An Interview with Liam Rockwell

Dami: What inspired you to start making music?

Liam Rockwell: Well I grew up in an extremely musical household, first of all. I think it was kind of written. But I didn’t really understand that it was my calling until ninth grade when a friend of mine at a summer camp introduced me to Jeff Buckley and I listened to “Grace” all the way through. There hasn’t been a question as to what I was gonna be ever since.

Dami: Who are your biggest inspirations?

Liam Rockwell: My inspirations are constantly changing, but my biggest influence at the moment is probably Frank Ocean. The way he’s able to communicate emotions on such a visceral level is something I really hope to emulate. When it comes to vocals, I’d probably say Jeff Buckley like I mentioned earlier. I really like to try and experiment with my vocals and I tend to change my singing style a lot. But the way that Jeff wasn’t afraid to come off as “feminine” when he sang, in fact he kind of leaned into that, is something that really inspired me. It’s an aspect of my singing that has always stuck. I wanna be reborn as Jeff Buckley.

Dami: How much impact would you say Frank has on your sound?

Liam Rockwell: Frank and I are different genres so it’s not obvious at first. But he’s probably my biggest influence in terms of lyrics. On “Channel Orange”, he really took storytelling to a whole other level which is something that I really love to do with my music. For example, I have an unreleased 12 minute song about a drug dealer becoming attached to someone who buys from him. It’s super Frank-coded and it’s obviously inspired by Pyramids. But on this track “Rising Sun”, I was really inspired by Blonde and the emotional authenticity of that whole album.

Dami: How would you describe your sound?

Liam Rockwell: My sound is definitely indie rock. There’s a lot of reverb in my vocals and in the guitar, in a way that’s really inspired by this one band called Summer Salt. I saw them live in concert once and it blew my mind.

Dami: When making music, where do you grab inspiration from?

Liam Rockwell: Day to day life, I guess. The things I experience and the emotions I feel. Real issues I see, especially among my generation. I think it’s really important that Gen Z has some passionate artists that can vouch for us and convey the ways our generation is struggling, you know?

Dami: You recently dropped a single titled “So Not Selfless”. Can you tell us more about it?

Liam Rockwell: Oh yeah, that was something I wrote and recorded over the summer. I took a break from releasing music over the summer and I figured that was a good track to release when I got back. It’s very short and minimalist and simple, but I feel like the song benefits from all that.

Dami: What was the creative process like?

Liam Rockwell: For “Rising Sun”, my creative process was deeply personal. I really tapped into an emotional state. The creative process is kind of hard to convey. But I record all my songs on a laptop in my bedroom. All my songs are recorded with the same Squier I’ve had for a couple years. It’s very makeshift right now, but I love it.

Dami: What’s next for you after “So Not Selfless”?

Liam Rockwell: Everything. My next song is called Dramamine and it’s gonna be the best song I have released. I have this album I’ve been working on that I’m extremely proud of but it’s still in the early stages. I’m gonna perform live a bunch more. I have so much unreleased music right now, and it’s all really good in my eyes. I think what’s next for me creatively is that my music is becoming more and more political, or maybe political isn’t the best word, but there’s definitely a lot of social commentary.

Dami: What should we expect from Dramamine?

Liam Rockwell: Something to listen to if you want to feel powerful. I definitely leaned into rock in this one more than my other released stuff. It’s very Dominic Fike.

Dami: With the year almost to an end, what more would you like to achieve before the New Year?

Liam Rockwell: I would love to start a music collective of other young musicians in my niche from the SF bay area. That’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a hot minute now.

Check out his new single here