Maggie Lindemann – this is your FAULT
Maggie Lindemann X FAULT Magazine
Maggie Lindemann is undoubtedly an artist who marches to the beat of her own drum, and more power to her for doing so. Her artistry’s continuous evolution has led her to pastures far removed from her debut stylings and her progression as a songwriter is certainly evident on new EP ‘Paranoia”.
Drawing on her own past experiences, the record offers a voyeuristic view into Maggie’s battle with Paranoia, loneliness and love. With the global release of Paranoia taking place today, we caught with Maggie to learn more about her process, her fears and of course, her FAULTs.
Does a single narrative thread runs through the whole EP or have you ordered the tracklist more on feeling?
Maggie Lindemann: The whole EP is centred around paranoia, and that feeling is the string that goes through; every song touches on different things that trigger my paranoia or add to it. Gaslight is something that definitely added to it – anytime I get into a fight, I’m like, “Oh my God, here we go”. So I think it all has that narrative, but, I put the tracks in an order that I just felt told a story and flowed the best.
What would you say was the hardest track to write on the EP?
Maggie Lindemann: The hardest one to write was probably Scissorhands. I changed that first verse three times because I just didn’t like it. I kept being like, “Oh my God, this is not good enough.” It was my favourite song on the EP, so I felt like it needed to start off well.
You go from Loner, a song that chronicles your loneliness, into Love Songs which highlights your love for another person. Do the differing songs reflect your headspace at the time of writing them or do you think that the conflicting feelings can exist simultaneously?
Maggie Lindemann: Kind of both. When I wrote Loner, I was definitely in a lonelier headspace. I get pretty bad seasonal depression, and I wrote it November of 2019 that was definitely was a headspace thing. Even when I’m super in love, sometimes I can feel really alone.
What would you say was the most challenging aspect of the Paranoia project?
Maggie Lindemann: Getting the sound right. I feel like it took me a while to finally get into the groove of how I wanted everything to sound. Different is the first song I wrote on the EP, And I think you can tell because everything else matches it. Finally knowing exactly how I wanted everything to sound was really hard. At the start, I wasn’t creating my own sound because I was using references and all that stuff. I wanted it not to be so rock and then not be so pop – I wanted to do all these really challenging things.
Because you have a huge fan base, can it be difficult to take the next step while trying to keep the original fanbase happy?
Maggie Lindemann: A lot of my older music is super pop, and I know I went into a fully different vibe, so I used to think about that a lot. I don’t want a lot of the people that listened to me years ago to disconnect and not want to listen to my music. I still do want to make pop music, but more like alternative pop. I know a song like Gaslight is catering to a completely different audience and then there’s Loaner or Different that can still cater to the people that used to listen to me. Maybe those songs can bring listeners to the songs that are a little bit more rock.
When you look back on your career, what do you want your music to have said about you?
Maggie Lindemann: That I’m a real person, which I think people forget. I want people to feel like they have a connection with me and that I’m someone to relate to on a personal level. I just want people to think that I’m open, and I can be vulnerable.
What did you do when you were young?
Maggie Lindemann: I used to ride horses, competitively, run track. I was a horse girl.
Do you feel like there are aspects of those experiences that help you in your music career?
Maggie Lindemann: The competitiveness of it definitely carries over. Also, the idea of practice makes perfect. and that when it’s time for the show, you go all out.
What would you say is the biggest fear you have as it pertains to your art?
Maggie Lindemann: That my music isn’t good. I think it’s really cool, but maybe people around me are gassing me up, and it’s not good! Maybe people are just lying to me; it’s this weird fear I have in my mind.
What would you say has been the hardest lesson you’ve had to learn to take your artistry to that next level?
Maggie Lindemann: When I was at the beginning of my career, and Pretty Girls started popping off, I felt like I was just really young and I felt like a lot of the stuff that was being asked to me, was dumb. I was like “this is not going to benefit anyone”, and I would not do things out of laziness. Now I look back on that and all these amazing opportunities that I wish I took instead of being lazy and wanting to be home.
What is your FAULT?
Maggie Lindemann: I’m fairly hard on myself. People’s words are nothing compared to my own. I will never let myself live anything down.