Using the notes from my planning, I created this article in a similar style to the Corrine Bailey Rae article.
Eloise Smith:
She’s been hiding away in the comfort of the interweb for 5 years, only surfacing for air and a little community fun. Will this independent artist be able to spread her music by word of mouth alone?
This year, Bath has the privilege of Eloise Smith opening the summer festival. She has always preferred to sit back and enjoy this time of year, keeping her musical talents at home, but with the sun casting down a spotlight for her, she has decided to take up the challenge.
We met in a tiny, softly lit coffee shop, just down a path from the main shops in the centre of Bath. A smaller ice cream shop sits opposite, a little to the left, but no noise can be heard other than the muffled bustle from the cobbled paths. A strangely pure scent of coffee beans reaches my nose, different to the Costa scent; it’s more refreshing. Eloise declares this is one of the reasons she loves it here: ‘I’ve been coming here for years! All through secondary school, this would be the place I would come and write songs rather than doing homework. It’s such a natural and inspiring place.’
Eloise Smith, usually referred to as ‘Éloise’, has been a member and contributor of MySpace since she was 16 and recorded her first track in her bedroom on a Saturday afternoon with the sounds of a hoover and a cat meowing evident in the background. ‘Getting some peace and quiet when you have 2 little brothers is a tad difficult; us singers just have to make do!’ ‘Bonjour’ was released on Myspace, her #2 hangout (after this coffee shop) and was greatly received by other experimental artists and newcomers. This led to her other culturally inspired tracks to create her very first album ‘Footsteps’ which was sold for 5 quid on Amazon.
‘I loved creating that album. The songs sum up my childhood, travelling around Europe with my parents. Grandmère originally came from France and we visit her all the time, hence the French inspired lyrics.’ She smiles at the memory of her Grandmother and takes a sip from her hazelnut latte. Today, Eloise is sporting her very natural, quirky style with a flattering, patterned flowing dress and scuffed, tan, oxford flats (both of which look vintage). Her short brown hair waves at her shoulders and her face holds an expression of delight. ‘I’m so excited for today! These festivals are so fun; I will have two or three performances all around town!’
The Bath festival takes place over 3 days, all over the centre. A stage is set up outside the cathedral in the square, stalls line the streets and the parks are filled with more stages and picnic goers. There are different events on throughout the day and all of Bath’s talents come to surface. Music is a very large part of this and many new artists give it a go, whilst top artists are called to perform. As Eloise has been living in Bath for so long, she is asked every year if she would perform, but has always refused ‘I was always so used to sitting back and enjoying the music, I wanted to keep my music online. Though I knew people liked it there, it’s different performing in front of people you consider to be your family’.
As she continues to inform me about her childhood in Bath, a delightful sound reached my ears, accompanied with a soft, trippy beat. Eloise laughs and blushes slightly: ‘They must have seen me come in. They have personally asked for some of my more lounge style tracks to play in here. It’s really flattering, but also quite embarrassing when I’m in here.’ Eloise creates all her own music, playing her own instruments and using her beloved keyboard to play out her initial ideas and record, and her guitar to perform. As she sits opposite, she has her guitar propped up beside her: ‘I could never leave it in the hands of someone else. If it ever broke or was lost, I don’t know what I would do… we have been through so much!’
Glancing at her worn watch, she starts, realising that it is almost time for her to perform. ‘I get so nervous before performing! It takes me an hour or so to calm down’. She firmly places her guitar under her arm and gestures for me to follow her out of the coffee shop. She pauses at the door, saying her goodbyes to the owner and is informed that they will be there to support her later. ‘Everyone around here is so supportive and friendly. I’d never have been able to last this long’.
Her first performance is on the small stage set up by the cathedral. Picnic blankets are laid out, festival goers lounging around, waiting for the show to begin. Eloise makes her way up onto the stage, setting up her beloved instrument and chatting to a young man with a keyboard. She sees my confused expression and chuckles, explaining to me as I wait by the side of the stage. ‘This is Mark. He’s an amazing pianist and has been wanting to perform for ages and asked if he could help me out. Of course I agreed, I’ve been performing alone for so long, a collab with someone is great!’ She glances behind her again, and leans towards me, ‘Just wait till you here him sing!’ She laughs and continues setting up.
