Christchurch duo The Imposters, consist of singer Zoe-Eve Coetser (August Fields) alongside guitarist and industry veteran Marc Royal (The Easy Hearts). Having been creating their own brand of alt-pop for only a year the pair are excited about the imminent release of their debut EP  ‘Doomsday Anthems’. Silke Hartung quizzed them about the genesis of The Imposters’ sound. 

You don’t sound like imposters, you sound like you know what you’re doing. So where did the name come from? 

MR: When Zoe and I started writing music together we were both playing in other bands. The name was originally a bit of a parody of our situation, but then it stuck… Plus, band names are really hard to come up with and we liked how it sounded.

Can you remember the first time you jammed? How has your sound developed since then?

ZE: Marc mentored my band in 2016, so I got to know him then. In March/April of the same year an opportunity came up to play music together so we thought, why not! We started out quite acoustic but our sound has definitely changed since then. We’ve learnt each other’s strengths and like to challenge ourselves to develop our sound more. Marc is Kiwi and I’m South African, so we come from quite different cultures and backgrounds. With Afrikaans being my first language it creates a unique sound when I sing in English.

‘Doomsday Anthems’ is such a great name for a collection of songs in the current geopolitical climate. Why did you choose it?

MR: Thanks, the current state of world affairs definitely had some influence on the name. It does also resonate on more personal level though with experiencing some challenging times in our lives. We wanted the record to be reflective of that.

You recorded the EP at The Lab in Auckland – why did you decide to record there as opposed to your hometown, Christchurch?

ZE: We were really keen to immerse ourselves in a big city for a few days and leave the distractions of home behind to really focus on the record.We had a rough idea of what sound we were after and we did a lot of planning and pre-production prior so we could be prepared for the studio. Once the tracks got laid down and listened back to it, we added more layers of different sounds to complement the songs. The band all co-produced the tracks.

What was the sound you were aiming for with this debut EP? 

MR: I guess musically we working towards a more indie alt / pop kind of style. From a production perspective we just let Olly [Harmer] work his magic, the only production brief was to make it sound great. We think of Olly as an audio architect, he was fantastic to work with.

How do you split behind the scenes work for the band between each other? 

MR: We started our own record label so we had a platform to release and manage our music… Let’s just say I’m kept pretty busy!

Any favourite little moments on the EP that make you smile but might get lost to other people unless pointed out?

ZE: The opening track on the EP  Hold On, is a good example, I got to play on a vintage Hammond organ which was not planned. It was a team effort. We had so much fun. Every time I hear the organ run mid-song through, it takes me back to that moment in the studio!

What’s on the cards for The Imposters for the next six months or so?

MR: We have a release show happening in Christchurch on October 14, and a couple of big gig announcements coming soon. We’re also hoping to play some dates in the North Island early next year. Then start working a new record…

Follow The Imposters here: www.theimposters.band

Marc has been involved with music in Christchurch for a long time, so we asked him for a few of his current local picks. Check out the Spotify playlist he compiled for us here: