Like most inherently creative people, Tash Wolf always considered herself a bit of an introvert.

In my opinion, spending time alone is the catalyst for ideas and those who relish it often turn out to be some of the most talented people on the planet. There is something about sitting comfortably with yourself that lends itself to being able to pluck something from thin air and turn it into something beautiful. After years doing her time in Sydney’s underground music scene, Tash has gained tremendous recognition across YouTube and social media and is now releasing her debut EP Electric Blue. Think Hendrix, Prince, intricate guitar melodies and emotionally charged lyrics on love and loss. We caught up with Tash ahead of the release (listen below).

Since speaking with you last time in Issue #57 back in 2017, what has changed? 

So much! Throughout this time, I have been exploring my sound and where I wanted my project to go. I also have had so many amazing musical opportunities such as performing on stage with Bryan Adams at the ICC in Sydney and Recording with Mike Shinoda on his latest single ‘Already Over Live in Sydney.’ I have been writing with so many amazing people. It’s taught me a lot about collaboration and also the creativity I can harness in myself. I finally have a debut EP coming with plans to do a lot more in the future.

How has social media leveraged your music career?

Social media has been an amazing boost to my career, it’s given me the opportunity to directly connect with some of my heroes and be noticed for my skills and passion. It’s quite amazing that you can literally make direct contact with some of your favourite artists.

It’s given me an opportunity to build my own creative vision and profile by producing, and editing my own content. Just last October I worked with Mike Shinoda on his Live recording series of his latest single ‘Already Over.’ Mike and I connected on social media and wrote together back in 2019. 

How did you learn the guitar? Self-taught?

I had a few Guitar teachers whilst starting off, initially I started with the neighbour upstairs. He taught me some of the basic foundations and encouraged me to delve into classics like Bowie, The Beatles, The Eagles and many more. In between teachers I spent time teaching myself and learning via the internet as all modern guitarists have had the advantage of. I then approached three other teachers over my high school years as I progressed from Hendrix, my SRV and curiosity peaked into Jazz plus complex Harmony. I have fond memories of my high school band teacher who really encouraged song writing in bands and recording. I also had the opportunity to study at Sydney’s Conservatorium and graduated with a Bachelor of Music in Jazz. Throughout these formative years I was teaching myself music production and constantly writing in studios. As much as I think of myself as a Guitarist, I actually have been writing songs since I was fourteen too.

I don’t know anything about guitars, but do you have a favourite guitar to play?

I currently have a few…it’s so hard to narrow down one as I usually will go to different Guitars for different tones and feel. My Oopegg Trailbreaker is a brilliantly crafted guitar from Japan. Strandberg make some of the most ergonomic and fun guitars to play live, they look super cool too. I love surprising people with a headless guitar and playing bluesy/jazzy solo tones. I finally got my hands on the St Vincent guitar and wow, it’s just the coolest looking guitar!

How would you describe your music? Do you think you fit into a genre? 

I think any artist constantly feels the more they create they get closer to their art or finding their sound. I think you can certainly hear tones of Blues, Rock and Pop in my music. But I’d like to think it’s unique to me and my perspective/approach is what makes it utterly myself. It encapsulates intricate guitar melodies with a diverse vocal range, emotional lyrics of love and loss with an appealing, modern edge.

Where, outside of music, do you draw inspiration from?

I love to draw inspiration from travel, reading books, great movies, walking and exploring places by foot, escaping somewhere new for a weekend, thought provoking conversations, I love to express myself through fashion and clothes that I wear.

What would your advice be to someone who wants to learn the guitar?

I would say if you love it will lead you somewhere. I’ve learnt that people learn for all different reasons, and it can bring freedom of expression. I truly feel grateful that I can use it to navigate my own voice, a constant exploration that will be ever changing. The key is to keep learning, never stop teaching yourself new things and learning from others. 

Tell us about this EP Electric Blue?

It’s my debut EP, the writing process itself I worked on over a few months. But leading up to the EP I was exploring a lot of writing combinations, directions and sounds for a couple years. I knew when I hit the song Electric Blue which was a collaboration with Nigel Hemmye and Anderson Rocio that the song had something special in it. I continued to have the same experience with the songs I was writing, I thoroughly enjoyed the collaboration and the demos we wrote already sounded so close to the original. The song started to feel like something I’d want to listen to, sing and play on my instrument. I just wanted to have fun with this EP and hope it resonates with youthful feelings of love and loss. I think each song is distinctive on the EP whilst exploring different moods and experiences. Some more playful and other tracks are sentimental.  

What do you do when you’re experiencing a creative block? Are there times when the music just doesn’t come to you?

I have a really good relationship with music for my project now where I can create when I feel inspired. I think there are times when if you feel pressure or creative exhaustion you can have those creative blocks. I think taking a break when you feel is necessary or making sure you keep showing up even if the music isn’t there. Sometimes we can be over critical of our work, so taking a break and listening back to music kind of puts things in perspective. Collaboration is a great way to keep things interesting and new. I have really found a lot of value in this. I write my own lyrics, melodies and guitar ideas constantly, sometimes it becomes a song, good practice or inspires something else. I try to sit and develop ideas even if things aren't flowing immediately, knowing that they will shape into an idea or concept.

Listen to Tash’s new song Electric Blue here.