SAMMY VOLKOV: Old Soul?
Location: Black Dog pub, Edmonton AB. November 11th, 2022. Words and photography by Josalynn Lawrence.
November 2022: This was pre-snow. Pre-winter. Pre-album release for local musician Sammy Volkov. At the time, the interview was conducted at local pub Blackdog in Edmonton, Alberta. November 11th. The young artist was eyeing an exciting new release of his album: ‘Be Alright’ (released December 2ndth, 2022 in which Sammy hosted a debut party at Station on Jasper – pre- Station shutdown). Altyeg was still in its very early stages of print production. Everything was new. Open. Unexplored. In retrospect, it’s almost surreal to think just how much has changed in the past few months both professionally and personally. Life just…happened. But finally after writing all this down, I can say that this interview was an absolute pleasure. It was a bit of a career marker for myself and Altyeg. At the time, interviews were a brand new concept for the magazine, as the mag was in its ‘Prototype Phase’. We were still figuring things out for overall coverage scope.
That day, I was running a tad late. I caught the bus (my car’s engine had broken down). I’d messaged Sammy. All was well. Still, I remember briskly walking towards the pub that Friday afternoon, unsure of what to expect. Surprisingly, I ran into Sammy almost immediately upon entering Blackdog. We exchanged friendly pleasantries. He ordered a drink. I’d brought my travel mug and was downing coffee like a madman (if I’m remembering correctly, that day I was operating on very little sleep, courtesy of another gig the previous night. However, I remember the buzz of excitement about this interview. That seemed like enough to sustain my sleep-deprived brain).
Blackdog is one of those pubs that oozes ease. You walk in and feel fairly comfortable right away. Fashioned in dark painted walls lined with aged paintings, it was a comforting step inside. For its non-descript and almost old-fashioned interior, the pub has a surprisingly varied demographic. All kinds of folks had gathered together – each situated in their own separate worlds chattering away the afternoon hour. Sammy and I sat down, I brought out the recorder and we got to work.
Here’s the interview below:
[introductions are exchanged, I make a note to formally introduce Sammy to the readers].
Sammy: My name is Sammy Volkov and I’m a musician and a singer song writer… and audiobook director. [laughs] That’s how I pay my rent.
Interviewer: Audiobook director, that sounds cool. What does that involve?
Sammy: It’s sort of just a fancy title. I’m basically just there to chime in every time an actor misses a word.
Interviewer: Gotcha. Alrighty, let’s dive right in. Why music?
Sammy: It’s just always made me happiest…
Interviewer: What about it, though? There’s a lot of things that make people happy. For example, for me, it’s coffee [laughs]…But specifically, what about music do you love?
Sammy: It was always my favourite thing. I remember, I would always just have, like, really intense reactions to it. I was kinda weird. I would have these really visceral, emotional reactions to just, like, a song just playing at someone’s house. I remember a song I had to learn for a piano lesson once that made me cry. [chuckles] I think my teacher was a little scared of that – they weren’t, like, trained dealing with a strange child like that. And, uh, I would always make up little melodies. I guess when I went to school for acting that’s when it really started to be driven home that, you know, the music was what I loved more than anything. Anytime that we were working on a production that had music, I would suddenly ‘come to life’. And that’s where I would really feel like something special happened when I would be allowed to express myself musically as opposed to doing a scene [acting]…like a more conventional scene. It was harder for me to feel like something special was happening.
Interviewer: Did you ever have an album that kind of changed your life in any way?
Sammy: Oh yeah. Definitely. I would say…Roy Orbison’s greatest hits. It was this compilation CD that I got at, like, a mall or something and it was one of those CDs that my parents always had in the car. Also, Elvis’s golden records was another compilation that I got for Christmas when I was around 7 or 8. So those sort of formative years, my favourite music was older music. And that forever warped my brain, I’m sure.
