Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with Pick The Lock
1. What is your earliest memory connected to music?
My earliest music memory is thanks to my sister, who was a massive reggae fan and actually met Bob Marley when he came to New Zealand in the early ’80s. She took me to a Black Slate concert when I was about two years old. The band noticed us in the crowd as it’s quite unusual to see a toddler at a concert and they lifted me up onto the stage. I wandered over to the keyboard and started tinkering. That moment — even though I was tiny — planted something in me that never went away.
2. How did your passion for creating music begin?
It began when I realised music could be both emotional and confrontational. As a teenager I became fascinated with how rhythm, space, and effects could express what words alone couldn’t. That’s when I knew I wanted to build soundscapes that challenge, provoke, and move people.
3. What’s the story behind your current music project?
Pick The Lock is my outlet for using reggae as a tool for resistance. Reggae has always spoken truth to power, and this project continues that tradition by focusing on political realities in Palestine and the violence and oppression Palestinians face from the Israeli government — my own perspective on what’s happening. It’s protest music meant to open conversations and disrupt silence.
4. How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
Deep bass, roots-reggae grooves, heavy dub atmospheres, and unapologetically political themes. Its reggae built for shaking speakers and assumptions.
5. What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
I learned that silence is one of the most powerful instruments. When you treat negative space as part of the composition, the message hits harder and every element suddenly carries more weight.
6. What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
Logic Audio, a simple MIDI keyboard, classic dub delay and spring reverb emulations, and pilfered drum loops. Those ingredients give me the warmth and pulse I need to build the Pick The Lock sound.
7. Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
Right now I’m really loving “Rewind” by Hallelujah Picassos. The Picassos have always had this raw, genre-bending energy, and “Rewind” captures that perfectly. The track has this gritty, hypnotic groove and a sense of emotional tension that feels both nostalgic and forward-leaning. It’s the kind of song that reminds you how powerful indie music can be when it doesn’t try to fit into any box.
8. How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
Growing up in New Zealand exposed me to our unique and very popular style of Island Reggae. Witnessing global injustices—especially what Palestinians are facing—pushed me to use my music as a platform. Silence often equals complicity, and this project is my refusal to stay silent.
9. What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
A sense of urgency, empathy, and global solidarity. Even if people don’t share my perspective, I hope they walk away thinking more deeply about the world and the power structures shaping it.
10. What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
That music reaches people who might never read an article or watch a documentary. It’s a bridge— and sometimes the only one left.
11. What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
Rototom Sunsplash or Boomtown. Both festivals embrace the political roots of reggae and give space to artists who use music for resistance.
12. If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Lee “Scratch” Perry. His ability to blend spirituality, rebellion, and sonic innovation was unmatched. Working with him would be like sitting at the source of dub’s creative fire.
13. Where can our listeners follow and support your music?
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4mOYhnsTMglcAkMjeDS09R?
si=Ts0y9xEBT1WSYZne5VNdjA
YouTube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCHSAW8zyigyeFmPflmZAClg?si=owHGiGiqDrvJ58mm
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pickthelockreggae?
igsh=MXRweW1kbzA3Mm44bw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/17XgL6eXfW/?mibextid=wwXIfr
14. Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
To expand Pick The Lock into a wider creative movement—music, visuals, collaborations— anything that raises awareness and fosters resistance. I want the project to remain a voice that consistently challenges power and supports oppressed communities.
15. What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
That I’m not trying to preach—I’m trying to connect. My work is rooted in humanity, empathy, and solidarity. If people hear the heart behind the sound, then the message is landing.
