Stephen Dawes’ debut record, Skin to Skin, introduces the West Coast musician with intimacy and immediacy. Beneath the wide-open synths, cinematic production and towering choruses lies something much more fragile – a record shaped by relocation, isolation and the process of rediscovering himself. It marks the culmination of a deep-rooted relationship with music, following a steady rise built through uploading covers and demos online – building views into likes, into streams, into audiences, into a fanbase ready for this fully realised moment. Embellishing melancholy through melody, it’s an introduction that frames the musician within a tangible soundscape of his own design.

Alex James Taylor: Let’s start with your new debut album, Skin to Skin – what can you tell us about it?
Stephen Dawes: I’d moved to LA two years prior to really starting the album, and there were feelings of being lost, disoriented, and kind of alone. Primarily, [the album] is about meeting someone who makes living in a big city feel less alone, and makes me feel more like myself. Also falling in love with making music again, and falling in love with so many parts of life that I think I had kind of forgotten about.

AJT: Where did you move to LA from?
SD: I moved from New York. I was at NYU for two years. I took a leave of absence, which kind of became a permanent leave.

AJT: And what effect do you think the culture and landscape of LA had on your music?
SD: I started making music in high school, just in jazz bands, and I was very much a singer-songwriter. Then when I went to school, I wanted to be a producer. I only started singing for real in college, because before that I was more of a pianist-slash-producer. In New York there was a lot of rock, and then when I moved to LA, my music definitely got more pop. There’s a lot more music here, period, but a lot more songwriting sessions. Recently I’ve moved a little away from that because I’ve started writing alone again, which I haven’t done in a while.

AJT: It’s interesting that you speak about producing, because when I first listened to your music, the thing that stood out was the production, it’s so strong and cinematic, especially a track like Stay. How do you see your production style and the world you’re building through that?
SD: For a while – the first two EPs I put out after getting signed – I didn’t really do much of the production on those. But with this last project I’ve been diving back into it, and it’s so fun. I’d forgotten how much I loved producing. Because of that, it’s been this exploration of all these sounds and synths that I’d forgotten how much I loved using and building with. Some of the tracks, like Reputation, I did alone on the production side, and then Stay, I worked with a producer friend of mine. It’s funny because obviously there are styles of singing and of lyrics, but I think sometimes people forget there really is a production style that can be very signature to you. So it’s been a fun process developing that over the past few songs.

AJT: And it can be easy to go wrong in production – to add too much or veer in the wrong direction – but I feel like you’re really building a signature identity. Where did you record the album?
SD: A lot of it was in my room, and then some of it was in the producer’s studio, which is also just in his house. I love recording in homes because I feel like in a studio – the way I cut vocals and the way I like to track things is, I’ll cut the same fifteen-second piece for one, two or three hours, just trying to get it right. When you’re in the studio and you’re worried about studio time, or someone’s over your shoulder… I love cutting vocals by myself too, because I feel like when someone is looking over my shoulder, I can’t try things out. A lot of times you’ll sing something and it’ll sound ridiculous at first. But when I’m doing that alone, it’s a lot less scary, so I end up getting things that I wouldn’t necessarily get otherwise.

“That’s definitely been a through- line through all my new songs, trying to make synths feel intimate.”

AJT: And recordings also sound different in different places. You can record in one room and it’ll sound completely different to another.
SD: Yeah, and the mic too. I’ve been trying to get my exact set-up, so every time I record a vocal it sounds kind of the same.

AJT: Going back to the album, were there any references that directly fed into it?
SD: Yeah. I mean, I’ve loved Joji for a long time, so that’s been a pretty central part of the moodboard. I listened to him so much in high school, and he’s someone who has been a constant inspiration. Especially recently, watching his sets on YouTube and his visuals too, because that’s been a big part of this project – trying to find myself visually. I feel like I’ve always had an easier time figuring myself out on the music side, but the visual side is something kind of new for me. I love Montell Fish – that’s a big one. That kind of liminal space vibe. Also, The xx, I’ve been diving back into them. I love how they are three distinct people that have meshed together into this amazing trio. The fact that they have separate projects is mind-blowing to me because they work together so well, but their solo stuff is equally good.

AJT: I also saw on your socials you did a cover of Beach House’s Space Song – I can see their influence in your music.
SD: I love Beach House. They do such a great job of taking inorganic synths and making them feel organic. I feel like that’s what makes their music so special, because so much of it is these very digital-sounding machines, and then they put reverb on it and make it very personal and intimate. I love that. That’s definitely been a through- line through all my new songs, trying to make synths feel intimate.

AJT: In terms of your songwriting, I know you play piano, do you play guitar as well?
SD: I play guitar a bit, but piano is definitely my main instrument.

AJT: Do you tend to write on piano then?
SD: Before this album, I hadn’t in a long time, just because I didn’t have a piano in my house. And in sessions I tended to start on the production, or on the acoustic guitar. Then this past year, working on this album, I got a piano in my room, and I pretty much started every song on that. And no matter where else it goes – whether it becomes a synth song or a rock song – I’ve been having the best time starting the lyrics and melodies on the piano, because I feel like it makes the song feel a lot more thought-out.

AJT: Which instrument you begin writing on can completely shift your songwriting. I feel like writing on a piano can definitely aid storytelling, there’s a different sense of space and timing.
SD: Honestly, that blows my mind. Obviously you’re playing basically the same limited amount of chords, and even if it’s the same four chords on a synth, a piano, or a guitar, the mood it puts you in is so different. For me, writing is all about the mood and mental space you’re in. Changing it up is the biggest thing. If you spend too much time writing on one instrument, songs start to sound the same.

AJT: What about playing live? How has your live show grown?
SD: It’s been a while since I’ve played live, but in previous years it was a lot of guitar on stage, and a lot of traditional frontman stuff. Getting ready for the next time I play live, I’m trying to figure out how I can incorporate the piano, because it’s such a big part of my identity and songwriting. I’ve been taking a lot of vocal lessons this year too, and I think I’m getting to a point where the songs are able to be sung more dramatically. Trying to gear the show into a place where I can do that and have moments for that is going to be a big shift between the next live shows and the previous ones.

AJT: Thinking longer term, do you have any specific ambitions? Perhaps a festival or venue you’d love to play, or someone you’d like to collaborate with?
SD: Festival-wise, Outside Lands is in my home city, San Francisco, and my high school friends go every year. So it would be really cool to play that, bring all my friends, and just have the best time. People I’d love to record with… I’ve been getting more into subtle dance music, so since we were just talking about The xx, it’d be fun to do some stuff with Jamie xx. My favourite part about collaboration is when you work with someone who really pulls you out of your comfort zone. I love leaving a session with a song that makes me rethink all the music I’ve previously made, and all the music I want to make in the future.

Stephen Dawes’ Skin to Skin is out now.

hair and makeup by ADAM MARKARIAN using ORIBE HAIRCARE and DIOR BEAUTY