Interviewer: When you say older music….what do you mean? I know some folks say "Oh, stuff from the '90’s, that’s old.” [laughs] Or do you mean stuff from the ‘50’s/60’s…?
Sammy: Oh, 50’s/60’s for sure. Ooh, I gotta say. A huge favourite for me was this awesome collection of…It was sort of this budget reissue of Ella Fitzgerald’s first actual longest running album that she had recorded with Decca [in reference to the infamous Fitzgerald Decca recordings]. And they reissued it with a different cover. And I think it was that album, along with some supplementary stuff that’s just her and a piano player and that totally changed my life. It was sort of the depth of the songwriting and her expression and there was so much space in those recordings. I fell into those recordings and it was really special when my career was growing and it made it familiar to me for the rest of my life. It sort of gave me the courage to be creative in that way myself. To aspire to that level of writing. [laughs] That’s not to say I’m comparing myself to Ella Fitzgerald, but it was sort of great to have something to aspire to. And it just changed my brain forever.
Interviewer: Would you consider yourself to be a kind of ‘instrument’ type of musician that’s more about the melodies or more of a songwriter?
Sammy: Just melody. For sure, just melody. I taught myself guitar, like really rudimentary guitar in my early twenties just because I had all these recordings of melodies and lyrics I’d had stored. I only taught myself guitar so I could write down the melodies I’d had in my head so I could make it clear for other muscians to understand….ya know “A C A…” over my words so someone else could say, “Oh, yeah, I can follow along.” Often melodies and lyrics come together in little snippets. And then I try to keep in touch with whatever mindset I was feeling for those little snippets, usually with whatever melody can come to mind. It’s harder work to finish the song lyrically in a way that I feel makes sense, you know? Every song is different, as far as writing goes.
Interviewer: Has there ever been a song that you wrote that you couldn’t listen to again? Like, a song about a breakup and you’re like, “That’s tough….”
Sammy: [laughs] I mean, there’s songs for sure that I’ve written that I don’t like. Like, I don’t ever want to listen to again ‘cause they just suck. [laughs] But for something to be too hard emotionally for me revisit, no, I don’t think so. I’m always okay with going back to it. And it sort of becomes its own thing. Like, even an eyewitness testimony isn’t accurate. It’s not a picture-perfect representation of what happened; it sort of gets warped in a person’s mind. And it changes to what sort of makes sense to them [this hypothetical person] And I think the same thing happens with emotional experiences when you try to put that into a song. Like you’re trying to jam these memories into a song and make it digestible for yourself. It came out of you that way and so it’s easier to take it back in. It’s not reliving that experience. But it always rings true that way. Because it’s totally based on something real. It becomes a part of your story, and you’re able to tell that story again that shouldn’t necessarily act as if you’re reliving a trauma.
Interviewer: Do you find songwriting cathartic at all?
Sammy: Yeah, I don’t know. I hear people say that a lot, that it’s a kind of catharsis.
Interviewer: Not you?
Sammy: I think it sometimes can be. More often for me, like if it’s an experience so powerful that it’s a real lucky thing to be able to take that and to turn that into something else. To me, that’s how I prefer to think about it. It’s more like alchemy, rather than a ‘release’.
Interviewer: So something transformative?
Sammy: Yeah, it’s like alchemy, like you take one thing and transform it into something else. It’s the most magical experience. And very often, I’ll feel just sort of overcome by something, you know? And a way to celebrate that feeling or to prolong it is to write a song about it. And so, hopefully you can write three minutes of this nice beautiful thing that was based on ten seconds. It’s like baking a cake with sugar, eggs and flour. There are these beautiful elements in your life and then with your brain and your soul and you can combine these things however you choose to and you can make a…birthday cake. [laughs].
Interviewer: Okay, that’s a first [laughs].
Sammy: I always think of music as food metaphors. I’ve always thought of it that way.
Interviewer: That’s an interesting relationship: between music and food. Never would have thought of it that way.
