Debbie Neigher always had trouble expressing her feelings. Despite her parents’ careers in psychology, both she and her brother struggled with communication throughout their childhoods. Then, when she turned 13, Neigher started to write her own music. “My family wasn’t very open or communicative with our emotions,” says Neigher. “Songwriting has always been a place for me to experiment with that.”
What started as simply a way to express herself, developed quickly into a passion and a career. Over the past few years, Neigher has exploded into the Bay Area music scene with her rich vocals and touching songwriting. “Music has always been so present in my life from such a young age that it feels inherent and inevitable,” says Neigher. “It’s always helped to elicit what I’m feeling, provided a window into other cultures to learn about their history and politics, and forged a community for me at many stages in my life. It really just moves me like nothing else can.”
Neigher’s first serious project was her self titled band where she wrote, recorded, and performed all of her original songs with a full band; the sounds of which are teeming with heavy keyboard melodies and vocal foundation with harmonies, drums, bass and orchestral instruments. She released her first, self titled album, Debbie Neigher in 2011, and her sophomore album, Unravel, in 2013. In 2015, she released the popular single, It Never Snows Here, which confronts the passing of time and loneliness through the eyes of an East Coast native who moved out West. It’s the kind of slow, powerful ballad that will have you belting in the shower or in your car.
Now, she’s working under the moniker Lapel, where she still writes, records, and performs with a full band though now with an edgier, more worldly feel drawing from powerful female-fronted bands she’s inspired by like St. Vincent, Tune-Yards, and Sylvan Esso—and she stepped back from the piano in a major departure from her previous sound. Based off her new producer, it makes sense. Co-produced by Beau Sorenson (Death Cab for Cutie, Tune-Yards) and herself, her heartrending vocals are there, but you feel new hints of an artist in discovery, a sense of seeking and wild freedom. The result, as heard in her current single, “Less of a Woman” is staggering.
“I really wanted to make a stark creative departure from all of my past work, both sonically and visually, and it’s been incredibly challenging and rewarding trying to overhaul everything and pushing myself to dive into more uncharted creative territory,” says Neigher. “All of my previous albums were centered around the piano, which took up a ton of rhythmic and harmonic space, and was reminiscent of a style of music I hadn’t listened to for years. With this new project, I made a rule for myself that I wasn’t allowed to have any piano on the record, stripping away the main character I had relied on for years and instead challenging myself to use synthesizers and electronic percussion to build a different soundscape.”
The sound is modern and synth-driven pop with a classic songwriting style. Her love of old jazz standards by Duke Ellington and Harold Arlen and their sense of storytelling exudes as she focuses on writing strong bridges that take the listener somewhere else. Her new album, set to be released September 14, brings together notable local artists to help create her vision: Cody Rhodes (Geographer, Curls) contributed all of the live and electronic drums, Derek Barber (Bells Atlas) wrote guitar parts, Jess Silva added harmonies, and Scott Brown (Astronauts, Etc.) recorded the bass, with her longtime friends and musical collaborators the Magik*Magik Orchestra (Death Cab for Cutie, The Walkmen) writing and arranging the string parts on the record.
It’s in this body of work that her inner feminist comes out, and she touches on so many topical subjects like reproductive rights and self-worth. “One of my main goals of Lapel is women lifting up other women through music. So many of the bands/engineers/producers/venue staff/festival bookers/label heads in the music industry are male, and women face so much overt and subtle sexism in this business. I can’t count the number of times I’ve walked into a music venue carrying an instrument and people still assume I’m not in the band or I must be the singer because I’m a woman. It’s really important to me to have two women front and center in our live shows, commanding our instruments and voices, and singing about our personal experiences surrounding feminism, fear, self-doubt, and strength. We also raise money for Planned Parenthood at every show.”
This is nothing new for Neigher though as her songs have been used in the Lifetime series, Dance Moms, where the music spoke to young girls, many of which went on to cover her music or wrote to her to share their own similar experiences. “To me, that is really the greatest honor you can ever hope to achieve with your music.” Music to her goes beyond self expression; it has the power to impact beyond an individual level to a community and globally. “It helps people get lost, get found, get comforted, connect with others, feel like there’s someone else out there who knows what you’re going through.”
Unsurprisingly, music has played a major role in Neigher feeling like part of the Bay Area community. When first moved to San Francisco at 22 years old, she spent three years working with homeless youth, and was endlessly moved by the children’s resiliency in the face of great trauma and uncertainty, especially in a city like San Francisco, where problems with affordability and class warfare are continually on the rise. “Continuing to participate and believe in the music community has helped me to remain optimistic about the city’s future,” Debbie says. “It’s served as a spark in the conversation on how to keep this city vibrant with art and culture.”
Most of the new album is centered around the death of her first boyfriend from a drug overdose, and all the different ways she tried to understand and cope with it. “It was both heart wrenching and incredibly therapeutic to go through the process of writing the record, and I really hope it resonates with those who have lost someone they’ve loved to addiction, or people who are struggling with it themselves.”
With that being said, she still wants people to move and dance at her shows. Where there’s room for movement and fun is the type of concert she personally enjoys going to the most, and thus the environment she wants to create with her own live performances. “I think even when the subject of a song is heavy or difficult, there is always hope there, because you’re out there sharing it in public, trying to reach out, connect, and uplift the people around you.”
When she’s not creating and recording her own music, Neigher plays keys for the Sam Chase and the Untraditional, King Dream, Andrew St. James, and recently sat in with Curls (Christopher Owns of Girls) and the Family Crest. She strives to connect with as many people as possible, both emotionally and viscerally. But her ultimate goal as an artist is to tour the world with her band—and to someday hear her music in a film as she is constantly pushing to further her communication through songwriting. It’s also a matter of finding fresh outlets to express herself with the shift in the music industry.
“ It’s very difficult being an independent musician in 2018 with the industry constantly changing and becoming oversaturated–I think a lot of pillars of the business are in upheaval now that record sales have plummeted, and everything feels much more economics/survival-based rather than creativity-based.”
At the same time, it’s her strength in helping others—and herself—that propels her forward. It’s all about taking the leap. That sensation transcends all aspects of her life to help her achieve self love on and off the stage. “You have to get onstage and fully commit to and believe in your flaws, secrets, quirks, and pain, or else people just won’t believe you or connect with you.”
Catch Lapel at their next show at Bazaar Cafe in San Francisco July 28th. The event is part of an all-day music marathon called “Bazaarstock,” honoring 20 years of local music. To stay up to date on new song releases and upcoming performances, follow along on social media @lapelsings and Spotify, and their website.
Leave a reply