Alice Limoges is truly a breath of fresh air on a crisp autumn day for which I’m always happy to stumble upon. After giving her latest release ‘The Space Between’ a listen, I felt like I was suddenly swept away, walking along the beach where I instantly spotted something shiny and shimmering amongst all the grains of sand. The lead off single ‘Your Skin On My Sheets’ is induced with all the same feelings and emotions as This Mortal Coil or Dead Can Dance…yet Alice Limoges still pulls of a uniqueness that is all her own. The later tracks are tinged with more of a folky feel like Fiona Apple or K.D. Lang. ‘The Space Between’ is an emotionally charged collection of songs that you can easily pull up a blanket by the fire with as you turn the pages of your favorite book.
Originally from the coast of Maine, Alice Limoges is a multi-instrumentalist as well as a singer-songwriter. Her passion for music began at a very young age leading up to her first release, ‘Not Gonna Fall Asleep Tonight’, at just 16 years old. “Singing always came naturally to me. I have memories of going to this brunch at a hotel sometimes with my family where there was a pianist and going up and asking to sing with him when I was super tiny.”
She has performed extensively across NYC and the northeast, including festivals (Keene Music Festival, Keene, NH; The Campfire Festival, Cambridge, MA; Belfast Free Range Festival, Belfast, ME), colleges (Columbia University, Hamilton College, SUNY New Paltz, SUNY Purchase), and other legendary venues such as Rockwood Music Hall (NYC), PIANOS (NYC), The Bowery Electric (NYC), Club Passim (Boston), and Cafe Nine (New Haven). (alicelimoges.com)
Torched Magazine is pleased to have had to opportunity to talk with Alice about some of her more meaningful experiences with music and starting off at such a young age, her latest release ‘The Space Between’, and a little advice for musicians who are just starting out…plus more…
TM – Taking music lessons has been one of your greatest joys in life. What are some of your most meaningful experiences with this?
AL – I’ve always enjoyed learning new things and gradually getting better. All of my teachers have really helped me grow as a writer. My first guitar teacher, Martin Gibson, (what a name, right?) would write down the names of tons of musicians I’d never heard of all over my lesson notes. Being exposed to new music was (and is!) really fun. Now I take voice lessons and piano lessons with two masterful teachers, Amy Goldstein and Charles Blenzig. She is an opera singer and we’ve done an aria as well as working on my own stuff. He’s exposed me to gospel and New Orleans blues. I just love it. It’s kind of funny, because now I’m a private music teacher when I’m not recording and performing and I get to see the other end, how it builds self confidence and how infectious it is to watch yourself get better when you put in the work.
TM – You’ve been a musician from a very young age, even releasing your first record at 16. When and where did it all start for you?
AL – Singing always came naturally to me. I have memories of going to this brunch at a hotel sometimes with my family where there was a pianist and going up and asking to sing with him when I was super tiny. Shortly thereafter, I got involved in musical theater. I think I was about 8 when I did my first show, Oliver, where I was an orphan. I kept doing shows at the local community theater pretty much every summer and then once we started having musicals in middle and high school, I did those too. Even before I played guitar, I was making up songs. I remember getting a tape recorder and making up a whole album about horses with my neighbor.
TM – Who or what are some of your creative influences?
AL – There’ve been so many things that have inspired me. Some of my favorite musicians are Sufjan Stevens, Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey, The Beatles, Stravinsky, Debussy, and Chet Baker. So I’m all over the place. I also get inspired a lot by art and love walking around galleries and museums in New York City when I get the chance. Stories and current events also inspire me. One song which I haven’t released is called Rosie and it’s about JFK’s sister, Rosemarie Kennedy, having a lobotomy forced upon her by her dad. A few of my songs are more political, about Syria and the Black Lives Matter Movements. And of course the majority of my songs are about my own life and relationships.
TM – Do you have any hobbies outside of music that help to rejuvenate your creativity?
AL – Oh, I have tons of hobbies. Lately, I’ve been really enjoying making collages and painting as well as reading. I read every day and went to the library recently and now there’s a stack of books about a foot high next to my bed. The environment keeps me up at night and I’m trying to get active in my community to see what we can do to get more green. I also have two sweet cats, Sufjan Cat Stevens and Louie CK Limoges, who keep me entertained. I actually teach Sufjan tricks. (Clearly I have too much time on my hands…) I also love running, yoga, and being a vegan, which somehow is a diet and a hobby at the same time.
TM – What kind of advice would you give to a newer musician who is just starting out?
AL – Make music you love. And practice, but try to take pleasure in it instead of stressing yourself out and making it into a chore that’s not fun. Music is a lifelong journey and you’ve only begun.
TM – ‘The Space Between’ is an emotionally charged album, is there a common thread that weaves it altogether?
AL – There are a few exceptions, but for the most part the songs are about battling depression. The ones that aren’t are still dark and about some kind of loss, like Aleppo and Red Cigar. Your Skin On My Sheets is the only song that’s pure and doesn’t hint at some sort of sadness.
TM – Do you have any plans for live shows? If so, when and where?
AL – Yes, I have a lot of shows coming up!
September 26 – Sunnyvale in Brooklyn with Cherry
September 27 – Silvana in Harlem w/ Lo Jones, Greta Keating, and Sara Donnellan https://www.facebook.com/events/1278135352314492
September 29 – Hastings Tea in White Plains, Ny 6-7:30
October 13 – Landmark College in VT
October 21 – Root Cellar at Bard College
October 27 – Silvana Harlem Spooky Halloween show with Itamar, Strawberry Blonde, and Cherry
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