Sammy: It’s endlessly perfectly analogous in my broken brain. I like to put it this way: a good hamburger is forever a good hamburger. And there’s no good reason for you to be self-conscious about making a good hamburger just because everyone forever has been making a hamburger. So that’s why…whether that’s analogous with style being timeless or emotions being timeless, all things that resonate with people, you know, the things that people enjoy indulging in for fundamental reasons…it’s timeless. It bothers me when people say, “Oh, that production is retro.” Or “that song is old fashioned and contrived. Or that’s been done before.” Sometimes, something has been done before, you know? Something might’ve been ripped off entirely. You know, if you make a hamburger with love and give it to someone else you love, it’s still the best experience ever. It’s still better than any hamburger you can get anywhere else. Just because you made it.
Interviewer: Like take out: you don’t worry about trying to be original.
Sammy: Right, I think it’s a total waste of energy to try and be original.
Interviewer: It’s exhausting.
Sammy: It’s almost like a waste of energy trying to compare yourself to someone else. It can only lead to frustration and bitterness. And it’s the same way when you sit down to write a song: like, “how do I make it fresh and completely unique?” I think that’s a waste of energy. For me at least. All I focus on is sticking with the initial “Spark” that made me start writing it. And I know that no matter what, that will forever be honest and personalized and true. It’ll take shape in a way that no one else could do it because I’m being honest with myself. And so, then right away, if you do it that way, all these other concerns go out the window. It simplifies your task in a way. I think. [pause] I think, honestly, part of the reason I think that is acting school and realizing that there are great roles that people have played for generations and so that doesn’t make the role any less vital or less worthy of being played.
Interviewer: Like Hamlet.
Sammy: Exactly. It’s exactly like Hamlet. It all comes down to the actor filtering that part honestly through who they are. And then it’s going to be new forever. It’s like a gift that keeps on giving, that’ll forever be different. Yeah, so I feel that way about any kind of expression. Cooking. Songwriting or painting or whatever.
Interviewer: How would you describe your musical style? Say, you meet someone who’s never listened to your music…?
Sammy: I would say that it’s Americana…folk rock influenced by standards and girl groups.
Interviewer: Anyone in particular…?
Sammy: Oh, I love Dusty Springfield. I love Roy Orbison. I love Neil Young. I love M. Ward. I love The Shirelles. I love John Prine.
Interviewer: Yes! I love his single ‘Common Sense’ The opening twenty seconds is so good.
Sammy: Exactly. And I also love Brittany Howard. [Her] recording of, I think it’s called, ‘Stay High’. I think that’s as good as a recording could be because it has joy and space and soul and life. And air! I feel like you can hear the room [in the recording]. Idiosyncratic sounds. I love that tinkering toy piano kind of thing, you know? I aspire to make recordings like that.
[after some discussion on Neil Young and local musicians with similar influences]
Sammy: One of my favourite things to listen to ever, is old stuff like, you know what people would call ‘Doo Wop’. Stuff like The Five Satins. That stuff is special for many reasons. But one of them is because of the room it’s recorded in. You can hear the room that it’s recorded in. You can tell that it’s not a recording that was polished. They just wanted to make sure that they got through it, that it was coming across. I love that kind of thing. And the reason I bring that up is because Neil Young records have that somehow, you know? That guitar sound. You can hear the air around the amp. And the drums are so strong and dry and just…dirty. I love Neil Young recordings. So Doo Wop folk. Rock.
[some more music exchanges and bands with similar sounds]
Interviewer: So sound wise, when you’re listening to a song, is there any specific element of a song that you’re drawn to? For me, for example, I’m drawn to drum-heavy songs. But you mentioned Ella Fitzgerald. That one’s a little more low-key.
Sammy: Sometimes low-key.
Interviewer: Yes.
Sammy: But she can also scream. Like fully scream.
Interviewer: Yeah, she’s got a very powerful voice.
