Aside from Caillat and Reeves, Gone West is made up of Justin Young and Nelly Joy.
On their single “What Could’ve Been,” Reeves said, “We are really excited about it. The song fell out really naturally and magically. It’s been on country radio for a month so far so it’s really new. It was the second-to-last song that we wrote for our record. The writing and the recording of it felt really great.”
Regarding Gone West’s songwriting, Caillat said, “Ultimately, we all write together or with a fifth person. We write about what we are going through individually or together as a band. A lot of times, we have a lot of heartbreak songs since we are writing about what our friends around us are going through. Some of them have gone through divorces, long-term breakups or are still in painful marriages. We try tapping in what they are going through and writing about it.”
Caillat continued, “The sound on this record is acoustic, organic and harmony-driven. We were all inspired by classic rock growing up so we feel that our music has a lot of those influences.”
On being artists in this digital age, Reeves said, “Honestly, I feel that we both started in the digital age. We got our start from MySpace. We were at the front edge of the digital age. It keeps evolving and no matter what, you can’t understand what is going. It is unpredictable. There are a lot of positives to it and some negatives.”
“People are able to find your music with ease and people all over the world can listen to your music from almost anywhere now and I love that. I don’t think that was possible before,” he added.
Regarding the recent passage of the Music Modernization Act (MMA), which protects songwriters and creators in this digital age, Reeves said, “It’s an incredible forward for songwriters. There is a long way to go, honestly. I am really encouraged by this being passed, and hopefully, it opens the door for things getting better.”
On August 2, Gone West played the hallowed Grand Ole Opry for the third in their career. “Our first time was actually our debut performance as Gone West,” Caillat said. “The Opry believed in us from the beginning and they treated us so wonderfully while playing there. It was an incredible experience all around.”
Prior to that, they performed at Mulcahy’s Pub and Concert Hall in Wantagh on Long Island, where they shared the stage with country stars Hunter Hayes and Luke Combs. “That was wild. It was a crazy night. That club was jam-packed and everybody was going nuts. I actually had a lot of fun,” he said.
Gone West listed Coldplay as their dream collaboration choice in the music industry. “Coldplay all the way,” Caillat exclaimed.
On the title of the current chapter of his life, Reeves said, “Madness and Constant Whirlwind.” “It’s a beautiful constant whirlwind of madness,” he said.
For young and aspiring singer-songwriters, Caillat said, “Write your own songs if you can and learn how to play an instrument. Stay true to the artist that you want to represent. There are a lot of influences around you and people may try to turn you into something different. As long as you love and enjoy what you are creating, then that’s what’s important.”
Gone West defined the word as “doing what you love and being inspired by what you do.” “Being able to make music, in my opinion, is a success. It’s about being inspired and wanting to grow as artists. That’s my version of success,” Reeves said. “Success is about enjoying what you are doing and being happy every day,” Caillat added.
For their fans and supporters, Caillat remarked, “Thank you for listening. We are excited to be releasing new music soon with our new album. It’s a scary journey starting something new but we are very grateful that people are relating to our music and coming to our shows.”
Their single “What Could’ve Been” is available on iTunes. “It means so much to us that people are reacting to our single,” Caillat said.
To learn more about country group Gone West and their music, check out their official website and their Facebook page.
