Interview by Kris Peters
Guitarist/songwriter/vocalist Samantha Fish is rightfully recognized as one of the premiere guitarists of her generation. With a blending of emotion, finesse, and raw aggression, Fish encapsulates the essence of musicianship while also allowing herself creative room from which to grow and flourish.
Her sonic output features, and draws from, multiple genres including rock, country, funk and bluegrass, but it is her ability to integrate genres and manipulate musical styles that has seen her forge a successful career which includes a Grammy nomination for Death Wish Blues (her 2023 collaboration with rocker Jesse Dayton) and opening for The Rolling Stones on their final 2024 U.S. tour date.
Fish's upcoming album Paper Doll is the culmination of years of commitment to the music scene, delivering nine tracks with enough scope and musical disparity to appeal to lovers of many forms of music. But it's not the amount of strings to Fish's metaphorical bow. It is the way she unites each delicate moment, drifting between lashings of hard rock staunchness to softer, more intimate confines with a Delta Blues spine.
It is a coming together of genres that in many hands would sound forced, or contrived, but Fish manages to find not only the balance at the core of her music but also pushes the parameters of experimentalisation over convention. Put simply, Paper Doll is Samantha Fish's most accomplished body of work to date, and something that brought her music to the attention of HEAVY on the other side of the world.
We sat down with Fish recently to go over the album, starting by asking if the pressures of an album release cycle are something that affects her as the release date approaches.
"There's this weird feeling when you finish a record, at least for me," she smiled. "I know every artist feels this way. You walk out of the studio and this giant weight has been lifted off your shoulders. It's almost euphoric when you're done with the record and thank God, because it's always fun. But for me, it's always like this mountain that I have to climb to get through it. It feels great. But then It feels like you have this secret that you have to keep for 6-9 months to a year that you can't share with anybody. So I finally feel like I'm able to let people in on the little secret."
We asked what her focus was on going into the musical side of Paper Doll.
"With this record, I wanted to lean into my strengths," she replied. "What are my superpowers? What makes me different? What makes me unique, leaning into my voice, my guitar, my songwriting? I wanted to make something that felt urgent, felt like rock and roll, but was still rooted in the music that I love and inspires me, which is blues music. North Hill Country blues specifically. It's a deep well of inspiration for me. I just wanted to write great songs and write and record with an urgency that people would hear and want to listen to again and again and again. Timeless records, that's my goal."
In the full interview, Samantha described the completion of the album as a euphoric experience, emphasizing her aim to create timeless music that highlights her vocal and guitar skills while incorporating a hard-edged rock and roll style. She noted that this album is more aggressive than her previous works, with the opening track, I'm Done Runnin', serving as a strong introduction. Samantha also highlighted the importance of track sequencing in engaging listeners, aiming to encourage them to experience the album as a cohesive journey rather than just individual songs.
She shared insights into her writing process, revealing that much of the album was created while on tour, where she draws inspiration from her experiences. This album is particularly significant as it is the first she recorded with her touring band, capturing the energy and chemistry developed on the road. The conversation also touched on her rumoured plans to visit Australia in 2026 and more.
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