By Colin Jasmine Ash is one of our new favourite artists here at TMF Towers. Her new single, ‘Starlight’, is released in the UK on 26th December and is a bit of a belter. Rather than take our word for it, have a listen below. Her album is scheduled to hit shelves early next year.
Starlight by Jasmine Ash
Jasmine kindly took time out of her busy schedule to answer a few questions for us…
Hi Jasmine, would you like to introduce yourself to our readers?
I would indeed! I’m Jasmine (a lot of my friends call me Jas, Jasper, Pants, Jazzerpants, Bunny – you can do the same if you want). I love reading and hiking and going to movies and vintage clothing shopping and drinking tea and stuff like that. I love to sing and write songs, as well, and I do a lot of that. I WOULD LOVE TO MEET YOU. The end.
What’s your earliest musical memory?
I remember driving around in my parents’ OLD Toyota station wagon listening to The Beatles. (They ALWAYS listened to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones and Joni Mitchell.) I was so young, but I would try and sing along. Those songs were so special to me, even though I wasn’t sure why at the time. I guess even at an early age I could appreciate a good, catchy melody.
If you could hold a recording session with any five artists, who would you choose?
Robyn
Nina Persson (The Cardigans)
Annie Clark (St Vincent)
Matt Berninger (The National)
Hope Sandoval
You want to describe your music to a stranger on the street, who do you compare yourself to?
People often say I’ve kind of got a voice like Tanya Donnelly of Throwing Muses and Belly, or that I sound like Harriet Wheeler of The Sundays, which are terrific comparisons as far as I’m concerned. So… Kinda like Belly or The Sundays.
Someone once told me my music was a cross between Florence & The Machine and Katy Perry – I’ll take that too (because I love them both), but I’m not sure it quite fits. You tell me.
You are going to live on a desert island for a year, which three albums do you take with you?
The White Album – The Beatles
Body Talk – Robyn
Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming – M83
(This was a VERY tough question, by the way!)
Everyone has a defining music moment, one that lives on in the memory, what is yours?
The very first real, big show I played (opening for Jude at a sold out theater in Portland, OR) is probably this moment. I had NO idea what I was getting myself into and when that curtain rose to over 500 seated people, I could have just died. I pulled it off, played the show and made some fans (some girls up front were throwing roses up at me), and it was then that I knew I was doing what I needed to do with my life. That was a pretty incredible night.
What is the best gig you’ve ever been to and why?
Robyn at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles a month ago. She danced and sang and told jokes and I just love her. She had 18,000 people up and dancing and singing along with her! It was truly an inspirational show.
Where do you see yourself in five years time?
I will feel like the luckiest person in the world if I can still be doing what I’m doing. Writing songs for myself, with my band, and for other artists and performing for my fans is absolutely my passion and to be able to do it on a daily basis is a blessing in my life I hope continues.
If we were to look at your MP3 player or record collection, what guilty pleasures would we find?
Kelly Clarkson
Katy Perry
(Those two ladies sing some of the best pop songs ever written in my humble opinion.)
What’s next for Jasmine Ash?
I’m releasing my full length record Beneath The Noise on Valentine’s Day (Feb 14th) 2012. It’s been in the works for over a year now and I can’t wait to get all my songs out there to everyone. I’m also going to keep doing what I’ve been doing: writing more songs, traveling and playing shows with my band Oh Darling and I only hope that I’m going to be able to continue following my dream! I look forward to meeting tons of new people and going to new places and working hard and all that. It’s been an unbelievable road thus far and I know that I’m one real lucky lady.
Jasmine Ash‘s new single ‘Starlight’ is out on December 26th. You can find about more about her on her official Facebook page here
Colin