LOYD’s latest album, “Get A Taste,” is a tantalizing blend of electro-pop and heartfelt lyrics that leave a lasting impression.

We sent some questions long, see below what he had to say!

What initially drew you to pursue a career in music, and how did you get your start?
I’ve always been enamoured with singing, it came very naturally to me and my household was always full of song but coming from a low income background, I didn’t realise I could pursue this as a career until early adulthood when I started working with some friends on writing songs, things just happened naturally from there.

Who are your biggest musical influences, and how have they shaped your sound?
Most of my influences live in the pop world, people like Lady Gaga, Madonna and George Michael are where I get a lot of my inspiration but I also love so many types of music, sometimes inspiration comes from a different perspective. While making this album I listened to a lot of Perfume Genius, Durand Bernarr and Donna Summer in particular and found their music allowed me to approach songwriting in ways I’d never considered before.

Can you describe your songwriting process? Where do you usually find inspiration for your lyrics?
Usually lyrics and vocal melodies come to me first, I find it hard to write a song without a clear intention. I’ve seen lots of songwriters who pull melodies out of the air and worry about the lyrics later, but that’s never worked for me.

I need a story or a concept to fixate on, sometimes this comes easy but other times it can feel like banging my head against the wall waiting for inspiration to strike.

What has been the most rewarding moment in your career so far?
So far, it’s been finishing this album – I’m truly proud of the amount of work that’s gone into this project, which has sometimes felt like fighting an uphill battle. Every song is a different fragment of myself, and to get to work with people I admire (such as Tom Aspaul) on my own music has been tremendous. There was a point, in the early days of making this album, that I truly felt like I was going to quit and give up on music, so I’m so proud of myself for working through that and getting this project completed.

How do you handle creative blocks or challenges when working on new music?
I have learned that sometimes you have to give the creative process space to breathe, if I’m suffering from a creative block – there is usually a reason, I’m either in the wrong place emotionally or the song just isn’t right for me in its current format. I think it’s important to take a step back, have a shower, go to sleep, take a walk and collect your thoughts and then come back to it with a fresh mind set. I think it’s also important to know when to let go of an idea and chase a new one.

What advice would you give to aspiring artists trying to make their mark in the music industry?
Trust your gut. There is always an “industry insider” looking to tell you who you are and what you should be doing, they are often out of touch or chasing a trend. If your gut is telling you that they’re wrong, they usually are. Sometimes even people you trust can be wrong, so always trust your instinct first – it will rarely lead you wrong.

What inspired the title Get A Taste, and what does it mean to you?
The title is taken from a lyric in Track 03 (Take A Bite) of the album  – the title encapsulates the album for me. There’s sweet, spicy, sour, bitter and more – each song a unique flavour of its own and when you bring them all together, it’s a sonic feast.

Can you share the creative process behind the album? Did you approach it differently than your previous projects
I think this album is more personal in many respects than my first. I tried to be more open about what I was going through at the time, so there’s a lot of negative feeling in there but I’ve always been outspoken and I wanted that to be reflected in the music.

I was in a weird place at the start, where I felt like maybe music wasn’t for me, I had recently lost my grandparents and I was dealing with a million other things that created an unwanted pressure over me – it wasn’t really until halfway through the album that I felt more secure in myself and what I was doing – I think this shift is clearly reflected in the happier songs on the album.

Musically, I worked with producer Edward Russell to craft the sound, initially I wanted a more organic, rock-pop vibe but this slowly shifted to more of a disco influence as we explored options for the songs.

Which track on the album is the most personal to you, and what’s the story behind it
The most personal song for me is Armour, it was written after the death of my grandparents. I struggled to write it for months – there were many different versions of this song but I wanted to explore the state of forced vulnerability I felt when I lost them. There were several moments where I shelved the song, only to return to it months later.

As a non religious person, death is incredibly final and I really struggled with this at first, I wasn’t really sure what I believed but upon reflection, I found the idea of energy transferring back into the earth as an incredible solace.

I also struggled with handling the grief of others, I sometimes felt as if I had to hide my own grief to allow them to process theirs. At times, I felt as if I had to grieve in private and began to feel shame around it. It took a lot of introspection to realise that the shame I was feeling was guilt from not being able to express the love they had left behind.

This realisation opened up the flood gates creatively and allowed me to explore all of the terrible feelings that I’d previously locked away.

How do you think this album reflects your growth as an artist since your last release?
I think this album is more personal and cohesive than my last album. I also think my songwriting has improved, partly due to my experiences since the first album and also because I allowed myself to be more honest in my writing.

What themes or messages do you hope listeners take away from the album?
I hope people connect with the stories I tell over the course of the album, whether they connect with my tales of loss, my jealousy or my horniness! People are flawed, varied creatures with so many different experiences to offer, art is at its most rewarding when you can connect with it in a personal way.

How does the production on this album differ from your earlier work? Were there any new techniques or sounds you explored?
We definitely expanded the amount of session musicians brought in for this album, a lot of production on my first album was done purely on the computer but for this I wanted to bring in more live elements so we had guitars, bass, drums and backing vocals and I think the mixture of live and digital lifts this project to a new place.

Can you tell us about a memorable moment from the recording process of Get A Taste
Getting Tom Aspaul’s vocals back for Take A Bite was such a special moment for me, and probably the turning point that got me falling back in love with music. To hear him sing a song I’d written felt incredibly special – I was a huge fan of his work before this and asking him to work with me on this was a “shoot for the stars” moment, so to see it come to fruition was phenomenal.

What are some of the biggest challenges you faced while creating this album?
The biggest challenge for me during this process was silencing the voice of the saboteur. As a thirty-something queer pop star, opportunities for funding, collaboration and live shows have been few and far between.

My local scene often feels like a bunch of crabs in a bucket, the rejections and nepotism can feel suffocating and my mental health was in the gutter as a result, working through this, self-funding and creating my own opportunities hasn’t been easy but it has been worth it.

Find LOYD on Bandcamp