Today we’d like to introduce you to Duncan Clawson
Hi Duncan, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
When I was 9 years old my parents brought home a Yamaha keyboard for Christmas. I spent a lot of time at that keyboard trying to learn songs from a lot of the video games I would play growing up. A few years later I would be inspired by guitarists like Andy McKee, Erik Mongrain, and Ben Howard to pick up guitar.
It was not long after I started playing piano that I would come up with my own song ideas. I loved how I would feel playing the piano and there were some ideas I would come up with that would color my mood or emphasize different feelings within me. I would later come to appreciate how much of an emotional outlet this was for me.
I released my EP’s Alexithymia in 2014 and Stampede in 2015, which primarily contain instrumental guitar and piano compositions I had written in high school. I would go to multiple open mics a week trying to play my music for anyone willing to listening. Between 2015 – 2020 I was writing and performing in a couple bands with some of my closest friends but was putting less time into my personal compositions.
in 2020 A few live events occurred before an approaching pandemic that made me reassess my life. I quit the job I had been working at for the last 8 years, started focusing on my mental/emotional health, and felt compelled to pursue music with more intention. I released my song “M” in May of 2022 and have continued to release instrumental guitar and piano compositions under my own name since.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The largest roadblocks have been internal. For most of my life I struggled to identifying my emotions and found it difficult to communicate how I felt. I would try to define or make sense of what I was feeling but any language I used to define that feeling felt wrong. Its for this reason that writing music has been critical in my life.
The music that feels most natural for me to write is instrumental. Instrumental music was a way for me to communicate what I was feeling without having the specific words to describe how I felt. I could ‘express’ or ‘outlet” in a way that felt liberating and empowering. The definition for the title of my first EP, Alexithymia, is “inability to identify and express or describe one’s feelings.”
In 2020 I started intentionally trying to nurture my feelings, building my emotional vocabulary, and have come to better understand the way I digest life. Its been a hard emotional journey, but one that has infinitely enriched my life. A difference that feels as though I was previously living in black and white, but now I live in more vibrant color and dynamic shades.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Outside of my personal music I currently play in three bands. The first being Catalogue, a unique instrumental three piece of guitar, piano and drums. In 2022 I joined Black Flak and the Nightmare Fighters, who are currently releasing tracks from our new Indie Alternative album, ‘Ode to Ebb and Flow’. Last year I started playing/writing with pop and rock vocalist MYKAH.
Across these projects I have been able to go on tour, play with local and touring acts such as Nita Strauss, and play music festivals such as POST FEST. I was the very first performer of SLUG Mag’s Inaugural Anniversary Party, where they had 34 individual local Utah artists perform. Last year I collaborated with Junction Dance Co for a performance in which they choreographed dance performances to my original piano compositions.
Across these four areas of creativity, I feel extremely fortunate to be creating different types of music with such lovely people. I am eternally grateful for my collaborators: Jacob Roller, Sam DuMont, Kate Hoffmeister, Dan Ibarra, and Mykah.
Black Flak and MYKAH will be performing live at Metro Music Hall on April 10th. Come on out, hear what the music is all about, and watch me run around stage for both sets!
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Risk is something that intimidates me but what I want for my life lives on the other side of risk and discomfort. Pursuing my passion for music has involved many enriching experiences and embarrassing failures. My parents instilled in me the belief that I am capable of anything I set my mind to. I believe I can create the future I want to have for myself. Creating that future won’t be a flawless road and to let short comings or the fear thereof hold me back from chasing my dream is scarier than risk itself.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://dot.cards/duncy_poo
- Instagram: @duncy_poo
