The Velveteers' Demi Demitro reflects on the long road to the creation of their dynamic and raw sophomore album, out February 14 via Easy Eye Sound.
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They say that if you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life. But what happens when that thing you love becomes more work than you thought it would be? This is a predicament that The Velveteers found themselves in following the release of their debut album ‘Nightmare Daydream’ back in 2021. Since their inception in 2014, all the band wanted was to make the creation of art their primary focus, a heady fantasy that consumes every young music fanatic. And when their debut started hitting all the right notes, that dream quickly went into overdrive. From playing shows with Guns N Roses and Smashing Pumpkins in stadiums to taking their scuzzy brand of timeless rock and roll around the world, this was everything that had ever wanted and then some. But for vocalist Demi Demitro, the reality of life as an artist was much more draining than she ever anticipated.
“There are days when I wake up and feel bogged down by things you never thought you would have to do in this industry,” she sighs. “When you first start, you aren’t dreaming about what will be hard. You’re just playing a show with three people there, and it feels like the biggest deal. My teenage self would be freaking out over everything we are doing now, but there are so many things – admin, none-stop touring, sending emails – that you have to deal with when all you want to do is make art. That’s not always possible now.”
The reality is that there was a whole two-year period where Demi didn’t have the time to write any music or even consider what their sophomore full-length could be. So, when the band, completed by dual drummers Baby Pottersmith and Jonny Fig, found a second to catch their breath and plot their next move, there was only one thing that they felt they could write about. That’s where ‘A Million Knives’ comes from, a sharp, scintillating and sensationally stark look at the reality of how much getting everything you ever wanted can hurt. Emotionally brash, timelessly fierce and unquenchably raw, it The Velveteers at their most fluid and frank, taking a step up whilst also taking stock of what it has taken for them to get here.
“The biggest theme of this album is me talking about heartbreak in different ways. I’m not usually the person to write about personal things, but it was just bound to happen in this case. But despite that, it was also important to make sure that we were aware of all of the cool things that have happened to get us here and not take that for granted. I constantly have to keep myself in check, getting that balance just right.”
To dive deeper into what has given ‘A Million Knives’ its edge, Rock Sound sat down with Demi and peeled the layers back on every aspect of it…
THE SOUND
Until now, The Velveteers have tried to keep things as classic as possible. ‘Nightmare Daydream’ was a record tracked almost completely live, with minimal tinkering in the aftermath. Pulling inspiration from the greats that had come before them, that reflected in the spaces where they also found themselves playing those songs, attracting a crowd that felt like the best music there had already been made. However, when it came to thinking about what they wanted to channel on ‘A Million Knives’, they were more open-minded about what they wanted to create. Perhaps that is partly down to being unable to write as extensively and consistently as they had become accustomed to. Or it could be a reaction to what they had seen and heard while out in the world. Whatever it was, Demi wasn’t approaching this new with any confidence, so maybe a creative clean slate was needed.
“I feel the best when I am consistently writing and able to exercise that part of me. In being unable to do that, I felt pretty insecure going into things. But, saying that, we also went in wanting our creativity to find its way to us. That meant we got to mess around a lot. We gave ourselves the freedom to do whatever felt right. That went from playing around with more modern production styles to working with more drum machines than we are used to. We wanted to be more experimental than we were used to. Being open was a big goal.”
And that openness can be felt in just how vast the sonic spectrum of these songs stretches. ‘On And On’ flitters between sassy and savage like it’s second nature, whilst ‘Moonchild’ sways into psychedelic waters with reckless abandon. Then there’s the sickly sweet ‘Suck The Cherry’ and gritty ‘See Your Face’ sauntering into the heaviest waters the trio have ever dipped their toes, whilst ‘Take it From The Top’ feels like Weezer at their most self-deprecating. It’s an expansion and a refinement of all the things that make The Velveteers tick at the same time. It was only possible because they allowed themselves the space to continue being exactly who they wanted to be and not let anyone else’s possible vision of them stop them from doing that.
“We’re never trying to listen to someone else who says, ‘You need to sound like this’ or, ‘You should do that’,” Demi continues. “Sometimes, it’s really hard to ignore the people who are talking like that. But when you’ve been working on something, tried loads of different versions, and then it feels just right, it makes all that doubt and worry worth it. When it works, there is no better feeling.”
THE COLLABORATORS
Though there were some limitations on what the trio were actually able to get on tape following their freewheeling experimentation, it didn’t stop their producer, Dan Auerbach, from attempting to embody as much of it as he could. Signed to his label Easy Eye Sound and working out of his custom-built studio in Nashville, TN, the band are also very much intertwined with the world of Dan’s band, The Black Keys, known for pushing the envelope of rock and roll in their own unique ways over the last two and half decades. So, despite having a set-up that better suited the pursuit of ‘Nightmare Daydream’ – traditional, vintage, timeless – knowing that he has a knack for trying new things helped Demi, Baby and Jonny feel more comfortable playing with their own status quo.
“There is a whole vibe around everything Dan does with Easy Eye Sound, and he only works with artists he is truly passionate about,” Demi explains. “It’s cool being in the studio with him, too, because you can see all that passion in play. You see him pull something from mid-air or see things he makes go from one form to another so quickly. And though he does have a very set way that he likes to do and record things, knowing that he was happy to mess around in the same way we were to try and see exactly what we could achieve felt really special.”
