BuzzMusic got the exclusive release of the promising album from the riveting artist of Meg Doherty! Who is Meg Doherty? She’s a singer and songwriter from Liverpool who graduated in 2018 from BIMM London with a BA in Songwriting. There, she developed a network of writers, producers, and artists during her three years studying in the capital. Her musical influences? Well, it ranges from Kate Bush to LP, and she incorporates traditional acoustic with Celtic instrumentation into her own writing. With a significant amount of stage presence, Meg Doherty has acquired comfortability with crowds by performing across various different gigs and stages.
As we aren’t surprised, Meg Doherty is already creating buzz for herself, and she continues to create a lot more buzz! She premieres the striking album titled “Wrong Medicine”. This album begins with the magically produced opener, “Robin”. Robin has an enchanting appeal to the vocal resonance of Meg Doherty. Her warm-like texture to her voice was completely mesmerizing and absorbable. You sooth yourself into the album slowly by the tonal quality of her voice and the articulation of the melody. The mellifluous sound has this enormously driven tune that serenades its listener into a realm they won’t forget.
After Robin captures the introduction, Meg Doherty switches up the tempo with a more upbeat and charismatic record. “Under The StreetLight” has a nice rhythmic notion to the track that gets its listener moving in a joyful manner. The energy in “Under The StreetLight” was more eclectic, showcasing a nice diversity in the album. The calming aesthetic continues to move with the next record “If She Doesn’t Mind”. The guitar stringing in “If She Doesn’t Mind” was super neat to me as a listener. I was focused on the strumming rhythm of the guitar, with the folk-like vibe. The lyrics in “If She Doesn’t Mind” was more compelling to me because it hinted the theme of heartbreak and getting over someone. This gave a nice poetic appearance to the project. The next records to transition in “Wrong Medicine” were “Ana” and “We Fall” and what captivated me the most about both of these songs was how it was able to emphasize the theme behind “Wrong Medicine”. The lyricism in both tracks was so relatable, you were able to become hypnotized by the passion she displays. The melodies were of course on point while the arrangement may have differentiated from each other, but was well executed.
The next track, “The War” began with a light-hearted strumming introduction. Meg’s vocals were soft, and she moved in multiple registers including her head voice all the way to the high falsetto. Her vocal skill in “The War” was cultivating. This record was my favorite off “Wrong Medicine” because I enjoyed the sassy melody in the hook, sung by not only Meg but her feature. The next song on this scorching album is “Wrong Medicine”. The opening lyrics are “Such a master of deception, wish I known that from the very start.” The melancholic lyrics were powerful and dynamically expressed the theme of breakup, lies, and heartbreak. This completely outlined the major theme behind “Wrong Medicine”, and Meg closes it off with “Bigger Goodbyes”. “Wrong Medicine” is a trail-blazing project which features acoustic guitars and smooth bass lines. Meg Doherty is undeniably the new face of the music industry whose ready to take it by storm!
Get to know more about Meg Doherty below in our exclusive interview!
Introducing the dynamic artist Meg Doherty! Knowing you have graduated from a musically inclined school, in what ways have your past musical education become beneficial for your songs?
Hi there! It was living in London, away from home, and not just studying in a music school that changed the way I write songs. Although London is so busy, I was alone a lot of the time and I had a lot of time to people-watch which gave me a lot of inspiration! But being a student in a music school meant that I was surrounded by people who just loved music. That’s pretty much the first time that I’ve been somewhere so full of like minded creative people! My family all love music so I’ve grown up loving all sorts of artists and genres and although studying music in secondary school was enjoyable, this was another level! Being in a music school meant I could bounce ideas off other creative individuals to develop my own musical ideas.
This album “Wrong Medicine” was beautiful! What were some challenges you faced in the creation of this project and how did you overcome these obstacles?
Ah thanks so much, I’m pretty pleased with it! Funding was the biggest issue bit it wasn’t the most ovoid challenge looking back on the project. The recording process started off in a friend’s bedroom with one microphone and neighbours who decided that that was the best time to drill holes in the walls next door! Fortunately a friend from work was going on to study in Abbey Road Institute so I was able to get a few recording sessions sorted there with him. An absolute dream come true for a Liverpool-based musician! I think funding is an issue for most unsigned artists who may not know where to look to get help. Finding the right musicians was also a big challenge; as a solo artist, its hard trying to find the musicians who can play what you’ve got in your head and play it well enough to sound great on a recording. However, I was surrounded by great musicians at university who I knew I could reach out to. They made the whole recording process really smooth for me! Shout out to Andy (from Mama’s Gun) for all of his hard work! Another challenge was performing the songs with the right emotions when I was in the studio; I re-recorded a lot of the guitars and vocals months after I’d originally recorded the songs. It’s nigh on impossible to reach the same level of passion and emotion in a performance without thinking about the lyrical themes and content. So re-visiting these themes was hard to do two years after I’d written about them. I think I got there in the end though, after a good few takes!
What is the major theme behind “Wrong Medicine”? In what ways does the title reflect the theme?
The main theme is a break up, which may be a little cliche but I think its a relatable topic as its something we all come across in one way or another in our lives. People say love is a drug, so the idea behind Wrong Medicine, which is the title track as well as the title of the album, is that you go through a lot of different feelings in a relationship and if you gravitate towards the wrong feelings then that’s when things can start to turn sour. I feel in this instance like lust was the wrong medicine, which lead to romanticising the idea of being in a relationship rather than actually being in love. Love would have been the right medicine.
All the tracks on “Wrong Medicine” were great! Which for you is the most impactful and why?
Thank you! I can’t wait to hear what people think of them. I think the fifth track (‘We Fall’) is probably the most impactful. The album is essentially a story of how things fell apart and this track is the turning point where the subjects fall out of love but don’t really accept this or realise what is happening until it’s too late. It’s lyrics are reflective and this is the first song where you’ll hear a male vocal representing the other side to the story. That track is closely followed by the final track on the album in terms of impact. The title of the final song isn’t sung until the very end. The final track is about taking the negativity that comes with a break up and turning it into positivity and hopefulness. So because the theme of the album is relatable, I would like that track to ring true for people and deliver an uplifting message!
What’s next for you Meg? Any exciting upcoming live performances?
I’m putting on a launch event for the album release this Thursday, 30th May in my hometown in Liverpool so that’s really exciting! That’ll actually be my next live performance too and the first event I can say I’ve headlined. I’m also just finishing working on some music for an independent film for a friend in Liverpool. I’m hoping to get some gigs lined up in London and Liverpool and possibly Brighton later this year! It’s been a pleasure chatting with you!
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