In an interview with Rolling Stone Brasil, Lila Ramani, guitarist and vocalist of the band Crumb, spoke about the tour in Brazil and recent releases
Despite releasing songs from a niche genre, Crumb has been gaining more and more notoriety in the indie and psychedelic pop scene. Two years after their first and last visit to Brazil, the group, formed by Lila Ramani (guitar and vocals), Bri Aronow (synthesizers, keyboards and saxophone), Jesse Brotter (low) and Jonathan Gilad (drums), returns to the country for three solo shows.
Introspective, somewhat shy and reserved, Ramani talked to the Rolling Stone Brazil to talk about the three presentations here, which take place this Friday, 22nd, at Agito (Rio de Janeiro); November 23rd at Cinema Joia (São Paulo); and November 24th at Opinion (Porto Alegre). Tickets are available at this link.
“We’ve been touring the US with our new album for the last few months and it’s been amazing. We’re going to bring some of that, playing songs from the new album, songs from our old work… all different songs from all eras,” he said. “Yeah, it’s going to be, it’s going to be fun. Even the last time we played festivals, the fans were amazing. So I can only hope there’s an even crazier energy level from the crowd.”
This will be the first time Crumb in Brazil on a solo tour (their debut here took place in 2022, in the 10th anniversary edition of Balaclava Fest). In fact, according to the singer, the band members are fans of Brazilian music, especially that released in the 1970s and focused on psychedelic sounds: “Things like that [são] really inspiring for our music.”
Furthermore, Lila Ramani explained how he got to know some Brazilian artists personally, like the guys from Boogarinsduring one of the editions of the South by Southwest in Texas, United States. She also highlighted Sessa“who I’m a fan of and saw live a few years ago. It was amazing.”
Crumb grew up
Ramani welcomes the group’s evolution in recent years, especially due to their participation in major festivals, such as Wide Awake and Primavera Sound Barcelona. “It blows my mind when I really think about it, but this has become very normalized. But yes, when you sit down and really enjoy performing in front of a crowd of thousands of people in a different country, it’s a great privilege and a blessing, and I hope keep doing this,” he celebrated.
Asked about the growth of indie music in recent years, especially with the popularization of social networks, the artist dodged: “I don’t know. It’s difficult for me to identify what indie music is. I don’t know if that really describes what we do, except the fact that we weren’t on a record label, which is something beautiful and unique about us.”
Of Ice Melt the AMAMA
Ice Melt (2021) was produced and released during the period of social isolation caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Covid-19. However, when Crumb returned to the road, there was a notable increase in the band’s ticket sales – as was the case with several other artists and festivals.
You could see that people were hungry for music and human contact. And now it seems like everyone is doing it again. There’s so much music coming out, so much going on, that it can get a little tiring. But luckily, our fans still come to the shows, and the shows on this tour were better than ever. The most incredible tour we’ve had so far. So it’s good to see it hasn’t slowed down.
Both studio albums feature great experimentation in musical styles, ranging from indie rock and psychedelic pop to jazz. This is a big challenge for the quartet within the studios, who need to deal with several different and similar ideas at the same time.
“It’s a challenge trying to incorporate each of our voices into the music, because we all have different voices through our instruments. What you hear in our music is a lot of conflicting energies – not in a bad way – just all wrapped up in one,” explained Lila Ramani.
“And I think sometimes it’s better to have limits to what you can do, and in some ways it makes it harder. But we’re always trying to serve the music itself, and not think about our own egos and expressing ourselves. If That makes sense,” he continued.
Source: Rollingstone
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
