12. Kevin AyersJoy Of A Toy
Soft Machine have always been a really important band for me, but I feel like there’s always this element of, is it Robert Wyatt or is it Kevin Ayers? I love Robert Wyatt’s music, but there’s something about the Kevin Ayers records – the second one too, Shooting At The Moon – that is really special in how the songwriting, the vocals, the production all comes together. He’s another musician who I think has this optimistic kind of sound. It’s interesting to me when people can make music that doesn’t feel cheap, but is still uplifting in a way; not all sad and heavy music, but still meaningful and poignant. This comes from a really important era of music for me me. If I was making pop music, it would be the type of music that I make.