Sammy: Something I’m drawn to in a song is honesty. I can always tell if the singer is being honest or not. And if they’re being vulnerable in how they sing. No matter what genre they do, I have a lot of respect for them if they do [on vulnerability]. That’s the first thing. And I guess for me it’s always melody. I’m always just in love with beautiful melody. I’m probably simple-minded musically. I don’t…care too much about how tricky the progression is. If I can tell that it’s a true story, that they’re being vulnerable about it, it’s a beautiful thing. Also, I love to be taken by surprise. I love when people make weird decisions when it comes to production. So like that Brittany Howard thing. The way her voice just gets all washed out in reverb and then it’ll get very dry and intimate, and then there’s that tinkering toy piano, that’s surprising. Exciting. And fun.
Interviewer: What’s your opinion on longevity? I only say that because there’s a quote I got here by Brett Anderson of Suede and he was saying something along the lines of….[draws up notes] so he says, “So as soon as you think that you’ve done your best work. It’s game over. You’ve always got to be striving to do better. You’ll never reach that point of perfection but that’s the whole point. It’s the striving to be perfect in making music. It’s about the journey and less about the destination.” What are your thoughts?
Sammy: I feel like I hear that a lot from musicians that I like. They always think that their latest thing is the best thing that they’ve ever done. And usually they’re very self-conscious about it, or at least, very self-aware. I don’t know. I don’t think that longevity is something you can worry about. I think a lot of it is luck. If whatever story that you’re telling is one that resonates with other people, first of all, that’s lucky. Because if that’s true, you can’t manipulate that. And then you got to be lucky to get the right performance. And then you got to be lucky to get the right producer that frames the performance in a way that suits the story. And then you have to release it at the right time. And then…you got to be in the right place both physically and mentally that you’re able to share that recording and promote that recording and play it live. And make connections in a way that the song becomes a part of people’s lives. There are so many steps that get in the way of having any sort of staying power. It’s just too much to worry about and occupy yourself with. Working on what interests you and honestly checking in with yourself that what you’re doing is really what you want to do artistically is important. And also, I think pushing yourself is important. It’s important to take risks. I don’t know. I don’t want to pontificate about life, but for myself, it’s like, all my favourite memories are when something’s at stake, you know? Like when a risk has been taken and there’s a big payoff. And that’s something you remember. I think that then, naturally, that’s something you can have in ember in a recording. It’s going to be remembered by other people too…if you’re lucky.
Interviewer: I guess that leads me to my next question, what kind of legacy do you want to leave? I know that things right now are a little up in the air, especially after COVID, I’ve noticed that folks have really started to live ‘By the Moment’. Anything can happen. People seem to not be concerned about what they’re going to be leaving behind. Say, 60 years from now, you’ve made a bunch of music. What do you want to be remembered for music wise, art wise…?
Sammy: Obviously you’re not going to be around to enjoy that [the legacy] but I think it would be really sweet to know that somebody could have a relationship with something I’ve recorded. Like how I feel about a great John Prine record. So, I guess that’s a beautiful legacy. It’s like having a Christmas ornament from a grandmother. They’re not around to appreciate this precious thing and yet you still have it. I guess I’m overthinking this. To answer your question simply, I love the idea of having made something that people enjoy and maybe will enjoy beyond me when I’m not around.
Interviewer: What do you hope folks listening to your music get out of it? Is there a specific goal you have when you’re writing a certain song or playing to a crowd?
Sammy: I want people to be moved. I remember when I was playing a song in B.C at the Tiny Lights Festival and there was a song about having a connection with someone after they’ve passed away. And you know, that’s a very universal thing. And some guy in the audience shouted out, “You’re making me cry!” [laughs] and that was the most…I can’t think of a greater honour than of someone allowing one of my weird little songs to touch them and then for them to be brave enough and courageous enough for them to say it back to me…I don’t know who you are, but I want you to know that really moved me. That’s the greatest possible achievement, I think. That’s a lifetime achievement. Not that I want to make everybody cry, necessarily (laughs) I mean, it would also be nice to make some stuff that just makes people smile.
