Krea
Interview conducted on September 14, 2022
by Dan Locke
No stranger to the Irish music scene having released two no. 1 albums as one third of indie band Wyvern Lingo, and collaborated with household Irish names such as Denise Chaila and Hozier on his debut album duet, ‘In AWeek’, Karen Cowley now presents her first solo project under the moniker, Krea (pronounced ‘Kree-ah’).
Her first offering, September Sun, is a warm, piano and harp lead track. With heavy nods to the Carole King’s Tapestry, September Sun places the songwriting and intimate vocals at the forefront.
What was your up bring like?
I grew up in a seaside town called Bray, right at the foot of the Wicklow Mountains, a really beautiful part of Ireland. I’m the youngest of 4, so I talk fast and eat even faster.
How did you discover music?
My Mum’s side are very musical and would play a lot of Irish traditional music and folk music that I’d have been exposed to as a young child. My parents both love music and encouraged us all from a young age to sing and play. They also had a big CD collection, essential for long drives.
How did you start to write music?
I remember starting to write songs at about 10 at the piano. Both instrumental bits and poems I’d write melodies for. When I was 11, I met my two best friends who became my bandmates in Wyvern Lingo. We wrote songs together all the time and played as much as we could.
How was it to go to Berklee College?
An incredible experience. Looking back, I was so young – it was quite the culture shock for me landing in Boston at 17. I met so many wonderful musicians from all over the world, some of whom I’m still good friends with. The tuition I got in those weeks really stuck with me, and gave me so much confidence in my career.
How did you start Wyvern Lingo?
See above! We went from writing songs together to performing, then we got a publishing and record deal in 2015 and made 2 records that we’re very proud of, and toured a lot!
What was your first performance like?
I don’t think I remember my first performance…I was always getting up and singing for people: for family, in school, at Mass, in performing arts groups etc. I do remember the absolute thrill of singing in front of people as a child though, I was totally addicted to it.
Why did you decide to go solo?
the last few years. Wyvern Lingo has always been heavily collaborative which is a wonderful thing itself, but, naturally, there was a side to me that wanted to write from the heart without too much limitation. Writing and recording solo has been really liberating for me so far, if a little lonely at times.I’ve always written songs that the band and I agreed weren’t for Wyvern Lingo, but this started to happen more and more over
Why did you pick Krea as your moniker?
There is one romantic reason and two practical reasons. Romantic: It’s a slight tip of the hat to the Irish word for heart, which is croí (cree). Practical: No one ever spells my surname, Cowley, correctly, and it’s a terrible time to be called Karen on the internet!
What makes a good songwriter?
Hmm for me it’s all about storytelling and creating something that resonates with people, be it a sentiment or a melody.
What was the title of your first original song? Did you record it?
I vividly remember writing a song about waves which I called “Energy of the Sea”, a title I stole from a bottle of perfume called ‘Inis’. I was about 10. No recording exists, thank God.
What is the process of writing your music?
In general, a melody or lyric idea will spark something, and I’ll have to get to an instrument asap to try and tease it out. The lyrics always take time so I just write a shape of them first and let the melody inform them where possible. Then, when I sit at a piano or harp, the chords I go for can sometimes change the melody or song structure. As soon as possible I try to record a rough demo that I push and pull at for a while, adding bits to the arrangement and production ideas.
How has it been working with Hozier?
Lovely and always fun. He’s a very old friend, and I really admire his work ethic and dedication to the process.
Tell me about “September Sun”?
September Sun is about overcoming grief. Going through it yourself and watching those you love go through it. I started writing it last September on an impromptu sailing trip off the west coast of France, near Nantes. It was a day where the fog of grief lifted for a moment and things felt good again. It’s about holding onto the good days in anticipation of the bad. We recorded piano, vocals, drums and bass live together in one take to try to get a really relaxed, warm and sunny feel.
In 2020, the band (Wyvern Lingo) were part of an Irish collective of female singers and musicians called “Irish Women in Harmony”, that recorded a version of the song “Dreams” in aid of the charity Safe Ireland, which deals with domestic abuse which had reportedly risen significantly during the COVID-19 lockdown. How did you became part of this?
Erica Cody (an excellent Irish singer) reached out to me online and I jumped at the opportunity. All of the women in the collective are brilliant musicians, writers and producers, it was a pleasure to be part of and Safe Ireland are a charity I will always support.
What is your feeling about TikTok? With Sony Music and Warner Music strucking an “expanded” global licensing agreement with Universal Music Group. Now that TikTok is now fully licensed by all three major record companies, They say create content content content. How does pre-save help with content
I honestly don’t know- I guess it comes up immediately on peoples’ Spotify when the song is released and creates a bit of hype or something..? The content game can be really mind numbing, I try only to do things on socials that I think are fun and creative.
Anything you would like to say in closing.
Thanks for having me! Hopefully I’ll get to the US before too long.
