Emerging Montreal Indie Folk-Pop Songsmith Aaron Wylder’s New Single, “Folk Star”
There’s something delightfully meta about Aaron Wylder’s buzzy upcoming single, “Folk Star.”. With a fuzzed-out pop-rock groove akin to that of a T-Rex, the Caribbean-born and bred indie folk songwriter yearns for and romanticizes the life of his idols in the catchy new single.
Wylder opts not to stick to a traditional folk-style ballad despite the title, but instead produces a serious earworm of a track that bounces and bubbles. With raw honesty, authenticity, and vulnerability, he longs to fully engulf himself in the good, the bad, and the ugly that all comes with being a “folk star.” This of course includes one of the more endearing aspects of it all, which is dressing the part, as he gleefully sings, “Bought myself some boots and an old suede jacket / A black denim shirt and a rusty little bull tie / Oh, I’m trying to be a folk star.”
And yes, the sentiment is pretty universal among almost anybody who’s picked up a guitar. But sometimes the most effective route in songwriting stems from not trying to be too heady, and just sticking to a simple resonating concept.
“I wrote this song back in late August,” Wylder says. “If I remember correctly, it started out with me thinking about the process of trying to write a really good song, and trying to put myself in the shoes of the greats as best as I could. As I continued, it turned into an ode to the life of a folk star.”
With a simple yet sticky chorus that just doesn’t seem to leave your head, the yearning is felt in Wylder’s voice as he sings, “I wanna be like Petty and Johnny Cash / Tour across the country only stop for gas / Play every night back in the bus in the morning / Oh yes I’m trying to be a folk star.”
“The song did start out very folk and acoustic driven,” Wylder states. “However, like all my songs, once I’m in the studio everything and anything is possible. Connor [Head], my producer, came up with that killer fuzz guitar part you hear beating throughout the song. It really added a cool rock n’ roll element which I think helped transform it into that power pop-rock vibe.”
“Folk Star” is the first single and title track off of Wylder’s upcoming EP, set to be released on April 5th, 2024.
The Folk Star EP was recorded at Catalogue Studios in Victoria, BC, and was mastered by CPS Mastering. The EP was recorded in two parts; two sessions in September 2023, and a couple more in December 2023. It follows his June 2023 EP, The King of My Own Heart.
Wylder spent the first 14 years of his life on the Cayman Islands living a very genuine Caribbean lifestyle: fishing at 6:30 in the morning, traversing the mangroves, playing soccer, and rarely needing footwear.
“It was an incredible place to grow up and to raise a young family. There’s such an adventurous element to it,” he says.
Despite the simple, exotic pleasures of growing up there, it was still a very small town on a small island. Wylder had the same 20 kids in his class for his entire schooling career, and there wasn’t a face he didn’t recognize. Despite feeling tight-knit, there was a deep feeling of isolation that brewed inside of him too. Especially as he started to feel the spark of music-making inside of him.
To benefit the whole family, Wylder’s parents eventually moved Aaron and his two brothers to Victoria, British Columbia. He would establish his emerging music career in Victoria until this past October, when he decided to ship across the country to pursue life in the folk scene of Montreal.
“Playing shows here is special, and the energy around the city is creatively inspiring. I can definitely see myself staying here for a while,” he says.
With a range of styles within the indie singer-songwriter sphere, Wylder enmeshes the modern folk picker with a hearty dash of acoustic pop. Whether it’s songs of hope, songs of wonder, or songs of longing, Wylder speaks to the realists who see the world around them for what it is: imperfect and ever-changing.
“If I’m able to make music that I enjoy and other people enjoy too, then I’ll die a happy man,” Wylder proclaims.