Forgotten Garden
Forgotten Garden are an Indie Rock band (duo+guests) with dark/gothic post-punk tendencies. Occasionally they also wander from the path of post-punk righteousness into more acoustic territory. The haunting vocals are provided by Inês whilst Danny plays most of the instruments. Both live in the north of Scotland although Inês originally comes from Portugal. They started working together in 2019.
The Broken Pieces EP that dropped in September 2020 was Forgotten Garden's first release. It contains four tracks based around the theme of a relationship breakdown. On July 23rd 2021 Screamlite Records releasind a new single by Forgotten Garden entitled “Jessica”. This is a new song about the consequences of domestic trauma. It will be paired with “Broken Pieces” (Natural Mix) - a re-mix that previously only had very limited availability. (-Forgotten Garden-)
Jessica
Jessica is a sad, haunting song in typical Forgotten Garden style. It is a meditation on one woman's search for inner peace after suffering domestic trauma, sagen sie selbst darüber. Sie selbst, das sind Forgotten Garden aus Schottland. Der Song besticht durch Ines Vocals und natürlich durch das Songwriting selbst. Es ist eine Meditation über die Suche einer Frau nach innerem Frieden, nachdem sie ein häusliches Trauma erlitten hat. Es soll die Tatsache hervorheben, dass Traumata dieser Art den psychischen Zustand der Opfer oft lebenslang in irgendeiner Form beeinflussen. “Now she's always drifting away, blown by the winds of yesterday.” Umgesetzt durch den Einsatz von "Forgotten Garden typischen" musikalischen Elementen, wie wehmütige Gitarrenklänge, in Tränen getränkte Synth-Lines und ein Rhythmus der wie das Leben selbst pulsiert, sprich voranschreitet und Ines in ihrer "Lana del Rey-esquen" Art zu singen perfekt ergänzt. So we have to say Achtung: Where the Cure meets Lana del Rey or Forgotten Garden and another great release by the scottish band.
The Interview
Forgotten Garden is...?
Forgotten Garden is a duo based in the north of Scotland. Inês, who is originally from Portugal, provides the vocals whilst Danny plays most of the instruments. Some instruments, particularly the drums, are provided by guests. Our music is generally quite dark, sad and haunting and is often compared to The Cure although Forgotten Garden's female vocals are one big difference! Also we tend to stray into acoustic territory quite a bit.
The name Forgotten Garden is inspired by gardens such as the lost gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, UK that had been left undisturbed since 1914 and basically had become a jungle until re-discovered and restored some 80 years later, quote “ It was only the chance discovery of a door in the ruins that led to the restoration of this once great estate” That vision of something that is forgotten seems to fit the melancholy nature of our music and probably also the hope that people will discover us too!
Who inspired you to make music in general, and especially to the song "Jessica"?
Really it started with my Grandfather and his piano which I used to play as a child. He had a number of songbooks that I used to use and I also started making up little tunes of my own.
“Jessica” was inspired by seeing a TV news report of how Covid lockdowns have caused an increase in domestic abuse. That idea was then combined with a chorus that I already had about somebody searching in vain for something to create the song.
The used sounds in "Jessica" are great, how long did it take to find the right selection?
The guitar sound is generally the one I normally use so it was set up already and just needed a bit of tweaking although I did use a semi-acoustic guitar to get a softer tone. The bass was the same although I think I softened that a bit as well. Synths sounds take the longest to find as I tend to go through hundreds of pre-sets to find the ones that I think will fit the song best! I then tweak the pre-set until it sounds exactly how I want.
When do you decide that a song is ready for a release?
Well with “Jessica” it was kind of a stand alone song and so since we were looking for something to put out as a single it seemed an obvious choice. Once the song has been chosen it's then a question of working it up until you feel it's finished (i.e. no more instruments or vocals need adding). Of course after that it needs to be mixed and mastered which can take a while as well.
If a song connects with another, as in our EP Broken Pieces where the four songs all connect into a story, then it's a question of doing all the songs in the manner described above before they can be released.
What is your creative process like?
Often a lyrical phrase with a melody will come into my head – mostly a bit of chorus. I'll then develop that on either the piano and/or guitar into a full song. Sometimes the song will “appear” (from who knows where!) in a much more finished state. The song Broken Pieces, for instance, was completed very quickly. I more or less played the music in the body of the song straight out on guitar just as you hear it in the recording and then very quickly came up with the melody and first lyrics. It must have taken about 15 mins. The bridge came later but was also completed quite quickly.
What is the most useful talent you have?
Songwriting. Really unless the songs have something to them then the instrumentation, vocals and production aren't going to build that into something good! Silk purse, Sow's ear and all that :)
How do you feel the Internet (especially Social Media platforms) has impacted the music business?
I think it's generally a positive impact. It has allowed Indie artists like us to reach out to an audience in a way that was not possible before. Before you would have had to have made that connection through an intermediary like TV, a live gig or the radio. Now you can connect directly with your fans and use social media to encourage new fans. Of course there are problems, such as Facebook only sending posts to a fraction of your followers unless you want to pay to “boost” your post!
What’s next for you?
We are mixing a full acoustic version of “Jessica” at the moment. I find it stunningly beautiful (but then I'm super biased!). To go with that we are developing a new song about a guy who “feeds” in a kind of vampirism way on people's affection. The two songs will be released as a single .
