Start Listening To: mildred

mildred proves that friendship and spontaneity can create something beautifully unexpected.

Hailing from diverse corners like Portland, London, and Medellin, mildred is a collective of four friends who found their musical home in Oakland, California. Their latest EP, aptly titled mild, reflects a casual yet collaborative approach to songwriting that thrives on shared experiences and late-night jam sessions. In this interview, the band shares insights into their creative process, the quirky inspiration behind their engaging video for ‘Green Car,’ and how living together has shaped their sound. With upcoming live shows on the horizon, they’re eager to bring new material to life while inviting audiences to discover the unique voices within their ensemble.

For those unfamiliar with your music, can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?

Individually we’re from Portland,Oregon, London, and Medellin>>>Minnesota. We’re four friends who have all lived together in the East Bay of San Francisco at one point or another. We (mostly) live in Oakland CA where the band is based.

Can you share the inspiration behind the EP title mild and how it reflects the music and themes within the tracks?

- We’d like to say something clever like that the Bay Area is notoriously mild: its culture, its weather, its potable water, its forests, its flora and fauna, but really these songs just came together while playing before there was a concrete idea of a band. Eventually we recorded several songs in an early home session. 4 of them fell into a bucket and we called it Mild. 4 of them fell into another bucket, maybe you can guess what that one’s called……..

What was the songwriting process like for you all, and how did your individual styles influence the final sound of the EP?

We all write songs for mildred. Usually, one of us shows up with a melody and maybe a line or two. Then we play it together until other members force the person leading the song to finish, or finish it for/with him. Plenty of mining for lines via nonsense mumbling and free association. Often discussion or argument re: what a given song might be about.

How did your experiences living together shape the music you created, and do you think it impacted your songwriting process?

We all love playing, listening and talking about music together. Living in the same place allowed us to do all three of those things most of the time, casually, without having to be intentional or structured about it. Lots of time vegetating around our living room after work, drinking fernet, eating frozen pizzas and fooling around with instruments.

The video for ‘Green Car’ has a unique vibe. What was the vision behind it, and how does it connect to the song's themes?

The idea was to have our friend Zach drive us around in Matt’s old diesel sedan while we played the song, but it quickly evolved as our friend Kevin had one of those green suits, allowing us to render the driver Zach invisible. In San Francisco the streets are packed with electric driverless cars right now and it was on the mind, so we thought it apropos to have the car drive us around as the song suggests. Our friend Dibs helped pull the whole uncanny idea together and we stitched some footage in there from the internet archive that layers in some nostalgia for back when you used to have to drive a car.

The video also inverts the relationship between subject/object of the typical car video, so the moving car+outside are real the inside is not, as opposed to the typical car video where people inside are real, and the moving car/outside is not, which we felt was important to make the car feel like a character with agency in the video.

Can you describe a memorable moment from recording the EP that stands out for each of you, perhaps something unexpected or funny?

Recording Green Car. It was the second time the band played the song ever, and Matt had covid. He sang through an N95 into the mic, which gave his voice that tired sickly quality.

What role does the concept of community play in your music, and how do you see it reflected in your lyrics and performances?

We love our friends.

What can fans expect from your upcoming live shows in October and November, and how do you plan to bring the EP to life on stage?

Lots of new songs. We’re excited to play them live! Also, sometimes even our friends and family aren’t sure which of us is singing each song, so it’s fun for people to discover who sings what live.

What’s next for mildred after this EP?

We have a couple things up our sleeves, one we’re ready to unveil this fall, another early next year.

What do you love right now?

Henry: Chef John videos, Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci, Eliza Niemi’s ‘Progress Bakery’, two poems ((here and here) written by poets near and dear to my heart, Toumani Camara.

Jack: ‘Air Between Us’ by Coral Grief. Duop Reath and Donovan Clingan.

Matt: the new Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library in Medora North Dakota, Wallpaper, flat whites, the Lutheran Hymn Book.

Will: Marc Cucurella, ‘Interior Live Oak’ by Cass McCombs, David Markson’s last few books, Salt Lake City’s bikeshare scheme.

What do you hate right now?

Matt: time.

Will: the prevalence of tinned fish

Henry: bell peppers

Jack: dim lighting while cooking

Name an album you’re still listening to from when you were younger and why it’s still important to you?

Henry:Jack Johnson’s ‘In Between Dreams’; also ‘Lucinda Williams’ by Lucinda Williams. It was the second or third CD I ever owned, after the Beatles and Britney Spears. Iconic cover (that leather jacket), and the deluxe edition includes all those live recordings plus a beautiful rendition of “Sunday,” with Gurf Morlix on guitar & BV’s. Somewhat related, there’s a great song by Dan Wriggins called Lucinda on June Bug about returning to the art that comforts you.

Jack: Jack Johnson’s ‘In Between Dreams.’ Also ‘Master of Disaster’ by John Hiatt. I think it was my first CD. I saw him at the Portland Zoo with my family a couple times which was formative. Also Maraqopa by Damien Jurado. Henry showed me Maraqopa in high school. As I write this, I am returning home on Bay Area Regional Transport (bart) from an electronic dance music performance of this record. He’s an endless inspiration.

Matt: Jack Johnson’s ‘In Between Dreams’; also Agustin Lara’s boleros, they remind me of my grandpa, who would sing them while driving me around.

Will: Jack Johnson’s ‘In Between Dreams.’ My parents’ CDs of Gillian Welch’s ‘Soul Journey’ and Josh Ritter’s ‘Golden Age of Radio’ soundtracked long summers spent driving around the States as a kid and are still two of my favorite albums

When someone hears your music for the first time, what do you hope sticks with them?

Hopefully a melody or a lyric or two.