Folklore Rooms and now also as warm-up for KT Tunstall, can you put some words on that moment? How did you feel? And how did the crowd react to your music?
Seye: The shows have gone really well! I have played full band and in an acoustic duo (the Leaper Stage acoustic is so amazing). I felt surprisingly calm which is in contrast to how I used to feel when playing my solo shows. I used to be unprepared and just unsettled and uncertain but now I feel really grounded.
Seye Adelekan uses a custom-colored Leaper Stage for his solo shows.
The specs are identical to the available Deep Honey Burst and Pure Black.
Baum: When can we expect to listen to the full EP?
Seye: I think by the end of the year all 4 songs should be out but maybe by the end of Jan for sure.
Baum: How has your music changed since your last release in 2012?
Seye: There is no comparison. I think I used to do a lot of co-writes with lots of different songwriters and producers but now I am just writing either myself or with my best friend and producer Charlie Morton, the way we have done since we were teenagers. It’s way more organic nowadays.
Baum: What’s your 2023 looking like in terms of live music? Where can we catch you live either solo, with Gorillaz, or with other acts?
Seye: I’m sat in my tour bus bunk in Scotland at a festival about to play with KT Tunstall actually. We have a couple more shows and then I am going to announce some more solo shows soon.
The rest of the year is still being sorted out but there will be more so watch this space. In the meantime to check out “A River” out now on all the platforms 😁
THE PINK THUNDER BASS
Seye Adelekan joined the Baum Family in 2022, when we co-designed the signature Thunder Bass for the Gorillaz world tour.
The Thunder is a visually striking signature bass complementing Seye’s charismatic, energic and dynamic playing on stage.
“Simple design. One pickup. And then it is more on the person who’s playing the instrument to bring something to it. It can do anything, and that is what you get when you can make it really, really simple. It reflects the player. And I’m really, really glad to say that the Thunder does that” – Seye Adelekan
Read more about the Thunder Bass here.
Photo Credits: Dav Stewart, Miles Humphries & Lalionne Photography
