Tim Atlas kicks off North American Tour at Boston’s Cafe 939 (Q&A)
New York-based R&B artist Tim Atlas kicked off his tour at the Red Room at Cafe 939 in Boston last Thursday. The tour follows the release of his recent EP Le Soir that dropped August 25. We caught up with Atlas before the show to talk imposter syndrome, songwriting, and beating the first-night jitters.
September 20, 2023
By Alyssa Goldberg
SOUNDS OF SAVING: What's your earliest memory of making music or knowing that you wanted to do music?
TIM ATLAS: It was elementary school. My dad had a really old saxophone lying around and I brought it to my school band program and they were like, you can't play this. So I just picked up drumsticks because all you have to do is get sticks. I ended up doing that all throughout middle school and high school.
SOS: When you make music, what do you approach first, the writing or the music itself?
ATLAS: I think it varies. That's my honest answer. It just depends on the song or the studio or the environment that I'm in. If there's a drum set all patched up and ready to go, I'll just hop on the drums and make a loop and start building on that. I have a song on this record called “Sushi in Wyoming” where I literally had sushi in Wyoming as I was cross country road tripping from California to New York. I was tired of fast foods and was just like, I'm just gonna get sushi in a place where there's no body water in the general vicinity. I wrote that title in my notes to carry out later. So I would say maybe that song started more with lyrics and theme but a lot of the time, it's just me building a production and then kind of singing jibber jabber and eventually finding some words that I might have subconsciously said to run off with.
SOS: I read an old interview with Flaunt Magazine where you talked about how your song “Water” from your 2021 EP was about struggling with your mental health and needing to reach out for help. On your new EP, are there any songs that touch on that same feeling or are progression of that theme?
ATLAS: Yeah. Maybe it's not as on the nose as “Water” or “Unwind,” which is about taking a mental health day. On this record I have a song called “SeeThru” about the pressure and anxiety that we put on ourselves to be substantial and successful in the world. It’s a reminder to myself that a lot of those things are just constructs you make up in your head. It also highlights internal struggles and is me reminding myself that it doesn't always have to be that way.
SOS: Do you struggle with impostor syndrome in the music industry?
ATLAS: Yeah. Everywhere I go. But, you know, we just roll with the punches at the end of the day.
SOS: That's true. Tonight's your first night of this tour, how are you feeling? What's going through you right now?
ATLAS: Um, so like, stress, a lot of stress. This tour is the first time that I've ever done lights. I programmed it all through Ableton. It's been a little less than a year since I've been on the road and I sort of forgot how fast it is when you're loading in, and I incorporated a lot more shit. So it's a little crazy right now because there's so many things to take into account. The more that you incorporate into your set the more shit could go wrong. I'm just being real. So at the moment I think I've responded [to the stress] by taking a deep breath and trying to be calm. I’m only in control of what I can control, so I just continue to think about that rather than a bunch of elements that are just out of my control.
SOS: Just know that it's okay if one thing goes wrong. The whole show’s not [a bust] because for one song the lighting isn’t perfect.
ATLAS: I mean, you're so right. That's really good advice because you want it to be perfect, right? I spent so long on it, but at the end of the day, if one light doesn't go off, no one's gonna know. It doesn't really affect the whole experience.
SOS: If you mess up, just roll with it. Nobody will know. Especially since it’s the first show.
ATLAS: I know. I'm gonna say that several times. “Guys, it’s just the first show.”
SOS: “Guys, guys, come back the next night.”
ATLAS: “Yeah, we're gonna adjust tomorrow.”
"I’m only in control of what I can control, so I just continue to think about that rather than a bunch of elements that are just out of my control."
SOS: Something that we always ask people is if there is a song that found you at a time you needed it the most?
ATLAS: Yeah, it’s almost a song I rediscovered but it's one of those songs that really hit me in the gut and then I just listened to it like 1000 times. It's called “Now at Last” and it's actually a cover of a really old song. It’s one of those songs where it’s making me really sad but I cannot stop listening to it because it's exactly how I feel. It’s perfectly poetic and just a beautiful song.
SOS: Is there a song that you wrote that helped you grow or that you just had to get out of your system?
ATLAS: A lot of them actually. One in particular was my song called “Mom” on this newest record. Like full transparency, we had a falling out and didn't talk for a long time, and it wasn't great for me. It was December 2021, I had COVID and I think it was like three days in and I hadn’t touched my guitar or my computer in days. But I just decided to try some stuff, so I picked up my guitar. I hadn’t written [with just] the guitar or vocals in a really long time. I feel like I'm always trying to build this big production. But that song was just so honest and was exactly what I would want to tell my mom but probably wouldn't, because that's not really our relationship. I kinda cried throughout the process of writing it and I just felt really grateful for music in that moment because it was just this vehicle.
SOS: Did it feel good to put it out?
ATLAS: It did feel good to put out. When you write songs, some of them may be more for you than others. I think that song really wasn't meant for anything but for coping with a situation.
SOS: Are you planning to play it or is it something to keep to yourself?
ATLAS: I’m not playing it for a few reasons.
"That song was just so honest and was exactly what I would want to tell my mom but probably wouldn't, because that's not really our relationship. I kinda cried throughout the process of writing it and I just felt really grateful for music in that moment"
SOS: To end on a high note, what’s one thing that you're most looking forward to tonight?
ATLAS: Just getting back on the stage. We’re playing a lot of the new songs for the first time and I’m excited to be back in Boston. I wanted to get a lobster roll, but I guess I'm getting a burrito now. And honestly, this group of people that I'm touring with are all friends of mine. They're the homies, you know, so it's really cool to have everyone together and make music with your friends. So that's what I'm most excited about. Just getting my feet wet, too, because it's a long tour.
