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Photo by Wrenne Evans

We are never perfect, and to be frank it takes us some time to get to some releases, they sit digitally on our shelf collecting electronic dust. That was the case for IAN SWEET's latest album Shiverstruck an absolute reckoning of a work that feels both uniquely her and something completely different. While we always admired Ian for her direct, scratchy & gritty vibes, we were happily surprised by the honest depth of Shiverstruck a record that really feels like an artist confidently getting back on track, taking a cleared indie voice and making it that much more heard. So late to the party yes, but elated that Ian could spare the time to let us in on her journey, the latest record and just how sweet she really is: 

OnesToWatch: Who are you? 

IAN SWEET: I'm IAN SWEET baby. I'm Jilian, with one L. 

You can be both. 

Exactly. I mean, there's a song on the record called Jilian, because I wanted to make some kind of separation between the two. 


Is IAN from the last part of your name? 

Yes. It was a nickname of mine in high school. 

How did that come about? 

I was a massive tomboy, hanging out with a bunch of dudes, skateboarding.They wanted me to be one of them. They were like, we're not sure a girl should be hanging out with us, you know, those types. Some one of them started calling me Ian and then just caught on. When I first started the band, it was just Ian, and then we signed to Hardly Art, this label, and they were like, there's no way anyone's going to find you. You're gonna have to, like, just completely change your name. So I’d go through all these different band names, completely changing it, but it just didn't feel right. So I added the “sweet.”
It's just a random little word. I've a sweet tooth, I think. I actually have a sour straw at the bottom of my bag that’s been there since I last went to the movies to see Resident Evil.

How long have you been writing? 

Probably since I was 12 or 13 and I’m 33, so that's like... 20 years. 

How long have you been writing with the intention to share with complete strangers, though? 


Also pretty long. I started putting out my music on YouTube and SoundCloud. But truly with the intention of my music being a project, I’d say it’s been 10 or 11 years. 

What have you found works for you and what have you left behind? 

What works for me is just completely not questioning myself. Not trying to follow trends. I'm sure everyone would say they're not following a trend, but I've fallen into those moments of enjoying the hyper pop thing that’s taking off right now, throwing some crazy breakbeats in there. It ends up not feeling true to who I am when I do that, when it's not genuinely coming from a place of truth.

Do you try to go the other direction when you know there's a trend?

I've just mainly tried to not think about anybody else at all – as hard as that can be – because comparing yourself to other people just gets you in a pile of shit. 

What about your process? Is there a specific place you usually start? 

I usually grab a guitar. And then I just start blabbing stuff, as I'm playing through chords. It can be total gibberish, but there are little hints in there of words I want to grab. It’s the intuition or a gut reaction to when I'm playing the guitar. They feel very intertwined. I can't really write without the other. 


That's interesting. 

I feel the best when I have a guitar in my hand. It's like a security blanket. But sometimes we'll just pull samples in on Ableton, even if it's just a drone. I always feel like there needs to be another noise or sound other than my vocals to write properly. 

Do those endure or is that just a start the track? 

Just to start the track. When I lived in New York, it was pretty difficult for me not being in a car because that's where I think of a lot of lyrics and melodies. I could have been one of those guys singing out loud on a subway car, but I didn’t. I think the LA to New York conversion is tough. I’ve heard New York to LA is a lot easier. Your body calms down here, your nervous system is a bit more regulated. That was really difficult for me. I just felt like I couldn't ever calm down. Every emotion was really heightened and every little instance was way bigger than it had to be. But that's what led to a lot of the writing of this record – the push and pull of New York and LA, which is a classic conundrum, but that's just where I was at. 

Let's go through the release. How old are the oldest songs? When did you start writing? 

A year ago. I made the record not this June, but last June.
I lived in Atlanta and made the record there. And then came back to New York and wrote the final song.

Okay, so a nice little time capsule. What does it represent? 

The whole record came from me trying to process a lot of the messier parts of myself in my life and coming to terms with not having everything figured out and being in my 30s. 


Oh, is that when you're supposed to figure it out? 

That's what they say. 

Already failed then. 

There are some moments on the record, too, about my struggle with the music industry. Not like I'm outwardly talking about it, but just what comes with doing this, dealing with doubt, having to pick yourself up and keep it moving, and how to find that from yourself, not from other people or other things. So making the record was a really crazy experience because I felt I was learning in real time what I was trying to give myself or accomplish in the process. Everything was being written about as it was happening. 

So this is an album of therapy. 


