Music Spotlight: Moscow Apartment

Toronto-based indie rock duo Moscow Apartment released their sophomore EP Better Daughter last week (July 10), and we’re completely enthralled by their evolved sound embellished with folk influences, shimmering guitars, refreshing vocals + empowering lyricism. The 6-track masterpiece is an ode to climate justice, as well as the friendship of activists + best friends behind Moscow Apartment Brighid Fry + Pascale Padilla. We caught up with Brighid about each of the tracks on the EP, activism + quarantine. If you’re like us, you’ll have Halfway + Meredith Palmer on repeat indefinitely.

photo by Deborah Samuels

Asymmetric Magazine: Congrats on your new EP! Can you tell us the story behind Better Daughter?
Brighid Fry: Better Daughter is our second EP. It is out on Hidden Pony Records with the support of Slaight Music as a result of us winning a contest in 2018 called ‘It's Your Shot’. The winner (us!) got 100,000 in artist development and an EP released on a label (Hidden Pony).  We spent a lot of 2018 & early 2019 doing co-writes, playing a lot of live shows and trying to sort out what sound/music direction we wanted to go in. We recorded Two Timer with Grammy-award winner Vance Powell in Nashville which was an amazing experience and then tried a number of collaborations that were also incredible but we didn't get the right sound to match Two Timer or the songs we were most excited to release for this EP. We did some demos of the songs with our longtime collaborator Guillermo Subauste and then eventually came around to the idea of producing the remaining tracks ourselves with him as a co-producer, and that's what we did.

Better Daughter represents a more personal collection of songs that are really about that sweet spot of transitioning over from being a teenager to an adult. We are still in that place but further along in it—we hope—with this EP coming out. We got to assert the sound we wanted with the support of our publisher Slaight Music and our label Hidden Pony, which we are so grateful for. Kevin Drew from Broken Social Scene was one of the judges for the ‘It's Your Shot’ contest, and he came to one of our shows shortly after we won the contest and has seen us play a few other times. We actually got to be on the same lineup as him for the Canadian Independent Music Awards. Anyway, we had a couple of informal jam sessions with him, and he helped us come up with the guitar parts that ended up forming New Girl and really encouraged us to stay true to ourselves and the sound we want as we go on this journey. As a lifelong fan of Broken Social Scene, this was really great advice! The title Better Daughter is a reference to one of the songs on the record Meredith Palmer. It fit for us as a EP title because we are both climate justice activists, and it is a reference to our reckoning with what we are doing to the planet.

we are both climate justice activists, and it is a reference to our reckoning with what we are doing to the planet.

AM: Is there a track off the EP that you resonate with the most?
BF: I can't choose just one! There are different things I love about each song. Production wise, I think Two Timer is the strongest. Vance Powell is a wizard. But we felt really proud with how Halfway turned out production-wise, and this song means a lot to us because it is about our friendship. Awful People was the most fun to write and is definitely our edgiest song. Meredith Palmer means a lot to me, because it started in my dream and we played it at the Global Climate March concert. It also has the line that names the record. So far it is the most under-rated. New Girl is getting playlisted like crazy and seems a crowd favorite so far, and 18 is such a sweet song about growing up that we wrote with two phenomenal humans (Chin and Shalom). I can't choose!

AM: You mentioned working with some incredible people! What was the most memorable part of the creation process for this EP?
BF: The most memorable part has to be our trip to Nashville. We love that city, and it was our second trip there. It was Spring in Nashville but still cold and snowy in Toronto. We learned so much from Vance Powell and had time to explore and get to know Nashville a little.

AM: Are there any consistent themes you typically pursue through your music?
BF: Not on purpose, but we mostly write about what we know, so there are often repeated themes there: how complex everyone's relationships with others are, activism, mental health etc. 

AM: For first time listeners, how do you like to describe your sound?
BF: Shimmery and youthful activist pop rock.

AM: We love all of your cover art, too! How do you think it complements your sound?
BF: Thank you! It was done by the really talented artist Genevieve Ashley. I like it because it's really fun and wacky, but also has this gentleness to it, and that's also how I like to think of us as a band. Whimsical might be the right word.

AM: During this pandemic, time of quarantine, and current movement, what's been keeping you grounded?
BF: So much has happened in the world over the last four months; it is so crazy! I have been trying to do some activism and I've been go

AM: During this pandemic, time of quarantine, and current movement, what's been keeping you grounded?
BF: So much has happened in the world over the last four months; it is so crazy! I have been trying to do some activism and I've been going to some of the Black Lives Matter protests in Toronto including a big sit in to call on defunding the police and writing to politicians. I have also been spending time with my three year old brother—he definitely helps keep me grounded.

AM: Speaking of activism, how do you think music impacts social change?
BF: I think it is really important for musicians to use their art for social change and would say that has been a part of our band since the beginning. Both Pascale and myself are very politically active people and come from activist families, so it is kind of second nature for us. We have always very vocal about feminism, anti-racism, climate justice and indigenous sovereignty. The last show we played as a full band before the pandemic really hit was a fundraiser for Wet'suwet'en solidarity that we organized. We try to be informative, reflective and outspoken on social media but also recognize that a lot of activism nowadays can be performative, so we also want to listen, let our actions speak and walk the talk.

we want to listen, let our actions speak and walk the talk.

AM: Are there any new hobbies that you’ve picked up that you are enjoying?
BF: Baking bread. I know it's a thing that everyone is seemingly doing that right now, but I'm a total carb addict and love anything cottage core, so I find it really fun. I spent a whole day just baking bread and delivering it to all my friends. I also like gardening—especially herbs.

AM: What other musicians have you been listening to?
BF: Speaking for myself, I've been listening to all kinds of stuff recently- but I've been really vibing with HMLTD, Rina Sawayama, Doja Cat, and Idles. I've been very all over the map with genre recently :)   Also loving the new July Talk songs and the Fiona Apple record and just introduced my Mom to the Oh Hellos.

AM: Who are you most excited to see live when concerts resume?
BF: I am so excited for live music to resume once things are safe again. I want to see Broken Social Scene, Stars, Feist and Metric all play together, and the other Canadian I am dying to see is Andy Schauf. I also want to see St. Vincent again, Laura Marling, Rina Sawayama, and I would love to see the Wombats play. There are so many more! Fiona Apple, Big Thief—it’s so hard to choose!

AM: Where is one place that you feel completely in touch with your creative self and your music?
BF: Pascale’s room.

AM: What can we expect to hear form you next?
BF: We're in the process of writing for another [EP] to hopefully come out in late Autumn.

// listen to Better Daughter:

Listen to more Moscow Apartment on Spotify.