Q&A: ‘spotless state of mind’ is Both a Nostalgic Reflection and Fresh Start
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY SULLIVAN JORDAN ☆
Photo by Caity Krone
FIA JAMES EXPLORES EVERY SIDE OF HEARTBREAK WITH REFRESHING COURAGE AND AN INTIMATE CLARITY on her debut EP spotless state of mind. James beautifully blends her personal experience and emotional ups and downs with her distinctly tender and confident vocals, relatable storytelling and a dynamic instrumental palette.
spotless state of mind explores a heartfelt range of emotions as it starts with “jealous baby” an upbeat rock-inspired track that finds James in a playful mood: “Bet it hurt when I put me first / Told you I'd leave you and I kept my word / I know you feel it to the third degree / Is that envy in between your teeth? / When someone asks about me?” The EP moves through sultry vocals and equally energetic and cathartic instrumentals as James dissects the lasting fragments of a breakup. Her storytelling is laced with addictive metaphors and atmospheric production that ring with heartbreak and brutal honesty.
James works through anger, uncertainty and tentative acceptance before allowing herself to let go. On “second hand,” James reflects on her simultaneous heartbreak and frustration at herself for missing someone she shouldn’t, comparing the emotional conflict to an item donated to a vintage store that you cannot seem to forget, despite it finding a new home. The song’s outro features an airy and explosive production as the sonic landscape reflects James’ emotional pull back into the orbit of someone she has been trying to free herself from.
“isn’t it?” and “batman” find James questioning if a past relationship was as conflicting as she remembers. Using the iconic relationship between Batman and The Joker, James dissects her attachment to an ex lover before she changes perspective and looks at the relationship from the outside: “He'll always be my ending / Addicted to all the adrenaline / He’s the worst kind of best thing that I've ever had / So I'll keep painting faces and making him laugh.”
The EP swings back into a more upbeat pace with “how to be lovers” using a country-inspired twang throughout the instrumentals and in James’ vocals as she sings with a melancholic and reminiscent timbre. Her delivery is warm and sparkling with one final glimmer of hope that she can start over with someone from her past: “Oh we reconcile / And it's been a while / You’ve missed my face like hell / But I haven't changed my style / Planned my big revival / Questioning where it went wrong in the end.” The title track offers an emotional release of the tension built throughout the project as James sings, “Stuck in replay / Feels eternal / Spotless state of mind.” At first, these lyrics may represent how James feels doomed to be stuck in a constant loop, but as the EP concludes, the lyrics reveal that, in actuality, James is giving herself a fresh start.
Luna had the pleasure of catching up with James to discuss spotless state of mind, her evolution as an artist and the film that inspired her debut.
Photo by Shelby Pine
LUNA: Congratulations on the release of your debut EP spotless state of mind! This project captures the turbulence, longing, beauty and eventual freedom of working through a breakup. You blend personal experience with your artistry so beautifully. Can you share what the process of making the EP was like from an artistic and a personal point of view?
JAMES: Thank you so much! The process of making spotless state of mind has been one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life. I think from an artist's perspective, this EP gave me permission to take some of my first real creative risks. I immersed myself completely in it and spent over a year writing, rewriting, recording and obsessing over every detail. I wanted each song to feel like its own emotional world while still contributing to the larger story.
On a personal level, these songs were written during a time of immense confusion, heartbreak, self-reflection and growth. Not to be dramatic, but at the beginning, it genuinely felt like I was writing in order to survive, and by the end, it became a way to zoom out and understand everything I had gone through. The EP starts in a place of longing and chaos, but as the track list unfolds, it slowly moves toward acceptance and a desire to wipe the slate clean. So clean that it becomes completely spotless.
LUNA: Which tracks off the EP proved to be the most challenging from a songwriting perspective? Which tracks were the most challenging from an emotional aspect?
