Formula Indie Sessions : Interview with The Saraphines
The Saraphines are a dynamic duo from Slovenia, bringing back the sounds of the 70s and 80s with a modern twist. Comprised of Alen Kovse and Sara Lamprecnik, this pair delivers a nostalgic blend of pop, rock and Americana that will transport you back to the golden era of pop music
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
It’s a tough question. I think I really felt a great passion for music, when I started listening to Queen at the age of 10. After learning their “whole” repertoire on piano, I started playing guitar and then I formed my first band at the age of 12.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
I wanted to create timeless songs like my heroes (The Beatles, Queen, Billy Joel etc.), which is almost impossible haha, but listening to those guys relentlessly was a huge inspiration for my songwriting for The Saraphines.
What’s the story behind your current music project?
The project is based on two vocalists – Sara and myself – so our upcoming album will be either a bunch of duet songs or solo songs for each one of us – it all depends on the song and the vibe. The main subject of our first album will be love related, since we are a couple as well. Some songs will be more uplifting and some darker, like the ups and downs in a relationship.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
I would say our sound tends to be most likely retro, since we don’t overproduce with layering stuff, special effects etc. I think the sound is based on American/British Pop Rock music from mostly the 70’s. All you can hear on our tracks is played live in the studio (except vocals and a little bit of extra guitars, percussion and organ). We wanted to capture good live band performances, to get the organic feel of the songs.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
Three years ago, I started playing in a Beatles tribute band (“Help a Beatles Tribute”), which is basically my job. We are touring around the world, playing around 90 gigs a year. When I had to learn all their songs, I really fell in love with their music and that really helped me with my songwriting. I instantly started getting new ideas I never had before.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
Actually I usually need just an acoustic guitar and vocal. When the idea is solid enough, I’ll maybe make a demo for the guys in the band in Apple’s Logic, so the form of the song is clear. If I don’t have a clear idea how instrumental should sound like, I’ll leave room for their ideas, which are usually pretty good 🙂
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
I love Lemon Twigs, Orla Gartland, Theo Katzman, Madison Cunningham, Lizzy McAlpine and many more!
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
When I joined the Beatles tribute band and started playing live all the time that gave me a lot of experiences on how to behave and be confident on stage, I started respecting music business more and all the stuff a lot of young musicians are sometimes lacking, I think. And also I realized that the music industry is more than just music – people tend to listen music with their eyes haha. I’ll try to incorporate those experiences to The Saraphines and we’ll see what happens.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
I think our songs don’t have some secret messages, it’s just stuff that happens to anyone in a relationship or anyone who had a bad break up and things like that. Mostly I just hope people will like the vibe and music itself.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
The most important thing, I think is to follow your dreams and do whatever makes you happy. I try to write songs that speak to me personally and hopefully one day a bunch of people will like our stuff too – if not, we’re still going to do it for ourselves.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
It’s hard to say.. there are so many great venues. We would be happy to get a little tour around Europe and get a chance to play our music in front of the audience. That would be good enough for now!
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Probably Freddie Mercury and Lennon/McCartney. I have more questions for them you can imagine, haha. Those guys are my biggest heroes in terms of pop songwriting and they got me started, so I kind of owe it to them.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music? (Website, Spotify, IG, links)
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4dUH3vT5tURMWSmkd0jcsh?si=ZuKVlCu3RVyTw8y9MoAhvA
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesaraphines?igsh=MXB6aXgxZjJwamRpbw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@thesaraphines?si=AZTcok-2Rp2dl1jM
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
Right now we’re mostly focusing on releasing our first album and next year we’re hopefully going to play some gigs around Slovenia to promote it. We are also going to try to get some gigs around Europe by pitching our songs to European showcase festivals.
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
We hope they manage to hear our songs on Spotify, Apple Music and other platforms. Since we make music in English, I think the market could be much wider than the most artists from Slovenia that make music in our language. But for now we just want to make great music and hopefully some retro music lovers will able to find it 🙂
