One on One with Shaheena Dax and Will Crewdson of She Made Me Do It

After getting to know Shaheena and Will better through their interview you really get the sense these two are artists under multiple layers that have combined their perspectives to create a sound and projection distinctly their own. This is music and art that only comes through when it is measured by experience and a passion to create. She Made Me Do It is a story to tell.

All In: If you had to choose your all-time favorite album and write a review of it, who would it be?

Will Crewdson: Depeche Mode – Black Celebration

All In: What makes this album is one of your favorite albums?

Will Crewdson: The first time I’d heard something so dark yet so accessible. It’s “pop” but it has themes of death, subversive sex and despondency running right through it. Perfect for the angst-ridden teenager.

All In: Is this an album you own? If so, when did you purchase it? If not, why haven’t you?

Will Crewdson: I bought it the day it came out.

All In: Did the time period in which the music was created influence your music style? How did it?

Will Crewdson: It was the first time I realized the power of sampling and how heavy you could make music sound with a predominantly synth-based sound. Even the catchier singles like ‘A Question of Time’ really slammed. The fact that very little guitar is in use to create any of the robust production is a true testament to this.

All In: Do you find the influences from your favorite album in this current project?

Will Crewdson: I think the general mentality of songwriting found in this album always influences me. The most inspiring element is the way you feel something is quite familiar – say, a chord progression – and then there’s always that little twist to warp it into something original. Martin Gore uses this trick so well and it’s very inspiring.

All In: Would this favorite album be a band or artist you would like to perform with if you had a chance?

Will Crewdson: We’d die happy if we supported Depeche Mode.

All In: You just recently released the video for “Bones”, can you tell us about the meaning behind the words and the scene in the video. Who did you work with on its development, where was it filmed, etc?

Shaheena Dax: It’s a song about intense sexual attraction.

I imagined a dark tale of obsession and delusion on a foggy London night outside a disreputable nightclub.

Our ‘Bones’ video directed by Duncan Catterall is the first one to establish our live set up – Will on guitar, Joe Holweger on drums and myself on bass. There’s a subtle underlying tale of obsession within it as well.

We’ve now collaborated with Duncan on many of our videos and we filmed this one at Unit 2 studios in Acton Town.

We’ve just filmed a video for ‘Broken Morning’ with Duncan in a beautifully lit old Georgian building – it’s being edited just now.

All In: How does the EP, Drenched, as a whole represents who each of you are as a band.

Shaheena Dax : Will and I write all the songs together and our new EP ‘Drenched’ is filled with cool riffs, dark melodies, and big choruses – all the things we like. The lyrics are influenced by the books I read, the films I see, and the world I observe.

All In: Who is She Made Me Do It and describe its concept?

Shaheena Dax: ‘She Made Me Do It’ is myself on vocals and bass, Will on guitar and vocals.

We also have Joe Holweger on drums as part of our live setup.

We are Electronic Rock.

All In: Who designed your cover art and how you connected with them.

Shaheena Dax: The cool artwork is a collaboration with Jeff Conway at Pushingnormal – we’ve been working with him for a while as he really understands the band and is so talented. He worked with us on the artwork for our last album ‘The Frantic Legion’, did an amazing animated video for our song ‘Frantic’ and designed cool T-shirt’s for us as well.

All In: How important do you feel it is to have a cohesiveness between the sound of the music, the lyrics, the artwork, the video/film work especially today?

Shaheena Dax: I love film and that’s why we shoot so many videos – I love collaborating and developing the visual ideas of the songs. We’re both happy with how this EP has come together – the music, the visuals, the artwork – I think it has all fallen perfectly into place.

All In: What is your go-to format to listen to music? Digital, Vinyl, Radio, CD, etc?

Will Crewdson: As I travel a lot it comes down to mainly digital format. I do like to properly download new albums I get into rather than just stream.

Interview by Sarah Johnson

She Made Me Do It
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