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Graywave

A Profile

Since dropping her debut single ‘Afternoon Escapism’ in 2019, West Midlands singer/songwriter Jess Webberley has worked hard to create a sound she can be proud of. From growing up in Wolverhampton to residing in Coventry via Birmingham, Jess has pulled on a wide range of influences and support to pave her way forwards as she follows her passion of making music. As Graywave, Jess has evolved her sound into something dark and etherial.

“….For as long as I can remember I’ve always loved music, I remember being a huge fan of Shakira at one point, but then I started listening to more heavier stuff and really got into Jonah and the Jets, especially after getting my first electric guitar….Honestly, I think my biggest musical influence outside of what I was listening to was my grandad who played the Clarinet and Saxophone, I remember playing the recorder when I was younger and he told me to learn a real instrument like a Clarinet, so I chose the guitar….” Jess

With this wide range of influences its no surprise that Jess eventually found herself performing in a wide range of bands as she began her musical journey.

“….I played with quite a lot of bands from time to time and they all had a different feel and style, honestly, the last band I was in before starting my Graywave project was a Hardcore band, I’d always been into heavier stuff so that was fun….” Jess

Taking this experience on board Jess began writing music of her own and made the decision to dub herself Graywave.

“….I’d been writing my own songs for about a decade and just got to a point where I felt confident enough in what I was writing to give releasing them a go….” Jess

So, in April 2019 ‘Afternoon Escapism’ was released to the world and Graywave was born.

“….My early stuff was a bit more, well, lighter, a bit more indie I’d say, I liked it but still felt I wanted to go a bit darker….” Jess

It would be during the Lockdowns in 2020 that would become the turning point for Jess, and for Graywave’s style.

“….I’d always wanted to learn how to produce my own music so when I got furloughed from my old job for three months I looked into getting Logic, lucky they had a ninety day free trial or something on so I downloaded it and began just messing about with it, eventually I bought it and have been able to produce some brilliant demos on it that have helped me to create the sounds I wanted to get….” Jess

Taking full advantage of her down time Jess was able to create the ground work for what would become her debut EP ‘Planetary Shift’.

“….I got the EP recorded and got a friend of mine who’s a great drummer, Zach, to perform the drums, I’d recorded drums on my stuff before, but honestly you can tell its being played by someone who isn’t an actual drummer, so this time I asked him to come on board to boost my songs even more….” Jess

With the EP now set in stone it was only a waiting game to judge the best time for its release. Sadly due to more lockdowns and restrictions Jess would have to post pone its debut until April 2021.

“….The original plan was to release one, maybe two singles and then drop the EP in 2020, but then with how things started to turn out after the summer we made the decision to release a few more singles and then drop the EP in 2021, mostly its because I wanted to release at a time when things would be opening up and I’d be able to do a few live performances around the time of its release and hopefully it would feel like a normal release….” Jess

So, on 23rd April this year Graywave dropped her debut EP and was even able to organise a live perfromance/EP launch party this May. Along with this first live show of the year Jess and her manager over at Indie Midlands have struck while the iron is hot and scheduled a few more shows throughout 2021, including a joint headline performance with Leeds breakout stars Artio.

Looking to the future there doesn’t seem to be any sign of slowing down for Jess and for Graywave.

“….I’ve got a few things in the works that I can’t really talk about at the moment but I can say I’ve got some studio time booked in July and I’m hoping to drop some new music this year….” Jess

So with a promising range of projects on the horizon and a swell of support for her music, it seems that not even a pandemic can dull the edge of this promising new artist.

Follow Graywave here:

Facebook // Instagram // Twitter

Listen here:

Bandcamp // Spotify // Apple Music