Salt Chunk Mary is the moniker of Asheville-based artist Leslie Buddy, who has recently shared with us their debut EP under the project called Do You Feel Warm? As part of several other local bands such as Star Anise and Tanner York Band, Buddy’s sonic curation on this EP builds off of that roughly edged sound that has put the Asheville scene on the map the past few years, yet finds its own path defined by the curiosity and explorative nature of the young artist. 

On the surface, Do You Feel Warm? is a textured environment, as Buddy makes sure not to corner any ideas that may slip out through its brief, yet inquiring existence. Giving space to the creepy crawlies that fester in this type of engaging and freaky-folk laments, Salt Chunk Mary lays the groundwork for more to come in the near future. 

We recently asked Salt Chunk mary a few questions about their debut EP Do You Feel Warm?

You are pretty involved within the Asheville scene, playing in other local projects like Star Anise. What sort of things did you take or were inspired by from your surroundings that you brought into writing and recording these songs, whether consciously or subconsciously after the fact?

The writing and recording occurred during two very different times in my life, which I think had a really interesting impact on the final sound of the project. Most of the songs were originally written when I was a teenager, prior to my current level of engagement with the scene, so they don’t have much direct influence from any other local acts. I was listening to a lot of Black Country, New Road at the time, and Isaac Wood’s lyrics on their second album in particular informed a lot of my early songwriting. It wasn’t really until I became involved with the DIY scene that I was inspired by my peers to record the songs to be released. The recording happened much more recently, and I found myself drawing inspiration from more local acts, most notably Sayurblaires from Charlotte (now Motocrossed) with her noisy, digital soundscapes. Aside from direct musical influences, the geography and nature of WNC is always a persistent beacon of inspiration for me.

This EP takes on different soundscapes, environments and sonic fixations in such a brief amount of time. What was the initial vision with these recordings and did you develop or find your sound within the process? 

The final sound is definitely a combination of an initial vision and a process of experimentation. At the time of recording and producing (and still to this day), my biggest musical obsession was The Microphones, so in the spirit of Phil Eleverum, I wanted to find the sound through an explorative process with whatever supplies I had access to. The original arrangements/demos were recorded on my Korg D8, with a PO-33 for drums and I was really satisfied with the sound of those demos. Some of the takes from those demos actually made it onto the final product, most notably the drum machine part in ‘The Stitch’. I would also attribute the sound of the project to my wonderful friends Max and Oliver (The Weights), the duo who produced, mixed and mastered the project. We spent a lot of time in Oliver’s basement just micing random things and running them through effects to find interesting sounds. Many of the electronics across the EP are also sampled from an hour-long improvised session running a broken Omnichord through a bunch of guitar pedals. The sound was found in the process because it was my intention to do so. 

There are a lot of references in your lyrics towards how fragile whatever it is that is holding relationships together can be. Was there a thematic throughline that connects these songs? What sort of stories or feelings did you want to get across?

I prefer to let the lyrics speak for themselves, but I will at least say I sort of see the project as a series of snapshots of the dynamics of relationships/friendships from varying perspectives, and ending with the question “do you feel warm?” ties all of those components up. I think it is something really important to ask yourself out of self respect. To reflect upon your connection with someone, identify what it is made of, what keeps it intact, and what the implications of that are for both of you. Most of the time I am writing a song, there is really no telling what the subject matter will be. It just becomes whatever it becomes, so I’m pleasantly surprised with how concise the project ended up being.

I am curious about your fascination with insects and their very nature on this earth. Does this carry over into any creative aspects of your life?

Growing up, my older brother was an aspiring entomologist, so I have been learning a lot about insects for about as long as I can remember. I suppose he passed the fascination on to me. I have always been amazed with the various ways in which different organisms interface with their environment, and when songwriting, I often find myself drawing parallels between those interactions and how humans interact/connect with each other. Beyond lyrics, I often return to insects to inspire visual art and even instrumental arrangement. To me, they are so strange, angular, diverse, almost robotic or alien, yet simultaneously very organic in a familiar and comforting way. These are all things I seek to achieve in my sound.

When you released this EP you said you were already looking to move onto the next project. What can we see coming from Salt Chunk Mary in the future? 

These songs were written a long time ago, and I’ve creatively evolved a lot in that time. I have a lot of ideas in development which will most likely come together on a full length album within the next couple of years. As for what to expect, my sound is starting to split off into two directions. Some of my songwriting is gravitating away from my usual ‘dark’ or ‘sad’ tone and toward lighter themes and pop sensibilities. For example, one of my favorite newer songs is about one of my sister’s stuffed animals and another is just about how awesome it feels to go outside. These songs are very simple and traditional in structure. On the other hand, I’m also continuing to explore darker tones, especially through long, multi-phased compositions inspired a lot by post-hardcore bands like Sprain. My goal for the album is to effectively fuse these two very different creative directions.

You can listen to Do You Feel Warm? out everywhere now.

Written by Shea Roney