We are joined by Nebraska, United States based Folk/Americana husband and wife duo, Noah Gose and Chloe (Pinkman) Gose, who make up The Wildwoods, in the light of their latest single release, ‘Thirteen Sailboats’.
Since May of 2021, the pair have been living on the road, travelling across twenty states in the US and performing over eighty concerts with their adoring fans. Along the journey, they have been collecting and documenting stories and emotions that have come along with their travels.
Inspired by the likes of Watchhouse, The Decemberists, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Joni Mitchell, and Gregory Alan Isakov, The Wildwoods came together in 2012, at just fourteen years of age after meeting at middle school and it wasn’t long before they captured the hearts of many, performing all across the United States.
The latest single by The Wildwoods, ‘Thirteen Sailboats’, was born out of a poem that Noah created one day, sitting on a beach. He imagined that he was a sailor, asking the ‘what if’s’ of life, pondering what could have been.
The story continues with the sailor admiring the character, Virginia, who represents those sitting on the other side of the fence.. those who seem to have greater wealth and happier lives.
Recorded at Hand Branch Studio in Omaha, NE by Ben Brodin, ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ is about longing for something different, and the realisation that the grass in fact is not always greener on the other side.
You can listen to ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ below:
Would you like to start by telling us a little about how you came together?
We formed in Lincoln, Nebraska in 2012 when we were each just 14 years old.
After meeting in middle school, and discovering our shared love for folk/americana music, we began writing and performing together and quickly gained a following in the local music scene.
As a husband and wife duo, what do you feel are the best things about working with your partner and perhaps some of the difficulties?
I think one of the reasons that we’re still performing and writing music together, nearly ten years after we started The Wildwoods, is due to the fact that Chloe and I work very well together.
We both greatly value each other’s strong suits and have created a team where neither of us are ever afraid to share ideas.
There aren’t many difficulties, but one hardship that comes to mind is we can sometimes become pessimistic due to having the thought that our music might not go anywhere, despite how hard we’re working to write and record music, book tours, and promote ourselves.
We have to pull ourselves out of ruts and remind each other that we’re doing this purely for the love of
music and need to realize that the road to success is going to be tremendously difficult.
How would you describe the feel of your music?
We’ve heard others describe our music as being enchanting and mystical, while still containing many elements of traditional folk music.
I believe a reason for this might be the fact that we draw inspiration from many different types of music.
While folk music is a great love of ours, we tend to listen to a ton of jazz and classical artists that we’re constantly being inspired by.
We tend to think that our music feels very natural and in a way, simple.
Music that feels like driving alone on a gravel road, music that feels like sunshine hitting your face, music that feels like rain striking your shoulders while wandering through a garden.
We want our listeners to connect with their surroundings and/or be transported to a place where they feel safe and at ease.
You have recently released your single, ‘Thirteen Sailboats’.. what was the inspiration behind the creation of this single?
During our Summer 2021 tour, we found ourselves staying with the parents of a friend in Tybee Island, GA while we had a few days off after performing a show in Savannah, GA.
Staying so close to the ocean was an incredible experience and, being from Nebraska, this was an opportunity that we rarely get to experience.
The new landscape paired with the comfortable environment that we found ourselves in, caused us to want to write and work on new music.
At the time, I had been struggling with the idea that perhaps Chloe and I made the wrong decision by working on our music full-time.
I constantly wondered where we would be in our lives had we taken other paths and opportunities.
Since this thought was haunting my mind, I wanted to try to put the emotions into words for a song.
After finding inspiration from sitting alone on the beach one morning after watching the sunrise, I composed a poem where I imagined myself as a sailor, pondering all of his life choices and wondering what he could’ve been had he taken other paths and opportunities.
Being cursed by the “what if”, the sailor admires the fictitious character, ‘Virginia’, who represents all those who have found greater success, and lead seemingly happier lives than he.
The sailor realizes that although her existence appears to be perfect from the outside, Virginia has struggles and tribulations within her own life.
The chorus then takes the form of the sailor speaking to his younger self.
He realizes how carefree, ambitious, and joyful he used to be. Longing to return to the way he used to be, the sailor can still see a slight glimpse of those qualities still existing within his current self.
What does ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ mean to you?
To me, ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ means that we should all do our best to be content with our lives. There’s
no point in worrying about the past when there’s no possibility of going back to change it.
Opportunities will come and go, open doors will eventually close, and we just need to trust that although mistakes may be made, we must continue to do our best to carry on and move forward.
We must learn to admire the person we used to be but learn to truly love the person we are now.
What did the creative process look like for ‘Thirteen Sailboats’?
After I finished writing the poem, I worked to find chords and melodies that retained the emotions
relayed by the poem.
Upon the completion of the song, I brought it to Chloe and we worked together to create harmonies and rearrange sections until we were both happy with the final result.
After this, I wrote each part down on sheet music and in December of 2021, we recorded the song at Hand Branch Studio in Omaha, NE.
Where do you find your inspiration for your music?
The majority of our music is inspired by nature, love, experiences from the road, growing up in Nebraska, and meeting new people while traveling.
We also draw inspiration for the sound of our music by listening and studying musicians of a variety of genres.
We’re both admirers of jazz and classical and are always listening for new and exciting material that’ll create a spark in our creativity.
How has Covid-19 impacted your release?
Our songwriting process has a lot to do with experiences that we gain while touring, traveling and meeting new people.
Throughout COVID-19, we had to experiment with searching for new ways to be inspired by what our lives had become limited to.
In a way, this was a positive for us because I feel as though we spent more time with our instruments and working on instrumental sections that better complimented our songwriting, which isn’t something we had really put a huge focus on.
With ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ and other upcoming releases, the instrumental sections have been a major part
of the songwriting process and we’re really satisfied with the direction that our music is going.
What would you like to see happen for you in your music from here?
Our goal is to definitely continue to try to grow our fanbase and connect with more people through
our music.
As we continue to tour, we’d love to see more people coming out to our shows.
Releasing ‘Thirteen Sailboats’ as well as the other new songs that will be coming out soon, will hopefully give us the chance to grow a better following on streaming services and social media platforms.
What is one message you would like to share with your fans?
Thank you so much for listening to our music.
Although we find great joy in writing and recording new music, it makes it so much more rewarding knowing that we can connect with you through our music. You make it worth it.
Where can people find your music?
Our music can be found on any streaming platform. Spotify, Apple Music, Bandcamp, YouTube, etc.
We will also be selling vinyl and CD’s on our website once the album is released.
Karen Harding is a Melbourne, Australia based singer/songwriter, founder of Sounds On The Couch, and founder and operator of boutique music PR service for emerging and independent artists, Rise Indie.