Aylin Eser

“A voice and talent akin to Nina Simone and Joss Stone joins forces with an ARIA Award winner and internationally acclaimed musician and producer Will Larsen, who has worked with Academy Award winning director Adam Elliot” The adage ‘don’t run before you can walk’ does not necessarily apply to singer and songwriter Aylin Eser. According to her mother, she was singing rhymes long before she managed to string a coherent sentence together. “From a very early age music has always been what makes me happy,” she reveals. Of course, becoming a singer, performer or any form of artist is not exactly an easy accomplishment, particularly with the advent of digital music and the ease of tools available on-line. Idol is an option, likewise is good old fashioned hard work, all combined with a bit of luck. “I was led to believe that becoming a singer was just a dream so I studied more ‘realistic’ fields like business and interior design.” Although Eser had a regular income, she was not fulfilled with her employment at an architecture firm. Yet it was at the architecture firm where her vision for building a singing career took off, literally. “I met my producer (Will Larsen) at the firm and he encouraged me to chase my dream of becoming a singer. So I did,” she tells. Her admiration for ARIA award winning Larsen is clear. Larsen, who is an award-winning drummer, percussionist, composer and producer, has previously worked for Academy Award winning director Adam Elliot, World Expo Shanghai and for the New York City Ballet. Will recently won Best Original Score at the 2012 Los Angeles Movie Awards for "Julianna's Story". Although the similarities between Larsen’s work in ballet and Eser’s more pop-focused approach may appear slight, Eser’s quick to set things straight. “Will and I have a spooky understanding of each other. We work well together. Will understands that I sometimes meditate over a track, just to get an understanding and feel for the music,” she tells. Eser’s already gained traction with media bigwigs, with some outlets comparing her vocals and song composition to Nina Simone, Sade and Ella Fitzgerald - singers with a reputation for singing from the heart. “It’s funny how I’ve been compared to those singers as they inspired me to get into music. I also like Joss Stone, Adele and Norah Jones as they are genuine singers who wear their heart on their sleeve,” she says. Eser’s lyrical poetry is as fascinating as it is meaningful. Her lyrics display a sense of warmth, crystallised with an underlying yielding of wisdom and love. “Love’s a common theme throughout my songs,” she reveals. “I enjoy exploring love and what it means in today’s language. It could be the love between two people or the love within humanity. The key theme or emotion that I want people to get from my songs is to feel inspired and happy. Music is such a powerful tool that it can unite or divide very easily,” she explains. Trace music’s genesis to being united or divided. In the swinging ‘60s you were either for The Beatles or for The Stones. In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s you were either a new romantic or punk. Competition, banter and bragging rights have been around since the early days. Not much has changed, or has it? “I want to unite people by focusing on what we have in common and being as raw and truthful about my experience of love as I can,” she tells. Love is a constant theme when Eser engages in dialogue. It’s not that she’s a love prophet or that she attempts to play cupid, it’s more that she views matters of the heart differently. She explains, “I believe that the heart knows and finds what it ultimately seeks. I always follow my heart and make the correct choice. (My heart) leads me from one amazing experience to the next. For that I am forever grateful.” It’s been a busy year for Eser as she continues her musical crusade. “My current goals are simply to sing, sing and sing some more,” she laughs. “I’m having the time of my life at the moment and just want to keep going. Music is such a huge part of my life that I wake up every morning with a purpose that gives me drive and energy. If I can make one person feel better after listening to one of my songs, then that is a great day at the office.” - Stuart Evans INTERVIEW WITH AYLIN ESER: Q-Since you don’t have a bio on here I was wondering if you could fill in some gaps regarding the life events that led you into the music world? At what point did you know that you wanted music to be the focus of both your personal and professional lives? A-I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia. According to my mum I was singing before I was even talking. Music has always been what makes me most happy, however earlier on in my life I was led to believe that becoming a singer was just a pipe dream and that it would never come true. In order to deny my true passion I was always forcing myself to study and work in fields that were more ‘realistic’. I went to university and studied Business and Interior Design. I worked in several jobs, none of which were fulfilling to me. Then I met music producer and musician Will Larsen. He encouraged me to chase my dream. Q-How do you and Will actually write the songs? What is the process? A-Will and I have quite a spooky understanding of one another. We work really well together as a team and always ‘know’ what the other is trying to say or achieve through music. Basically, Will writes the music and sends it to me. Sometimes i make a request to him for a certain style of music. I then listen and meditate upon it. This meditation process varies in length anywhere between a few minutes to a week. Somewhere in this space of time I decide how the music makes me feel and what experience within my life or the life of someone close to me it reminds me of. I then take that experience and write a song about it. The only song that wasn’t written in this way is Gypsy so you could consider it the odd one out. I wrote the lyrics to that first and then gave them to Will to write the music. Q-How did you record the songs? A-Will played and recorded most of the instruments in his home studio. Louise Woodward played violin on some of the tracks and Finbar O'Hanlon played guitars on "Arrows of Desire". My vocal for this demo was recorded in the comfort of my humble living room with a laptop and mic. We recorded 12 songs using this process. I actually live across from a high school and during our recording sessions some of the students were watching me record from their classrooms. It felt nice to have them as an audience. Q-There are always artists that inspire new artists. Which artists have you been influenced by the most in your singing? A-I would probably say that Nina Simone has been the biggest influence in my singing. Along with Nina, I also listen to Eva Cassidy, Sade and Ella Fitzgerald quite frequently. I believe these women are all singers who are genuine and sing directly from the heart. I want to achieve this with my singing also. Q-Which singers do you like at the moment? A-I adore Adele. She’s amazing! Such power she has. I also like Christina Perri, especially her lyrics. They represent a new wave of artists on the music scene who are not so much about image but more about their singing and song writing, which I truly respect. Singers should be admired for their vocal talent above any other attribute and these girls have achieved just that. I really like Joss Stone and Norah Jones too. Q-It appears that each of your lyrics are a pearl of wisdom which you deliver from the heart. What are the main themes in all your songs? A-Thank you. I aim to be as honest as I can in all of my lyrics. The theme in all of my songs is always love. I like to explore the different aspects of love. I'm not just writing about the love between two people, I am also writing about the love within humanity. I want people to feel happy or possibly even inspired when they listen to the words. Music is very powerful in that it can unite or divide people easily. I want to unite people by focusing on what we have in common, and being as raw and truthful about my experience of love as i can. Q-I really like your song Soar. Especially the line where you say "You helped me see through my hearts eye." These words really affected me because they made me realise that we can look at the world in different ways. Some look through logic while others look through the heart. Was it your intention to bring this to light when you wrote the song? A-Yes that was my intention and I’m glad you understood. I believe that the heart simply 'knows' and I find that whenever I follow my heart, I ALWAYS make the correct choice. It always leads me from one amazing experience to the next for which i am forever grateful. Q-As I see you prepare for what i think is going to be an amazing career, I am wondering what your current goals for the future are? A-My current goals are simply to SING, SING and SING! I am having the time of my life at the moment and I just want to keep going with it all. Now that music is such a huge part of my life I feel like I wake up every morning with purpose, which gives me drive and energy throughout my day. If I can make one person feel better after listening to one of my songs, that to me is a great day at the office. Ridiculously catchy, melodic indie pop band, somewhere between Nina Simone and ELO. Only it's neither. Listen here ➔ http://www.aylineser.com