Decatur, IL-based Americana singer-songwriter Ashley Riley has been a staple in the music scene of her hometown Long Creek, IL, where she got her start hosting open mics in the Decatur area around 2008, helping to revitalize and nurture the underground singer-songwriter scene in town. After starting as an acoustic-based songwriter on her first record, Riley realized by her second album that her songs begged for a band, and her subsequent albums got the full-band treatment to glowing reviews. Now Riley is set to release her latest single, “Close to Me,” on August 28th (PRE-ORDER). “Close to Me” won the Midwest Music Expo Listening Panel in May 2020, and after many requests from fans that she release it, Riley decided it was high time to officially put the song out into the universe.
The vocals on “Close to Me” were from a quick demo take that was recorded the first day in the studio. Says Riley about the recording session: “I remember it well because, right before that, I sang for three hours at a luncheon for the American Heart Association and I got to meet Jennie Garth from ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ who was the speaker at the event.”
Her sound is laced with earthy grit, and at its core, Riley’s music is best described as sophisticated indie/Americana. There’s a dreamy quality to the songs, yet lyrically they capture the essence of the more honest moments of our days: those seemingly ordinary moments that suddenly take your breath away or make you weak in the knees, those moments that prove to us that oftentimes the most extraordinary moments are found in our everyday lives. Riley has been slowly chipping away at her upcoming album, taking a slightly different approach. “Close to Me” is the first single from the album; Riley is still working on it and plans to release the as-yet-unnamed album in early 2021.
Today Glide is premiering the new single along with its corresponding video. With a sound rooted in country and Americana, Riley places her enchanting vocals front and center. Her impassioned singing is accompanied by twangy guitar and soulful, almost spiritual harmonies. This song also showcases her penchant for writing infectious songs that resonate on a universally emotional level. While touring is still on hold for the time being, it’s hard not to get excited about what we can expect from Riley in the coming years.
Watch the video and read our interview with Riley below…
Talk a bit about the song. What is it about and what prompted you or inspired you to write it?
“Close to Me” is inspired by mixed signals. In the song it’s a romantic relationship, but in real life it was just a friend; sometimes I switch things up like that for a different point of view or to keep things more anonymous. I wrote it because a good friend started to seem really distant to me. I remember feeling like I was always decoding text messages and waiting for them to just be real with me. That wasn’t how I wanted things, but, in turn, it also made me pull back, too, so that’s where it started.
This song comes from a forthcoming album. What do you think this song tells us about the album overall as a sneak-peek for fans?
Yes, “Close to Me” is the first single that I’m releasing from my new, still-untitled album. I think this song is a great sneak-peek into the mood of what to expect. “Close to Me” lives in that middle ground of the album, and it’s one of the first songs we recorded, so it really did set the tone. It’s looking like early 2021 for the new record. I’m working with James Treichler at Wave upon Wave on this record, and it’s been a different approach than what I’ve done in the past. On my past albums, I went into the studio with a batch of songs and a full band and tracked it out, ut this time we’re working song by song, and it’s fun to really dig into them that way.
The video taps into the vibe of the song really well. Whose idea was the video treatment? Who directed it? Did you film it during quarantine?
Thank you! I spend a fair amount of time in Nashville, when we aren’t facing a global pandemic, and I found this really talented photogapher / videographer there named Annelise Loughead. She shot the footage where I’m singing and playing the guitar. I wanted an intimate live setting for this song, so I just showed up and let her do her thing. Originally, I wanted this to be a live video, but the forces that be kind of had other plans, so I ended up adding in the scenes from the window during quarantine, actually. It seemed fitting to add those scenes gazing longingly out of the window during a shelter-in-place order. Also, those are my Grandma’s curtains, and I think they are so pretty.
What do you think the video reveals about you and about the song? If you could freeze a frame from the clip, do you have a favorite image from the video? Why is it your favorite?
I really like the intensely close shots where I’m performing in the video. The angle and closeness of the camera goes with what the whole song is saying. I don’t think the camera could have gotten much closer to me! I think the window scenes are my favorite. I actually ended up using a screen shot of the video as art for the single. It’s where I’m leaned back against the window, I just felt like that screen shot was a mood.
Any funny/great stories from the video shoot?
Actually, yes! I’m not sure I should admit this, but what the heck. So, the video for “Close to Me” was shot in two totally separate sessions. I was down in Nashville and decided to shoot some acoustic performances of some of my new songs. I found a videographer, and we snuck into this cool apartment complex and set up rogue style in the upstairs loft / hangout area. We just hoped that no one would ask us to leave. It was a hot day, so we could hear the air conditioner was running in the corner, but it was literally on the other end of the room so we didn’t think too much of it. Well, when we got the footage back it was so good but ALL you could hear was the air conditioner rumbling. I was kind of bummed but just figured I’d try it again someplace else. It wasn’t too long after that, I got the demo back for “Close to Me,” and, on a whim, I put the demo track over the video footage, and it totally lined up with the footage! I kind of couldn’t believe it but decided to go with it. I filmed the scenes looking out the window to add a little more interest and there you have it!
Visit https://ashleyriley.com/ for more music and info.
Photo Credit: Joe Riley
