David William has been one of a kind from the start and so has his path been. Born and raised in Edinburgh he has been enjoying music from early on but it was only in his late teens that he discovered his passion for making it. Starting out with writing poems he soon realised that something was missing in the equation - that was Music. The credit for making him consider music for himself goes to bands like Oasis, Crowded House and Travis who were a great inspiration at the time.
For a few years he wrote songs in private and only few close people got to hear them until he first made an appearance on the scene in 2003 and released an EP Head Above Water as Seven Worlds. Inspiration for that name came from a song by the band Crowded House. However, soon after he started releasing music he felt as though he needed a name that was free of associations and decided to put out music as David William, the name he still uses now on his latest songs.
By that time he had already decided to fully devote his life to Music. Ever since, David spends his time writing songs, practicing, recording and doing everything else around it. David never wanted to follow the conventional path of the music industry as he wants his music to be authentic and free from the mainstream influence. That is also why he does things on his own terms from his home studio.
Although he grew up in the UK David has always felt a strong connection with continental Europe which eventually made him give up everything in October 2010 and head there. Six months into that journey he and his partner Kate Threadgould started joining their skills and creating music as SoulJahm. A unique, harmonious sound and many new songs, such as Giudecca, Karl-Marx-Allee and Italian Saturday, emerged from that period. When things in Europe came to an end in 2014 David returned to Edinburgh and had a fresh start as David William.
It was a period when he grew to like his hometown more and more - a feeling he describes in the latest version of his song Remembering (We’re Still Friends) - and started sharing his music on the streets of Edinburgh.
By now David William has released four albums - One Way Ticket, One Way Ticket (Travelling Lighter), The Days Before and End Of The Strangers - and various singles but there is more to come in 2020 and into the future.
FAQ
Why is David not playing in pubs?
David has always felt that pubs are not the right environment for his Music. After trying out playing at an open mic he soon realised that the kind of music that is expected in a pub are mostly covers played to entertain people, which is not what David is about. A priority for him is to get his originals across to people and reach the ones that really love what he does rather than playing to people who just want a drink and some background noise. Until the right environment for his Music shows up he will continue doing live concerts online.
What genre does David’s Music fit into?
Neither David nor his Music fit into the common categories, which can often confuse people. Listening to artists such as The Beatles, Bob Marley or Crowded House he has quite a diverse music taste which is also displayed in his own Music.
If he had to label his songs the most suitable genres would be indie rock, folk-rock, psychedelic folk, garagerock, rock'n’roll or pop. But the these are only vague terms and to get an idea what David's Music is like you have to hear it yourself.
Is David’s Music available on CD?
Davids debut album One Way Ticket was released on CD but it didn’t prove viable to continue releasing CDs which led him to put out his music digitally only after this. However, once he gets the financial means David would like to release his Music on CDs, vinyls and even cassettes.
Why does David not go on talent shows like The Voice, X-Factor, etc?
These talent shows do not fit the way David approaches Music and are gateways into the very industry which David does not want to be part of. David's love and passion is for Music, not the music industry.
Why isn't David doing more to promote himself and his Music?
There are essentially two main reasons for this. First of all, there is more involved in the daily life of an independent musician than meets the eye. Time is needed each day to prepare/set-up and record all the instruments for each song, to mix the songs, to practice, to learn new songs, film and edit videos, create artwork, play live shows, as well as all the 'admin' like updating web stuff. David tries to give most attention to the actual music side of things, feeling if he takes care of that the rest will fall into place.
The second and bigger reason is that the music industry (and all marketing in general) is built on trying to persuade the public to buy something. Everybody is out to "sell themselves" one way or another. David has a more simplistic view of life. What is the need to push yourself upon people? If you connect with what he does, support it in some way directly here and now... buy the songs, pay to watch live, donate, spread the word. If you don't, move on. David is confident that if everybody did this everything would rise into its rightful place.
Why does David not play live at scheduled times?
Unfortunately due to his living situation it's not easy for David to plan his shows in advance which leads him to announcing them spontaneously.
Aside from that he also likes the idea of Music becoming more intuitive. Once a certain harmony and synchronicity is there between audience and artist the musician could spontaneously decide to play based on an inner urge and his audience would simultaneously pick that up and tune in.
