North Carolina-based singer-songwriter Andrew X recently unveiled his new single/music video, “Miracles,” a track from his upcoming album, Driving at Sunset, which will drop on September 20.
Andrew X’s sound drips with delicious ‘80s pop-rock flavors, making it irresistible. Yet he’s not an imitator, he’s a torch bearer, releasing lush sonic creations brimming with warmth, imagination, innocence, and personality.
Working with Anberlin and Copeland producer Matt Goldman and Killers and Imagine Dragons mixing engineer Mark Needham, Andrew X’s forthcoming Driving at Sunset feels like the soundtrack to the best coming-of-age movie never made — one where the hero gets the girl in the end, of course.
Directed by Luke Pilgrim and Brad Kennedy, the “Miracles” video depicts a man infatuated with an infomercial host, who is more than just another pretty girl. She’s a dreamer, too. The visuals transport viewers back to the ‘80s, including period outfits and clunky CRT monitors. And ultimately, the guy wins the heart of the girl.
A grand, feel-good song, “Miracles” hits all the right emotional chords.
CelebMix spoke with Andrew X to discover the inspiration for “Miracles,” more about his upcoming album, and his writing process.
What inspired your latest single/music video, “Miracles?”
Andrew X: The song was inspired by a situation I found myself in when I was in my early 20s. I had met someone that I found captivating and was interested in, but never could quite figure out how they felt about me! By the time I finally found out she felt, I felt like the moment had passed and we just ended up being great friends.
The concept for the music video was actually an idea that Luke and Brad of Sozo Bear Films had. The narrative portion of the video pulled a lot of inspiration from the home television shopping phenomenon of the 1980s and was inspired by such films as Weird Science (1985), Red (2010), and Her (2013).
For the performance part of the video, they referenced several music videos such as Steve Winwood’s ‘Valerie,’ John Mayer’s ‘Shot In The Dark,’ and a Hall And Oates video from the 1980s. I think it was ‘Out Of Touch.’
“Miracles” is from your upcoming album, ‘Driving at Sunset.’ What can you share about the album?
AX: I will be releasing the album on September 20th, 2023. The album is 10 songs which include the three singles I am promoting throughout the summer: ‘Miracles,’ ‘Where Are You Now,’ and my personal favorite ‘Whatever It Takes.’ It was produced by Matt Goldman (Anberlin, Underoath), mixed by Mark Needham (The Killers, Imagine Dragons), and mastered by Ted Jensen (NEEDTOBREATHE, Florence + The Machine).
My goal with this album was to create an album that made the listener feel like a warm summer evening on the beach. Warm. Peaceful. Hopeful. I wanted to create a positive piece of art that would lift the listeners’ spirits and leave them feeling joyful, hopeful, and empowered.
Most of the songs are straight-forward classic sounding pop rock, think Phil Collins meets The Fray, or Bryan Adams meets John Mayer.
How did you get started in music?
AX: I started playing guitar when I was 9 and wrote my first song when I was like 15. My parents were big music fans and exposed me to a lot of music at a young age. My dad played guitar and sang. He also had a pretty big record collection and dabbled in trading hi-fi stereos as a hobby/side hustle. We often sat and listened to records and later CDs in the evenings and on weekends. My mother was a big fan of pop music and dancing. She used to record music videos off VH1 for me. When I was really young, she would always try to teach me how to dance. I thought I was a real Michael Jackson with those dance moves!
Did your sound evolve naturally, or did you deliberately push it in a certain direction?
AX: I think my sound pretty naturally evolved to where it is now. I am genuinely into ‘80s music, television, and movies. I think that plays a lot into my own music. I love the sounds from that era. I like how they make me feel. I also love the way film looked back then. It was soft, kinda “golden” if you will.
I like the ‘feel good’ nature of a lot of the art that was going on at that time. In general, I’m a glass-half-full person. It’s important to me to work to create good in the world. I’ve tried to do that with my music.
How do you keep your sound fresh, and avoid falling into the trap of imitating either yourself or others?
AX: I’m not sure my music sounds fresh! LOL. I just make music I love. Right now, I’m able to do that. If I’m paying for it, I’m going to do what I want to do. If there is ever a label, or someone else funding the project, I’ll probably have to start thinking differently about that, but for now, I just make music that I love, that moves me. I hope it moves others as well.
How do you keep your sound consistent on stage?
AX: I try to make sure we are consistent in rehearsal. We also play with in-ear monitors to a click track (metronome), so that helps a lot as well.
Are there any special recording techniques you use in the studio?
AX: Matt Goldman (the producer) is the recording genius! He’s like Han Solo flying the Millennium Falcon when he is behind the control board at the studio. I just sit back and watch him work his magic!
What is your definition of tone? And has your tone changed over time?
AX: I suppose that depends on which ‘tone’ we are speaking of! I feel like the emotional tone of my music has stayed pretty consistent with what I did on the last album. It’s pretty upbeat and filled with themes such as love, romance, hope, and wonder!
Regarding sound tones, there are more acoustic guitars and keyboards on this record than the last one. I feel like it has a bit more of a bass-heavy feel as well.
What inspires your writing? Do you draw inspiration from poems, music, or other media?
AX: All kinds of things! My personal life experiences are probably my biggest inspiration! I often find myself wanting to write about things I am passionate about! Things that have moved me and affected me on a real emotional level.
Sometimes in life, I may not have a lot going on that I feel is interesting enough to write about, so I start digging through my past looking for something that is! Usually, by the time the songs are written, the situations I write about are more glamourized and stylized than what really happened, but the feelings and emotions behind the original idea were something I really felt.
I’ve also written a lot of songs for friends over the years. Songs for people and Relationships I cared about. They were a gift of sorts.
What can you share about your writing process?
AX: My writing process has varied over the years. Sometimes, I will just sit down, pick up the guitar and write a song! Others, I will write part of a song, and then go back to it later. I probably wrote 50 to 75 parts of songs before I narrowed it down to the final 10 on my new record.
Sometimes, I will start with the first verse, but 90% of the time I start with the chorus. If the chorus isn’t great, the song isn’t great. I often build from there.
First, I’ll do the chorus, then move on to the intro and first verse, then the second verse. After that I will work on the bridge, and finally the outro. Often the songs have a way of going in their own direction. I just go with what feels right. I feel like that is a major part of songwriting. It’s almost like as a songwriter, you have to feel what is supposed to come next.
Which artists in your opinion are killing it right now?
AX: I really liked the ‘Sob Rock’ album John Mayer put out a Couple of years ago, mainly because it has a retro vibe to it. I like some of the songs from the band Wilderado’s newer self-titled release. The live album they put out is pretty cool too. I also like this band called St. Lucia. They have a song called ‘Touch’ that I think is the bee’s knees. There is also this trio out of Australia called Middle Kids I really like. They have some great songs.
What can your fans look forward to over the next six months? Music videos? Live gigs?
AX: Back on May 31st, I released the original version of my single ‘Miracles.’ Every week I’m dropping a new piece of related content for all of my singles. The treatment will be the same for all three songs, ‘Miracles,’ ‘Where Are You Now,’ and ‘Whatever It Takes.’ On week one, I will release the original version of the song. On week two, I will release the lyric video. Week three, music video. Week four, ‘Golden Hour Version.’ which is an alternate remix done by Jeremy SH Griffith, and on Week 5 I will release an acoustic version. This will be a summer promotion. Then, finally, on September 20th, 2023, I will release the full-length album titled ‘Driving At Sunset.’ It includes 10 original songs!
Also, I have put a band together and we are just now beginning to book shows. We will start out doing shows in North Carolina (our state), and hopefully move on to playing through the southeast and see how it goes from there!
Thanks for taking the time to speak with me a bit about my music and what I have going on! I really appreciate it!!!
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