As our readers know only too well, ZT is a broad church, and the themes of Trace Taylor’s music – frontwoman of Trace & The Resonators – ventures into thematic territory that isn’t frequently strayed into in extreme music circles. With that said, we directed a quick round of questions at Trace, whose gothic-tinged single Parousia graced issue 098’s covermount CD, to help you get to know her and her music better.
ZT: Where do you hail from, what’s in your band name, and who are your band members?
TT: Frontwoman and lead vocalist Trace Taylor is from Cheshire, where she lives with drummer-husband Ween Taylor. Pete Townsend hails from Derbyshire and their meeting was really quite extraordinary!
“A number of months prior to meeting Pete, I (Trace) noticed my husband’s latest book he was reading. ‘hmmm.. Pete Townshend from The Who – looks interesting – I wouldn’t mind a read of that myself..’ That same morning, I go into my emails and see that I have an email from a… PETE TOWNSEND! I thought ‘no… -it can’t be!’ – and you’re right – it wasn’t. But it was Pete Townsend without the ‘h’, but with all the musical skill!! He was replying to an ad I had put out for a bass player. And Pete is much more than a bass player – he is skilled on all kinds of stringed instruments. Why Trace & The Resonators? Because we play in a key that is in the positive resonating pitch, one of many alternatives to 440hz out there. Ours is 444hz. We feel both our sound and message resonate – and this is what every musician wants, hey.”
Where are you going musically? Describe your musical output. Is there a concept to your music lyrically or aesthetically?
Presently, Trace Taylor is the driving force. As a prolific songwriter who loves to spend time in the studio creating masterpieces, the aim is to replicate these in a live band setting. This can be challenging as a three-piece, so hopefully the right additional members and team will join at some point to really make this a reality. Musically, Trace writes a real mix from dance Ibiza music to prog-rock, to soundtrack, to Christian devotional. All three of The Resonators love theatre (Trace is part of a theatre company) and so to be able to grow in this arena of aestheticism would be a dream. For now, we do what we can with our limited resources to make an show as impacting as possible.
How do you think you differ from your contemporaries and who are they? Who / what influences your music?
Trace: My contemporaries.. I think Kevin Prosch and Keith Green (going back to the ’70s with Keith) – I think within the Christian sphere of music. Both were not afraid to step out of the box both in musical exploration and performance. My style somewhat differs though, having grown up dominantly in the digital era. I’m definitely made for the digital era of music creations. There’s no way I would have been able to create the sounds I have/am able to without the wonders of technology! (And a fantastic producer.) Other artists I’d say influence my music are Bjork, Florence & The Machine, but again, more for their willingness to step out and be creative. And I have to add Ron Kenoly – his live recording of God Is Able is just outstanding in musicianship and composition. I never tire of listening to it and it is the most uplifting CD I have ever heard!! As a singer and performer, I am told I am most likened to Annie Lennox and Alanis Morrisette.
Ween: His drumming style is definitely influenced by Keith Moon of The Who! -oh – and Animal from The Muppets!
Pete: Eric Clapton, BB King, Dave Bainbridge, Nick Harper, Richard Durrant… and Jack Bruce.
Why did you select the track included on the ZT covermount to represent you? Tell us a little bit about it: what’s it about, how does it fit in with the rest of your material?
“I chose Parousia to represent me, because as the latest branch of musical genre that I’ve stepped into as a diverse songwriting artist, I feel it encapsulates many facets of my personality. I am theatrical. I am a risk taker. I know how far to tred before crossing a line into a ‘forbidden zone’. I am passionate about what I believe in and I can roar! I am a devoted follower of Jesus Christ who wants to spread the Good News of salvation through him: Jesus is theatrical. Jesus is a risk taker. Jesus has drawn the lines of boundaries and He wants to snatch souls back who have crossed those lines and who are in danger of Hell. Jesus is The Lion. This is what Parousia is all about …and in time for his return. I have other material in the pipeline that will fit the ‘Christian Goth’ genre, two of which I aim to bring out this year.”
Tell us a bit about how you go about writing and recording (i.e. with a particular producer / studio – do you write alone or together etc.).
“I do write alone. I am open for collaborating, but I still have so much of my own material to get recorded that now is not the time. Me and Pete have begun musing thoughts on collab as a band, for Pete is a songwriter too. However, his pieces haven’t made their way into the fold yet. He’s been very happy to work on my material. I do however work with Shaun Lowe, producer at Prism Studios in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. I’ve worked with Shaun since 2013 and we have a really good friendship and working partnership. Shaun has remixed a number of my first album into dance tracks (I also work with other DJs) and inputs regularly on areas where I may be a little stuck within a piece, being the crucial person to see the full vision realised. So many of the final pieces are very much co-produced, from an instrumentation contribution and compositional point of view.”
How has the recent pandemic affected the band – has it prevented you from live performance – focused you on writing more… Do you see it ever ending, and what do you really miss from before it took hold on life in general?
“Since we’ve been together in 2018, we’ve sadly not had the amount of opportunities to play together as a band as we had hoped, mainly from different setbacks of one kind or another. I have found I have always had work as a solo artist, but yes, my heart is to increase as part of a band, creating the sounds that really bring the songs to life. Since the pandemic, I have been doing a lot more live sets online and I’m getting a lot out if it. It certainly makes one a lot more used to being in front of a camera!”
What are your plans going forward?
“We have plans to do some gigs on staircases (something like that lol! Pete has the vision for that – will be fun!) as soon as restrictions lift and I do have some other partnerships growing where key folk are coming to aid what may seem the next step toward the big theatrical arena dream! Pete also has had conversations with event organisers in other countries – let’s hope something comes of that.”
How can ZT readers hear more?
Go to TraceTaylor.co.uk where you can find out about all the different pies Trace has her fingers in, from different branches of music she creates, including Parousia, to her first book entitled Ex Nihilo that is due out April/May 2021.
