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This is a WXAV 773 Sounds podcast, introducing you to the best local bands in the Chicagoland area. Hey, this is Peter Creighton from 773 Sounds here on the XAV 88.3 FM, Chicago, your escape from ordinary radio. And I am so excited for this week's Featured Artist of the Week for a number of reasons. One, we haven't had a Featured Artist of the Week in a couple of weeks, so getting back into the swing of things has been really fantastic.
But I was recommended this artist by Jack Reedy, and as soon as I saw her band camp, I got so excited because her latest album, Dead by Dawn, is described as a gothic country album inspired by horror films and grunge music straight from the pits of hell. I have with us Iris Marlowe. Iris, how are you today? Thank you for having me.
This is awesome. I love your reading of the description. You make it sound so much better than when I typed it out. I mean, I don't know about that because I've listened to this album, and it is a phenomenal record.
And I can't wait to get to talk about that album right now. I was kind of going back to the beginning and really start at the beginning of your journey. When did you first discover music, and then when did you kind of decide, yeah, I definitely want to become a musician? Well, I think I was around three or four when my mom made me take piano lessons.
And my mom's side of the family is very musical, so I was always sort of guided towards some form of music in my life. But it wasn't until I was maybe about 12 when I was like, please, for the love of God, I hate piano. Don't make me play this instrument anymore. I want to be a rock and roll girl, play guitar, like Joseph and the Pussycats coded.
I was very drawn towards kind of rock music and went in front of bands like Hole, and I loved No Doubt when I was younger. So I always kind of gravitated towards, you know, went in front of bands. And it wasn't until I was 16 that my parents finally listened to my begs. Like, they were like, okay, she's not giving up on this guitar thing.
We're going to just let her play guitar. And ever since then, I've been in some form writing music or at least writing my own songs. I took a little break in my 20s, and it wasn't until about 24 that I really seriously wanted to start making my own music and putting it out there. And I took a chance, and I am so fortunate to have met the wonderful bandmates I have and we get to play the weirdest country music you'll ever hear.
Oh, and it's fabulous country music. And I'm kind of curious because you mentioned some of the great 90s alternative, you know, bands with Hole and No Doubt. I'm guessing Garbage is in there. I love Garbage.
I love Garbage. I love Cranberries, yes. Oh, my God, yes. But then you made a detour and you discovered country and Western music.
How did that journey happen? So I grew up on a farm, which shocks a lot of people. I grew up in a town of a little over 1,000 people. So country music has just been part of my entire upbringing, and my grandpa actually listened to a lot of the old outlaw country music, so like Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, like LaGuardia Wynn, and I loved that style of country music, and I really didn't like the 2000s country music, so I couldn't understand as a child that I could make music that was like outlaw country.
So it took me a long time to sort of come to a realization that country is in my blood and I can make it my own form of country that's for people who don't really feel seen in that genre as much. That's wonderful, and that's one of the things I so appreciate about your latest record, Dead by Dawn. It feels like Dolly Parton is in a horror movie, and she's fighting back against Leatherface. I mean, it's really phenomenal.
I mean, the title track, which we've been spinning a lot on 773 songs, but then you have songs like Crooked Crow, you have Death Valley Dust, Six Cold Feet Underground. I mean, these are really outlaw-based country and western songs, but it's almost like you said, you know what, I also love Spengooly, so I'm going to throw Spengooly in here too. Oh my god, I'm not even lying. When the record came out, I emailed Spengooly's team.
I want to say it like 10 times. I was like, please, like, you'll love my record. I'm obsessed with Elvira and Spengooly, so it's, that's such a dream come true to have that sort of view description. But it's really a, I just, I'm not saying that gothic country music isn't around, it's just a little bit rare, and it tends to be sometimes extremely dark, so I wanted to bring a little bit of camp with my music a little bit, and this whole record was inspired by the Evil Dead movies, so I wanted some camp in there, and, you know, like Two Step Into Hell is a very campy western two-step inspired song, so I wanted it to be dark, creepy, but also still considered country, which is hard to do sometimes with lyrics about maggots eating your skin.