Big time, big time.

I love that. I’m curious about your struggles with the music industry. Making art is hard – were you dissecting more of the traditional balances of ego and ambition of being a musician, or the digital creator economy? 

I think making art for me is not difficult. But it’s not the creator economy, either. We're all changing and we all have to adapt and I'm fine with all that. There were a couple things that happened during the making of the record where, my music, for example, was used in a movie trailer without permission and it went in theaters and online. My team contacted the movie creators, and they had said the most cliche shit you could ever say, how I’m a small artist, I should be grateful for the exposure. That was so hurtful. You don't get to negotiate what you stole from me, and you especially don’t get to choose what the price is after you steal something.
They fully refused to pay me. So, that was pretty difficult and it really rocked me in a way. They also wanted me to sign an NDA, because they didn't want me to speak about it and tarnish their name. Clearly, I didn't sign the NDA, but I'm also not naming names because I don't feel like it, I'm not that type of person trying to drag anyone down. But, you know, it’s hard to make money; my day job is singing to babies. When you see a moment where you really could have profited off your music, but someone denied you that and instead treated you with such distaste, it’s just icky. 

That’s really unfortunate. Let's talk about your personal ambitions for this record. Sounds like you probably took a lot from the process, coming to terms with yourself and understanding yourself better. What do you hope happens when people listen to it? 

This record is just a different record for me. It feels a lot more mature and like stepping into this new place. I was a little bit more able to talk about my feelings in the way that I've always wanted to, without hiding behind all these metaphors or sugar coating things. Really, in life, I hang out with funny people. I love to laugh, I just want to find the humor in shit. I really wanted to find ways to do that on this record too and not take itself so seriously. I feel like it has all these elements of who I truly am. I feel like I grew up making it. 

My favorite artists are people who are just saying it straight up. I’m glad you found a way to do that that feels natural. Is there any way you hope listeners feel when they hear the record?

The idea that those messier parts of yourself are probably the most beautiful and the parts that people love the most about you.
Nobody has it figured out. I just wanted people to feel comforted in that, on the record. But, I think this is all, maybe why it feels more mature, why it feels more honest, is because I was really not thinking about how it was going to be perceived. Also really kind of pulling back on production and not hiding or burying my vocals, which I had done in the past because it felt too vulnerable for everyone to hear every little part of my voice. I felt comfortable to really sing on this one. 

That's great. Going to flip to some fun questions. If your friends surprise you at your place of residence, with what you have in your fridge and pantry, can you whip up a meal?

I could def whip up a meal. Or a dessert. I had a party at my house a few years ago. I didn't plan for what I was gonna make. We ordered pizzas, whatever, but I was like, we need dessert.
I had Oreos and I had chocolate pudding, someone brought gummy worms. So we made dirt cups. 

Awesome. We give you unlimited funding to promote and curate your own festival.
Who are you booking? 

Coldplay, first album era. Broken Social Scene.
Because I've always wanted to see them. I'm really, really into this girl right now called Star Moles. We'd have Joanna Newsome. Rilo Kiley. 

Okay, very solid list. I have a sense of your teenage years. If I'm finding you at your most relaxed, most peaceful, where are you? What are you doing? 

I'm sitting in a park with my dog, Blueberry. The tree is kind of peaking sun through, but we’re in half shade. And hopefully he's not barking at people. We've got a book or we've got a game, maybe with a friend, playing rummy cube or something like that. 

That sounds perfect. If you had the power to manipulate time and space, would you? 

No. 

That's totally fair. 


I think we have to just accept what's going on. 

What is your most impressive skateboard stunter trick?

I used to be able to Ollie. I can't no longer. 

Last couple of questions. Would love a non-music recommendation. 

A book that I've forever been changed by and is a really big inspiration for me and writer in general is this author Clarice Lespector. She's got a book called The Passion According to GH. And the entire book is about this existential crisis she has after killing a cockroach. It's very interesting. 


Not on my bingo card. 

And I had a crazy cockroach moment recently, but... I felt like her. 

I would also love a music recommendation. 

I've got a band that I know on Spotify that has 5 monthly listeners. The record is called Smiler. The band is called Actual Ink.

And then lastly, some life advice. 

I'm not a game person. I wouldn't have called myself a game person before this, but it’s nice as you get older to have these set plans with your friends because everybody gets so busy. My friends and I do weekly games. We've got Code Names going on. We've got Rummy Cube, it’s awesome. 

Listen to 'Shiverstruck' below: