British singer-songwriter James Walsh, known for his role as the frontman of the multi-million selling band Starsailor, is set to embark on a UK and Italian tour this October. With an impressive career that spans chart-topping albums, Walsh continues to leave an indelible mark on the music scene with his latest single, "The Ghost In Me", a moving acoustic guitar-driven track. I sat down with James to delve deeper into the evolution of his voyage as he expertly navigates both his solo career and his stewardship of Starsailor, all while he anticipates his upcoming solo tour.
Miriam Boulos: You've been quite busy with your solo career, releasing 7 albums so far, including Coming Good earlier this year. Can you tell us about the inspiration and creative process behind your latest album?
James Walsh: Well, at the beginning of this year, I released an album called Coming Good which was overall about coming out of the lockdown period and the uncertainty of the world and yeah just trying to keep a positive mindset for the future. Then, subsequent to that, I started working on another album which “The Ghost in Me” is going to be on. That song in particular is about trying to comfort someone and support someone who is struggling but nothing seems to work, like nothing seems to get through. Sometimes you just sort of have to sleep it off and brace the new day and what new challenges and inspirations that can bring.
MB: Lullaby marked your debut solo album back in 2012. How has your musical journey evolved since then, and what makes Coming Good different from your previous work?
JW: I’ve become more adept I guess because of the lockdown and having to do so much more on my own without that luxury to collaborate with producers. I kind of had to learn to produce and record on my own. So the last couple of albums have been a bit more homemade, homespun, lo-fi. So I guess that’s how it’s progressed. Both Lullaby and Tiger On The Bridge were made in the studio and sound a bit bigger and more produced. I’m quite enjoying doing everything myself and because the costs are down it puts a bit less pressure on how the album’s performed. When you already spend a lot of money you feel the pressure of fulfilling that potential or kind of paying back the effort and money you put into it. While this way around, I can do it more easily. I can keep going back to the drawing board when I release something as soon as inspiration strikes instead of waiting for the studio and other people’s availability.
MB: Do you think this has also had an impact on your creative process, producing on your own, doing this home-made production...Did it have any impact on your creativity as well?
JW: Yes - I think it’s like having a box of toys. Obviously sometimes it’s nice to have people to bounce off and exchange ideas with but then it’s really fun to do stuff on your own because there’s no one to tell you “you can’t do that” or to restrain you and your creative passion and whatever path you wanna go down. It’s been a lot of fun doing it myself. Just discovering new sounds and new technologies to keep evolving the sound that I’m making.
MB: You have an upcoming UK tour in November 2023, along with three nights at The Nightingale in Strines in December. Really exciting! What can fans expect from these live performances? Any surprises or special moments you have planned?
JW: I’ve got a load of new songs that I want to showcase. I’m really excited to do that. I like to throw in covers to my shows. I wish it was more exciting, but it’s just me and my guitar. I guess what makes that good as well is that sometimes people make requests, so messages with particular songs they want to hear. And when I'm playing with the band, if we've not played that song for a long time, then it’s more difficult to rehearse it and get it up to scratch. Whereas when I play on my own and someone requests a song, it might be like “oh this is my wife’s favorite song and it's her birthday today can you sing it?” and even if I’ve not done it for a long time , I just have to brush up on the chords before the gig and there’s a bit more spontaneity to it. I’ve been lucky to play some beautiful venues over the years, some converted churches and chappels and little village holes. So yes, that’s always a perk of doing solo shows. I’ve not really played in Wales too much over the last few years so im looking forward to going and doing a show in Wales as well
MB: What is the most effective method for people to request songs?
JW: Instagram messages work best. I do check my Instagram inbox.
Facebook is probably the worst way for people to message me because I rarely check my Facebook. In fact, a European promoter sent me a message on there. I checked my Facebook messages on that day and luckily we managed to put together some shows.
It’s amazing the opportunities that do come up through social media. I signed up through Tidal music and started a collaboration thing. Artists on Tidal can collaborate with each other remotely. So, someone in Nashville or someone in France can exchange ideas and get some collaborations together. I haven't messaged anyone yet about doing anything but I'm interested in delving a bit further into that.
MB: With seven upcoming concerts and a UK tour on the horizon, what are you mostly looking forward to on this tour? Are there any particular cities or venues you're excited to perform in?
JW: Yeah, there’s quite a few cities that I haven’t played in before like Milton Keynes, and Saint Albans. The Citadel in Saint Helens is a little bit of a legendary venue because we grew up around Chorlie and Wigan and Saint Helens isn’t too far away, that was a venue we always wanted to play. So yes, really good to be able to play there.
Generally just kinda looking forward to getting back out there and sharing some new songs and hopefully I can rework some of the old Starsailor songs as well to kind of breathe new life into them. I always try to do a good mix because obviously a lot of people know me first and foremost as the singer for Starsailor so the shows are pretty much a 50/50 mix of solo and Starsailor material. People would go home disappointed if I only played Starsailor songs so I try and keep everyone happy.
MB: You've had success both as a solo artist and as the frontman of Starsailor. How do you balance your creative pursuits between your solo work and the band, and what do you find most fulfilling about each?
JW: I think the fun and the freedom of doing the solo stuff is really important and I really enjoy. It's quite a quick process, it's satisfying writing something, recording it and playing it live in a small time frame. Whereas the band stuff, we would record an album and then it would all go to be mastered and then we organize the promotional schedule and we organize the tour so it could be a year from a song coming in, to being played on tour. But then that process can be rewarding as well. The big advantage of playing with the band is that the other three members are good friends from a long time ago. They are excellent musicians who bring their opinions and their talents to the songs so it’s a kind of a different sort of enjoyment to have their sort of magic brought. When I come in with a song they sort of transform it into a Starsailoir song. Whereas what I do on my own is a bit more solitary. I'm working on my own devices and inspirations. I really enjoy both for these reasons. It’s nice as well touring solo. I get more opportunities to see the places I'm visiting and speak to local people and people who come to the gigs. Whereas Starsailor tour are more like: jump off the tour bus , do the gig, back on the tour bus or the hotel. There’s not really much time to see where you are playing.
MB: Finally, for fans who may be discovering your music for the first time, what would you like them to know about James Walsh as an artist and what they can expect from your body of work, both past and present, future?
JW: I guess It’s important to know that I'm quite an emotional artist. I wear my heart on my sleeve, my inspirations are similar artists like Bon Iver. I love classic singer-songwriters like Carole King and Joni Mitchell. So yeah if you're a fan of those artists you might find something to like in my stuff as well.
I guess the solo music is quite introverted and melancholic but a new fan might be surprised by how sort of upbeat, and almost poppy some material is like “Four to the Floor” and “Best of Me” from the last album. Hopefully, I've got a few strings to my bow.
###
