Monday Moonchild also known as Iona is an indie synth-pop artist from Derby/Nottingham. In 2020 they released their debut single 'In My Eyes' and their lockdown inspired EP 'Quaranqueen', a body of work that was recorded and produced at home. In this conversation, I caught up with Monday Moonchild to discuss their musical journey and the recording process behind their latest EP.
Hi Monday Moonchild (Iona), tell us a bit about yourself!
Hey I'm Monday Moonchild, I'm 21, I'm based in Derby/Nottingham and I'm a synth pop artist!
Where did your passion for music come from?
I've honestly always been obsessed with music I can't pinpoint one particular thing that sparked my passion for it I feel like it's more of a primal instinct that draws me to it. It just makes me feel so joyful inside, I can't have music on and not dance at least a little bit hahaha! But my mum and dad always played me different artists when I was a kid. My mum has always been really into music and I grew up listening to her CDs and we would watch Glastonbury on the TV and go to concerts together so I guess sharing that passion with her really encouraged me to explore my music taste!
Your music consists of dreamy synths and bright melodies, are there any artists who have particularly influenced your sound or direction in music?
I always worry about how I answer this question because I could go on for hours! My biggest influence is Tame Impala! I just remember listening to Innerspeaker for the first time and my whole perspective on music and songwriting changed knowing that these magical psychedelic pieces were all just done by one guy (Kevin Parker - I'm not worthy hahaha). I was like woahhh this is how I want to make people feel, I wanna blow people's minds with synths hahaha. I'm a big fan of The 1975 too, I love how they can write a bangin' pop song or they can write a really layered atmospheric piece. But honestly I take inspiration from anything, I love so many musicians. Lady Gaga, Erykah Badu, Prince, Madonna, Mac Demarco, King Gizzard and The Lizzard Wizard, Queen Latifah, Bob Marley… (the list goes on)
You released your debut single ‘In My Eyes’ last year, what was it like to finally release your music into the world?
Aww it was amazing honestly! I had that song written for about a year before it came out and it just got to a point where I couldn't wait anymore - it was like if I don't do it now I'm scared I'll never do it! And it was the best decision because it's so fulfilling and I've had such a lovely positive response to all my music!
You have recently released your debut EP ‘Quaranqueen’, could you tell us a bit about the recording process behind the EP?
So I pretty much do it all myself I record it in my bedroom on Logic! I had the basics of 'In My Eyes' and 'Stranger' recorded since about mid 2019 and wrote the rest of EP in 2020. A few of my friends composed guitar parts for 'In My Eyes' and 'My Vibe' (thank you Lewis and Charlie!) and I wrote a few bass ideas on the midi keyboard for 'In My Eyes' and 'Stranger' and sent them to my mate Ollie who recorded them on the bass for me. He also composed the bass part for 'My Vibe' and I think it makes the tune, honestly it's amazing - so disco! But other than that everything is just me tootling on my midi keyboard and in 'Stranger' I braved doing the guitar myself too. For a while I didn't even have a proper mic so the vocals for 'In My Eyes' and 'Quaranqueen' are actually recorded on my laptop mic with a lot of reverb to disguise the bad quality sound! I produce it all too, it's very trial and error - all very DIY!
How has lockdown affected your creative process?
If I'm honest, lockdown hasn't affected my creative process too much because I'm kind of a perfectionist (maybe borderline control freak lol) and I prefer to work/write alone. But it has been a lot harder sometimes to find inspiration because nothing was going on and it was hard on my mental health not seeing anyone as I'm sure it was for everyone. That's why I thought I'd call the EP 'Quaranqueen' because lockdown was all anyone was experiencing at the time I wrote it!
In a recent interview on the Music Gals. podcast, you expressed your love for listening to a variety of musical genres, could you recommend some artists to our readers?
Oh my god where do I start? I love everything! Would definitely recommend Lava La Rue, they have been releasing some very vibey music recently. It's not on Spotify but if you can get your hands on it listen to '3 Feet High' and 'Rising' by De La Soul it's such like summery old school hip-hop album it's a favourite of mine. If you like that then the 'I Love My 90s Hip-Hop' playlist on Spotify is sick. Listen to 'Innerspeaker' by Tame Impala if you haven't already too it's a work of art! There's also two great Spotify playlists called Modern Psychedelia which plays stuff like Khruangbin and St Vincent and I've been listening to the Borderless playlist a lot recently which features so many amazing artists of different genres from around the world! I actually make a monthly playlist on Spotify of music I've been vibing to that month so check it out there's such a wide variety on there every month.
Who would you love to collaborate with in the future?
My dream collab would be with Lady Gaga just because she's my queen, she's my icon, I love her! I think we could make a really cool music video together too hahaha.
What advice would you give to someone who is struggling to find their sound/image as an artist?
It sounds so cliche but just be yourself! If you're not being true to yourself it will show and you will hear it in your sound. Just have fun and express who you are into your sound/image - I think people appreciate authenticity.
What would you say is the most challenging aspect of being an independent musician?
Just knowing what to do with the music once it's released haha! And knowing who to trust can be hard, especially as a female musician. But I think you've just got to do your research and trust your instincts with that kind of thing. There seems to be so many accounts like yours though that aim to uplift female musicians and be that safe space for everyone which I'm loving!!
What is the best advice you have received?
You don't have to have everything perfectly in place to release music! If you wanna do it just go for it.
Check out Monday Moonchild's EP 'Quaranqueen' in the links above and hear the EP in full on my Spotify featured artists playlist where you can find links to Monday Moonchild's Spotify page. You can also hear Monday Moonchild on the Music Gals. podcast!
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