Page 36 - Black Velvet Rock Music Magazine Issue 92

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to be targets because we were in a place where that have grown up with my pop music who I’ve they’ve gone through and I’ve been at the merch
a lot of people congregate together. I just felt kind of brought into the Sumo Cyco world so I table after a show and we’ve been talking for
that it was so terrible that people were scared to can sometimes identify those people from their maybe two minutes and then their heart just
be together and enjoy each other and enjoy age, and then there’s a lot of people that have pours out and it’s so amazing that people can
music and to laugh and have fun with their come across us just through playing and touring. feel that close to me with me barely knowing
friends because of this. I put in the song ‘Don’t Usually they’re all types of people. There are lots them or barely meeting them, just because they
let that fear control you,’ and make choices out of the typical rock dudes, who just has his metal feel so close to the music and they’ve seen me
of love and the good feelings and not because T-shirt on. I’ve had younger people, older peo- develop through the years. It is just astounding
of the fear.” ple, so I don’t think there’s a typical fan that I that that can happen and that profound connec-
When writing these songs, Skye says she could draw a picture of what somebody would tion can happen where they’re one moment in-
felt it was like her way of helping in some way. look like or what age they would be.” troducing themselves and the next they’re just
“Every time I try to dig into the most fiery part of spilling their hearts out. I’ve definitely been in-
my life it was always felt that the one thing I was ome of the songs on the new album will spired by all the different fans that have told me
most amped up about or angry about or pas- Sreally resonate with the band’s fans and their stories and how our music has helped them
sionate about was these issues and it just felt rock fans in general. Although ‘Anti-Anthem’ was and I’m sure in my darkest moment where I’m
like I was almost getting anxiety every day by inspired by the refugee crisis, it includes the lyric wondering, “What am I doing? What’s the next
having the news tell me all these things that ‘We’ve got no place to go’, which could also step?” if I think of all those faces and all those
were happening. I felt like writing about it, for apply to today’s teens. Often, as rock fans, you kids that have really felt so inspired by what I’m
me, was my small way that I could help the sit- can feel like an outcast, lonely, and may not fit doing, it will really help, because I know there’s
uation rather than just feel helpless constantly in with others at school. Skye confirms, “Yes, it someone out there that is going to hear this and
about what’s happening. For a while I was like, can relate to refugees, but it can relate to any- it is going to resonate and it is going to make an
“What is my music going to do about it? It’s not one who doesn’t feel like they fit in and they’re impact.”
exactly helping the situation,” but it’s my
way of expression, the way that I know kye herself has gone through
how to communicate best, and so to me Stough times. She almost gave up
the one thing that felt natural was to do music before the birth of Sumo Cyco. She
this, put it into a song and get it out of at brings up the pop career that she had
least my system where I can’t even think when she was young. It began so wonder-
properly because I’m just angry about fully but ended up “kind of winding down
something, or just have it in the back of and the label shelved me and I was not
my head, and just get it out through doing anything with music and I had to
music.” make the decision that I was going to step
up and start doing what I wanted and start
n 'Brave II' Skye sings 'All those creating what Sumo Cyco is now, or I was
Istereotypes, turns us into sound going to go back to school and just lead the
bites, open up your mind, to a kind, that white picket fence, get settled down, get
just might not be your type.' In her own married type of thing. I just decided, ‘No, I
life, she says that she has mostly been will regret it for the rest of my life if I don’t
stereotyped by being female. just follow my dreams, no matter what the
“I get the woman thing sometimes, consequences are. I just have to’.”
being in a male-dominated genre of That was a brave move. She thinks It
music. A lot of the time I’ll show up at a was the bravest thing she’s ever done, “I
show, be lugging gear, it’s all guys and think taking the chance and really deciding
they’re like, “Are you a girlfriend or are you really firmly that I wasn’t going to just try to
in the band?” It’s kind of like they just live the life that I think other people wanted
wouldn’t assume that I would be playing me to, or that I should do, and just deciding
the music, I’m someone’s girlfriend. So to stick with my passion, and basically
that to me I’m always big into girl power starting Sumo Cyco.”
and helping other females out there.” This leads us on to the song ‘Building
Skye herself has an open mind and Castles’, which is in relation to the struggle
meets many different types of people on of building a band.
the road. “Music is such a cool thing to do “I think sometimes, especially in this in-
and touring, you really get yourself in dustry, there’s so many moments that I see
some interesting situations, with interest- this happen to bands all the time, that they
ing people and places you’ve never been can just fall apart because it’s so hard to
before with different cultures, and I think make money and the band needs to hon-
travelling is one of the best things that estly be those frontline people that are
people can do because it really just puts you in looking for that place that they can call home. trudging through the mud to try to get those mile-
other people’s shoes and seeing other people’s And rock and music has been that for me for stones time after time. It’s turning more and
ways of life and it’s one thing to imagine it years. So yeah, it’s totally that. I love to create a more that way as more and more independent
through the lens of what the media or what TV community at our shows and hope everyone bands are out there and the label world is kind
or movies does, but it’s different when you’re ac- can feel accepted and be in the moment and just of shrinking. A funny anecdote about that song
tually with them on the street and living in their enjoy life and feel like they can look to their left is that I was going to call it ‘Struggle’ because
world and they’re telling you their stories,” she and right and feel like that person’s going to pick that’s one of the main lyrics, but then when I
says. them up if they fall in the moshpit kinda thing.” talked to my band members about it, we decided
“I’m very lucky growing up in a place that’s There’s a song called 'Rally', which is also to change it to ‘Building Castles’ because it kind
very open and welcoming in Canada. Friends an anthem or shout-out to people who need of ends more on a positive note than it just being
across all races and all sexual orientations and help, to let fans know they can join the Sumo a struggle. At the end of the day, even though
everything. That’s kind of like a message that I Cyco crew, and trying to make them feel better. we feel we’re going through the blood, sweat
hope to bring to people; that you really can’t Skye sings, “Maybe you hate going to school be- and tears type of thing, we are building some-
judge people by those exterior things.” cause they kick you when you down, the man is thing and we’re making something that we’re
We wonder if there’s a typical Sumo Cyco pushing you around, it’s nothing new, feeling super-proud of and we wouldn’t be spending all
fan. Can their fans be stereotyped at all? “That’s baby blue, come and join our crew’. Skye says that time and effort if we weren’t building some-
a really interesting question,” replies Skye. “All she’s had fans open up to her when they are thing amazing, so it is more of ‘Building Castles’
the time with marketing, we kind of run our own going through tough times. “That is one of the than a struggle.”
label so that’s the one thing everyone’s always great things I find in music and art especially, in She has found it harder being in a rock band
trying to pigeonhole, “OK, who IS your demo- our scene there is this kind of trust that these than when she was a pop singer. Looking back,
graphic and how do we reach those people the fans have for the artists or their idols in music she says, “I was just so lucky and so blessed to
best?” It is interesting because there has been where they can feel like they can tell them their be in the situation where I was pretty much
a lot of, I feel, younger generation girls and guys deepest, darkest moments and the things that taken and put onto a pedestal type thing where
SUMO CYCO