Jack Garratt talks musicals, Teletubbies and living up to expectations with his debut album – Interview

After being nominated/winning/making the lists of just about every rising star award going, the pressure is now on for Jack Garratt as he gears up to release his debut album Phase later this month. 

We caught up with singer and multi-instrumentalist to find out how he's handling his new-found fame and talk about his love of everything - from musicals to - erm - Teletubbies... 

Hello Jack! It’s fair to say things have been going *fairly* well for you these past few months, haven’t they?

I am very, very tired right now but yes very happy! Everything these last few months has taken me by complete surprise to be honest with you. I wasn’t expecting things to turn out the way they have – it’s actually been quite incredible. I haven’t really had time to process it all because I’ve been so busy.

Winning the BRITs Critics’ Choice award, the BBC’s Sound of 2016… can you pick out a standout moment so far?

It’s very hard to pin down just one thing. These incredible moments, memories, awards… each thing feels like a milestone, and that’s how I’m trying to view them. When you come across a milestone, rather than telling you where you are, it tells you more about how far you’ve come, and then you get an idea of what the next one is and which direction you should take to get there.

What’s next on your list of goals then?

The best place I can be over the next year – the way I can keep motivated – is knowing that me and my team have worked as hard as we can, that we’ve done everything for the right reasons and kept the right level of integrity and self-respect. No matter how things turn out, I’ll be happy if I know that that’s the approach we took to it all. I could say, ‘Oh I want my album to do really well’, but it feels out of my hands at this point. I’ve done the best I can do with it and I’ve worked really hard on it, but now it’s up to the people and whether they enjoy it and decide to share it amongst their friends and family and accept it as an album in their lives.

Your debut album, Phase, is finally released this month…

Yes I know it’s been a long time coming! I’ve literally been waiting a lot longer than anyone else has been waiting, so if people could stop telling they’ve been waiting for it, that’d be great! [laughs] It’s been in its fermenting period for a couple of months and it’s almost ready to come out now.

Your sound is quite varied; can you even begin to sum up the sound and style of the album?

It’s fun. It’s a fun record and it was fun to make. The most important thing for me was that people have a good time listening to it and enjoy it – because it is fun and surprising and there are some interesting twists and turns to it that I think people won’t expect from me. There are a couple of types of songs like two piano ballads that people haven’t heard from me before.

I actually don’t tell people what I think my music sounds like because I don’t want people who haven’t heard it yet to paint their own emotions and come up with their own description.

Having made just about every ‘One To Watch’ list this year, are you feeling the pressure to live up to everyone’s expectations?

I definitely see the pressure. It’s standing there on my shoulders and screaming in my face and I’m trying my best to ignore it! That said, it’s kind of unavoidable at this point. I’m just trying to see past that. The reason I ended up on those end of year lists and why all those things happened was because I must be doing something right somewhere. Because of that, the best thing I can do is ignore the press, ignore how intimidating the whole thing is and just think, I seem to have made all the right decisions so far, so keep trying to do that!

Quick music test: Can you remember the first single you bought?

I actually can! I believe I bought it with my own pocket money as well. The first CD single I ever bought was the Teletubbies single, Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh! I remember the B-side was Mary Mary, Quite Contrary. I actually ended up working with the guy who wrote the theme for the Teletubbies and Rosie and Jim, so it clearly had an impact on my life!

Do you remember the first song you ever wrote?

It was a song I wrote when I was very, very young. I can’t remember the melody but it was a ballad about a girl. It was the only thing I thought I had any authority to talk about, when I actually I had no idea what I was talking about. The song was terrible!

And the first album you bought?

I remember one of the first albums I downloaded – it was the Sweeny Todd musical soundtrack. I love musicals and I was a bit obsessed with Sweeny Todd. Another one I remember buying when I was young was the score of How To Train Your Dragon. It sound weird, but the score in that film is glorious!

What song(s) do you want played at your funeral?

I had an extended family member pass away a while ago and while she was being cremated she had Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life. Me and my sister were just cracking in the back because it was so funny, but it was also a really beautiful moment. I’d probably have that song, plus Kool & The Gang’s Celebration.

Phase is released on February 19. What happens after that?

I’m looking forward to just keeping going, if that makes sense. I have no idea what I’m doing in three months’ time – anything could happen and change as it does so often in this industry. I’m trying to enjoy the moment I’m in and try and keep that in the forefront of my thinking. Hopefully that will lead to a prosperous year ahead!  

Jack Garratt's debut album Phase is out on February 19.