Approximately an hour later, just enough time for Eloise to calm down, she gathered the attention of the festival goers and welcomed them. Her nervous attire won the crowd’s laughter and she quickly moved on to introducing Mark and her forthcoming performance. Soon, the crowd’s mumbling grew quite and a clean cut sound of an acoustic guitar filled the air. Eloise’s voice sung gently over, accompanied by the keyboard, adding an electro edge to a pure and meaningful song. It was such a pleasure listening to such unique music. She has said to be compared to the likes of Portishead and Imogen Heap, but in reality, she is on another level.
I followed her around for the rest of the day. She flittered from person to person, chatting and laughing. We made are way to each of the stages, Mark following close behind, and Eloise sung her heart out each time. ‘It’s such a thrill performing in different places. The audiences are completely different, even though it’s the same place… if that makes sense!’ As we pass the tiny ice cream shop again, she runs inside, ordering 3 largely topped cones. Moving on, we pass all the little stalls and she stops at the music one, nestled in the corner behind a lamppost. She picks up a few vinyl, Pink Floyd and Ultravox were on the top. ‘I love these guys! 70s and 80s was a great period of music. Ultravox was where I got my beat.’ She hands over some money and walks away with her newly bought goods. ‘Can’t wait to crack out the old player and get these guys playing again.’
After the last performance of the day, and another two days to go once everyone had finally dispersed from the streets, we find ourselves back in that teeny coffee shop, a relaxing coffee in our hands. ‘Finishing the day here is almost as good as starting it.’ She sips for coffee and contemplates telling me something. ‘I’ve always wanted to open my own coffee shop, just like this. In a corner I would have a mini stage where local artists could play and we’d have special days of karaoke or other events.’ She laughs. ‘Music is all about the community and the sounds. If you have both, then everything will sound fantastic.’
Feedback:
This year, Bath has the privilege of Eloise Smith opening the summer festival. She has always preferred to sit back and enjoy this time of year, keeping her musical talents at home, but with the sun casting down a spotlight for her, she has decided to take up the challenge.
We met in a tiny, softly lit coffee shop, just down a path from the main shops in the centre of Bath. A smaller ice cream shop sits opposite, a little to the left, but no noise can be heard other than the muffled bustle from the cobbled paths. A strangely pure scent of coffee beans reaches my nose, different to the Costa scent; it’s more refreshing. Eloise declares this is one of the reasons she loves it here: ‘I’ve been coming here for years! All through secondary school, this would be the place I would come and write songs rather than doing homework. It’s such a natural and inspiring place.’
Eloise Smith, usually referred to as ‘Éloise’, has been a member and contributor of MySpace since she was 16 and recorded her first track in her bedroom on a Saturday afternoon with the sounds of a hoover and a cat meowing evident in the background. ‘Getting some peace and quiet when you have 2 little brothers is a tad difficult; us singers just have to make do!’ ‘Bonjour’ was released on Myspace, her #2 hangout (after this coffee shop) and was greatly received by other experimental artists and newcomers. This led to her other culturally inspired tracks to create her very first album ‘Footsteps’ which was sold for 5 quid on Amazon.
‘I loved creating that album. The songs sum up my childhood, travelling around Europe with my parents. Grandmère originally came from France and we visit her all the time, hence the French inspired lyrics.’ She smiles at the memory of her Grandmother and takes a sip from her hazelnut latte. Today, Eloise is sporting her very natural, quirky style with a flattering, patterned flowing dress and scuffed, tan, oxford flats (both of which look vintage). Her short brown hair waves at her shoulders and her face holds an expression of delight. ‘I’m so excited for today! These festivals are so fun; I will have two or three performances all around town!’
