Dorah Jacson Lurking Interview

Sunshine Coast's Dorah Jacson releases new single "Lurking".

21 year old Dorah Jacson (a.k.a Kayla Smart) is quite the mellifluous soul, and a talented songwriter to add, possessing a heartfelt yet whimsical writing style. She delivers songbird like vocals, accompanied by driving guitar licks, all forming her own dark and dreamy stylings of indie, pop, and alt-rock. Following the release of her debut single "Away" in February 2019, Dorah Jacson quickly gained rave reviews from Triple J presenters, was featured on Home & Hosed, added to Unearthed rotation, and given the opportunity to open at the Big Pineapple Music Festival on the main stage. Dorah Jacson has since released the single "Sinking", and played her first headline show at Solbar Maroochydore to an amazing response. Dorah kicks off 2020 with the first single "Lurking" from her forthcoming EP.

Produced, mixed, and engineered by Nicholas Wilson at Rockinghorse Studios in Byron Bay, "Lurking" was written within half an hour, with Dorah explaining the track "is for anyone that's had someone get in their space when they are not welcome. Most people will think straight to physical kinds of harassment, but online harassment through messaging is where this song came from for me. It's been real scary seeing a lot of people thinking they can say whatever they like to whoever they like online, so I'm hoping this song can raise more awareness on the issue. One of those incidents happened one day and I just blurted out what was on my mind over this chord progression I came up with."

The Sunshine Coast local started off by playing solo around the area, gaining a loyal following through her captivating performances before her first single had even been released. Now with a band behind her, featuring Erin Ellis on lead guitar & vocals, Lachlan Pearson on bass, and Nick Keogh-Peel on drums, Dorah Jacson has been able to take her performance to the next level. This raw emotion and passion that shines through in the live set has recently led to a great performance at Brisbane's Mountain Goat Valley Crawl.

Interview with Dorah Jacson (a.k.a Kayla Smart)

Question: How would you describe your music?

Kayla Smart: Someone once told me it was 'dark and dreamy' and I've kind of stuck with that! It sums it up pretty well I think as I've got a mix of influences that fall under those two categories like Daughter, London Grammar, Angus and Julia Stone, and Tash Sultana.


Question: Can you tell us about Lurking?

Kayla Smart: Lurking is about people that get in your space when they are not welcome, both online and in person. It's an issue that doesn't get seriously talked about a lot – it usually just gets brushed off or people pretend it doesn't happen, so I wanted to make a song that brought it to the forefront.


Question: What inspired Lurking?

Kayla Smart: As a female I experience this kind of behaviour a lot, but this one day I got a real inappropriate message and I just cracked it and wrote a song then and there! I recorded these chords on a looper then pretty much just improvised the lyrics over the top.


Question: Is there a particular message you hope listeners take from your music?

Kayla Smart: Not really a message, but I just hope people can relate to it and it adds something to their day. I use a lot of imagery in my songwriting so there's a strong aim to awaken the imagination and take people away from reality for a bit, whether that transports them to magic moments in their life, or it lets them focus on healing in the tougher times.


Question: Do you prefer performing live or recording?

Kayla Smart: Performing live for sure! I get easily stressed and impatient if recording doesn't feel like it's going well, whereas when I'm performing, I let go of everything, even if I'm nervous about the gig itself, and just fully immerse myself in that moment.


Question: Which is your favourite song to perform live and why?

Kayla Smart: I love playing 'Away', I usually play it last and it's just this amazing euphoric moment every time that finishes off the set perfectly. That song personally takes me back to an interesting and exciting time in my life and it's really nice to be reminded of that every time. Also the song itself if just so fun, the way it builds from that opening riff to everyone in the band fully going for it at the end is just electrifying.


Question: If you could have anyone, in the world, attend a show, who would it be?

Kayla Smart: I'd have to say Maggie Rogers in the hope she breaks out into her amazing dance moves, then I would go boogie with her while playing.


Question: What is the story behind the name, Dorah Jacson?

Kayla Smart: The name Dorah Jacson is actually based off a character from a little children's novel called Blueback by Tim Winton. I absolutely adore the book and love how even though it's a small one, I still get so lost in this rugged oceanside setting that he's created for it. I wanted to take inspiration from Dora Jackson's (actual spelling in book) name because she is a strong female who is making do on her own in a sometimes-harsh environment, which I kind of feel like what I'm doing with my music. The oceanside element from the book also ties in well with my music as I have grown up by the sea and it has inspired my songwriting over the years.

Question: What motivates you most when writing music?

Kayla Smart: Whatever is happening in my life really! I'm terrible at making myself sit down and write a song on purpose. If something significant happens to me, it'll be almost certain I'll write about it at some point and that's pretty much the only time I write. I think the motivation comes because writing is my form of release. If something happened to me and I didn't write about it I think I would explode from all the emotions/thoughts swirling around inside me!


Question: Which music/artists are you currently listening to?

Kayla Smart: A lot of surfy/chill kind of music like Benee, Khruangbin, Dope Lemon and Still Woozy. I'm keen to write some stuff that leans more towards this style so I'm trying to get inspired!


Question: What or who was your inspiration to go into the music industry?

Kayla Smart: After a few years of learning guitar as a hobby, I started playing guitar in a little trio busking with my brother and a friend. We started getting booked for paid gigs after a while of doing it, and even though it was just playing covers in bars and cafes, I loved doing it! Once I realised I could get paid for what I love doing I decided to try and take it on seriously so I could make it my full time job. I finally got over my fear of singing and took lessons, started writing songs, and took a short University course in music, which really kickstarted my solo music project.


Question: If you could collaborate with another artist, who would it be?

Kayla Smart: So tough to choose but I think London Grammar would be amazing. The sound they can create with just three people is mind blowing and it would be great to see what their creative process is like.


Question: What's a typical day like?
Kayla Smart: As my only job is gigs, the days are super free to do anything! I like to have beach days and hang with mates, but on a productive day I usually go to my family's communal workplace which is just this big industrial unit near our home. We've got a recording studio and rehearsal space downstairs, and then upstairs I've got a jeweller's bench where I work on my silversmithing (another business/income source I'm trying to start up!). I'll usually just jump between playing music downstairs and making jewellery upstairs depending on how I'm feeling, as well as reply to any emails/jump on my socials/organise any other nitty-gritty music related things on my laptop. I'll then usually finish the day with a beer and a walk to the beach with the dog!


Question: What has been your favourite part of becoming a music artist?

Kayla Smart: All the people I've met and the things I've got to do through music have been incredible. I play in a few other bands too because I just can't get enough of it. Through gigging/touring I get to travel, make amazing memories with the band, meet other like-minded people, and just enjoy playing music with a room of people. Nothing beats it.


Question: What's next, for you?

Kayla Smart: I'm getting closer and closer to releasing my whole EP. I'm also going to try and pull together my first little tour to celebrate which I'm super excited about.


Question: Can you share your socials?

Kayla Smart: Bandcamp 
Facebook  
@dorah.jacson/
YouTube  
Triple J Unearthed 


Interview by Brooke Hunter