INTERVIEW: The Morelings.

Photo by Bob Sweeney

The Morelings are the Philadelphia-based dream pop duo of Kedra Caroline and Matthew William. The pair just released their absolutely gorgeous debut LP, Same Century, on September 26 and frankly, we’re obsessed. We already knew and loved their No Sign EP, released in 2015, so we fully expected Same Century to be likewise excellent.

“Excellent”, however, is an understatement. The record is a perfectly crafted slice of bliss pop heaven. Many stylistic influences can be heard in their dynamic sound – 60s girl groups, early psychedelia, 80s and 90s dream pop, the softer side of synth pop, Disintegration-era production – but they never sound imitative or unoriginal. In fact, their unique blend of styles sounds nothing if not modern. 

One of our best reviewers, Elizabeth Klisiewicz, recently reviewed Same Century for our friends over at The Big Takeover, and she perfectly states our feelings with her typical aplomb and flair for finding just the right phrase. Head over there and read it!

We are very happy to share the following interview with you. Do check out Same Century – it will no doubt be one of the crowning jewels in our Best of 2017 list.

How and when was the band formed?

The band formed when Kedra and I began writing songs together, which was approximately 4 years ago.

Can you tell us what the band has been working on and what you've got forthcoming in the near future (any new releases, tour, etc.)?

We’re currently writing songs for a new album, which we’ll begin recording soon. We’re super excited. Our sound has evolved a lot with the current configuration of our band. We’ve also been playing shows to support the release of our debut LP Same Century, which came out at the end of September. Our next show is in Philly in early December. We’ll also be releasing another video from the album soon.

Do you consider your music to be part of the current shoegaze/dream pop scene, or any scene? Defining one's sound by genre can be tiresome, but do you feel that the band identifies closely with any genre? How do you feel about genres in music, in a general sense?

Though we have a great respect for many bands that have come before us, our goal is to be relevant now. We have had a lot of support from bands, fans, and writers that closely identify with those genres, shoegaze and dreampop, and so we are thankful for all of that support. Though, I think it’s good to have an audience in mind, we always hope that we are mixing things up enough to not get pigeonholed, which is actually tough these days, as most platforms for sharing music unfortunately require bands to define themselves according to a genre.

What do you think of modern shoegaze/dream pop/psychedelia artists, any favorites?

We like hearing new music on the East Coast scene at shows we play and through playlists we are part of. There's a lot of new talent worth hearing.

What is the most important piece of gear for your sound? Any particular guitars/pedals/amps that you prefer?

Always tend to come back to the Vox AC30 for shows and recording. Easy to get a good volume for both.  It’s versatile that way.

What is your process for recording your music? What gear and/or software do you use? What would you recommend for others?

We record demos and play them live, and then those that we seem to come back to the most and seem the strongest get recorded.  We like to stay open to inspiration in the studio, however, as often times new parts will come to us while in the process.

When it comes to label releases versus DIY/bandcamp and the like, what is your stance, if any?

We released the album digitally on Mostly Venus Records, and we are partnering with Custom Made Music, a Virginia based label, for cassette tapes and vinyl for Same Century.

Do you prefer vinyl, CD, cassette tape or mp3 format when listening to music? Do you have any strong feelings toward any of them?

We love vinyl, especially older recordings that have not been converted from digital. I think the convenience that has come with digital recording processes is wonderful and has opened up a lot of opportunity for recording in general and for DIY culture, not to mention making music more available to listeners. However, when it comes to sound, there’s no comparison with analog vs digital. I’m not a purist by any means, but analog recordings always, to my ears, sound warmer and more natural. I think digital technology could still continue to evolve and perhaps rival analog technology at some point, but it’s not close yet.

What artists (musicians or otherwise) have most influenced your work?

It's hard to pinpoint what artists have influenced us and, even though we've answered this question many times before, the answer keeps changing. Kedra has her vocal influences, and I have mine for guitar, overall production, etc., but our aim in the end is to sound like ourselves and to keep evolving that sound.