Artist of the week Abby Ehrler, ’19, is a broadcast communication major and a music minor at North Central College. In addition to her academics, she currently works as the production director for the College’s radio station, WONC 89.1, and writes and composes her own music on SoundCloud. As of April 2018, she has released nine tracks on the music service.
Steve Pulaski: What inspires you to write and compose your music?
Abby Ehrler: I’ve always had ideas bubbling ever since I was in high school. I’ve always been interested in performing and started by playing flute and learning theory. Now I love performing, and (making music) is a platform I can use for self-expression. I used to trash everything I wrote thinking, “this is so bad,” but even if there is something I don’t like about (a song), someone else will.
SP: How would you classify your music, genre and mood-wise?
AE: Probably a little bit of angst, but positively, mostly. It’s about learning to be content with beauty and situations that seem ugly. I can’t make something about nothing. It has to come from me and something I experience. A lot of the music I don’t like isn’t genuine; I can tell. (The artists) don’t write their lyrics or compose the instruments, and they don’t live what they’re singing about. I can’t do that; I have to experience the music I write.
SP: What software and instruments do you use in your music?
AE: I took a music class in 2016 and we learned Audition, Logic Pro and Ableton Live, which I know gets a bad rep. I use those, and I like using weird tones in Audacity and an electronic keyboard, too. I’m working with the minimum and seeing how much I can milk out of it ’til I have to upgrade.
SP: What can listeners expect from you down the line?
AE: An album, hopefully. I’ve been releasing whatever I make on SoundCloud for a while now, but (an album) I’ll self-release on iTunes, Spotify and all those sites. I’m going to save that for down the line because I’m improving all the time. Hopefully within the next year because I’m letting the ideas take form. I’ll still be putting singles out, though.
You can find all of Abby’s music here.
