Exposed Vocals sits down to an interview with Khaylan
Contrasting with his current defining Rock sound, Khaylan first got into music through a classical upbringing, studying violin and viola at the Music Conservatory of Trento (Italy), and joining orchestras as an instrumentalist and later as a tenor.
Parallel to his love for classical music, his teenage years see him grow as a Rock performer. Forming a couple of covers bands throughout the years, he picks up various instruments such as drums, guitar, piano and bass, and at 21 Khaylan decides to move to London to focus on contemporary music and study at Tech Music School/BIMM London.
Discovering a love for songwriting, he joins folk band Marzella as arranger and violin player for two years, during which they play various shows around London in venues such as The Good Ship and the Shepherd’s Bush Empire, and two years later forms an acoustic covers duo, Set Theory.
In 2014 Khaylan begins to focus on his own project. Bringing together elaborate tunes and catchy melodies, his strength lies in both his heartfelt acoustic songs and his band compositions which are decidedly Rock, with hints of grunge and alternative influences.
“I write songs because it keeps me going, it’s the ultimate tool for me to express myself. Sharing the music, performing… It’s the only thing that matters.”
After playing his first originals set at legendary venue The Troubadour and performing at various venues in London, Khaylan has just released his debut single “Falling” and will release his debut EP this Summer.
Exposed Vocals: So tell us your story. Where did you grow up? What made you decide to become an artist?
Khaylan: I grew up in Italy, where I started my musical journey with a classical upbringing, learning to play the violin and the viola at the Music Conservatory of Trento. I later joined several orchestras as an instrumentalist, then as a tenor.
My shift to Rock started as a teenager, fronting several gigging covers bands in Italy. I then moved to London in 2012 to study vocals at Tech Music School/BIMM London, where I started to write songs and focus on my own projects – I guess I felt disappointed by a lot of the music that I was surrounded by, so I decided to write songs that I really liked and eventually decided to put them all together and try it off as an artist. Now I write songs because it keeps me going, it’s the ultimate tool for me to express myself. For the past few months I have been working on my debut EP which will come out this summer, and a few days ago we released my debut single “Falling”… It’s all very exciting. I know the potential music has to change peoples’ lives. It’s the only thing that matters.
Exposed Vocals: How did you come up with that name? What was your inspiration behind it?
Khaylan: I liked the sound of it – exotic, primal and tribal at the same time. It doesn’t set boundaries to the character I am on the stage or the kind of music I want to play.
Exposed Vocals: What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?
Khaylan: It’s just how the market has changed. Aside from piracy which obviously I’m against, I guess it’s up to the artist to decide whether or not to give their songs away for free. Personally, I still buy physical CDs and I believe and artist’s work deserves to be financially rewarded. Of course it depends from one case to the next; some artists want to share their music for free, some don’t. It’s perfectly fine either way. In my case, I intend to offer a free acoustic version of my single “Falling” for download from my website when we release my debut EP.
Exposed Vocals: Since everyone was a start-up once, can you give any smaller or local bands or artists looking to get gigs and airplay some tips?
Khaylan: On a compositional level, detach from what you think people want to hear, and instead develop your musical skills and taste. Try and understand all your influences and take them to the next level. In terms of taking one’s career further, I suppose it’s a combination of passion, hard work, a solid understanding of how the industry works and just being relentless in trying to grab any possible opportunity – as well as being aware it’s not just going to happen overnight.
Exposed Vocals: Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration? What is your usual songwriting process?
Khaylan: I write all the music first. Once all instrumental parts of the song are completed, I start thinking about additional things while recording everything. The resulting sound of the song always triggers some ideas, internal debates, or a particular moment of my life that can be related to it, and that is when the lyric process starts. It’s always triggered by the music underneath.
Exposed Vocals: Do you have a band website? What online platforms do you use to share your music?
Khaylan: I do, you can find everything about me, my projects and my music at http://www.khaylan.com/. I’m also on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as @KhaylanOfficial (http://www.facebook.com/khaylanofficial, http://twitter.com/khaylanofficial, http://instagram.com/khaylanofficial), and we’ve just released my first music video on Youtube. You can also find “Falling” on all major online platforms such as iTunes and Spotify, or get it from my website.
Exposed Vocals: If you were given half a million dollars and a year off, what would you do? How would you spend it?
Khaylan: I would invest in properties so as to make sure that I have a secure annual income. With that money, I’d create my own recording studio and label, which I’d run with my manager.
Exposed Vocals: So, what’s next? Any new upcoming projects that you want to talk about?
Khaylan: Like I said, my EP is coming out his summer. Aside from that, hopefully lots of gigging, and more writing, of course. Then the plan is to start looking at record deals… But I want to wait a little and establish myself some more before that.
Exposed Vocals: If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing?
Khaylan: I’ve never actually considered having a job that doesn’t involve music.
Exposed Vocals: How do you juggle the rest of your responsibilities while trying to stay ahead in your music life?
Khaylan: Post-its, I have them everywhere in my bedroom. A white board as well. I make lists and everything needs to be crossed off by the end of the day. And then my manager deals with all the business aspects of my career.
Exposed Vocals: What should fans look forward to in 2016?
Khaylan: My EP this summer and hopefully a lot of gigging!
