Married Americana duo ELDR (Jameson Elder and Hanna Rae) sat down with @skopemag to talk about their music around the release of their EP, “Nowhere Else to Go” (out now).
@skopemag: Hi, Jameson and Hanna! Tell us about your new EP, “Nowhere Else to Go.”
Jameson: It’s been a long time in the making! We’ve talked about making music together for years, and we finally had the opportunity to do so. Stylistically, it’s a nice blend of both of our sounds. A lot of the songs are us working through the struggles of the pandemic through song, so you’ll hear a bit of that throughout the EP.
@skopemag: Your single, “Safe With You,” is amazing – great sound and fantastic vibe. What inspired it?
Hanna: Funny story… I woke up in the middle of the night to screaming outside our bedroom window. Jameson went to go check on it. It was a catfight… it inspired the first few lines of “Safe With You.” The rest came from real world experiences, with just the turbulence that has been going on.
@skopemag: Did the song come easily?
Jameson: Hanna writes most songs in about 30 minutes. I have to be really quick if I want to be a part of it! We had a clear idea of where we wanted it to go. Our friend Jon Truman recorded drums at his house in the middle of lockdown, and we did the rest at our house.
@skopemag: You live in Nashville. How has it played a part in your music?
Jameson: I think being surrounded by a sea of creative people has pushed us to be better songwriters, to focus on our craft and the storytelling behind the songs.
@skopemag: How would you describe your music? Biggest influences?
Hanna: It’s a thread of Americana. I’m influenced by Ingrid Michelson, Sara Bareilles, and the Eagles and have always lived somewhere between Americana and pop.
Jameson: I’m pretty much a Petty/Springsteen guy. I love their songwriting and also the way both of them give the musicians around them the freedom to make a song better.
