Paperwhite, sister and brother Katie and Ben Marshall are a Dream-Pop duo from Brooklyn, NY. Katie is the singer and songwriter of the band. Her sophisticated melodies bounce from star to star in a lush galaxy of synthesized textures. Ben, also the drummer for Brooklyn band Savoir Adore, is the producer and co-writer. They’re nostalgic synth riffs shimmer above heart felt chord changes and hypnotic pounding drums. With four singles to date, and a debut EP “Magic” they’ve had nothing but enormous love from the blogosphere. Receiving the Hypem title “Most Blogged Artist” twice in a row, Paperwhite is a band worth keeping an eye on.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do. Hi there! We are Katie and Ben Marshall from Paperwhite! We are a brother and sister duo living in Brooklyn, NY. I (Katie) come from a singer songwriter background and Ben is a drummer who has taken on the role of producer and engineer!
What are some recent, upcoming or current projects you are working on? All winter, we have been in writing mode. Its been really exciting to see how our style is transforming and growing. We’re getting ready to release music this summer and can’t wait.
What are you currently watching on Netflix/what’s on your Netflix queue? Oh boy! We’re loving the Netflix originals these days! Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, House of Cards, Daredevil and Orange is the New Black are all pretty awesome!
What is one of the bigger challenges you and/or other musicians are struggling with these days and how do you see it developing? The ability to share your music/stream on the internet is kind of a catch 22. In many ways it allows you to do things that, in the past, you couldn’t do without a label backing you but it also makes it hard to stand out. We’re learning how to be very strategic in our releases and the way we think about the business side of music in general. Streaming is the future of music so the best thing we and other musicians can do is to work with it and attempt to understand how to create a positive experience for both the musician and the audience.
How did your interest in music begin? We come from a fairly musical family. Neither of our parents pursued music as a career but are both musically inclined. Our brother, Sam, is also a musician, so we’ve all been supporting each other and collaborating for years.
How has living in Brooklyn affected your music? Brooklyn has a really exciting and growing music scene. There is such a sense of community between musicians. Being able to see a great show every night and then be able to co-write or play with some of these talented musicians definitely helps to inspire new writing and styles.
If you had to explain your music to a stranger, what would you say? We are currently calling it Dream pop. We love the concept of a dreamy atmosphere yet it still has a groove and is danceable.
What kinds of music/what musicians are influencing your work right now? We try to stay current with what’s popular and listen to what is on the radio. So, to a certain extent, top 40 has an influence on our music but beyond that, we love listening to emerging artists that we’re finding either online or in Brooklyn. Ben is really inspired by artists that are on the electronic side while I love songs that showcase great songwriting. I think this combo has a huge effect on the style of the songs we write.
Do you get fan mail? What’s been the most exciting thing you have received from a fan? Yes! We’ve been getting some fan mail through facebook and soundcloud. Its been amazing to hear from our fans. A lot of times they’re writing from another country which is incredible! There isn’t one specific message that sticks out to us but a few have described how we’ve made their days better and that they’re thankful for our music. It warms our hearts and inspires us to keep going!
What is your snack/beverage of choice when recording? I (Ben) typically stick to coffee while Katie is more a tea drinker. We often end up baking chocolate chip cookies. I think thats our go to snack! Whoops!
What do you do when you’re not working on music? We both love cooking so we often try and have dinner parties with our friends. Now that the weather is getting warmer, we will probably be doing more exploring and adventuring both in and out of NYC!
What are you really excited about right now? Releasing more music! We are very anxious to get out a body of work to our listeners! We’re also just generally excited about working on and accomplishing some of our 2015 goals.