By Joe Stahl
As the former front woman of the band Company of Thieves, Genevieve is declaring her independence with infectious confidence. Her first single “Colors” off her forthcoming EP Show Your Colors (out March 10th) has mass appeal (think Natasha Bedingfield) that could easily find its way into commercial radio if she had the push of a major label. For now the singer/songwriter is enjoying the high of being a soloist, testing out her new material on a short run of tour dates.
There’s nothing exciting anymore about female artists who write songs about girl power. What sets Genevieve apart from other pop artists is how her landscape shapes her from the inside out. She started her music career in Chicago landlocked as the “cool” chick in an all male indie rock band as “just one of the guys.” Transitioning to Los Angeles on her own terms allowed her to develop a more vibrant look and sound shaped by dreamy synths that never cloud the raw emotions she’s been waiting to belt out loud.
Allston Pudding caught up with the singer before her T.T. The Bear’s Set:
AP: It has strong positive energy. From where did this stem?
Genevieve: Thank you! I found, made room for, and fostered a new sense of freedom from within when I learned how to say “no” in my life. Sometimes it is the only way to really get to say ‘yes’ and have it.
AP: What do you feel like you offer as a soloist with this album that you didn’t have the chance to as the front woman of Company of Thieves?
Genevieve: I am able to celebrate being a woman in my life now, where as before I was still operating very much as a girl, as a tomboy to be more accurate. My writing and my live performances are more personal, honest, and joyful!
AP: Do you incorporate any of CoT’s songs into your live sets?
Genevieve: Not now. Marc Walloch and I wrote those songs together and CoT was very much a collaboration between the two of us. It would feel strange to play the material at a proper show without him.
AP: “Authority,” the last track on your new EP, affirms a theme that promotes individualism. It’s incredibly anthemic. Tell me a little more about how that song evolved?
Genevieve: “Authority” is really special to me. I wrote it in about a half hour, just BAM! You know? It was the last session on my first writing trip to LA and I squeezed it in before I had to fly back to Chicago where I was working as a server at a French restaurant…but I had fallen in love with LA and knew that I had to make the most of it because you never know what’s gonna happen in life or when it will all end…I said to my higher self, ‘This is it! You have one last song before you get the plane and go back to this other dimension, what’s it gonna be? What must you sing?’ And BAM! There it was.
AP: Once you finish up this tour, what can your fans expect out of you?
Genevieve: I will be releasing my first solo EP with Wind Up Records on March 10th and it will be called Show Your Colors, so I will be doing just that!
Catch Genevieve at T.T. The Bear’s Saturday (tomorrow) night. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased here.