Interview with Indie Synth Pop Artist Bedhead / New Single “Disconnected”

Toronto indie-synth-pop artist, Bedhead has just released her new single ‘Disconnected’. A song I first heard at the last live show I attended in-person in February of last year when the world seemed a little less weird. The song was conceived and written well before the first lockdown in Canada in March of last year, however, the track strikes an almost more relevant tone now, with it’s message of mental health awareness, and just checking up on your friends. ‘Disconnected’ is a beautifully crafted somber yet powerful song and is now out everywhere you get your music.

I’d like to take a couple of minutes to tell you about the last live concert I was at and the song I heard that night. The song was by Toronto synth-pop artist Bedhead. It’s a song that from the first time I heard it, has since been stuck in my head. Before I get to that though I want to talk about Luis Lamar, the Underwater Photography Director for National Geographic. 

Luis Lamar is a brilliant photographer. He also said something that was at best weird in a recent on-camera interview, in regards to ‘an advanced intelligence’ that may or may not exist underneath our ocean. This is true. It was a comment from 2019 that would have probably just gone unnoticed had it not been for the fact that millions of people have had a bit more time on their hands to dig about on the internet, in the past ten-ish months, which lead the whole thing to rise to the surface on Reddit – no seafaring pun intended. 

I bring this up only because it’s the latest example that comes to mind of something that makes the world seem extra weird right now. It’s a world where things are harder to ignore but harder to get your head around at the same time. It’s a world wherein in more ways than ever we can end up feeling disconnected from each other, ourselves, and even what we know.

Getting back to that concert, and the song. 

The last concert I was in attendance at in Toronto was on February 27, 2020, at Toronto’s Rivoli. No COVID-19, no masks, the world was simpler. I was there to film Jesse’s interview with Bedhead. That was the first time I heard ‘Disconnected’, her newest single. As I mentioned off the bat this song has been an earworm since I heard it almost a year ago. I remember the night vividly because I was tired and was only about fifty-percent tuned in, if you’ve felt this way, you know what I mean. 

I certainly didn’t expect it to be the last concert I would attend for the foreseeable future. 

The interview was great – Jesse is a pro – you can watch it at the bottom of the page. 

That night I fell in love with Bedhead’s music, in particular a song she played that I later learned hadn’t been released yet. It was too late though, I was hooked and would have to satisfy myself with the two tracks the artist had released, ’Fight NoMore’ and ‘Bitter’. 

Fast Forward to this week in a staff meeting, where we were reviewing some new releases that had been submitted – this process is a lot less formal than I’m making it sound – and the topic of Bedhead’s new single came up. I hear new music every week, regardless, I was excited hoping it might be the single I had heard from the last live show I attended, with other people. I miss you, other people. 

It was the same single.

As I began to write this and listen to the pre-release copy of ‘Disconnected’ by Bedhead it occurred to me how incredibly on the nose this song is for this moment in time, even though it was written well before COVID-19, lockdowns, and the rest of everything that is the world right now. It serves as a good reminder that before COVID-19 the world was most certainly not a perfect place, and people felt alone long before the added pressures of lockdown protocols and isolation. 

Here’s what Bedhead has to say about ‘Disconnected’, “I started writing Disconnected when I was sitting in my car in the driveway. I didn’t want to get out of the car; not because it was pouring rain outside… but because I was in such a poor state of mind, I didn’t want to face whatever the world had for me as soon as I opened that door. Sometimes when you’re depressed, moments like that seem to separate you from time itself. The world keeps moving forward and you’re stuck in your head. Disconnected is about that side of depression, however, I didn’t want the whole song to be sucked into this moment of despair. It took this moment for me to surrender and accept that I needed help, and that I was ready to start healing.”

‘Disconnected’ the track itself, is beautifully constructed with lyrics that speak to the kind of internal struggle with one’s self-worth, that so many people experience but too few are encouraged to talk about. ‘Disconnected’ is available now for pre-release everywhere you get your music. 

I had the opportunity to interview Bedhead, you can read that interview below. 

Q: How are you doing?

I feel like this answer varies greatly day by day. But today I am okay! I think at this point in the pandemic, it’s really easy to feel hopeless quickly, so I’ve just been coping by surrounding myself (virtually) with family and friends and picking up new hobbies….like Dungeons & Dragons.

Q: How has the past year been for you professionally?/personally if you want to talk personally? What has the experience been like?

Do you ever feel like this year is just so bizarre it can’t be real? I think that’s the best way to describe the professional and personal experience for me. It’s been a weird test of my fortitude, and in a way, that’s made me really proud of how far I’ve come with my mental health. So it’s been challenging, but a lot of personal growth has come from that, and it’s trickled into my art as well.

Q: Can you tell me a bit about your journey with this song? As you mention you started writing the song in your car, was the song a turning point at all for you?

The journey had been happening long before the song. Disconnected is a sum reflection of the moments where I find myself ruminating in a bad headspace, and all the surprising places it can happen, like at a party surrounded by friends or just in my driveway. Although those moments weren’t new, it was the first time I felt ready to share in song form. I know I talk a lot about mental health, but I think this is the first song I’ve released that is very clearly about the topic.

Q: Did the process for writing ‘Disconnected’ differ at all from the process you usually take to write a song?

I was a little more hands on with the production for this one! A lot of the original sounds from the demo made it into the final recording, like the piano, the waves, even some wind. That “snare” sound throughout the song was actually a recording of me doing a tongue pop on my phone! Feurd and I had a lot of fun coming up with weird sounds to add in.

Q: Ultimately, can I ask you what you did to get yourself out of the car?

I think writing this song really helped a lot. Sometimes just a gentle movement forward, or a phone call from a friend can help the brain become unstuck from that sorta trance. It’s important to note that it’s not like I felt immediately better when I left the car; my mood was still very low. But sometimes you just have to keep moving forward, and the feeling will pass eventually. 

Q: ‘Disconnected’ has been in the works for a while, what made this the right time to release the track?

We were still working on the track when the pandemic started. Feurd and I both thought it was best to take time to make sure we were both absolutely safe to finish.

Q: Can you tell me about your relationship with the piano – as an instrument?

Piano and I have been going steady for over 20 years now! We are very much in love. I started with classical and then picked up a bit of jazz as a kid. I had a bit of a video game music phase in highschool as well (it may or may not be ongoing). Piano has always been a comfort for me, it’s very much part of who I am, and I thought this was a perfect song to feature that side of me more.

Q: Have you learned anything about yourself in the past year?

I am way more resilient than I give myself credit for. 

Q: I would imagine there are a lot of young people – just a lot of people probably – looking for some words of encouragement, maybe some next steps on taking on mental health challenges – what would you say to them?

Having to navigate the world on your own is probably the greatest myth everyone faces at some point. There is nothing wrong with getting help from loved ones, or professionals. It’s okay not to be okay!

Q: Has the song ‘Disconnected’ taken on any new meaning to you in the past year?

Well now that I’m doing way more video calls than I have in my entire life, it actually has taken on new meaning. In some way before COVID, I was disconnected from a lot of relationships that I had, usually because mentally I wasn’t always present, or both parties were just always busy. And now that we have A LOT more time on our hands, I’ve actually never felt more connected to those relationships. It’s definitely put into perspective what and who really matters.

Q: Are you working on anything new? What’s coming up for Bedhead?

Finishing the songs for the EP coming out this year! It’s been a little tricky given the circumstances but we are making the most of it! Also maybe posting stuff on Twitch?! Is that something people are interested in?!