CHIRP Radio writesCHIRP Radio Q&A With Ghost Days (Performing at CHIRP Night at the Whistler on 6/30)

Chicago artist Alessia Kato of Ghost Days will perform at CHIRP Night at the Whistler on Sunday June 30th. We recently caught up with Alessia to ask a few questions…

So...What’s going on? Tell us about your current releases and/or upcoming shows (such as CHIRP Night at the Whistler!).

Hello! We’ve been doing well, keeping busy playing some shows and working on new music-we’re going to be releasing an  EP/short album later this year.  We recently released a single called "vampire blu." I had a lot of fun writing this song and bringing it to life.

We’re looking forward to our next show for CHIRP radio at the Whistler with the amazing Desert Liminal! I’ve been a huge fan of theirs for a while now, so it’s going to be really special.

How do you go about turning your thoughts, ideas, and feelings into sounds?

I guess I have a very fluid and organic process.  It might start off with just playing around on guitar or synth and then adding on to it.  Sometimes it might start with a drum beat and then I just sort of jam to it and then something will form out of that.

I hear melodies in my head all day and a lot of times I’ll try to get them out and find the right lyrics that express the feelings of what I’m hearing inside.

If your music was a kind of beer, ice cream, or coffee (take your pick), what would it taste like?

I would have to say it would be some kind of coffee haha. I love coffee so much! It would definitely be sweet yet have some bitterness to it, kind of like dark chocolate.  Most of our music is very bittersweet so it seems fitting!

Do you have any particular or unexpected influences? Are any other artists or bands catching your attention at the moment?

I have so many influences, it would take forever to list haha! I’d have to say a lot of artists and bands that I’m friends with and have played shows with have really been inspiring me! Johnny Dynamite and the Bloodsuckers, CD Ghost, Future Nobodies, Flowerbabe, Heels, Cool Heat, Still Ruins, Blake Davis, Secret Attraction, there are so many more to name but these are just a few!

If you couldn’t make music or be involved with music, what would you be doing right now?

Most likely something coffee related.  I already work in coffee as well, but I would probably be doing a lot more of it and be working in different areas of it.

What is it about Chicago that pleases you?

I really love Chicago! I moved here about 6 years ago from Miami and it’s been my favorite city I’ve moved to. I think it has a great balance of being a big city, but also  a smaller city vibe to it which is nice.

The music scene here is the best!  I’ve been so lucky to meet so many cool and awesome people through music and it’s been so much fun and fulfilling to be a part of this community.  

What’s the dumbest thing you’ve ever done in a basement?

I haven’t really spent much time in basements so nothing comes to mind!

If you were someone’s life coach, what are the top 2 life lessons you’d teach them?

This is a hard one, but I think keeping an open mind and an open heart would be two life lessons that mean a lot to me.  Keeping a sense of openness has really helped me navigate through life and I think it could help anyone else too.