Artist: Simon Spire
Similar Artists: Think a fusion of the musical stylings of Owl City, John Mayer, David Garza, ThePostal Service, Metro Station, Jason Collett, Matt White, Ryan Adams, Pete Yorn & Eric Hutchinson.
Album: Four-Letter Words
Single: Liberate Your Love
Le love him I do. Lots. His single 'Liberate Your Love' has been on repeat on my iPod all week long. Damn catchy. And he's got that dreamy thing going on too....
So who is Simon Spire?
Simon Spire calls himself a New Yorklander: neither entirely New Zealander nor New Yorker, Simon Spire inhabits the no-man’s land that lies somewhere in between. “I’m always interested in where humanity is going, and for that reason I love being in New York – I’ve often thought of it as being at the forefront of the continuing cultural evolution,” says Simon, “In that sense, I want to be part of a new vision, taking part in where we’re going next. I wanted Four-Letter Words to be relevant not just on a personal level, but also collectively.”
Simon Spire has long been on a path toward fully realizing his artistic vision. Like a lot of musicians, he started his journey into music with the piano while growing up, but after hearing Nirvana at the age of 13, he knew the guitar would be his true passion. Immediately making the musical shift from the eighty-eight keys to the six-string, he found a new obsession in the guitar and would spend hours listening to and studying the music of Metallica, Steve Vai and Radiohead.
His interest in understanding the forces that shape our world drew him to a degree in economics and finance at the University of Auckland, where he won senior prizes in both disciplines. Throughout his time at university, he doggedly pursued the success he sought, while pouring every free moment into his music. In sacrificing all other areas in his life in an attempt to focus exclusively on “getting somewhere”, he hoped that success would provide the fulfillment he noticed was lacking in his life.
However, he soon began to experience an abiding sense of emptiness and meaninglessness, and for three years during his time at university, all the while incessantly pursuing his goals, he struggled with the confusion of his depressed state. Spire eventually came to recognize that his attempts to find fulfillment and meaning in a constant attempt to “arrive” at some mythical finish line were futile. “I realized that throughout my whole life, I hadn’t been ‘living’; I had been ‘trying’ – trying to become something, trying to get somewhere, trying to be safe, and firmly in the grip of fear. I hadn’t been ‘myself’, and I had no idea what that meant anyway,” he says, “I knew there must be more to life, and I wanted to discover what that was.”Thus began Spire’s journey of self-inquiry.
Although it was difficult to relinquish the stability of the more reliable career he had been heading toward, he made the decision after graduating from university to focus his energies on his musical journey...“It wasn’t that the self-discovery was dependent on a choice of vocation – I knew that it wasn’t. But I had also come to suspect that what I really wanted in life was to follow the inspiration that I sensed still existed somewhere deep down, and to allow that to lead my life. I felt it drawing me to music. I felt strongly that the musical journey had much to teach me, and as afraid as I was of following such a precarious career path, something told me that whether it led to ‘success’ or ‘failure’, it could reveal what I was looking for." Music became his outlet for living the question of what it means to be true to oneself.
Sometime after graduation, Simon made his way to Los Angeles where his father was based for a short time. He soon came into contact with Lenedra Carroll, mother and former long time manager of singer/songwriter Jewel.
What started as a young obsession with the guitar eventually drew him into the world of song writing and poetry. Moved by the introspection of Leonard Cohen and Neil Diamond, and the unedited self-expression and multi-layered productions of John Mayer and Alanis Morissette, he eventually put pen to paper, embarking on a new chapter in his musical development. At the age of 19, Spire teamed up with a drummer/sound engineer friend and began experimenting with recording after managing to find an old version of Cubase for his computer and a couple of microphones, a setup that would eventually yield his first demo CD. He took singing lessons, and through the recording process began to learn the intricacies of vocal performance, musical arrangement, and engineering techniques.
Lenedra took an interest in Simon’s development as an artist and further opened his eyes to the world of music, mentoring him all the way through to the release of his debut album, All or Nothing. Now several years later, he is ready for the next step in his musical evolution, and to ready offer his new release, Four-Letter Words to the world.
“Making music has always opened new doors and challenged me to explore unanticipated directions,” Spire says, “In the end, I just let the music lead me, and I simply follow the inspiration. That’s how I ended up in New York, that’s how I made this album, and that’s how I’ll find my way to wherever I end up next.”
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