Allie Hughes
The Singing Lamb: Introduce yourself – how long have you been playing music, how would you describe the type of music you play, any previous or current musical projects, and are you musically tied to any other familiar musicians we know?
Allie Hughes: I guess I have been playing music since I was a little tyke. Is tyke the right word? I had my own keyboard from when I was very small and I remember pressing the “DEMO” button and it was a Beethoven piece and you could change the tempo and speed it up and I used to pretend I was playing it. Eventually I started taking lessons and actually learned how to play and I have been singing and wanted to be a singer for as long as I can remember back. It’s hard to describe your own music, but the genre I’ve come up to describe my music is alternative theatrical pop. And I sing in Steve McKay’s project and I briefly sang and played for Katie Stelmanis.
On your Facebook fan page, it says Thom Gill played guitar in your band – are you a fan of Owen Pallett’s latest album and musical partnership with Thom then? Also, it seems like everyone is always tied to someone else in the Toronto! What is it about the scene here in Toronto that lends to this close knit web of relationships?
Oh ya ha! The facebook fan page. I should take that down or update it, I have a facebook music group I use. Thom is a good friend and he played in my band from when it started (summer ’07) till this past summer ’09. I cannot stress to you enough HOW MUCH I LOVE HEARTLAND. I find it hard to listen to anything else right now. It sounds like magic to me, and when Thom and Owen take the stage together it also looks like magic, MAGIQUE! I totally feel like everyone who is an artist in Toronto is connected, and I really like it. For me, it’s the ESA connection. I went to Etobicoke School of the Arts for high school and it seems like everyone I meet is tied to that school somehow!
So I found this video of you on YouTube just now… a) what was that show and how did you get involved? b) have you covered any other songs before?
Oh man, most unflattering costume ever. That is a song I performed on CBC’s How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria. A reality show (they called it a talent competition) spearheaded by Andrew Lloyd Webber to cast a young Canadian girl in the part of Maria Von Trapp in The Sound of Music. I was in the top ten girls and then got kicked off. haha. We have a Regina Spektor song we are covering in our set at the Garrison. I am not huge on covers, but I do have plans to do an awesome cover of Michael Bolton’s “How Am I Supposed to Live Without You”. Oh ya and also I was singing in “The Best” the cover band that played Loving in the Name Of every month. That was so much fun, I never knew my lyrics though..
Explain your background in theatre and how that plays into your music. Do you feel that your music is any more theatrical because of your experience in theatre?
Theatre theatre theatre. Yeah I do come from a theatre background and have been in some musicals and go on auditions and other stuff. I think all the years of doing it and singing songs in that structure has definitely rubbed on me. Just like all music does. I find myself lately wanting to sound less “theatrical” because there is a certain connotation that comes along with it, but really it’s what makes my music and voice different and I just need to own it.
What does 2010 have in store for Allie Hughes?
A lot hopefully. I am recording my first album, to be released in the fall. I have been working and co- writing it with a few different producers, Dave Newfeld, Leon Taheny and Adam King. I am really excited about the songs and direction my music is taking. I also have a new 6 piece band so a big focus is getting as tight us as tight as possible. This Friday will only be our fourth show together! Also expect a video out in the summer! I don’t know- I have so many ideas and plans but I don’t want to say them out loud because what if they don’t happen!?!
And finally, since our site’s called The Singing Lamb, we always end our interview with this question – if you were a singing animal what would you be and why?
I would have to say a guinea pig because I am one of the few people you’ll ever find in the world who can actually make a convincing guinea pig noise. Seriously.
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For more Allie Hughes,
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/alliehughes
Don’t forget to catch Allie Hughes tomorrow night at the Garrison, opening for Language-Arts and The Pinecones! Tickets will be available at the door for $6.00!
