IDER
Interview & Article by Fabiola Mejia
When it comes to combining powerful lyrics and electrifying harmonies, the band IDER has truly created a unique voice for fans of all generations. Lily Somerville and Meg Marwick, the musical duo from London, tackle themes of female anger, anxiety, and other complexities that shine through in their songs while mastering the art of genre blending. Having released four EPs and two albums, their newest album, Late To The World, is set for release in February 2025. With several of the new tracks already gaining attention, IDER is getting ready to embark on their headlining U.S. tour and is sure to win over new fans who will connect to the energy and empowering messages of their music.
Eager to discuss their musical journey and upcoming album, Lily and Meg share their process in creating this record, how their friendship plays a key part in their performances and songwriting, and what the new year has in store for IDER.
Tell us a little bit about how you came together as musicians. What were the early days like?
Lily: “Yeah, so we met at university and we became quite instant friends and started making music together back then, about ten years ago, and just always kind of loved writing and singing in harmony together. And the friendship has always been at the heart of that, really.”
Meg: “That’s the history of IDER, really. Yeah it was definitely like an instant connection in terms of being friends and making music together. And then we just decided that we’ll make this our proper job. So here we are.”
Your music has been described as electronic pop and a cross between genres. How would you describe your music to new listeners?
Meg: “Yeah, definitely would say that we blend quite a lot of different genres. It’s definitely under the pop umbrella. I would say alternative pop– electronic. A lot of the harmonies are rooted in folk and country, which is kind of where we started. And this record in particular, it’s quite anthemic, it’s quite electronic and indie– that’s a bit of a blend. So all of those genres I think make sense to describe our sound. But definitely under the alt pop sphere.”
Where do you draw inspiration from, and how has this changed over the years?
Lily: “A lot of inspiration comes from the conversations that we have– trying to figure out life, and conversations that we have with friends and with each other. It’s quite often rooted in psychology and trying to get our heads around things. And with that comes a lot of podcasts and books and listening to things and learning new things. We’re real lyrics girls so we get quite obsessed with lyrics and the message, and trying to portray that in the music. Also, a lot of music, a lot of different music over the years. I would say that hasn’t changed much. Obviously the content has changed, what we’re talking about or what we’re listening to. But it’s a lot of life and love and being a woman in the world, and the conversations around that is the inspiration.”
What is one major lesson you have each learned as artists?
Meg: “There’s so many lessons and actually what’s quite interesting about this new record that we’ve made and the– strong theme of late to the world is about feeling like late bloomers. So we coined this phrase “late to the world” as our way of describing being a little bit like a late bloomer. I think a lot of people feel that way. One area that maybe we feel like late bloomers is by being artists, you’re choosing a less conventional path. There is a lot of personal growth you go through, and it’s really like you’re inside out the whole time and you’re sensitive. You really are taking the long way round. I guess when we’re not really speaking specifically about the music industry, which we try to talk as openly as possible about, it’s wild and it’s unpredictable and everyone’s journey is different. There’s this perception that you fall in love with music, you start a band or you get signed and bam– your trajectory is one and that’s the way it’s going to be, and it’s the same for everyone else. But the truth is that everyone’s journey is different. That’s kind of the heart of this record, it’s like owning that. I think a big lesson is that there is no right or wrong way of doing it, even though it might feel like there is.”
Lily: “One hundred percent. I would second that entirely. That’s been at the heart of what this record is about. Another thing I would say I have really learned over the past years of working as an artist is the ability to be vulnerable and really try and get to the truth of things and dig deeper. Learning what you think is your authentic voice versus what is really your authentic voice. Also having less fear around that– being more able to tap into that and not judge that. Being able to be more playful with quite a vulnerable space which is what it is to create, I think has been a big lesson.”
Many could say that you are like sisters. How does this dynamic come into play when performing and when you are writing music together?
Lily: “That’s so lovely! I guess that goes back to what we were saying about the friendship being at the heart of who we are– that does feel like a sister friendship. It felt like that when we met each other; it felt like we’ve met before; we kind of picked up where we left off before in a past life. I would say there’s a chemistry that comes with that within our friendship, and performing with that feeling of sisterhood and friendship is such a powerful thing. And that also is such a powerful thing in a very different way when we’re writing songs together because of that connection and ability to be honest and vulnerable with each other. That friendship and that sisterhood is at the heart of what we do creatively, and at the heart of how we perform together.”
Meg: “Not to be too cringe but soul mates or big friendships, very important people in our life– they manifest in different ways for different people. Definitely for us it’s sister-like friendship and the fact that we’ve built this world together, is just like at the heart of what we do and that’s what we want to portray.”
IDER’s newest album, Late to the World, is set to be released in early 2025 and you have just released the single, ‘Know How It Hurts.’ What are some challenges that came with putting this album together?
