Time-Traveling with Valley: Capturing Nostalgia and Resilience in Music
Photo by Becca Hamel
Valley blends together catchy lyrics with dreamy synths to create a refreshing indie pop sound. Over the past few years, their songs “There’s Still a Light In The House” and “Like 1999” have propelled their music career forward. The Canadian band brought their electric energy and enthusiasm to the 2022 Governors Ball Music Festival. We got the opportunity to speak with them after their performance to chat about the importance of nostalgia, the power of resilience, and the ability to time-travel in their music.
[UNPUBLISHED:] We would love to talk about one of your most notable songs called, “Like 1999” which captures the feeling of being nostalgic for the 90s. Why do you think there has been such a pop culture resurgence of wanting to travel back in time to a pre-21st century era? What qualities make time traveling back to this decade appeal to listeners?
[MICKEY:] I mean, I feel like, especially when the song came out, everyone was craving a more simple time and things are just so crazy. I mean, things have always been crazy, but, in terms of connection and disconnection. Our generation and everybody since phones have existed, and technology has advanced and everything even art and the consumption of art and everything, the pace is so much quicker. And I feel like a lot of people just can't get a breath. I feel like going back to the 90s is like, before the era of everything getting crazy. It's also just a very nostalgic time for us, you know, like our siblings were heavily into the fashion and the music, even the food and just like TV and movies and everything of the 90s. So it's very nostalgic for us and a lot of people that listen to our music, their parents, you know, we're very intensely into the 90s. So, I feel like it's just like, something that everybody craves every once in a while, you know?
[UNPUBLISHED:] The music video for “Like 1999” takes a trip down memory lane; it features 90s trends as and parodies classic 90s MTV music videos. Because of this love and appreciation for that decade, are there any specific 90s inspirations or muses that shaped the song and video? If so, what kinds of memorable trends do you think should make a comeback in the next few years?
[ROB:] Tamagotchis, it’s a classic. I mean, it's a lot. We were ‘95 babies. So like, we grew up and then we kind of took it from our siblings, and our parents just kind of like discovering what the 90s were all about. So our fascination or obsession with it came from like, kind of like digging up our parents and photo albums and stuff and being like, “oh, this time period felt really special.” I'd say Tamagotchis are a big one.
[UNPUBLISHED:] I first heard of your band back in 2019 with the song “There’s Still a Light in The House” and the song immediately became a favorite in the Spotify playlists. Throughout the song, there are several lines that allude to New York City like “Chelsea market,” “Brooklyn light,” and “Is it New York? Or Heaven?” How does it feel to be performing at a major music festival in New York City? How would you describe this experience at Gov Ball?
[ROB:] It’s a dream come true. I mean, we made Maybe entirely pretty much here. We spent weeks here, just walking around taking the subway, and just writing songs every day. So I think at that point, it was like a pipe dream because we were, you know, we had nothing to show. Nothing was written. I think we dried in the subway every day, we had like, definitely dreamed about or like, it'd be cool to come back here and play these songs in the city that made them what they are. So it's really just our career is just one big full-circle moment. It feels really, really amazing. I feel like we just did our headline tour, too. We sold out Irving Plaza, and we literally have walked by that venue here like writing and working and just being like, “Yeah, maybe one day.” So the past few years have just really been full circle moments. It's very surreal. There's never a real answer for it. It's just crazy. There's no other career that gives you that feeling. It's just like a bunch of people getting in a room to listen to sing songs. It's wild.
[UNPUBLISHED:] Out of all the memories you’ve had over the most recent years in your music careers, can you think of the exact moment when you realized you “made it” as a band? What about this moment was so significant to you and how does it influence the direction of your future plans?
[KARAH:] When we played Irving Plaza in New York City on our first headline tour, that was a pretty crazy one for us. Being from Toronto, we're just shy of New York. And I think when you're a Canadian growing up in a city like that, you sort of see these big American cities as like these glimmering just like fantasy worlds and when you go, it's like this amusement park. I'm sure people that live here feel that way too. But to actually sell out a venue there and then not only to sell it out, but then to upgrade to a different venue, a bigger venue, and then sell that one out too it was wild. We filmed the whole thing and we were rewatching it on our bus on the last day of tour and we're all just kind of like, “Wow, wait, we're a real band? That's us right there.” We all said the same thing. It was confusing, but also that's us and we're doing it, we're doing this thing and that was beautiful.
But also, these moments, have been very gradually and very slowly. I think that's kind of why they say you got to enjoy the journey and the process because if you, you know, one day play stadiums, which we hope to do one day, and you're looking back and you're like, “Hey, now we've made it.” Then, your whole life has built up to this one moment that just doesn't, you know…what's next? You know what I mean? It's very hedonistic, and I think we've sort of realized that we celebrate the little things. That's what our manager always says and today is one of them. So I think, you know, little, little things like today, I mean, today's a big thing. But, stuff like this makes us really sort of digest what we're doing and appreciate it and be grateful for it.
[UNPUBLISHED:] You mentioned that you're coming back to New York next year? Do you know what venue you are going to be performing at?
[ROB:] Yes, I think we're doing two nights at Irving. Well, we've been told that's what we have in the books right now. But who knows what's going to happen? But yeah, we have our tour pretty much routed. It just depends and depends on the album and everything happening now. Who knows what will happen, but we're manifesting. We did one night, let's do two!
[UNPUBLISHED:] In terms of future plans, how do you manage to stay so resilient? In a way, I think your most recent single titled, “CHAMPAGNE” speaks to this idea as you sing in the chorus, “But I’ll turn this pain into champagne.” What exactly does this line signify for you and what advice do you have for fans looking to turn their own pain in champagne?
[MICKEY:] That's a really great question. I think just like “ turning pain into champagne” originally is just making the best out of kind of a shitty situation and circumstances that you're given. I think also just helping friends through problems and hard days and stuff. I think it's just about finding positivity and being grateful and surrounding yourself with positive people. Honestly, going to therapy, reading about self-help and self-care, and everything. I think there are a million ways but at the end of the day, really striving to live the best life that you can and treat yourself as best as you can. Because like in doing that, I think you will learn how to “turn pain into champagne.” It's okay for things to suck and it's okay to be upset and it's okay to go through our times and have mental health problems and everything because everybody goes through it. Accepting that it is okay and knowing that one day that pain will turn into champagne. It's gonna ferment into champagne eventually. I think it's like a really important thing to know.
[UNPUBLISHED:] This energy that you have truly shined through in your Gov Ball performance. As a band, do you have a favorite song you all love to perform together? Why does it hold a special place in your heart?
[ROB:] For me, it’s “Oh shit… are we in love?” It's just really, for lack of better words, easy for us. It's a very simple song. It has a real big crowd engagement moment. We can take a step back. During a set, you can get very in the grit of it and kind of lets you look up like, “Oh cool this is really cool.”
[MICKEY:] I’d say “Oh shit are we in love?” as well. We get the crowd to sing the lyrics with us and teach them the chorus before the song kind of thing. Also “Tempo” is really fun because it has so many ups and downs and then it ends with Rob and I leaning on each other doing a solo and stuff. I feel like that transition moment in “Tempo” for the show is the most hype it's ever been.
[UNPUBLISHED:] If you could collaborate with any artist, living or dead, who would it be, and what song would you choose?
[MICKEY:] I mean, I think Kacey Musgraves for me because of the Last Birthday vibes. We have a song that we just wrote recently in Nashville so we’re like “Oh my God, Kacey.” Or John Mayer or Coldplay.
[ROB:] I would have to say Tom Petty. He’s a legend.