[some chitchat about Rolling Stone & the ‘older bands’]
Interviewer: Okay, so what are your thoughts on the current state of the music industry? Experiences in the industry seem to vary. One fellow I spoke to mentioned living paycheque to paycheue as gigs just weren’t paying enough and so needed to hold a job outside of music. Is working in music something you’d eventually want to do full time? Or is it something that feels like it realistically couldn’t happen?
Sammy: Well, if I’m lucky enough to pay my rent playing music that would absolutely be a dream come true.
Interviewer: I got to ask, is there any particular hard parts about the industry? About booking gigs, showing up to the gig, promoting them…?
Sammy: Well, it’s really hard to make any kind of money. It’s such a cliché, but I have to say, only get into music if that’s something you genuinely love to do. No one goes into the arts (I hope) thinking it’s going to be their ticket to an easy life. I mean, I guess there’s some misguided people out there that think they’re meant to be famous but I don’t know. I’m at a place where I’m super privileged to not worry about getting by. The job I have is a work from home thing. Again, that’s a huge privilege. And the fact that I’m connected to the community here that allows me to perform and record every once in a while, it’s all just the greatest privilege. So yeah, I don’t know. I think that folks getting into this should know that…Don’t do it unless you have to do it, as like a career. Everybody should do it because they enjoy it, but….if you think you have something to say and you have to do it, and you don’t care what it takes to do it, then do it. But you’re not going to make any money. So if you’re really lucky like me, you’ll also have an alternate source of income. And I’m super lucky that my job is borderline creative. It’s still in the arts, so it helps me sleep at night (laughs). The previous job I was working would be a real stretch to say was creative. It was a production office for TV shows in New York. My job was barely creative at all. I was a second, second assistant accountant. I laughed so hard when they told me that was my title. I was promoted to that title! [laughs] And my next promotion would have been second assistant accountant….it was way more money than I thought I’d make but I was so fucking miserable. I was so depressed. I hated myself. I hated the way I fit into the world. But all the ‘signs’ would tell me I was succeeding. But uh…[long pause] So that was what I was alluding to when I said it was nice to be able to talk about these things again. I didn’t think about it seriously before actually taking a stab at doing music more seriously. Anyway, that was my life before all this [gestures to self while laughing]. But if you have a job like that, that’s where all your energy goes. So I would just work and then go home and write songs. And then on the weekend, I would take the subway from Queens to Pete’s Candy Store in Brooklyn and play an Open Mic there every weekend.
Interviewer: Are you originally from Edmonton?
Sammy: Yeah, but I was born in New Jersey so I have dual citizenship. I was able to move around a lot.
Interviewer: Why come to Edmonton?
Sammy: Oh! I grew up here. Family moved to New Jersey but I came back to Edmonton in 2019 when shit hit the fan. The real freaky moment was when I decided I’d never go back to that career I’d had in New York.
Interviewer: Even though you were making a lot of money and, theoretically, were ‘succeeding’?
Sammy: I was set for life. There is this chain of command in that type of office and in it, people sort of move around as a team. And once you’re in, you’re in. Unless you really fuck up, you know? I basically decided to turn it down and I remember I sat down with my family and was like, “I’m going to take a big change in direction and you might think I’ve lost my mind but I’m just going to do what I feel like doing and that is, you know: get by, be able to pay rent, but focus on being able to be creative.” So it’s really only a few years since I’ve started making music. And it’s been the happiest time of my life by far! I’ve always been creative and I was writing music for many years but….it’s just these last couple of years that I feel like I’m realizing my potential of what it is I have to offer. And again, it’s a real privilege to have had the luxury of being able to make those sort of choices. So I don’t take that lightly at all. I want to do my best to honour that.
Interviewer: Sounds like you had a bit of a ‘creative awakening’ during the pandemic.
