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“Turn It Up: Mimi Arden’s New EP, “Greed” Drops”

Artwork by: Dorothy Maloney

 

“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

 

“Greed,” the new EP from Mimi Arden will be birthed into our world this Saturday, February 1st, 2020 at Mahall’s in Lakewood, Ohio with Mr. Carnivore getting the show poppin’ off. I had the unique opportunity to hear the EP and communicate with principle song writer, Michelle Gaw about this release.

Let’s take a listen, shall we? “Nothing at All” has a Springsteenesque/Sheryl Crow kind of timbre. This souped-up folk rock gem from the rust belt offers a soundtrack for anyone looking to hit the road. This track is zippy and upbeat with a sincere message of heartbreak. With the line, “Yesterday I loved and today I want to drive my car into a wall” one might wonder how she was able to get so much “good feels” in a song which seems to wrestle with so many “bad tastes.” This is certainly a summer, convertible song for the teenage girl just graduated from high school and wants to speed around with her friends blasting this at high volumes but at the same time it could be for the middle-aged librarian who wants to have a hot bath and a cold glass of Riesling while she unwinds after a hard day of shelving books.

“To Be Alive” gives the listener a feeling of being transported and trapped in a thriller, driving through the desert at night towards some unknown destination while someone in the car bleeds out in the back seat. There is a sense of desolation and adventure, maybe there’s a tinge of The Doors in its DNA. This is a great cigarette-smoking song with a message of gratefulness and reverence. One might find themselves enamored with the surprising bridge in the middle of the song with its sweeping harmonies before crashing back into the “canyon” of a chorus with some ripping riffs bringing us to a well-deserved climax. Turn it up!

We have arrived at the title track, “Greed.” This song has sex appeal. The track allures us with the opening line, “Don’t wait for bones to break, snap them yourself” and we are in it. There is a skilled balance in the slickness of the verse leading into the gripping guitar in the chorus where the tiny hairs on the back of your neck perk up a bit to see what’s going on.

Gaw’s voice refreshing in its naturalness and its inhibition, in other words, she means it. This one is an absolute ear worm for anyone of the melodic persuasion. Although there is nothing complicated about this song, it does its job and it does it well. The chorus is also  super danceable and I dare you not to get it stuck in your head. But don’t take my word for it, come to the show and get a taste of it yourself.

Gaw has a straight forward song writing approach. With the combination of this talented and crafty group of musicians, and Jim Stewart’s production, this EP offers the listener ingenious instrumentation along with masterful execution. In closing, “Greed” shows song writing maturity with a genuine self-reflection and a tinge of exorcism of personal daemons. It doesn’t have an ego. These are the things of great pop music and it is no surprise Mimi Arden is on a lot of peoples’ radar.

 

Photo by: Nina Ripich

 

We had the opportunity to speak with principal song writer Michelle Gaw and here you have it:

 

SM: Where did you grow up, what was it like?

I grew up in Mentor, OH really close to the Mentor Lagoons. It was okay- I used to walk to the beach through the woods with my iPod Nano listening to early 2000s emo music and think about how badly I wanted to get out of town. I had no destination in mind of where I wanted to go… just your typical adolescent angst, I guess.

SM: Who is Mimi Arden and what does she represent in the music?

MG: This is something that happens a lot. I chose the name “Mimi Arden” to try and avoid having a band name like “Michelle Gaw and the so-and-so’s.” I really wanted the band name to take the focus away from me as a solo artist… and shift it to the group. The group is “Mimi Arden.” Lee (Kolarik) and Matt (Miller) are really the reason Mimi Arden exists. Yes, I am the primary song-writer, but they are the band and this is OUR band. I wanted Mimi Arden to be its own entity, it is not supposed to be “Michelle Gaw’s alter ego” if that makes sense. I didn’t want hired guns. I don’t think of myself as “Mimi.” It does come from my name, but if I could go back I’d probably pick something even less attached to me as an individual. Who knows, maybe we’ll change it one day.

SM: How long did it take you to put this EP together?

MG: As far as how long the EP took to write, the songs came out pretty quickly during a certain emotional time in my life. We recorded the EP over the span of the last 8 months or so. It definitely didn’t have to take that long, but we really took our time and were in no rush to release.

SM: Why an EP and not another full length?

MG: The EP has a darker theme and encapsulates a relatively short dark time in my life. If you can’t tell from the songs, I was in a significant amount of pain when I wrote them. I think of how the album was more of a timeline of songs. The songs were written over several years… spanning so many different topics and experiences. This EP covers a very short period of distress in my life where I was angry, pissed, vengeful, petty, devastated, depressed, defeated, and eventually motivated, empowered, and transformed. It is a cool contrast from the album in my opinion… I’m excited to see the reactions of our families, friends, and fans in our new content.

SM: How was it working with Jim Stewart?

MG: Oh man! I can’t say enough good things about Jim Stewart! Jim is simply a great person, engineer, and producer. He is laid back and so talented at what he does. He will give you production advice when you want or need it, but also gives you total freedom as a band to produce your own product and vision. Jim is nothing but encouraging and supportive and will go to any length to make sure you’re happy with your project. I can’t wait to record more projects with him in the future and I’d highly recommend him to anyone!

SM: Here are a few lines from the song “Greed”

Deep breath cigarettes no more back burn

no more hiding on the shelf

Learn to survive on your own

Don’t be afraid to die alone

No one is going to fight for you

and that is the truth in large

don’t look for a safety net ‘cause there’s no on around

Don’t look ‘cause the wolves are here

and they are goin’ to tear you down

 

SM: Your lyrics seem to have an air of self-reliance, self-preservation. A times it is almost as if you are talking to yourself/psyching yourself out for the hard times ahead. Care to comment on this?

