A Grounded Sense of Surrealism: In Conversation With Wyldest

Photo by Tom Gaiger

Wyldest, real name Zoë Mead, has been steadily on the rise since her debut Dream Chaos in 2019. Inspired by Shoegaze, dreamy pop and various film soundtracks, she combines a love of music with immense technical skill to evoke atmospheric, dream-like soundscapes. Not only does she write and record her songs, but she also plays a major role in the accompanying visuals, drawing upon a background in Media Production and videography in her creation of immersive experiences. Now, following the release of her fourth album The Universe Is Loading, Wyldest’s vision is clearer than ever - transforming her self-sufficiency and passion into something wholly transcendental.

Zoë has already brought her hazy, surreal sound to festivals including Latitude, as well as multiple nationwide tours. We caught up with her about her upcoming spring tour across the UK, her writing and recording process, and her unique ability to find inspiration in the mundane.

You’ve been writing songs even before Wyldest formed in 2018. Was making music always what you wanted to do? 

Not really, actually. I grew up in the West Country, where there’s a lot of music and friendly communities. My first impression of the scene, growing up and going to gigs, was simply how lovely it was. My brother used to play in a band in school, and when he went travelling he left his guitar and I started playing it. I caught the bug of writing my own songs. Ever since then, it's been a big part of my life. I studied media at university, so I wanted to make film-related things – whenever I’m not making music, I pick up work including editing and videography. Music has never been all-or-nothing for me, but it’s definitely always been the dream. In recent years, it's grown, but things have also become more financially realistic. Like a lot of my pals who make music, I find other ways to make money to keep on top of things and not let myself burn out. That's very important at the minute. 

You began as a trio, but Wyldest had ultimately always been a solo project. What gave you the confidence to embrace this?

Honestly, the ‘pretend’ band was due to my low self- esteem — I always wanted to be a solo act. 
Kevin Parker put this into words for me, as he didn't want to be the face of Tame Impala because he didn't feel confident enough. That’s exactly what I was doing back then. I couldn't quite figure out where I was. I could really relate to his discussion on imposter syndrome, low self-esteem and not feeling ‘cool’ enough to be part of a project. When I started, I was writing the songs, bringing them to practice and showing everyone exactly how I wanted them to be played, but ultimately still pretending that it was a band. Then, during the pandemic it was very hard to meet up with anyone. I was leaning much more into the production side of things because we didn’t know what was going to happen in the world. I just thought: “Okay, this is the new normal - I’m in my room, getting everything down and doing it all myself”. I had a basement studio at the time, so I'd go there and record and force myself to play the drum parts, which my bandmate Jack would’ve otherwise played. It was essentially a time of transitioning between my ‘pretend’ band to being a soloist, before eventually owning the project. My confidence grew with age and having so much control. It was either that or the project had to end.

Photo by Tom Gaiger

Your tracks often blend dreamy vocals with mesmerising instrumentals and create a very immersive experience. How would you describe the way in which your sound has changed over the years?

My vocals have become a lot drier. I used to lean a lot more into Dream Pop and Shoegaze, referencing artists such as Cocteau Twins and Beach House, and drenching the vocals with reverb. Obviously, the more you take the reverb off, the more exposed the vocals are. It depends what you get from music, but when I listen to music and I hear dry vocals, I find it much more intimate. It's not necessarily better, but very different.
I've become more focussed on being a singer-songwriter and composer, referencing soundtrack music, including Twin Peaks. Dreamy soundtracks can expose your voice a little more, so I’ve started to think a lot more about lyrics. In the early days, it was more happy-go-lucky, writing demos quickly -  it was a very free time. 
It was an egoless time of unassuming, I just wrote lovely lyrics about the hazy sun and didn’t think too much about it. Now, the number one thing is exposing the vocals, then building a composition around it. 

Something that’s very unique about you is your self-sufficiency - from the production aspect to artwork and videos. What influence do you think this control has on your sound?

Particularly with the new album, it's been a big deal because it was forced upon me due to factors such as budget. It costs a lot of money for a decent music video, unless you're getting mate’s rates. Also,
the way to promote your music has really changed in the last few years, and I really don't think anyone gives a fuck about highbrow music videos anymore. In fact, I think it can deter listeners. Sometimes I find myself a little bit put off by artists: I love a song, but when I find them they’re very polished and perfect, and it doesn't quite feel real. On the flip side, when I see an artist and something that they may have shot themselves, I really appreciate it. I do all my own visuals and learnt many years ago how to use a camera decently. I realised that instead of paying somebody else, I could just do it myself, and even help other people. Sometimes friends help out and hold the camera when I need to be in front of it, but a lot of the time I just use a static tripod running around. That allows me to control the story both visually and musically. I really appreciate how film scores can compliment the visual aspects, and I’m intrigued about doing this myself and creating a visual-audio experience. I actually write music for film, on the side. I think it marries up well, and has the potential to be much more interesting than just being an artist with music videos. 

Your fourth and newest album The Universe is Loading is described as your most revealing and authentic yet, whilst also being inspired by genres such as sci-fi and Gothic horror. Did the process of writing and recording it differ from previous albums, and how did this impact you? 

I made my last album Feed The Flowers  in a very similar way. Before that, it was quite different - the band would go to the studio and play their parts which had already been demoed. However, I wrote everything for the last two albums, and I collaborated with my friend Luciano Rossi. He makes incredible soundtracks and helped me with the production side of songwriting, then we'd work together on scoring. The albums sit in more of a soundtrack world, which is what I'm aiming for my music to do. I draw inspiration from Julee Cruz and Lynchian soundtrack pieces. Luciano brought that. I've learned so much from him; we’ve worked together on a few gaming soundtracks, and I felt really inspired to go forth and do things a little bit more autonomously again. The album was me writing the flesh and bones of the songs, and then Luciano helping with the soundtrack – making it feel like a cinematic journey.

Photo by Tom Gaiger

Starting next February, you're embarking on a six week tour across the UK. Is there anything particular that you want people to take away from that tour? 

I really want to connect with people. With Wyldest, I don't want there to be stereotypical ‘fans’ — I want to create a community and talk to people. It depends on what level of artist you are, but at this stage, I can embrace being at the merch table, and talking to people directly, having them know me as a human being. I've definitely approached music in the past as a performer, with a ‘performance face’, going on stage and taking myself really seriously. I’d think about what I wanted to say between songs, or not speak because I wanted to be mysterious. I'm really done with that now. I want to chat shit. I want to be real. I want to say whatever comes to my head between songs and I want people to feel the reality behind the project. I think there's a toxicity within the music industry stemming from this pretence, and I think we should just be a bit more honest about what's going on. We all have jobs on the side, and we should be honest about this so that no one beats themselves up and thinks that they’re not doing enough.
Doing music is a privilege. We should be honest and frank about this and support each other. That's ultimately what I'd love for people to get from my shows. 

Following the release of this album and then the subsequent tour, what's next for you? 

Whenever I embark on a new project, I enter what I call the ‘collection phase’ — it’s thinking about the journey that I want the album to be. I don't like to just write, instead it should feel like a coherent piece. I try to lean into it and really immerse myself in a world. I’m in that stage now where I'm gathering ideas and seeing what inspires me. It’s not a conscious process. It manifests as being open to good exhibitions and going to other gigs, as well as simply being present and meeting up with friends, and having deep conversations. Essentially, I’m really trying to feel things. My last album actually ended up being very influenced by a health scare that I had, during a period in which I was in and out of hospital a lot. That marked the middle of the album, and it played a role in moulding it as a whole. What happens in life really guides my work. Even just going out and overhearing a conversation, you never know what that might trigger. It’s really important to be out and present in the world, and that’s the phase which I’m in at the moment. 

You can listen to Wyldest on Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud and keep up to date with her on Instagram.