Now, when you were writing this album, did you find it challenging kind of balancing the lyrical content with, like, the tongue-in-cheek horror, but then also trying to do, like, because you do have some very serious songs on the record that are tackling some serious topics and that. Like, how did you find that balance? I think, well, I always write the lyrics first, and so sometimes I'll bring my lyrics and my fanmates will be reading them, and they're like, oh, this is really either sad or scary or just, like, bizarre, but I think the musical aspect really ties everything together, so if I have something that's, like, I would say the lyrics to Dead by Dawn are pretty graphic, some of them, and when I bring it to the studio, I was like, oh, we should have that be a spaghetti western song, so it kind of, you know, people can just get lost in it without realizing that the song is literally about being eaten by the Dead Eye, you know, so it's, I think it all just comes down to the musical component can really elevate a song in any direction, so it's kind of, it's kind of up to where, honestly, fate takes it, and sometimes even some of the darker, we're working on a song called I Can't Pay My Bills Without Crying, which is going to be a little bit more of a campy, like, dancing fun song, but the lyrics, if you read them, they're kind of sad, it's about not being able to afford basic living conditions, you know, but it's set to this fun, twangy sound, so I feel like the music can be a good distraction for that. And I really find that so fascinating, because, I mean, what you're talking about here is something that so many people are sadly experiencing right now in the world today.
You're approaching the music where it's like, I'm going to get them with this message, but I'm not going to be hitting them over the head with it, it's going to be maybe a little subtle, where I'll get them with the melody and the lyrics, and all of a sudden they hear, and they're like, oh, I can really relate to what's going on here. Yeah, we have a couple of songs like that, and we have this, for example, The Man, which is another kind of song that, if you're listening, you actually hear kind of sadder context, you're kind of at the state of the world, and I think it's really important to me, at least, to acknowledge things that are happening in the world, and as a country singer, sometimes the genre can tend to either really be political and upfront with what's going on, or a completely shy way, and I didn't want to make music to shy away, so sometimes I really sneak in things into my songs that hopefully people resonate with once they listen, and that's important to me, to not just make music about substance sometimes. Yeah, no, that makes sense, and that's the thing that I love so much about your music, is there is so much substance with it, and it's so relatable, but yet it kind of like, you can feel the wink-wink coming at you, too, where we're kind of brought in with you into this, I don't want to say, like, B-movie world, but a B-movie world. Yeah, a B-movie world is exactly the vibe, and like, I think with some of my earlier records, I was extremely upfront and personal about things that were going on in my life, and I felt like, I kind of basically put myself in my own little box, where if something is so relatable only to me, that it doesn't really make people want to engage, or listen, or be involved in what you're doing, whereas if I slip in these sort of themes, or messages that reach a broader audience, I think that makes people feel included, while also giving people a message, giving people hope, giving people something to think about, while also having fun with the campiness of what our country can be, it's just, I have so much fun, honestly, like, I do.
It's wonderful. That's great, and I find that so fascinating, too, that, you know, because songwriting is such a personal experience, like, it's, a lot of times you're bearing your soul to the audience and everything. Do you always think that you were, I don't want to say exposing too much of yourself, but was it just too, like, hyper-personal, and you had to kind of go a little bit more broad? Yeah, I think, um, I really, with the last album that we did, Dead by Dawn, in the predecessor, which was Where the Devil Did The Owl Goodbye, that record, I featured more songs that were about, kind of, almost mystical Western elements, but then also really grounded human emotion, and I, I think that's something I carry on with my current music, but now it's a little bit more gory and extreme, but there are songs that are extremely personal.
I try to feature at least one really personal song that's just up front on every single record, and I still did it on Dead by Dawn, and I think that sometimes, it's interesting that that song will be the one that people bring up to me as it hitting home to them, even though it's specifically, like, I list things in my family, like, sort of in my lineage and, you know, cutting ties with people, but that still is somehow resonating with folks that listen to it. Yeah. I just, I think it's, I like baring my soul, and throughout Dead by Dawn, there are little pieces of me that are inserted into these songs that are not as up front as some of my previous works. I'm here with Iris Marlowe here on 773Sounds.
Now, Iris, if people want to find you on the internet, social media, where can they go? Where can they find you? Okay, so you can find me on my Instagram, which is at Iris.Marlowe. Someone has my name without periods, so don't follow them.
They're some random, normal person. It's Iris.Marlowe. I'm on Bandcamp as well, YouTube, Apple Music, Facebook, all under just that name. And I definitely recommend go check Dead by Dawn out on Bandcamp.
It's irismarlow.bandcamp.com. Now, if people are really digging your music and everything, you've got some shows coming up where they can go and see you. When can they come and see you perform next? We are going to be performing at May Day at Cobra Lounge, so May 1st, and all the proceeds of, well, actually, I think most proceeds, donations for sure, will be for anti-ice organizations in the city, so that's a really important show for us.
