By: Kelly Chia, Peak Associate
“Rock and roll love on Sunday morning.”
These are the words used to describe alt-rock husband and wife duo Danny and Natalee Lovelock’s band, Foxx and Swann. The New Westminster-based couple released their debut EP in December 2020, and indeed, the acoustics and heartfelt lyricism in the EP reminded me of rootsy coffee shop performances.
I had the opportunity to chat with the Lovelocks on their EP, inspirations, and the relationships they have formed with their music. One minute with them and it was clear how much respect they had for each other’s creative voices, and how music lovingly weaved through their lives.
Besides being the frontpeople of Foxx and Swann, the Lovelocks have been making music together since 2012. Their careers are truly entrenched in the arts; Natalee teaches drama and musical theatre while Danny does audio and video production for artists. On top of this, they are also parents to a young toddler named Fox.
The Lovelocks’ work truly fills every facet of their life. I asked if they ever needed a break from music, and they both laughed. “I love being a mom, I love music [ . . . ] Fox and I sing together,” Natalee said fondly, “I think we’ve done a pretty good job of doing only the things that we like doing!” she laughed sheepishly.
Danny had a similar answer. “I try to surround myself with things that I really enjoy doing, and if it brings in some income, [good], and if it doesn’t, it’s still just doing the things that I enjoy doing — music, and video work, and helping raise [my] son.”
Danny and Natalee are also the guitar and bass vocalists in the four-piece band, Marry Me. More rock and roll-centric, Marry Me hits notes of 2007 punk rock with cool guitar riffs and vocals. Their most recent single, “Bad Tattoo,” definitely feels like a rock song made for chanting along to in a live bar: “Open up, let me in, that ugly little part of you / Show me your bad tattoo!” We talked about the song, and how people treat their ‘bad’ tattoos.
Danny developed the riffs and lines of “Bad Tattoo,” and brought the idea to the group. “He had this idea [that] a bad tattoo is like a bad thing that’s happened to you, like an embarrassing night out [ . . . ] but that the person that really likes you would want to see that ugly part of you, that bad tattoo,” Natalee said. That sincerity grounded the punk feel of the song.
I asked the Lovelocks what it was like to work together as spouses, and they explained it came down to their mutual respect for each other’s creative voices. Music augmented their relationship as a means of expression. “You could argue that we built our relationship on a common likeness for wanting to play music,” Danny said. While they felt like they had other things to share and grow through, something about working on music together drove them closer.
Some of their biggest moments happened as performers — in true rock and roll fashion, Danny surprised Natalee with an on-stage proposal in 2018 and they were married then and there. They found support and trust in one another to balance out the duties that come with being musicians — and there were a lot.
Danny and Natalee handle practically everything together, along with their bandmates: they produce and edit their own music videos, do their own promotions, and more. “I’m really lucky to be in [ . . . ] two acts [where] I can [bring] my side of things, the bones of music, to the group [while] having somebody do the stuff that I can’t do,” Danny smiled, pointing at Natalee. “We’re really give and take with our roles.”
The pair also credits their Marry Me bandmates for their good work habits. “We didn’t look for people that did everything, but everyone brings such different skills to the table and knows what they do best, and also knows what everyone else does best,” Natalee said.
Their new project, Foxx and Swann, has a more mellow acoustic sound so far — having just released their first EP, they are still experimenting with what genres of music to tackle in their future works. The pair are inspired by other alt-rock artists, like The Civil Wars and Tom Petty, and you can hear that in their lovely harmonies.
Asking the pair what inspired them in their songwriting. Natalee said she was inspired by the blues period and Americana music at the moment. “Today, I’m inspired by the musical Hadestown,” she said. “It’s really rootsy and bluesy, and it’s the direction that Foxx and Swann [is going with].” Natalee hoped to tour Nashville and Chicago in the future and visit every blues, jazz, and country bar to absorb that sound and use it in their music.
“Yeah, I find if you want to be inspired, there’s lots of options,” Danny said. He found that listening to Top 40 hits didn’t inspire him as much as random everyday events. “It’s easier to say where I don’t find inspiration than where I do, because there’s a million places to find inspiration!”
Since this EP is their debut project, Danny said that each song is uniquely exciting. Their three songs are titled, “Something Better (Good),” “This Old Hat,” and “He Gave Me Tom Petty.” Danny and Natalee’s vocals blend beautifully together in these songs, and the earthy chords make the songs pop.
“He Gave Me Tom Petty” is one song in particular that I can’t stop thinking about. It’s so vulnerable. With lyrics like “Do you see yourself when you look at me, satisfied I followed along? / I’ll chase your ways another lifetime of days, loving and loving song,” it’s clear that this song is a dedication and a love letter to a parent, and to the memories that they’ve helped create.
“‘He Gave Me Tom Petty’ was not even meant to be on this album, that song was written as a birthday present for my dad,” Natalee laughed. “We wrote it the night Tom Petty died, and I was really emotional [ . . . ] and my dad happened to be on a trip to Mexico at the time, and I couldn’t get a hold of him. And I said to Danny, ‘I have to talk to my dad! He gave me music! He gave me Tom Petty!’”
The song was so personal, Natalee initially felt like it shouldn’t be shared with the world. “All of that stuff in there is like my mushy feelings and my mushy reflections!” I chuckled, understanding exactly what she meant. Even so, the emotion in the song made me think of the people in my life — my parents, my brother, my teachers — that have paved the way to inspire me to read and write and express myself in the world this way. It’s not often that I hear things that are so unconditionally heartfelt in gratitude, and it made me mushy too.
And while their other songs are far from mushy, the Lovelocks’ sincerity and passion is heartfelt. They put everything in their projects, and in each other, making them compelling artists to follow as their sound evolves from hard rock to bluesier sounds to wherever they find their next inspirations. While I don’t listen to a lot of rock and roll myself, their guitar riffs certainly have me wishing for a post-COVID live concert.
Foxx and Swann and Marry Me can both be found on streaming platforms like Spotify, iTunes, Soundcloud, and YouTube. For new music releases, follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
