08.28.13
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Singer/songwriter Amel Larrieux, half of the chart-topping 90s duo Groove Theory, is set to release a solo album during the fall.
It will be her first studio album in six years. Titled Ice Cream Everyday, her latest musical offering will be released via BlissLife Records, an independent company founded by Larrieux and her husband. We caught up with the songstress to talk about her new album, her two teenage daughters’ musical talents and if we can expect a Groove Theory reunion.
It’s been six years since your last album, what made you decide that right now was the time to put out new music?
Well, we’re not exactly ecstatic that it’s taken this long to put out new music. That wasn’t the plan, but this is the time that everything came together. This is the right group of songs. I’m always on the road with my band, so I’ve had the chance to try out a lot of the new material and tinker with it. I’m fortunate that I have some very nice supporters who will come up to me after the show and give me detailed feedback on what they liked or didn’t like. It’s all very useful and it’s part of the process.
Being able to take your time and massage your music until it’s where you want it must be a perk of going the independent route instead of being on a major label.
It’s kind of the same. I’ve learned that I have pressure either way, whether I’m on a major label or on an indie. I don’t want to pressure myself and not have new product to put out on a regular basis, but that’s how it happens sometimes and sometimes I want a punch card.
I want to put in some hours and be done for the day. But then, I think about the years I spent unhappy that my destiny was in the hands of other people, sometimes people I didn’t even know and I didn’t feel like my process and artistry were being respected. I wouldn’t go back to that for anything and my musical fate is in my own hands now.
How did you come up with the title Ice Cream Everyday?
I was having a day of crappiness and I told my husband “I wish I could have ice cream everyday” and my husband immediately said “That’s the title of the album!” But what’s really funny is that I found out that I’m lactose intolerant during the making of this album, so all that talk of ice cream and couldn’t have any anymore.
About six years ago, I started a practice of meditation, a yogic way of life. I learned to just be here. Be present. I began doing meditation because everything was making me anxious. I’m so thin-skinned. Any little thing could send me over the edge. So, Ice Cream Everyday, took on a different meaning. I had to go find my personal bliss. The title is a reminder for everybody to take a moment and stop and say “I deserve to have this one thing that makes me happy. “
What’s the feel of this album? Your first single “Afraid” is out now. Is that the sound people can expect for this album?
The Lovely Standards album is really the only album that had a theme. My own albums tend to have an un-formulaic formula. The only predictably is that it’s music that I really feel. I consider myself to be a songwriter first. So my music pulls from all aspects of life. I pull from everything around me, maybe even to a fault. A friend of mine said that artists tend to be categorized as so sensitive because we’re like sponges taking in everything around us and I agree with that.
The musical landscape has changed a lot since your Groove Theory debut in the early 1990s, how have you managed to keep up with all of the numerous changes?
In the late 90s/early 200s, the label I was on had no sense of the weight of the Internet. But fortunately, I’ve always had my husband who is also my manager and he has his hand in everything. He understands how decisions will impact my career as well as me personally and us as a family. One thing effects another and us and me. He knew I needed to be connected to the audience, so he’s always made sure that I’ve had an online presence. He’s the business guy. I do the creative stuff.
The Internet has leveled the playing field in a sense so that everything and everyone is more accessible That’s great! There are pros and cons, but that’s how life works. You are constantly needing to change and adapt. I always say that if I didn’t have him next to me, I wouldn’t be here doing what I’m doing. At a certain point, your talent is a small percentage of what contributes to your ultimate success. If you don’t have that team behind you, you’re non-existent in this industry. My husband has done a really great job. I’m so grateful for him. We’ve been married for 20 years.
How do you and your husband balance your personal relationship and raising your two daughters and handling the business side?
It’s not easy, but the meditation has been key for me. I had to really understand that stuff is going to happen. I have to just be in it with a little grace and a little level headedness. There’s no way to turn things off. The personal side and the business side spill into each other.
We’re opinionated and passionate. In the end it’s about the level of respect you have for each other and respect for the other person’s craft and skill. Real life stuff happens and you have to roll with it and not fall apart. We’re still alive and haven’t killed each other, so that counts for something.
Your older daughter is in your band. Is that working out?
Skye is 18 and she’s amazing. She’s plays keyboard, she’s a background singer and she’s basically my musical director. I don’t know what I would do without her. She also produces. She can do a whole song by herself right there on the computer. Her album is in the works and we’ll be here to make sure the wolves don’t get at her. Her little sister Sanji is 14 and she plays drums and is very into musical theater. She also loves volleyball. She’s not sure yet if she wants music to be a career. I support them in whatever they love to do. It’s shocking how good their voices are.
I get chocked up every time I hear them and it’s not just because I’m their mom. There’s that ping in the heart that you get when you know you’re hearing a great talent. And I always say those girls are not mine. They are the universe’s children. I am a vessel that they came through but I’m just watching these these incredible miracles like everyone else.
That’s beautiful. You have an album on the way and your daughter has an album in the works. Any chance there could be a new Groove Theory album?
Bryce and I have performed together over the past few years. It’s always love when we work together. He’s been pursuing his film career, so he’s busy with that and I’m on the road often. But one day, sure. A new Groove Theory album could happen.
Amel Larrieux’s new album Ice Cream Everyday will be available on iTunes and on the BlissLife website on October 1, 2013. The single “Afraid” is available now.
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Just put the album out already 
