Nathan Leonard is a rather unassuming, 30-something salt-of-the-earth type music teacher.
Nate Sapian, on the other hand, is the funk rocker you never knew you needed. Just this month, the Brisbane muso has released a single called 'Presence Of Mind' from his debut album 'Stereosmith'.
The single is a taster of the upcoming album and it promises to deliver some seriously slick beats. Nate also has a show in December to launch the single.
“I suppose ‘Presence Of Mind’ is a bit of a break-up song,” Nathan says. “It scares my girlfriend a bit when I play it.” No surprise there, mate.
“I just say, 'Don’t worry, babe. This one’s not about you.' I explain to her that the song’s not really about me. Yeah, it’s roughly drawn from my life, but it’s given to these other characters and it becomes their story.
“Often my songs will be dealing with the human condition and the emotional situations we get ourselves into, but it’s really from the perspective of a character.”
Nathan explains that he chose this track specifically to be the first release because he felt it best encompassed his “signature sound”.
“All the stuff I grew up with – funk, soul, vintage R&B – I’ve taken all that and put it in a sort of pop format; although if I’m honest, I’m not really sure where I’d put it in JB Hi-Fi just yet.
“And it’s got a good energy and it was getting good feedback from people I gave a preview to.”
As for ‘Stereosmith’, Nathan says, “The name is a bit of a play on music itself. I’m a little old school in my approach to music; I like recording everything in one take. So there’s a blacksmith kind of thing going on there. I’ve kind of made my own portmanteau.
“I first started writing the songs when I was over in Europe. I’d bought a little travel guitar for our trip, so while I was waiting for my girlfriend to get ready for the day I’d be sitting on the bed and thinking of song ideas.
“I think it’s a really well balanced record. I’ve tried to create songs that are all individual and stand out on their own. They all tell a little story. I suppose they’re all little fragments of myself.
“So that’s where it started, and then it’s been two years of editing and working through the song material until they took their final form. There are 12 songs in total. It’s in post-production now so it’s a little out of my hands, but I’m hoping for a February/March release.
“I took my time instead of rushing through, so I could be sure everything was as good. I think with ‘Patches’ [2016 EP], it was very guitar centric and a bit like, “Hey, everyone! Look at what I can do!” Whereas with this one, I put the focus on the songwriting.
When questioned whether he ever has his professional and personal worlds collide, Nathan answers, “Absolutely!”
“I am a high school teacher and I also work at the Aboriginal Centre for Performing Arts as a music tutor. And I do guitar teaching. So I’m supposed to make sure kids pay attention, stop them from listening to music during a lesson, but obviously I’m a little conflicted when they’re listening to [my songs].
“I know I’ve got to draw a line in the sand, but there is definitely some blurring going on there,” he jokes.
The suggestion that students receive extra credit for listening exclusively to Nathan’s music is immediately dismissed as “horribly narcissistic”.
When asked if he thinks the students genuinely like his music or are pandering to him, he answers, “Oh, it’s probably a bit of both. You just know they’re going to be dishonest to make me feel good with platitudes.”
Nathan shares a secret: “Being a musician is a lifelong apprenticeship. You are always learning, reflecting, and evolving.”
