Zack Fletcher is an atmospheric singer-songwriter hailing from Ohio. Emotion, anguish and hope are the feelings he pours into his music and a voice that carries for miles, and we just had to chat to this hugely talented artist. Upon the release of his debut album 'Ohio Reveries' in what is a homage to his homeland and so, so much more, opening track 'The Traveler' seems to sum up Fletcher perfectly.
Highly imaginative melodies and anticipation building throughout, the beautiful strings section, Zack's voice in harmony with Emily Estok, makes for an encapsulating listen. We sat down with Zack to learn all about his writing style, the recording process and more, exclusively for FLEX:
Hey Zack, welcome to FLEX! How are you?
Thanks so much! I'm doing well! Lots of fun and exciting things going on right now.
You have a real emotional pull in your writing, what brings this out of you?
Music is definitely part of my therapy and how I process life experiences. The good, the bad, and everything else filters through to create something that deals with those intense or complex emotions. I think it's important for everyone to find what helps them work through those things in a positive way, and I'm grateful to have found that in songwriting.
Your new album 'Ohio Reveries' is an alt-folk masterpiece, congrats! How do you feel now this is finally out in the world?
I really appreciate that. I'm very happy to have it out and glad it's had a positive reception. It means a lot when I hear about a song of mine that connects with someone or means something to them.
What was the recording and writing process like for the album?
The writing has spanned over a number of years. Some of the initial versions of these songs have been around for a while, and the most recent one was finished just a couple months before recording. The catch phrase for the collection is 'songs inspired by home and the places it has taken me.' Each song is its own unique thought, but I think they blend really well together with the concept of 'Ohio Reveries'. They're not songs about Ohio, but ones written and filtered through the lens of someone who has been shaped by that place.
I recorded at Court Street Recording in Canfield, Ohio. Michael Estok is the owner and engineer, and he helped bring these songs to life with the fantastic arrangements and production. We spent a week recording the main acoustic guitar and vocal parts and building the initial atmosphere of each song. Then he fleshed them out even more by adding cello along with other elements and bringing in multi-instrumentalist Rajma McKenzie to play violin. It was a great experience bringing these recordings to life.
'The Traveler' seems to sum up perfectly, what is the meaning behind it?
'The Traveler' is the opening track and was the lead single for the collection. I feel it serves as a good mission statement for the collection as a whole. It was inspired by a few people I knew whose lives were taken away too soon. To me, the song serves as a reminder of life’s fragility and brevity, and hopes to inspire a desire to live to the fullest, at the very least to honor those who are not afforded that time.
Listen to 'The Traveler' and the rest of Ohio Reveries here:
Do you plan to take this album out on tour in 2022?
I just finished up a two month tour supporting the release that took me all over Ohio and to lots of other places I hadn't played before like LA, Toronto, and Nashville. It was an awesome experience and I met a lot of cool people along the way. It was great to get this tour under my belt especially after canceling previous plans in the early stages of the pandemic. It takes a lot of legwork as an independent artist, but I hope to keep expanding the reach and playing more places with each new release. I also have lots of shows planned in Ohio for the remainder of the summer, both solo and with my group, Moths in the Attic. Maybe I'll see you somewhere out there!
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