Architecture and Chirality: Meet XamVolo

Mention XamVolo in the right circles (ever-expanding, by the way) and you'll conjure up an image of coolness, dressed head to toe in black with trademark dark, round sunglasses. Scratch beneath the surface (but watch the specs), and you'll find that the soulful vocalist has every aspect of his artistry perfectly crafted, from songwriting to producing to branding. That trademark look is very much a part of this.

"I'm big on the business side of things,"  Volo admits. "I know that sometimes musicians fall into the trap of being in music but not knowing how to take it forward in the industry – I understand the importance of branding and make sure that I do it right." He chuckles, adding: "Sometimes I don't wanna be wearing sunglasses but I know that I kind of need to."

XamVolo on Chirality and originality

Originally from London, XamVolo – real name Sam Folorunsho – first moved to Liverpool in 2012 to study architecture. With his music taking off around the same time as his studies, he enrolled into LIMF Academy, Liverpool International Music Festival's development programme that offers mentoring and live opportunities to artists around Merseyside's music scene, and has since been managed by LIMF curator Yaw Owusu.

Three EPs down the line, his latest release Chirality is almost a metaphor for his notably unconventional approach to music making. Xam eloquently explains that "coming from the Latin word for hand, chirality means something that can't be superimposed onto something else but is identical. So it's that kind of thing; the way my music has been described by some as fitting into a scene whilst remaining original."

Elaborating on this notion of originality, he says: "I might be talking from one perspective here but there's a lot of quality versus quantity in the industry at the moment. People need to be constantly seen and oversaturate music with anything as long as it kinda sounds good, whereas I like to think through everything, through lyrics – they're high priority from my point of view. I don't actually play an instrument and I've never been taught to sing; I've learned that myself so the way I've gone about it is a bit weird… I've been told it's not very conventional, the way I approach things."

Largely demoed at home and then recorded at Liverpool's Parr Street Studios, Chirality opens with the forcefulness of latest single Down, a track that begins with a solemn, almost choral murmur before veering off towards the jazz spectrum, with staccato stop-start beats underscoring Volo's vocals, reminiscent of D'Angelo.

Runner's High and Foolish Kids further exemplify his thoughtful songwriting, ear for perfection and unfaltering voice, while showing his curious and unconventional side, with both tracks incorporating a snippet of a demo or a voice note at the end. Gold Leaf is lazy summer day perfection, though it's obvious that nobody lazy could have conceived this track; it's flawless, radiating a cool, thoughtful, electronic R'n'B vibe that runs throughout the EP.

When asked about how this style has evolved between Chirality, his second EP The Closing Scene (released in February this year and produced by Grammy Award-winning producer Steve Levine) and his debut, 2014's Binary in Blue, XamVolo expresses himself in terms of trajectory.

"It's gone backwards and forwards at the same time – for Binary in Blue, I think that was all me in my bedroom. For The Closing Scene I worked with Steve Levine – he had a lot of influence on the sound with the techniques he taught me and the introduction of live instrumentation. We got strings from a guy named Davide Rossi [who has worked with Goldfrapp and The Verve] so it just sounded different basically. Some of the end products weren't the way I really wanted them to turn out, although they were excellent."

With Chirality, Volo was able to take what he learned from working with Levine and apply it to his own production. "This time I really took ownership and started doing everything myself," he says. "So I produced everything again and it went backwards, but then I added all the information and new knowledge I've learned from Steve's sessions. It comes across ever so slightly more polished than the first EP but at the same time it retains that kind of style."

An architectural approach to music

It's evident that Xam's work is highly considered – he reflects on his past experiences and is keen to learn – but would it be too crude to draw a link between these tendencies and his studying architecture? "I think the way I approach music is a lot different to most people," he replies, "but only because people are led by art. I just go, 'I need to write a song. I want it to sound good – how do I make it sound good?' Like how you would approach an architectural project."

That drive to learn is obvious again when asked about his plans in the near future: "Writing and making more music. There's always someone asking what's next so you can't hold off for too long. Always writing and getting better. I wanna do more but I don't know what to do yet. But somebody tell me and I'll just do it, I guess."

Having signed a record deal with Decca a couple of months ago, you would imagine the label will surely have some input into what's happening next, although Volo is much too wise to say anything for definite.

"Again it's early days so they're not gonna come out with absolutely all their cards immediately. They've been quite good with letting me get on with all the creative side of things but I know they've got good plans for the future. So yeah, I think after this EP's run its course, I think they'll be a lot more hands-on. They know what they're doing so Ima let them just do what they do."

---

XamVolo plays Leeds University Stylus, 16 Oct (supporting AURORA)