Finding that balance takes time, but knowing that the time spent working towards it is in the presence of someone who believes in your band as much as you do makes all the difference. And when Dan invited his bandmate Patrick Carney to join the fun in writing, co-producing and playing on the quaint ‘Go Fly Away’, one of the most out-there moments on the whole of ‘A Million Knives’, it only further cemented that vital sense of belief between band and team.
“Having that sort of support system, of people who have been doing things like this for a long time, is really special. It’s easy to get in your head when you’re in the thick of making something you care about. It’s easy to overthink things, and having Dan and Patrick there to bring us back around was really helpful.”
THE LYRICS
Though heartbreak is often associated with relationships and loss of love, the heartbreak Demi states has weaved throughout ‘A Million Knives’ comes from a much more personal and private place. It is heartbreak caused by the changing of expectation, of the innocence lost when things become more serious, of realising that the grass is as green as you hoped it would be, it doesn’t stay that way forever. It is heartbreak brought on by grieving the version of yourself you thought you would be whilst living out your dreams. It’s heartbreak that leads towards anger more than sadness. It is a cocktail of unexpected emotions, all brought on by learning that being an artist, unfortunately, isn’t just all about the art.
“I found that what I was writing about was me going through the different stages of grief,” Demi describes. “I was grieving certain things about myself that I never expected to. Innocence lost is a good way to describe it. Feeling like I lost my innocence of absolutely loving making music and art. From a young age it was something that I just loved doing, and then now having to be in a position where it is a job for me. I’m lucky I get to do it as a job, of course, but it comes with all of these things that I didn’t really think about.”
One such aspect is perception and the way that others perceive you. Finding themselves in different spaces than they were probably anticipating performing in, in front of completely different audiences than they were possibly used to, opens up new, and not always welcome, paths of discussion about the band. As a female-led non-binary and queer band, the path towards acceptance and compassion in the rock world is regrettably not as smooth as it should be, and the heartbreak and grief plastered throughout these songs reflects learning that truly unfair fact.
Yet despite everything that has triggered such a sour taste, that doesn’t take away from the fact that these songs are born from shared experiences. Incredible things have taken place to allow the band to do the things that they have done together. They have seen the world together, felt joy and wonderment together, learned hard lessons together, and will look to the future together as well. They have hurt together, and they will heal together, and to be able to represent that in the words that she writes is just as crucial to Demi as expressing the hardships.
“I think that feeling seeps into the songs in an unconscious way. Because the three of us do so much together, it’s bound to be in the music and show through like that. That’s the beautiful thing about being an artist: when you write something, you process it differently from how you experienced it. For me, it feels healing. As hard as this album was, it was really healing for me. Every little moment on it has a little piece of my heart within them.”
THE TITLE AND ARTWORK
Initially, ‘Bound In Leather’ was the name set to umbrella these songs, pulled from the sultry piece that sits proudly in the track four position, and that was the first song to be brought to life for the whole project. The truth is that ‘A Million Knives’ as a title and a song didn’t even make the first cut, instead sitting as an unrecorded idea from the 30 different ideas they had going in. It was only after listening back to the masters, feeling like something was missing and returning to Nashville that Demi realised just how vital those three words were to what this album ultimately represented. Those millions of sharp points, digging into you from all angles, are the perfect personification of what it means to pursue a life of creativity.
“It was quite a few years ago when I first wrote the line, ‘A million knives to my heart, some people call it art’. But there was something about it that felt like the best way to describe what it feels like to be an artist. In the last couple of years, I had really felt and resonated with that even more. You have this beautiful in front of you that brings you so much joy and passion but then there are all these little pieces that come with it that are stabbing you in the heart. It’s also what the process of making this album felt like as well, so it was just the right thing to do in naming it.”
Amazingly the cover art was also shot before ‘A Million Knives’ was recorded as well. A shot of Demi laying on a mattress, with a plethora of swords heading for her from all angles, it’s a pretty violent and blunt embodiment of a feeling. But in reality, the mattress was used as more of a tribute than anything else. It belonged to Demi’s grandmother, inherited from her after she passed away, and serves as one of many personal easter eggs littered throughout the record as a commendation of her. From the pearls Demi is wearing to the sound of music boxes featured throughout the record, these are reminders that within the chaos of artistry, those back home who have supported you will always be there to pull you through.
“She was definitely very supportive,” Demi smiles. “She could never quite believe that we would be going on tour. I would tell her we were travelling to Boston to play, and she couldn’t believe that we would be going that far. She would get super worried. Very sweet things, you know? She was my best friend growing up. She always had a big part in my creativity, and it felt right to have so many of those pieces of her throughout the album.”
THE FUTURE
Considering just how much did following the release of ‘Nightmare Daydream’, there’s a great chance that the trail that follows ‘A Million Knives’ is going to be just as fantastical for The Velveteers. There’s a lot of excitement that comes with that for Demi, and though the process of conceptualising and creating this collection of songs came with difficulties, the fact they managed to keep it true to them is what will also linger most prominently for her from this period in the band’s story.
Every experience, every realisation, every hardship and every hurdle – it all plays its part in the band’s story. And though we are only just getting started on this chapter, Demi is already looking forward to looking back on this time in the near and distant future.
“I like to look at these albums as diaries of certain times in our career. I can go back and look at one of my diaries from when I was 12, and it might be cringy and stupid, but it is still a part of me. And at the time, it was the most important thing in the world. When you have things that happen that are really difficult to navigate, it teaches me more than anything that I do want and what I want moving forwards. The last four years of my life have been huge for that and huge for me knowing that this is what I want, and these are the people I want around for me. With those two things, I feel like anything is possible.”
