Your name:
Natalie
Duke.
Where are you
from?
Chicago by way
of Nashville, US.
Name
of band:
When I
play with a full backing band, we are called Natalie Duke and the Reckless
Revival. Otherwise, just Natalie Duke.
Who
else is in your band?
Jack
Beshoar rocks lead guitar and keys, Tyler Eckhart wails on the drums, Tom Moran
slaps the bass, Lisa Duke belts out the backing vocals and occasionally strums
a uke, and I handle lead vocals, a vocal looping machine, and occasionally,
rarely, some acoustic guitar and hand percussion.
How
would you describe yourselves?
I believe my
music to be catchy, smart, and honest. Sometimes a little edgy, sarcastic,
maybe even a bit funny, but always real. With my bad-ass backing band behind
me, I feel like the music is taken to a whole new level. I love that I can
share a stage with musicians that are not only great players, but also really
support and appreciate my music.
Who
are your main influences musically?
I feel
like every artist I have loved has influenced me. Jeff Buckley taught me how to
vocally emote, The Beatles taught me how to write a great pop song, Led
Zeppelin taught me how to rock, and the plethora of female artists I adore and
emulate (St. Vincent, Kate Nash, Fiona Apple, Feist, Kimbra, Janis Joplin,
Jenny Lewis, Adele, the list goes on and on) taught me that women can be
emotionally and musically diverse and can rock just as many faces off as men
can.
What
do you hope to achieve in music?
I just
want to create and perform music. That's it. Yes, I want people to like it.
Even better, I want people to relate to it. But all I really want to do is
write songs, record them, make records, and then play those songs in front of
people, be it 5 people or 5 million people.
What
has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?
The moment
I realized that I was over my ridiculous, irrational, debilitating stage
fright. I used to dread performing in front of an audience and would avoid it
at all costs. Eventually, I realized I had to do it to get over it. And I had
to do it a lot. And I did. And it worked. I got over it. I still get nervous
sometimes, but never as bad as it was in the beginning. That's a huge
accomplishment to me - better than any outside recognition or acclaim.
And
what’s the moment you want to forget?
I don't want to
forget any of it. Even the rough patches have taught me things I needed to
learn.
If
you could choose just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it
be and why?
Black
Sheep. I feel like it best represents who I really am as a writer, a vocalist,
and a person. It has a feminist edge to it, but mostly it's about just being
yourself and not giving into society's expectations of you.
Where
can we listen to it?
http://soundcloud.com/natalieduke/black-sheep and
you can download it for free!
Where
can we find out more about your music?
Anything
else you’d like to say about your band that I forgot to ask?
Hmmm....well,
we are taking a quick trip down south in August, so look out for show dates in
Missouri, Tennessee, and Ohio. Also, I've got a bunch of new stuff I'm itching
to record, so expect a second release (most likely an EP) hopefully this fall.
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