That'll be May 1st at Cobra Lounge, and then June 20th, we will be playing at Motoblot again, so we're very excited about that, and we're going to be debuting two new songs. Oh, very exciting. That's awesome, so definitely go to both shows, because May 1st is a great cause, and then June 20th, and you can go to irismarlow.com and check out all the tour information that's listed there. Now, I'm really curious, because you've been on the local scene for a number of years and everything.
How would you rate the Chicago local music scene right now? Oh, you know, I absolutely love this music scene. Everywhere I go outside of Chicago, I hear conversations about the scenes being very, you know, exclusive or just hard to get into, and Chicago can be like that at times, but I don't know if it's because of our genre. I feel like we get accepted into a lot of different venues you wouldn't hear country music in, and a lot of the bands we usually play with aren't even country bands, so I feel like it's a very diverse city.
The venues are all amazing, and there is unbelievable levels of talent in every single genre, and honestly, you can go see bands like Beverage and The Drinks, and the drag queen part of punk band. Like, you can go to Lyra's Club and see shows where we're on bills with folks like them. It's just, it's so unique and special, and I feel like it's a great place for people to get their footing if they want to be in the music scene. I completely agree with you on that.
I've always told my students, and even when I've gone on air, that there's a show for everyone, every night in Chicago. You just have to find it, and man, you will be blown away. And everyone is pretty supportive of one another, which is really nice. Like, they're all the country bands that we interact with.
You would think there'd be some, like, competitive vibes, but it's not really like that at all, at least from our experience. Like, we just, I feel extremely grateful to be in this city in this timeline and being able to do what I do, because, you know, if you told me six or seven years ago I'd be playing festivals, and people would be interviewing me about my music, I would not have believed you. But here you are, and what a testament to you and the talent that you are, that you've created this genre here in Chicago, and it's resonating with people. That means the world to me, because I know on paper, it sounds like a lot, you know, gothic country, bizarre, but everyone that comes to our shows, we make sure you have a good time.
You know, I never, if it's your first show coming, we want you to feel part of the club, part of the band. Like, that's, I always want people to feel welcome, because country music can be a little intimidating and not always open-minded in some capacity, and I want to be the opposite for people. I want people to feel welcomed with open arms. Oh, you're definitely succeeding.
Final question I have for you. As I've mentioned a couple times, you know, WXAV is a college radio station, and I work with students on a regular basis, and there's one common thing I hear from students on a regular basis, and that is that they really want to get into local music, but there's a little bit of trepidation, there's a little bit of anxiety, because they don't really know where to start, or there's the fear of, well, I'm going to see a band, I may not necessarily like them, I don't know what to do, I don't know how to interact, you know, things like that. What advice would you give to that person that they want to get into the Chicago local music scene, but they don't know where to start? That's a good question.
So I think it would help to narrow down what type of genre they're specifically looking for, and then, honestly, I always tell people just go to Liars Club. Any day of the week, Liars Club is doing something fun, eccentric, unique, it's a very welcoming place, but if you're a little intimidated by Liars Club, you can go to local open mics, there's a queer-based open mic at Jarvis Square, I believe, and there's some all around the whole city. So open mics are a great place to start if you want to get more one-on-one time with local artists, but if you go to shows, I'm telling you, most of how those bands are not going to be dismissive if you come up and say you like their music. And if they do, don't spend your money on them ever again.
Yeah, pretty much. I cannot express how cool it is when people are kind and give their music a chance. I think any student of yours that, and honestly, even researching local bands and seeing what bills they play on, like if you like Iris Barlow and you check our shows and you see repeat bills that were on with certain artists, that usually means that there's some connection there. You can find local artists who are just kind of being an Instagram creep and seeing who people play with or who they follow.
even like local festivals like motorblatt you can just pull up their their roster and just listen to a couple of bands and check them out it's it seems like intimidating and i used to be but just going in and just being yourself people are gonna accept you you'll find your corner of the music universe it's out there it is it is you just you gotta take that first step and once you take that first step you're gonna be you're gonna be okay oh yeah most local artists are super kind and even like even though we kind of have like a creepy presence and we're on stage off stage it's not like that at all like i'm probably the least intimidating person on the stage it's definitely a stage persona for sure that's fabulous iris marlo thank you so much again if people want to give you a follow on instagram or find your website or band cam where can they go to find you can go to at iris period marlo and come on the town with us we'll have a good time iris thank you so much thank you thank you for listening to this wxav 773 sounds podcast for more information on 773 sounds please visit our website wxav.com