We all love a bit of country music, don't we? And for all those country lovers at heart, Fraser Wayne will certainly be at the top of your list. Bringing a sense of nostalgia with his fun-filled slangs, riffs and rhymes, Wayne has a real style and charm that comes alongside his music.
He's just released his latest single 'TY 4 THE TIMES' and it's an upbeat, catchy number all about his cousin Tyler, who he sadly lost recently. Offering up an introspective mixture of folk rock and country all in one, this melancholic and happy tribute to his family member is mightily touching. We caught up with Fraser on this and everything that surrounds him as a person in this interview for FLEX:
Hey Fraser! Could you describe your sound & style for any of our readers who may not have heard of you before?
I've dabbled in many genres over the years, from garage rock, country, folk, electronic, hip-hop, etc, depending on the project. But currently the stuff I'm working on as a solo artist is definitely leaning into country territory. I love spaghetti western soundtracks, Neil Young, rock n roll and spooky cowboy stories.
Give us a fun fact about yourself we can’t find from Google/social media! I'm a big Stephen King / horror movie nerd. Some of the songs I write are from the point of view of characters in the books and movies I love.
Your newest single, ‘TY 4 THE TIMES’ has just been released, what inspired you to write this track? I wrote this song a few days after my cousin, Tyler Fyall, took his own life. My family was all hanging out together at my parent’s house after the funeral, and I felt the urge to be alone with my guitar. I ended up writing the whole song, as it is, in less than half an hour. After I played through it a few times, I came back to my family and performed it for everyone in my parent’s backyard. Shortly after, a huge tree fell down in the backyard, and we all understood that this was Tyler letting us know he was there with us. I was really close with my cousin, on a different level than the rest of my family. We have both struggled with addiction and mental illness, and we always took the time to check in on each other. My cousin was such a sweet person, all his struggles aside. He had a “come-as-you-are” mentality, and he was accepting and loving to everyone he met. Didn’t matter what they looked like, what they were wearing, or what they were on haha. He was also really funny and a total bad-ass. I miss him everyday. His favourite number combination was 11:11, hence the 11/11 release date, and 11 black / 11 clear numbered vinyls for the release. As an instrumentalist, lyricist and vocalist, which of your many talents do you find the easiest & the hardest to do? I think the hardest thing is convincing myself to work on stuff and stay productive. Once I'm in a zone, everything comes pretty easy. I need to remember to take breaks and rest sometimes too. I can easily over-obsess about little things for hours.
Please tell us a bit about your creative process when it comes to songwriting I don't really have a strict creative process. I only write songs when it happens naturally. This usually comes after some period of grief or a major change in my life. I find it hard to force myself to be creative, so I just wait for the right moments and take advantage of it when I have "it." I usually just get a feeling and I go with it.
Who or what influences the sounds in ‘TY 4 THE TIMES’? Well my cousin and our relationship is the biggest influence on this song. I wrote this as a tribute to him and I think it's a great way to honour him and keep his memory alive. Something that hopefully other people can relate to if they've lost a friend / loved one. As for the sounds - I wanted to go for something that was country, but with the spirit of rock n roll. Something that my cousin would think is bad ass haha. I'm really excited to have Jon Evans play pedal steel on this too. He brought the song to life. What do you like best about your newest single?
I like that my cousin is smiling, somewhere out there. He knows how much he is loved. He's happy to live on through this song, and through the love he shared with so many people.
& Lastly, what can fans expect from you next?
Well this is just the first single from my upcoming album, "Tomorrows Gone," which will be released via Fishbum Records in early 2022. I have another single from the album coming out on January 11th. I've also got a new backing band together called The Black Petunias, and we're going to be recording an album together and looking to play some shows soon! The band I play drums in - Lovers Suicide - is also in the midst of recording some singles for a full length album.
Listen to 'TY 4 The Times' here:
Pre-order Fraser's new single 7 inch vinyl here:
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