Why this album? Why now?
Fairytales and Fears is in many ways a reaction to my previous album (Paper Thunderstorm). That album had more people involved, and and co-ordinating everything added time and a bit stress to every stem, so it was released nearly two years after I had originally planned. I kept writing songs through all of that, partly to stay sane!
Have you enjoyed the process of making the album?
I loved making this album, from start to finish. Part of that was the flexibility of doing more things myself. But also the style of the music was something I really needed: time to think, time for introspection. Even the more energetic songs come from that same place - Carcassonge's inspiration came while playing board games with family, and Lazarus by leaving a job that was stressing me out.
Where was it recorded?
I recorded the whole thing at home. I don't have a fancy studio setup, I have a small collection of kit that I like and that feels familiar (a Zoom H6, an AKG C1000S, and a pair of Rode NT1-As). A studio engineer could tell me all the ways the sound could be improved, and when I get a dedicated music space next year I'll put all that into practice - but for this project, I was happy to just use what I had.
Was anyone else involved in writing, recording or producing the songs?
It wasn't a completely solo effort - the most obvious element is the cello featured on four of the tracks, which was performed by Alison Berry. My sister also co-wrote the lyrics to Carcassonge, and that was a really good collaboration.
What has been most challenging?
The most challenging bit was probably recording the vocals, but not for reasons I expected. I was in the first few months of a new job, which was a bit tiring - it turns out most steps I could still do while a bit tired, but performing vocals wasn't as forgiving.
Do you have a favourite song on the album?
It's hard to pick a favourite song from the album, but there's definitely one which is the most personal. I Just Know is the closest to a classic love song I've written, and it's still a little apocalyptic. However, it was inspired very genuinely by my partner - and even though I'm really happy with how it came out on the album, the truest version was the one I performed at our wedding. A close second is Good Examples, which is about my problems with the rules of conventional masculinity.
Will you be gigging or touring?
I've only fairly recently been putting proper effort into getting my music and my name out there. I realised that I want to share it, that I want people to enjoy it, so I'm straying outside of my comfort zone (which is creating music) and trying to perform more. One of the goals of this album was to create songs which I could plausibly perform live by myself.
Would you have any advice for would-be artists or songwriters wanting to follow in your footsteps?
I'm not sure what advice I could give for anyone else making music. I spent most of my time doing only what felt natural - that's not really a good route to building an audience who will appreciate what you're doing, though! So I guess the only advice I'd have is: get yourself out there earlier than I did. 
Make sure someone knows your name, even if at first it's just as "the person who performed after me a that open-mic night yesterday".
Where can your album be bought?
Fairytales and Fears is on Bandcamp, Spotify, Amazon Music, and many other online services.
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