JAMES: Honestly, all of these songs came together surprisingly easily, which I think is a sign that they really needed to be written. From a songwriting perspective, “batman” was probably the most challenging because I didn’t want to come across as disingenuous. While there was definitely a power imbalance in that relationship, that didn’t mean that that person was bad to me. I think there was a bit of a hero complex that we both played into with each other. I was really always looking for a laugh, for approval, for a way to feel important to them. That’s where the Batman and the Joker metaphor came from. The characters only make sense because of each other. They’re constantly in orbit around one another. I wanted the song to acknowledge the hurt without turning anyone into a villain.
LUNA: What did you learn about yourself, personally and/or as a songwriter, while making your EP? How will you take that into your future projects?
JAMES: I learned so much while making this EP. I learned how to better articulate what I was hearing in my head and communicate that. I learned how many moving pieces go into making a record, how fast some songs can come together, how painfully slow others can be to get to the finish line and how important it is to have a clear vision on where you want a project to land.
LUNA: What is one of your favorite memories from making the EP?
JAMES: One of my favorite days from making the EP was the day Luke, Charli and I wrote “spotless state of mind.” There was an instant chemistry between the three of us from the moment we got in the room. We basically got the whole thing that first day, and by the end of the night, we were throwing scenes from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind up on the screen, blasting our new song through the speakers and dancing around the room.
LUNA: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of your favorite films and provided you with inspiration for your EP. How did this film work its way into your songwriting process? How has the film, combined with your EP, helped you work through the difficult emotions you express throughout the project?
JAMES: Honestly, it kind of just fell into my lap. The film itself has such a profound effect on me that I started seeing parallels between the movie and my own life. The movie represents memory, yearning, regret and the ways we romanticize people even when they are not right for us. It's like the film became a lens through which I could understand my own experiences, if that makes sense.
Because to me, they act like a time capsule of an extremely emotionally and physically specific moment in someone’s life that listeners can then embrace into their own experience.
LUNA: I love EPs and self-contained projects like this because they can act like a time capsule of an extremely emotionally and physically specific moment in someone’s life that listeners can then embrace into their own experience. How did the structure of making an EP impact your songwriting process and finding the project’s sound?
JAMES: I think at first I wasn’t intentionally writing these songs to all fit into a specific place or larger story. I was writing them because it was the only thing making me feel sane and somewhat leveled. The first two songs I wrote for the record were “second hand” and “how to be lovers.” So, it wasn’t until we wrote the title track that everything clicked. From there, it became the central theme that tied everything together.
Photo by David O’Donohue
LUNA: As you enter this new chapter with your debut EP, what music and/or other art forms are inspiring you right now?
JAMES: Oh, so much! It feels really exciting to be a developing female artist at a time when so many amazing women are power housing through the industry. I’m really inspired by female fronted bands like Wolf Alice and Wet Leg. They both have such a sense of fearlessness and are completely unapologetic. It’s so badass to witness.
LUNA: How did you initially fall in love with music? Can you share a moment in your life that you remember music having a profound impact on your personal growth?
JAMES: I grew up in the restaurant industry, where my parents were always blasting anything from Etta James to The Allman Brothers Band to Prince to Led Zeppelin. Music was always a huge part of our family. It was as essential as the food on the table and as important as the bottles of wine being poured at dinner. With that being said, I think I really caught the bug when I heard “Soak Up the Sun” by Sheryl Crow. Shortly after that, my mom bought me a nearly broken nylon string guitar, and I did everything in my power to force my fingers into chord shapes.
LUNA: You are already making waves across the indie-pop genre and spotless state of mind is sure to capture the hearts of listeners. For new listeners, how would you describe your sound and evolution as an artist?
JAMES: I love living in this indie-pop-rock world, it feels very me. That said, I think my sound is always evolving, much like my taste. One of my favorite things is discovering new artists and new sounds. I feel like the next project will carry the essence of spotless state of mind in the songwriting, but I can already feel myself being pulled toward something a teeny bit different.
LUNA: What do you hope listeners take away from this project and your music in general?
JAMES: I am hoping people walk away from the project feeling understood. A lot of the music came from trying to make sense of emotions that I couldn’t articulate in real time, so if someone hears them and feels seen in the slightest, that means everything to me. And honestly, I hope people do like it. I know I’m supposed to have a more profound answer, but after spending a year and a half making it, I do hope it connects with people.
