Interview: Sam Fischer stitches jazz, soul & EDM into an addictive tapestry

We’re born. We live. With any luck, we have friends who love us, and dreams that satisfy a sense of purpose. Then, we die. It’s a stunningly uncomplicated, poetic and tragic existence. And it’s also a rather frightening one. Pop craftsman Sam Fischer, who released his debut EP, titled Not a Hobby, last month, is standing at a crossroads, his feathered hair rustling gently in the breeze and his music the only roadmap. “Saw a bird in the parking lot / Sittin’ there chillin’ cause he couldn’t fly / And the lady wanna drive by / But I’m just tryna save a life,” he journals on the discerning piano-jam “Getting Older,” which paints the world as a plodding sojourn from baby-faced youth to bright-eyed adulthood to rugged old age. Brazenly inhabiting a towering fear of aging ⎯⎯ and dying, too, an even more grisly display of his unshakeable humanity ⎯⎯ Fischer’s voice hangs thick with trembling apprehension.

He later colors, with an even grimmer brush and in broader strokes, “I reached down but he hopped away / Further and further he went into harms way / And now I’m starting to relate to / Just what the fuck he’s going through.”

His unease is evident in the way he speaks, too. “There’s a lot I want to accomplish in this life of mine. We only get one so when I go out I don’t want to have a list of regrets,” he dares, an unwitting challenge and vow to himself, over a recent email to B-Sides & Badlands. “I want to do all I can to lead a rad as fuck life. I want to leave a mark. Hopefully, I can do that with my music and just being the best I can be.”

The key lyric to “Getting Older” reads: “I can’t imagine getting older.” As much as he would love to take credit for the hook, that honor goes to co-writer Asia Whiteacre (Haile Steinfeld, Mystery Skulls), who entered the writing session a bit pensive, “a magical kween and a genius,” he stresses. Alongside the song’s other band of writers, Morgan Taylor Reid and Johan Fransson, Fischer began unpacking his troubles onto paper. “I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about getting older, mostly because I just straight up can’t imagine it,” he says.

“I’m terrified of death, though I know I shouldn’t be. There’s something about the unknown that is both comforting and scary as fuck,” he adds, daydreaming of what his future could be. It’s a bright one, for the record, as evidenced with Not a Hobby, a jaunty, crisp and jazz-infused markup of EDM-lite and Ed Sheeran-soaked sensuality. He quips with glowing optimism, “For now, I’m flying by the seat of my pants and holding on for dear life.”

Below, Fischer digs more into Sheeran comparisons, mixing organic instrumentation with the synthetic and lessons he’s learned so far.

“Getting Older” could have been an Ed Sheeran b-side. Did that ever cross your mind?

Well shit, I would hope it would make the A-side, but I’ll take “an Ed Sheeran b-side” any day. I think he’s a genius. He’s one of the best writers in the game and has such an amazing ability to take the simplest concept and say it in a way that no one else has said before, which is really the aim of the game. I’ve been listening to Ed since 2009, and he’s definitely one of my biggest influences. From his lyrical game to his phrasing, I think he’s a master of the craft. So, although I’ve never really thought of “Getting Older” for anyone else, to even make that comparison is a huge compliment. If Ed wants to jump on for a remix/re-release, I’m down.

There is an old adage that goes “you have your entire life to make your first record.” Do you feel this Not a Hobby EP aptly sums up your life?

You know, before I decided to release ‘Not A Hobby,’ that saying made me nervous, because it was an expectation before anyone had heard anything, and to be honest, it’s bloody hard to put 26 years into four songs. So, really, this EP is a collection of my truly human experience and some personal stories which sum up maybe the last two years of my life. When I release my first full length record, I hope to have found a way to cohesively display my entire life thus far. Until then, I get to release my favorite chapters, bit by bit.

The music is obviously very R&B, but there are undercurrents of classical structures, from strings to piano (as evidenced on “Getting Older,” for example). Was that kind of musical hybrid always how you envisioned your work? And was that something that took time to develop?

The fusion of a somewhat singer-songwriter topline over a more left-leaning chord structure and production with organic instrumentation is a combination of my classical musical training growing up, my influences from Michael Jackson, Brian McKnight and Boyz II Men to Ed Sheeran, John Mayer and Emily King, and also just how my sound has naturally developed over the past few years. I definitely didn’t originally set out to create exactly this sound, but it’s where I’ve ended up, and I absolutely love it. It’s become my identity, and I couldn’t be more proud of it. I wish there was more method to my madness, but really it’s just madness in a few very special moments. Sometimes, it hits, and sometimes, it misses, but the process is always amazing.

How do organic instruments and synthetic ones bounce off each other?

It’s a beautiful marriage of classic and timeless instrumentation with present and future-classic sounds. I can’t really explain it other than to say chord structures haven’t changed really ever. They are still the foundation of all songs over all genres, but now, we just have a few more bells, whistles and tricks up our sleeves to keep our ever-shortening attention spans awake.

What have been the most important lessons you’ve ever learned in your 26 years of living?

This is a great question. There are a few though:

• How to hold a knife and fork properly
• To always say please and thank you
• Not to compare myself to others (I’m trash at this one)
• Mum is always right
• Women are magical, incredible, mind-blowingly beings that I am in awe of
• Money isn’t everything
• Love is fucking great

Jumping off that, do you think societal expectations and trends have radically shifted in the millennial generation (such as waiting to get married and have kids)?

I mean societal expectations and trends are always shifting. It just so happens that we are living in a time where we are all more connected than ever before. The “millennial generation” have become the mouthpiece of the movement and really the pioneers of the social media uprise, so we are acutely aware of the power of it all and our ability to be heard, but also the dangers of it because we were around before it’s ascent to world domination. I think that we are an exceptionally creative and confident generation. We aren’t afraid to challenge “social norms,” and we aren’t afraid to scream that challenge in everyone’s face. We’re leaders, and we are unafraid.

How will the next EP build off this one?

The next EP is already taking shape, and all I’ll say is that it’s just another chapter of my life. A darker, more intense and introspective one. It’s still brutally honest and maybe a little angry at times, but there are still a bop or two on it for good measure.

Musically, where do you want to go?

Honestly, I’ve only just arrived here, so I’m going to stick around for a while here. Who knows where I’ll head next. My writing is constantly developing, and I’m always inspired by those around me who I get to work, laugh, drink, smoke, love and get angry with.

What songwriting or recording sessions have been most transformative at this point in your life and career?

The “Getting Older” session with Asia, Morgan and Johan was an incredible turning point for me. I found my sound there, I think. Other than that, I have been so incredibly lucky to have worked with some geniuses in my life. To name a few: Jamie Hartman, RuthAnne Cunningham, Lindy Robbins, OAK, Jimmy Robbins, Trey Campbell, Mike Sabath and my boys Alex Tirheimer and Alex Evert. I’m forgetting a few but I’ve been having an amazing time.

Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez

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