Quarrell is however someone who revels in the opportunity to speak to their music and is quick to explain his intention when his music is misconstrued. Through pairing dark narratives with upbeat backing tracks, Quarrell creates a sound that is fully immersing and uniquely Lost Animal. “My songs are songs you can dance to but I don’t think I’m making dance music at all,” says Quarrell. “It’s not really an intention, it’s just how the track evolves.”
His latest release You Yang has received rave reviews and has had people flocking to see the album translated live. When it comes to playing live the set up is strikingly bare – Quarrell armed only with a microphone and a laptop programmed with his carefully arranged songs. “In the early days it was a real challenge to stand there and do it on my own, especially coming from a band background and having a guitar,” says Quarrell.
While primarily interpreted as a solo project, Lost Animal also features music luminary Shags Chamberlain who has played with the likes of Ariel Pink and Pikelet. “Getting Shags in was cool because he really brought something to the music and has his own energy. I’ve noticed when he’s not playing with me that there’s a frightening element to playing solo that alleviates the performance. For me it’s a do-or-die type feeling,” says Quarrell.
Prior to Lost Animal, Quarrell’s music was notably more somber, something he broke away from when shifting his attention to beat making. “All my bands before this were a lot darker but I think I grew out of it. I wrote a lot of acoustic guitar songs but I just got to the point where I wanted to present songs in a different way, I didn’t want to stand up and sing with just an acoustic guitar. I look at the backing tracks and the recording of everything as a post-modern way of doing that. It’s just another way to present songs.”
When asked what he ultimately hopes to achieve within Lost Animal, Quarrell is remarkably poignant. “The music on the records I make are a ‘fuck you’ to the bad things in my life,” says Quarrell. “No matter how hard things may get, or how dark things may seem, there’s still a fire burning inside of you and you’ve still got the funk. You can rise above it and you can live life with a swagger even though life might beat you around.
“With the live shows I want people to feel empowered at the end of it – the lyrics might be a little bit dark, but the music’s funky because I want to address things that I don’t want to lose, I don’t want to be beaten down. That’s probably my greatest motivation.”
As for what’s next for Lost Animal, Quarrell discusses the array of ideas swimming through his head. “I think Lost Animal is an ongoing thing. I can see me making a piano record and even an acoustic guitar record. I like to think I’ve set Lost Animal up so it can be anything.”
By Holly Pereira