The Bath festival takes place over 3 days, all over the centre. A stage is set up outside the cathedral in the square, stalls line the streets and the parks are filled with more stages and picnic goers. There are different events on throughout the day and all of Bath’s talents come to surface. Music is a very large part of this and many new artists give it a go, whilst top artists are called to perform. As Eloise has been living in Bath for so long, she is asked every year if she would perform, but has always refused ‘I was always so used to sitting back and enjoying the music, I wanted to keep my music online. Though I knew people liked it there, it’s different performing in front of people you consider to be your family’.
As she continues to inform me about her childhood in Bath, a delightful sound reached my ears, accompanied with a soft, trippy beat. Eloise laughs and blushes slightly: ‘They must have seen me come in. They have personally asked for some of my more lounge style tracks to play in here. It’s really flattering, but also quite embarrassing when I’m in here.’ Eloise creates all her own music, playing her own instruments and using her beloved keyboard to play out her initial ideas and record, and her guitar to perform. As she sits opposite, she has her guitar propped up beside her: ‘I could never leave it in the hands of someone else. If it ever broke or was lost, I don’t know what I would do… we have been through so much!’
Glancing at her worn watch, she starts, realising that it is almost time for her to perform. ‘I get so nervous before performing! It takes me an hour or so to calm down’. She firmly places her guitar under her arm and gestures for me to follow her out of the coffee shop. She pauses at the door, saying her goodbyes to the owner and is informed that they will be there to support her later. ‘Everyone around here is so supportive and friendly. I’d never have been able to last this long’.
Her first performance is on the small stage set up by the cathedral. Picnic blankets are laid out, festival goers lounging around, waiting for the show to begin. Eloise makes her way up onto the stage, setting up her beloved instrument and chatting to a young man with a keyboard. She sees my confused expression and chuckles, explaining to me as I wait by the side of the stage. ‘This is Mark. He’s an amazing pianist and has been wanting to perform for ages and asked if he could help me out. Of course I agreed, I’ve been performing alone for so long, a collab with someone is great!’ She glances behind her again, and leans towards me, ‘Just wait till you here him sing!’ She laughs and continues setting up.
Approximately an hour later, just enough time for Eloise to calm down, she gathered the attention of the festival goers and welcomed them. Her nervous attire won the crowd’s laughter and she quickly moved on to introducing Mark and her forthcoming performance. Soon, the crowd’s mumbling grew quite and a clean cut sound of an acoustic guitar filled the air. Eloise’s voice sung gently over, accompanied by the keyboard, adding an electro edge to a pure and meaningful song. It was such a pleasure listening to such unique music. She has said to be compared to the likes of Portishead and Imogen Heap, but in reality, she is on another level.
I followed her around for the rest of the day. She flittered from person to person, chatting and laughing. We made are way to each of the stages, Mark following close behind, and Eloise sung her heart out each time. ‘It’s such a thrill performing in different places. The audiences are completely different, even though it’s the same place… if that makes sense!’ As we pass the tiny ice cream shop again, she runs inside, ordering 3 largely topped cones. Moving on, we pass all the little stalls and she stops at the music one, nestled in the corner behind a lamppost. She picks up a few vinyl, Pink Floyd and Ultravox were on the top. ‘I love these guys! 70s and 80s was a great period of music. Ultravox was where I got my beat.’ She hands over some money and walks away with her newly bought goods. ‘Can’t wait to crack out the old player and get these guys playing again.’
After the last performance of the day, and another two days to go once everyone had finally dispersed from the streets, we find ourselves back in that teeny coffee shop, a relaxing coffee in our hands. ‘Finishing the day here is almost as good as starting it.’ She sips for coffee and contemplates telling me something. ‘I’ve always wanted to open my own coffee shop, just like this. In a corner I would have a mini stage where local artists could play and we’d have special days of karaoke or other events.’ She laughs. ‘Music is all about the community and the sounds. If you have both, then everything will sound fantastic.’
Feedback:
- Nice tone, fits well with the story.
- Believable considering you had to make it up.
- Interesting- the photos match her personality.
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