More about: Prima Queen

What better way to connect with your new favourite band than taking them out? Wandering through Greenwich’s famous Casbah Records, Prima Queen's musical universe ends up making so much sense. Extending from Taylor Swift to the classic sounds of Creedance Clearwater Revival - it's an eclectic mix that make us something super specific.

And that specificity is what has us hooked. Swiftly establishing themselves as the new cool kids on the block in the indie pop scene, the industry is buzzing about Prima Queen from the beginning, bagging coveted 6Music playlist spots and having their latest single 'Eclipse' produced by indie darlings The Big Moon. We had to shoot our shot...

The second Louise and Kristin stepped in, the energy of the shop felt charged with excitement. As they split up to explore the aisles, it was really clear that, even though their tastes are different, they do intersect in more places than one thanks to the common thread of strong female singer/songwriters. Sharing their references, musical memories and recent inspirations, their shopping list was enviable...

First Spins

The first album they both brought up when asked about the first albums they remember listening to purposefully was Taylor Swift’s debut album Taylor Swift. Charged with beautiful lyricism that’s both personal yet relatable, it was one of the albums that inspired them to make music. In Kristin’s words “I remember thinking, I also have a guitar and boys don’t love me” and so her music journey begun. At the same time, this is the album that solidified their friendship as they explained, one night in uni, the record started playing and they both sang their lungs out together while their friends stared at the scene with confusion. Swifties stick together.

Bonding Moments

From that moment, they became inseparable and started sharing music with each other. Louise then brings up the most recent Julia Jacklin album PRE PLEASURE, although she meant to find her first album Don’t Let the Kids Win which she showed Kristin for the first time in 2016 while going back and forth sharing the same old guitar writing their first songs. This album became such an embedded part of their relationship that it got them through their time apart when Kristin's semester abroad came to an end. Similarly, Jenny Lewis’ On the Line and Kacey Musgrave’s Star Crossed were some of the albums that hold a special significance during that period of time where they were in two different countries sending each other voice memos on WhatsApp trying to finish songs. 

Childhood sounds

Taking it way back, the topic of childhood car journeys and our parents favourite artists cropped up.Kristin recalls the first time she sang with her mom in the car to the sound of yet another strong female songwriter Carly Simon. Her single 'You’re So Vane' from the album No Secrets sparked her passion for singing, remembering belting the track out on long journeys. For Louise, it was Simon and Gardunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water which brought her to realise the value of beautifully curated harmonies which can certainly be seen in Prima Queen’s music. While talking about their upbringing, Kristin also mentions her family used to host parties where her dad and uncles would pick up instruments and sing on the porch to Creedence Clearwater Revival. She eventually joined, learning to play some of their most iconic songs from Bad Moon Rising.

Current repeats

Fast forwarding a bit and talking about albums that they’re currently obsessed with, Louise shares Laura Marling’s Song For Our Daughter which she introduces as “this is my Taylor Swift”. She then goes to explain the impact Laura’s music has had on her music making and how it’s been the soundtrack of hers as such a raw and honest artist. Staying on topic, she also shows us Cate Le Bon’s Pompeii featuring the track 'Moderation' that Louise plays “on repeat at least three times a day”. Kristin also pulls out Fiona Apple’s cult favourite record Fetch The Bolt Cutters as one of her top spinner at the moment. 

After a brief moment dedicated to  Louise’s obsession with Adrianne Lenker’s songs as the ultimate bedtime listen, they both coincided on the fact that they’re incredibly excited to hear Sorry’s new album Anywhere but Here. They’ve both been listening to it loads because they want to incorporate those more electronic glitchy sounds into Prima Queen’s future releases. We spent a solid amount of time talking about who they’re intentionally exploring music outside of their wheelhouse to help them give some twist and turns to their music. From the vosa nova of Samba Demais by Marco Valle to Vashti Bunyan’s folk in Just Another Diamond Day, the band are straying down as many different avenues, and my list of recommendations is growing by the second.

With an unbelievable ear for indie hooks both lyrically and instrumentally, evidenced by their supreme shopping list at Casbah, it is no surprise Prima Queen are preparing themselves to take the indie scene by storm. If their playlist is anything to go off -  we certainly cannot wait to see what else they’ve got prepared for us. 

See snaps from the shop by Rosie Wilson:

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More about: Prima Queen