MARI DANGERFIELD Discusses Her 'Eco-Fever' EP In Our Informative Interview

Hi Mari, please take us back and let us know when you first started writing music and did anything inspire or influence you?

When I started writing music for the first time I was writing classical pieces for my GCSE and didn't take it that seriously at all. I think over time I began to realise how satisfying it was to create a piece of music that I really liked. I don't think I've ever been deeply inspired or influenced by any singular artist apart from David Bowie. I tend to cherry-pick things I find interesting from a range of different sources, but one thing that always matters to me is a good melody.

Your new EP, 'Eco-Fever' is out now. How does it feel to finally release your collection of songs into the world?

It's always a mixture of joy and slight terror to release new music as you have absolutely no idea what people will make of it! I think I'm quite relieved in some ways!

We are huge fans of your recent single, 'Ruins', which also appears on the EP. We've noticed that you have recorded an acoustic version of the song - how did that come about and how do you think this version differs from the original?

Thank you! I was pleasantly surprised by the reaction to "Ruins" when it was released as a single. I asked someone very talented called Rachel Still who has her own band called Just Kids to record the guitar and mix the new version. She's a multi-talent in the truest sense. I'm looking forward to playing that version with her as part of an entire acoustic set at The Gladstone Arms in London on 4th July 2023.

As the writer, is there an overall theme running throughout the EP?

The running theme of the EP is the climate crisis.

Of the songs on 'Eco-Fever', do you have a favourite to perform and why?

I think Eco-Fever is probably my favourite as it's the most uplifting and I tend to have a lot of sad songs in my set!

You regularly perform live with dates coming up in Bristol at Cafe Kino (June 30th) and The Gunners Pub in London on July 2nd - are you looking forward to playing these new tracks live and what can people expect from your live show?

I am looking forward to it! The Bristol date in particular will be my first headline outside of London and in a venue I've been wanting to perform at for a long time. I'm playing a few different types of live shows! I have the acoustic show coming as mentioned, I played a band show for the first time in quite a while on 17th and I most often play a solo set that's either entirely electronic or with some live piano included. What they can expect at any show is catchy original songs about technology, love and climate change!

Did any situation or experience influence the writing of the EP?

The EP started with Eco-Anxiety. I actually wrote this song when I was writing my first album, Love And Other Machines, but it didn't really fit into the record. I decided to come back to it and base a whole new project around it. Eco-Anxiety was influenced by feelings I was having during the pandemic due to being stuck indoors and rumours going around that it may have been caused by unnatural contact between humans and wild animals. I became very aware of my finite existence in that period and it also increased my fears around the climate crisis.

What is your songwriting process, do you work on several songs at a time or focus on one track for example?

I normally work on one song at a time. I tend not to have a lot of spare time to write now that there's so much demand on artists to create content above all else, but when I do I hyperfocus with the aim of creating something I'm proud of.

Which other artists or bands do you draw inspiration from and who have you been listening to recently?

My list of references for the Eco-Fever EP includes Lorde, Mark Ronson, Boney M and even Olly Murs! A fair number of the Metronomy albums really speak to me and I admire Joseph Mount as a producer and writer a great deal. Most recently I've been enjoying the new Pixey single called 'Daisy Chain', 'King Of Nothing' by Gretel Hänlyn and a few songs by Hemlocke Springs.