Meg: “I just have such positive feelings about it to be honest. Of course there were definitely challenges along the way. Overall the experience was so brilliant, I just cherish it so much.”
Lily: “The last two albums that we put out before this upcoming one– we produced all the songs with different producers and we had fingers in different pies, and bringing that all together felt like quite a challenge. But what’s been so incredible about the process of making this album is that we made it with different people, but then we brought it to one producer and we lived in residence at this recording studio in Wales. We got to really dig into it and find a world for it, and all of the songs grew up together. Which was such a special experience and is so different to what we’ve experienced before that it did feel like a really positive experience. You get lost in it a little bit, which is the positive side of it as well because you’re consumed by it and immersed in it. It’s not like we’re rewriting the way that albums are made, many people make albums that way, but that felt like such a special thing to do.
I think because we also write songs in lots of different genres, we’ve got those really slow ballad-y songs and those really hard-hitting pop songs– there’s maybe some challenge in that, making everything feel like it’s all part of the same world. What we wanted to make with this album was all the different emotions, and all the different sides of feeling late to the world, and all of the things you go through that makes you feel that way. Whether it’s breakups or these empowering thoughts or comments on society, and where we’re at. All of those different genres or different sides of the coin are part of that message. Even where you think there might not be congruence there is and that’s part of what we’re trying to say.”
Meg: “I would agree. I think the fact that we’ve blended lots of genres throughout the records we’ve made– that’s probably always the biggest challenge. But generally the experience of making this record was so fulfilling and amazing. I think the challenges were existing outside of music for us: the nature of the industry, post-pandemic, the fact that we weren’t touring for a long time. Those were the challenges, but actually the creative process of this record was really safe.”
In anticipation of your upcoming US tour in which you will be headlining, what are you most excited about? What cities do you look forward to exploring?
Meg: “We can’t wait to get back to the States. The last time we were in the States we played at the start of 2020. This was just before Covid, and it was our first time playing most of those cities. We’d done one or two shows in New York and L.A. I remember being so blown away at people showing up. It was like discovering that we have fans out there for the first time. Five years later and we’re coming back, and we have so much more new music and a lot has happened. It was such a strong connection when we went out there in 2020. I’m so excited to be meeting these fans again.”
Lily: “I can’t wait to come back to Portland. That felt like such a special place. We’ve actually got a couple of days off I think before or after San Francisco, and I can’t wait to do a bit of exploring and hiking and see the big trees. Also New York– all of it really to be honest.”
Meg: “The Boston show that we played last time, years ago when we were there, was really great! I remember it was really cold, it was snowing but people showed up.”
What do you think your fans will connect with most on your new album?
Lily: “Definitely the feeling of being a late bloomer. It’s always these things, isn’t it? The things that feel are quite personal to you, and then you start talking about it and you realize that everyone feels the same. It’s quite a universal feeling, I think. There’s a song– which is about attachment styles, everyone seems to be thinking about their attachment styles and what they are, like self-diagnosing. So we’ve kind of done our own self-diagnosis in a song, which I feel might connect with a lot of people.”
Meg: “There’s also actually a bit of a through line on the record of celebrating anger and female ang– we’re coming from the lens of being young women. I think it exists definitely in ‘Know How It Hurts,’ in a softer, melancholic way. There are a few songs on the record where there is a bit of sass and there’s this boldness. In ‘You Don’t Know How To Drive,’ which was a single that came out earlier in the year, that’s got that kind of energy and I’m really looking forward to people connecting to that. As Lil mentioned earlier, the breadth of emotion and the different stories that we’re telling on the record is broad, but it’s just quite interesting that there’s this through line of “I’m angry and there’s lots to be angry about” and that’s fine. It’s about how you use it and how you challenge it and we can incite change, and there’s so much positivity that can come with that kind of thought.”
Are there other creative projects you are currently working on? Either together or individually?
Meg: “That’s such an interesting question. I don’t think we’ve ever been asked that before. No, not at the moment, and not personally. I mean we write music together, we write music separately, and then bring songs to the table. So I guess we’re constantly creating as individuals. But IDER is the project at the moment.”
Do you like to look ahead of what is next to come for IDER after the tour? Can you share some details of what you think you will do next?
Lily: “Hopefully we’ll be doing more shows and festivals and stuff like that. That’s all kind of TBC at the moment, but that’s the hope. We’re always writing, plans to be back in the studio and make more music– one hundred percent. Everything’s a bit up in the air at the moment with shows and stuff, but hopefully we’ll be doing more touring. I don’t think we’ll feel done by the end of April.”
Meg: “It feels like we’re at the start of a big year ahead, and we have been working on our live show which we’re just very glad to be touring around the UK, Europe, States. And yeah, just getting the record out to as many people as possible and then making another, you know? That’s kind of how it goes. But we’re definitely gearing up for a big year.”
