At the center of everything that Meg Golz and Eve Wilczewski do as the band Seasaw is a do-it-themselves mentality.
The pair originally met while working at the same Italian restaurant in their hometown of Freeport, Illinois, having never met in school due to a six-year age gap.
During their downtime, the pair would pass the hours making snarky, coded raps about the people and going-ons of the restaurant. It was during that time the two realized the personal chemistry that would serve them well as band mates and close friends.
Like their sense of humor, Golz and Wilczewski also quickly discovered their shared passion for music. But shortly after, as the pair were beginning to produce original tracks, Golz moved to Madison to attend the Madison Media Institute for an associate degree in audio engineering and a bachelor’s degree in marketing.
This left the pair in a “long distance bandship” for their first five years working together, which lasted until just one year ago. While Wilczewski said this never placed a serious strain on their relationship, it certainly presented its own challenges.
“It was just exhausting, because [we] could never really fit all the things we wanted to in a weekend,” Wilczewski said.
“Expensive too,” Golz added.
“Yeah, a lot of gas money,” Wilczewski concluded.
608 Release: Seasaw releases trippy visuals for ‘Ex-Girlfriend’
But last year Wilczewski moved to Madison so the pair could complete their recently released LP Too Much of a Good Thing. This allowed them to hit their stride creatively, Golz said, as well as work more collaboratively and cohesively.
The pair was able to be more involved from start to finish in the making of the album than on past records. Wilczewski said executing a clear vision for the project was their number one objective.
It’s easy to tell this from a listening standpoint as well. Too Much of a Good Thing is a delightful record. Basing each song in acoustic folk, yet incorporating many different genres, Golz and Wilczewski allow their vocals to take center stage.
The most exhilarating parts of the album are when the two harmonize — they produce an emphatic effect on their storytelling lyrics, mightily pleasing the ear.
This emphasis on vocals, Golz said, is a product of her mastering. Golz said she is more drawn to the melody that the human vocals create, rather than those of instruments. Wilczewski also added that it serves the purpose of highlighting the band’s lyrics, which she believes to be a strong point of theirs, as well as showcasing the pair’s difference in writing styles.
One common motif that is notably apparent in the band’s lyricism is their use of feminist imagery. Both Golz and Wilczewski identify these lyrics as being reflections of their own personalities as well as the underlying reason of their band in general.
Wilczewski said one of their goals as musicians is to be a “strong female presence,” whether it be through their stage presence or the way they present their music by modeling themselves after many of the artists they find themselves drawn to.
“We’re showing there’s not room for being timid because we are artists, and we’re putting our art out there,” Wilczewski said.
This also plays into the way the pair write their songs, Golz said. Through the songwriting process, they ensure that each song they write is one they could perform all on their own. They do this so audiences do not get the impression that they, a pair of women, need to rely on others to form their art.
This isn’t to say that the pair don’t collaborate with other artists. They have. But, what’s the point of doing so constantly when Seasaw has such a unique, creative dynamic on their own?
After all, when a band member’s songwriting can inspire a crazy “Harry Caray” organ solo, as Wilczewski’s song “Gone Fishin” did for Golz, why dilute it by incorporating anyone else?
