Music Spotlight: Youth Basketball

Mar 31

Mar 31 Music Spotlight: Youth Basketball

LA-based indie pop artist Youth Basketball just released his latest + third single No Reason with an accompanying lyric video. The retro-inspired track is a smooth blend of indie-funk, synth-pop + psychedelic rock elements—the perfect chill jam to self-isolate to. Similarly, the lyric video features retro billiards footage, a theme found in the track + on the cover art. As Ian Kieffer, the mastermind behind the moniker, explains, “I liken life to when one ‘breaks’ in a game of pool. You hit the rack, the balls scatter, and whatever happens, happens. If you want to create your own meaning in the randomness, go ahead, but don’t pretend like you have the definitive answer.” The release of No Reason follows two of Youth Basketball’s equally notable singles Young Mother + Be Friends, which we highly recommend giving a listen. We caught up with Ian to chat about the single, songwriting + of course, basketball. Check out the lyric video below.

Asymmetric Magazine: Congrats on your recent release! Can you tell us about No Reason?
Youth Basketball: Thanks! No Reason is a song about letting go, really. Giving up on trying to find answers for why things happen or don't happen. Accepting the randomness of it all. It stemmed from being rejected by someone I was into, but I soon realized the message is much broader than that.

AM: Are there any consistent themes you typically pursue through your music?
YB: I find myself writing a lot about pain, being down, and trying to be better. I know that sounds depressing, but I don't feel like it is. The songs aren't all Elliott Smith downers or anything. Most of them are fairly upbeat, but when I go back and look at lyrics, I'm always surprised they're usually about some sort of internal struggle.

AM: For first time listeners, how do you like to describe your sound?
YB: Genre-wise, Youth Basketball is indie/soul, indie/singer-songwriter. I don't know. We groove, we're catchy. We can be soft and tender; we can be loud. Usually depends on how I was feeling when I wrote the song.

AM: What is your favorite part of the music creation process?
YB: It's the writing process. Always has been. I'm a very solo-writer. I enjoy it most when I'm by myself, just working through it all. The feeling of finding something that hits is still the best feeling in the world to me. But nowadays, I have a healthy appreciation for the production process, too.

AM: Where is one place that you feel completely in touch with your creative self and your music process?
YB: Like a physical place or a mental place? Physically, whenever I'm alone at a piano, I'm in the sweet spot. I don't know a lot of covers, so sometimes sitting at a piano in a room full of people is not my favorite (unless it's a show), because they might be like, ‘Play us something!’ And, unless it's my own music, I can't offer much. Mentally, I'm most in touch with my creative self when I'm feeling emotional—happy, sad, angry, whatever. My emotions are always the stimuli for my songwriting.

AM: Does living in Los Angeles play a role in your work?
YB: I'm not sure how much of a role LA plays. If it does, it's mostly subconscious. Except for Be Friends, which is specifically about me moving back to LA from New York, I don't write with LA in the front of my brain. But who knows? I'm sure if I looked at some lyrics, I'd see references to LA things. LA is cool.

AM: What is something that inspires you outside of music?
YB: Basketball! Hence the name. I love basketball and play all the time. I miss the NBA so much right now. I was watching every Laker game this season before the Covid-19 stuff hit. Of course, sports play second fiddle to the importance of slowing down the transmission of the virus, but man, it's a bummer not to have basketball. I'm gonna get some shots up on the outdoor courts near my house though soon.

AM: What other musicians are you currently listening to?
YB: I tend to just dive into single artists for periods of time—days, weeks—then onto another one. Some of the musicians I've been consuming lately: Snail Mail, Paul Simon (always), Toro y Moi, Vampire Weekend, Dirty Projectors, Billie Eilish.

AM: What can we expect to hear from you next?
YB: After No Reason? Well, we were in the process of recording more stuff when the quarantine hit, so it's on a bit of a hiatus. But I have a bunch of songs lined up to take to the studio, so hopefully you'll be hearing a lot of new stuff soon.