Five.others is an indie/soul artist from Toronto, Canada. Also known as Greg, he’s a veteran of a decade in Toronto's indie music scene, Five.others has written, performed, and engineered for various acts such as The Lipstick Junkies, Swift Arrow, Naked Wild, and more. Short and bittersweet, Five.others debut EP “Sweet Blue” juxtaposes melancholic R&B and soul with funky slacker rock guitars to create something equal parts jazzy, groovy, and contemplative, perfect for a short walk home.
Featured on the EP “Sweet Blue” is the soulful jam “Just” that pours through with a certain mellow delicacy that allows the listener to relax, to remove themselves from the rush of the world and lets the music create a moment of peacefulness around them. You become ready and willing to drown in this ocean of bliss with Five.others. His vocals, these riffs, this passion and soul that is the entire set-up, and the performance all work there magic. The song is incredibly relatable and can be interpreted by a broad audience due to its accessibility. Greg’s vocals shine beautifully at every step, carrying the weight of the concept with authenticity and skill. There’s nostalgia in the approach throughout “Just” but the melody and the style overall bring through a fairly incomparable vibe right now, and there’s so much value in that. Absolutely worth a listen if the weight of the world has been getting a little too heavy for you.
Check out “Just” here and read more with Five.others below!
Welcome to BuzzMusic Greg! How long have you been creating music
I’ve been creating music since I started playing an instrument, so about 12 years ago. I’ve always been drawn to writing and creating my own things in general, so it was natural for me to start doing so musically.
Who or what inspired you to begin recording and releasing your material?
I started out playing in bands, and honestly that had been my primary focus throughout my adult life. As my friends and band mates grew up and our projects became dormant I needed an outlet for the musical energy I still had, and moreover, a sense of purpose became vacant in my life. It was a long road to try to find my singular voice in what had always been a collaborative experience for me, and I feel that I’m just beginning to scratch the surface of what that is. Ultimately the energy that drives me to create is utilitarian, as creating is the foremost medium in which I actualize and express my sense of self worth, a concept which otherwise eludes me. In short, recording is a habit that I need for my own sanity and well being.
Releasing music, on the other hand, is less natural to me. I have an inherent struggle in both seeking attention and accepting validation, that being said there are reasons to push myself beyond the comfort of my anonymity and invisibility. I do need the attention and validation that I avoid to fulfill the very purpose that drives me. With the amount of time, effort, and resources that I’ve committed to creating music, my hope is to return to the world some of the meaning and emotion that music has given me. In turn, that others might be inspired is reason to share in itself.
We love your song “Just”! Can you dive into the lyrics?
For reference I’ll start with the lyrics:
is it there when you close your eyes
sweet blue
vision guide you, to confide to, and remind you
undecided, undivided, true
over and over i’ve been
racing back to start anew
i’d take back all the days
i’d wait up every night
i’d find some other way
just to make things right
Lyrically, “Just” touches on themes that are present throughout my work, namely regret, guilt, anxiety, and the inability to grasp the conceptuality of how one interacts with their past, present, and future. It is important to me to maintain enough ambiguity and ambivalence in my lyrics that they are open to several interpretations, demonstrated by the multiple meanings of the word “just” (only, fairly, or exactly). The other distinction that contextualizes the song comes in the form of the second line, and name of the EP, Sweet Blue.
What is sweet blue? Is it what the song is about? To whom or what the song is addressed to? Can you change it? How much can you change it? Should you? Will you? Did you?
From there the contradictions and dichotomies portrayed throughout the song can be recontextualized. Personally, sweet blue could mean my depression, my music, a person I had or have a relationship with, or even myself, to give a few examples. It might be difficult to change the ways in which one relate to those things, even if the change seems small or justified. Really it’s about questioning that which you haven’t reconciled.
What do you hope your listeners take away from this song?
The main hope would be that people want to hear more! Hopefully “Just” is just the right mix of groovy yet contemplative to catch listeners off guard in a good way.
What projects are you working on through the end of 2019?
I’m glad you asked! I’m really happy to be continuing to work with some other acts that I’m a part of, as I’m recording, playing live, and maybe even shooting some videos with Naked Wild, Swift Arrow, and Vamplounge. As for five.others, I’m to play my first shows, and am excited to continue writing and recording music, as I’ve already gotten well underway to releasing more demos on the five.others SoundCloud. The next official release won’t be until at least 2020, so I’ll be promoting Sweet Blue as best I can until then. I’m so thankful for the acknowledgment and support that I’ve gotten so far, and for this project to officially exist. At some point I’d like to emphasize and incorporate my photography and poetry work as five.others, which can be found at my Instagram and Tumblr pages, alongside the music aspect as well. Until then I’ll leave a huge thank you to BuzzMusic for having me, and to you readers for making it through my nonsense!