Growing up in a musical family has really influenced the creation of singer and songwriter Katanak. He started his music career as a drummer in a grunge band and has since then progressed to writing indie rock/pop which is quite bright and colorful.
Although Katanak took some musical lessons, he felt that wasn’t really his style, he later adopted the act of playing by ear, and since then he has progressed in the musical world.
His latest single ‘Lights of Tokyo’ is one of the songs that highlights the pleasurable moments in life. Lights of Tokyo is a feel-good song with explosive guitar riffs and a breathtaking drumline that transports the listener into another dimension.
In a recent interview with Mister Styx of Musicarenagh, Katanak was asked about the main inspiration behind ‘Lights of Tokyo’ and this is what he said about the song;
The song is about my mate who was in Tokyo and met someone one night. ‘Lights of Tokyo’ just summed up the brightness of the city night and where he was at the time.
With this in mind, it makes clear sense why the song has a happy feel to it with awesome instrumentation. It’s an upbeat, modern indie pop/rock song that captures the excitement and energy of being in a foreign city, not being able to speak the language, and being swept up in that atmosphere of meeting someone new.
Get the full story below while enjoying Lights of Tokyo
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What is your stage name?
I go by the name of Katanak.
Is there a story behind your stage name?
My real surname is Cattanach. It’s a Scottish surname, and people have trouble saying it or spelling it, so I tried to make it easier for people by spelling it phonetically.
Where do you find inspiration?
Mostly from my friends and some from my own life.
Are you from a musical or artistic family?
Both my father and uncle are in bands so I grew up with music in the family.
Who inspired you to be a part of the music industry?
My father and uncle.
How did you learn to sing/write/to play?
I did do lessons early on but lessons weren’t my preferred way to learn. They were too rigid. I ended up playing everything by ear and I still struggle reading music.
What was the first concert that you ever went to and who did you see perform?
Pete Murray
How could you describe your music?
Fun, energetic and colourful!
Did your style evolve since the beginning of your career?
I started as a drummer in a grunge band and I’ve progressed to writing indie rock/pop which is quite bright and colourful. So I would say yes, haha!
Who do you see as your main competitor?
I have no competitors, only people I can learn from.
What are your interests outside of music?
Who has time for interests outside music? I work full time, so my music is my interest and I have to fit it in music around everything else going on.
If it wasn’t a music career, what would you be doing?
Not even worth thinking about! I need music to feed my soul.
What is the biggest problem you have encountered in the journey of music?
Having people discover my music. Only a very small portion of people are open to hearing new music and even getting radio play is hard because stations are so dependent on advertising dollars that they are quite open in saying ‘you won’t bring us any money’.
It’s a very noisy world out there and the big companies keep pushing the bigger names. It’s easy to fall by the wayside.
If you could change one thing in the music industry, what would it be?
I’m sure a lot of people at my level would say the same thing. Paying artists more. There is a whole industry built around the artist’s music, from labels, streaming services, recording, mastering, PR, managers, distributors, etc and they all get paid and the artist that writes the song takes the scraps that are left.
None of that would exist if there was no music, so a little more recognition and the ability to be able to support ourselves financially, I think, isn’t too much to ask.
Why did you choose this as the title of this project?
The song is about my mate who was in Tokyo and met someone one night. ‘Lights of Tokyo’ just summed up the brightness of the city night and where he was at the time.
What are your plans for the coming months?
I’ve got an east coast tour planned and I’m also going more into the production side of music. I love sitting there and working out new things I can do to music. Anyone reading this, send me a dm and let’s chat about production.
Do you have any artistic collaboration plans
I’m working on production with an artist here in Australia and an artist by the name of Chvrli Blvck in London and I are going to be working on a project.
What message would you like to give to your fans?
Thank you so far to everyone who has taken the time to listen to my music and has recommended it to friends. Keep doing that as that helps big time!
Follow on socials to keep up with what I’m doing and don’t be shy! DM me and let me know how you found my music.