Sammy: Yeah, I was sort of avoiding saying that. ‘Cause, like, it sounds so gross to be one of those people that are like, “I know the pandemic was terrible but for me it was great!” [both laugh]. I was trying to think of other ways of phrasing it.
Interviewer: I mean, it makes sense to say that. In theory, you’re forced to stay home so you have a lot of time to think about things. I mean, a lot of people thought about what they really wanted out of life and I think this changed a lot of people’s perspectives on it…as gross as that is to say haha.
Sammy: Totally.
Interviewer: You never know what’s going to happen, right?
Sammy: Yeah, yeah. And I think a lot of people were sort of plucked out of this puzzle they were in. They felt like they were in this place that they were kind of fitting in, there was a pattern, and suddenly they were looking down at these things from above and were like, “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to go back to that. And even if I could go back to that, would I even want to?” So that’s what it really was. Yeah.
Interviewer: Okay, so one last question, is there anything you want folks at home to know about yourself, any upcoming gigs….?
Sammy: My album will have come out so I will have wanted folks to check that out. There’s a release party on the 2nd at Station on Jasper, full band, Jack Garton is coming from BC and he’s going to open. I’m super excited about that show. I really hope it goes well [laughs nervously]. So yeah. I hope folks check out the album and…hopefully I’ll be doing a tour with Jack in the spring. Just a duo tour. We’re totally kindred spirits. We’re both really weird. I love Jack. We’re both obsessed with old records and romantic songs. He was over at my house the other day and we just listened to records. I have this huge record collection and I brought out these old records and we just…it was the nerdiest, best day ever [laughs]. It’s like we’re best friends who never knew each other.
Interviewer: I guess you already answered one of my questions. I was going to ask if you were a record fan, cd fan, streaming services fan….
Sammy: Oh! Records are my thing. They’re magical.
Interviewer: See, I like records, but you can’t carry them with you.
Sammy: No…
Interviewer: Cds you can, tapes you can…
[break into chatter about tape and vinyl before we eventually circle back to the music industry and surviving as a working musician]
Interviewer: How does a working musician survive?
Sammy: The only way to make money as an artist is to tour. Touring and even then, that’s becoming harder and harder. Touring is becoming almost impossible. Even big bands are cancelling tours because they’re barely breaking even. So it’s almost not even worth it….almost.
Interviewer: Are you talking about the expenses, like travel expenses, hotel costs…
Sammy: Yup, and everything is now so expensive. Now, gigs don’t pay enough to make it worthwhile for a lot of people so again you have to do it because you love it…
Interviewer: What would the best way to support your local artists be as a music fan?
Sammy: Definitely buy the physical copy. Buy the merch. Buy it through a show or their website. If you love an artist, it’s worth it to you. It feels good to support them. And it makes a big difference to the artist. Like that show I did recently at the Starlite room and opening for Mariel Buckley. It was the greatest night ever. And I would have paid to do that gig. So I don’t even think about my pay. But…for the most part as a working musician on tour, at the end of the night you do think about it and…I’ll just say that audience members buying merch is like night and day. It makes a big impact on a musician’s life. It can make the tour feasible. Buy the album, buy the physical copy…and then you’ll be cool. [both laugh]
[End of Interview]
Here's where you can catch Sammy next:
12th - Lethbridge - the Slice
13th - Calgary - Ironwood
14th - Red Deer - Velvet Olive
15th - Edmonton - Blue Chair Cafe
16th - Valemount, BC - the Legion
17th - Kamloops - house concert
18th - Ashcroft - Unitea Café
19th - Vancouver - Wise Lounge
May 3 aviary with Zach Kleisinger and Emmett Michael
May 21 king eddy show Calgary with Carter felker
June 17 starpainter and Amy nelson aviary show
July 27-30 Calgary Folk fest
August 5-7 Canmore Folk fest
August 10-13 Edmonton Folk fest