MG: Yeah. Greed is the name of the EP and definitely the “single” if you will of the EP. This song is about getting so fed up with myself pouting over a guy, over a situation out of my control, over being a victim, over being a weak, defeated person. I give myself compassion about how I felt about what I went through, but I got to this point when I wrote Greed where it was like, I’m not letting this situation control my life anymore. I’m not letting these people have this power over me that I’ve given to them. I’m getting up and fighting back against being a victim of my own circumstances. The lines “Deep breaths, cigarettes no more back burn, no more hiding on the shelf,” are quite literally a depiction of me pacing around my apartment, chain smoking cigarettes, and trying to figure out how to overcome my own demons. And not relying on anyone to help me, because I couldn’t, was a very important realization in this process.

SM: This EP does have a different and maybe even darker feel. Do you feel a shift in your song writing verses your self-titled album which seems a bit lighter with lines like, “You help me see dandelions instead of weeds” ?

MG: Like I said earlier, this EP captures a period time, versus experiences over time. I’m happy with the fact that I wrote something more raw and real-exploring uncomfortable topics of jealousy, anger, fear, isolation, abandonment, vengeance, rather than the themes of the album. I don’t know what the themes of our future releases will be, but I’m proud of how this one turned out, even though it is definitely darker.

SM: Tell me about the band, how did you end up with your players?

MG: I met Lee Kolarik, the drummer, my Freshman year of college 5 years ago. We became close friends and he started playing in the band. He moved to Columbus and for two years, he would drive up for gigs. Lee is the most loyal and dedicated band mate I could ever ask for. I feel like we’re partners in crime, and we make decisions about the band together. He’s the main contributor when it comes to our sound and our direction and I couldn’t be more grateful to be his bandmate. I met Matt Miller about 5 years ago at open mic nights. We first connected on the fact that we were both singer/songwriters. I needed a bass player fast for a gig when I started the band because someone flaked out, and he agreed to be the temporary bassist. Here we are four years later. Matt has written some very interesting and dynamic bass lines. He has always given me really sound advice about band decisions, based on fronting his own band. Matt has been a super loyal member for the last 4 years too and I know I can always rely on him. We have also been exploring with different electric guitarists over the years and are hoping in 2020 to lock down a permanent addition to the trio. Stay tuned!

SM: Can you speak to your influences/inspirations?

MG: We classify ourselves as an indie-rock band, however, we all come from different backgrounds. Lee’s background and inspirations are in jazz. Michelle’s roots are in folk, blues, and soft-rock. Matt’s influences are in soul, rock, and pop. We all bring different ideas to the table!

SM: What is your song writing process like?

MG: I feel like I write my best songs in 30 minutes or less. I’ve written my best songs feeling like a bolt of inspirational lightening struck me. It all comes together in a blurry, quick fashion and BAM! It’s written and I’m proud of it. If I have to stop and think, or work harder and longer than 30 minutes, I usually feel like it’s not authentic because I have to try too hard. I hate trying to finish songs after the initial inspiration leaves, because it ends up not feeling genuine. That’s why I have so many half-written songs!

SM: What are some of your favorite local bands and why?

MG: Matt Moody and C-Level are two of our favorite local bands because they’re both very original and the art they’re producing is genuine and unique to them as people.

SM: What do you think the Cleveland Music Community offers you that other cities might not, what is special to you about Cleveland?

MG: I think Cleveland’s music scene is tight knit, but has opportunities for artists at the same time. It’s super affordable to be an artist here, and although it’s not one of the major music cities, it’s a great place to have a fulfilling career as a musician with great reception of your art.

SM: Tell me about this EP release, what do you want people to know?

MG: I think with this release I want people to see a different side of Mimi Arden that we haven’t shown before. We were really able to experiment with these songs, take our time with the production, and be creative. We feel like we were able to make something really special and original and can’t wait to put this music out. It feels like just yesterday we were putting out our debut album… now we’re putting out our second release and the support is just surreal and so special.

SM: What is next for Mimi Arden? Any tour plans? Music videos?

MG: We are hoping with the support of this EP that we can do some touring around the country and start reaching out more regionally and nationally. It’s always been a dream of ours to tour, and it’s looking like the stars may align in the near future to make that a possibility for us!

SM: What advice might you have for aspiring young song writers?

MG: I would encourage young songwriters to be open to collaboration and don’t be too attached to your own ideas. Amazing things can happen when you open yourself up to be a team player and a band mate. Let go of your ego, because when you’re willing to let other musicians into your creative space, you’ll be pleasantly surprised with what can happen.

SM: Why did you call the album, Greed? Is there any socio-political commentary in this?

MG: In today’s society everyone seems to be looking out for only themselves. I think the underlying hope from “Greed” is to acknowledge that sometimes it’s okay to let go of people, places, and things in your life that aren’t serving you anymore and find the things and people in life that are worth being selfless for.

SM: Final question, and only Cleveland people might get this one, Mah-halls or May-halls?

MG: I was a Mah-hall’s girl, but quickly learned….it’s May-halls.

 

By: Shawn C. Mishak

 

Listen to “Greed” here:

https://mimiarden.bandcamp.com/album/greed?fbclid=IwAR1zL1YttqG7bAX4CL3f6aILMz5rDE7gL6fw1e1OL0Gzn7E23t2_zTbKebk

 

Mimi Arden Bandcamp:

https://mimiarden.bandcamp.com/

Event page for the EP release:

https://www.facebook.com/events/2822440997976368/

Mimi Arden Spotify: