Solya embraces her West Texas roots, both the beauty and backlash, on Queen of Texas debut LP & tour
Written by: Ian Saint
It seems America is having a love affair with West Texas music. And we’re not just saying that because Lubbock native Buddy Holly is our namesake — Treaty Oak Revival from Odessa, who was our December cover story, are on an arena headlining tour. Dexter and the Moonrocks’ national touring success prompted Texas Monthly to declare “The New Y’allternative Sound Is Straight Out of Abilene.”
Now, 19 year-old Solya from Abilene is preparing to embark on her first tour with a band — which launches in Deep Ellum’s storied Club Dada tonight.
On first glance of her bio, Solya reminded me somewhat of Chappell Roan, whom I interviewed a couple months prior. Both artists are precocious young queer women from sparsely populated stretches of Republican-controlled mid-country states, whose decadent appearances are as impressive in their creativity as their songwriting skills — but beyond an apparent shared love of synthesizers, their artistic differences are substantial. Solya’s music is generally more forlorn and guitar-driven, sometimes veering into doom rock territory; yet with an uncanny ability to channel 1950s rock and doo wop, which I’m eager to ask her about.
I spoke with Solya at the end of January. A transcript of our conversation, edited for length and clarity, follows.
IAN SAINT: Thanks so much for speaking with us at Buddy Magazine, the Original Texas Music Magazine. Of course, our name is christened after a fellow young West Texan. Listening to Queen of Texas, I was struck by how it reminded me of Buddy Holly with electric guitar work, the reverb, most of the songs are under three minutes, etc. I also loved your cover of “Put Your Head On My Shoulder,” by his friend and collaborator, Paul Anka.
SOLYA: Thank you.
IAN SAINT: So was Buddy an influence on you, given your shared West Texas origins?
SOLYA: Yes, he was an influence, especially with “Tell Me It’s Over.” I took influence from the 1950s Buddy Holly [style of] rock music, and the whole album was recorded on analog equipment. I recorded everything on an EV RE-15 microphone. [Editor’s note: famous users of the EV RE-15 include Elvis Presley, as seen in his 1968 comeback special.]
IAN SAINT: Growing up in West Texas, was Buddy often invoked?
SOLYA: I did grow up listening to him. I was actually born in Lubbock; I lived there for the first three or four years of my life. My parents played Buddy Holly a lot, and a lot of ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s music like Neil Young, Warren Zevon — all that kind of stuff. So that’s definitely influenced my sound a lot, and that’s why I really wanted to record my album on all analog equipment.
IAN SAINT: “19” struck me lyrically as I mulled the Buddy parallels. “If I died young, would you remember me better? They only want your youth for pleasure.” I thought of Buddy only being 22 when he died. Plus Janis Joplin — another fellow Texan — and the 27 Club.
SOLYA: I was actually thinking about the 27 Club, and how so many musicians die young — that’s a lot of what the song is about. As somebody that’s struggled a lot with mental health issues, it made me think of that a lot — like Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin, Buddy Holly…
IAN SAINT: Your late ‘50s music influences are fascinating for me to process. Music was so groundbreaking then, and pushed the envelope — maybe not by today’s standards, but rock & roll music was considered very provocative for the ‘50s political climate, with patriarchal propaganda and Jim Crow clinging on.
As you’re channeling that era somewhat with Queen of Texas, I realized there’s a political battle in Texas to take us back to the ‘50s — and you’re providing the musical tonic to that. What are your thoughts on that dichotomy of the ‘50s, where the politics and popular music of the late decade were at such odds? Especially with you being in West Texas, which is home to the couple of billionaires heavily funding the white Christian Nationalist movement in our politics.
SOLYA: Yeah. I draw a lot of inspiration from the ‘50s, and then I have songs like “Movie Star” and “Born Wicked” about growing up in the South and being gay. I hope that it can empower people, especially in this political climate when I don’t necessarily feel accepted where I’m from — and that’s a reoccurring theme in the album. The album is about pushing through that — being strong, being myself, and creating my own world, where I can just be the Queen of Texas.
I want people to feel emboldened and empowered to be themselves. And I want to create a space where people feel inspired by the music that I’ve made — they feel it in their hearts, and they think that it’s okay to feel this way. And despite the world around me, despite what anybody else might say, this is who I am and fuck y’all. [smiles]
IAN SAINT: It’s amazing to see how much music from West Texas is popping off nationally. Treaty Oak Revival, from Odessa, who are on an arena headlining tour. Dexter and the Moon Rocks are from Abilene, like you. Do you know them?
SOLYA: I don’t know them, but I’ve heard of them a lot.
IAN SAINT: Okay, maybe that speaks to how busy the Abilene music scene is. What would you like people to know about West Texas — the good, the bad, the misunderstood, the overlooked? And what do you think is driving this renaissance of new West Texas music taking off nationally?
SOLYA: I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from the desolation of my surroundings. I think you can hear that [my music] is kind of lonely, but I have found people that I feel understand me. The people that I worked with on my album: my producer, Danny Reisch; and Jason Chronis who played bass and slide guitar.
I feel like despite the bad things, despite some of the [politics] of the area, there are so many good things about it too. There are so many good people that live here that I can surround myself with. I build a family with these people, and that’s how I feel about the people I worked with on my album. That’s how I feel about my friends. I just feel like no matter where you are, you can always find people that understand you, that you can relate to, that you can work with, and people that will never judge you for who you are. I think that that’s beautiful about Texas, too — those people.
IAN SAINT: Yeah, I’ll concur with that. I just did the math from your age, and realized that you probably don’t remember when Texas Governor George W. Bush was president…
SOLYA: No. [we both laugh]
IAN SAINT: Growing up in Cleveland (Ohio, not Texas) at that time, I never would’ve imagined I’d move to Texas. It just seemed so backwards in the way it was portrayed. Then when I moved down here right after college, and discovered Deep Ellum — where you’ll be kicking off this tour — I was shocked at how Texas is where I’d come into my own. So I love what you’re doing to change the perception of that; acknowledging the problematic aspects, but also casting a spotlight on fabulous people who wouldn’t immediately be associated with the area — even though they’re born and raised here.
SOLYA: Yeah. I mean, there are so many great things about Texas. There ARE so many great people from Texas that still live here. I recorded my album in the town of Lockhart; it was such a small place, but it was filled with artists like photographers, musicians, painters — very creative people that have banded together and made a community. I think that people look at places like where I’m from, and they just think, “Oh, it’s conservative and everybody rides a horse everywhere.” But it’s really not like that.
IAN SAINT: And it’s amazing that so many West Texas musicians on the national rise are leading the charge on making music with a lot of autonomy. Treaty Oak Revival just self-released their third album; Dexter and the Moon Rocks are with an independent label, Big Loud. Version III is the label that you’re on. I’m not particularly acquainted with them… What drew you to Version III?
SOLYA: Version III actually found me, right after I graduated high school a year early. I’d been having meetings with these bigger labels; and in one meeting, [a label] said, “How would you feel about having someone else write your music for you?” I said, “No, that would never happen. I write my own music.” And then we never spoke again. So I was a little hesitant to even have another meeting.
Then I talked to Version III, and they basically let me create whatever I want to create. They’ve helped me go on tour; they’ve been very helpful with me meeting new people. I really like working with them; I think that they really care about their artists. That’s something I think a lot of majors don’t care about; they care about the money. At Version III, they’re like, “You want to make an album? Okay, we’ll fund this album, and you go do whatever you want.” And they can’t hold anything back.
IAN SAINT: You opted to record the album in Texas, and in a smaller town — Lockhart isn’t far from Austin, but far enough out to not be in the Austin bubble. [Note: one of my all-time favorite movies, Christopher Guest’s 1996 mockumentary Waiting For Guffman, was filmed in Lockhart. Catherine O’Hara is one of the stars, and she died shortly after this interview.] You also opted for an all-Texas team of collaborators. Why was it important for you to have everything centralized in the Lone Star State for your big debut?
SOLYA: It was really important for me to record it in Texas. I mean, I can’t record Queen of Texas in LA —that would be a sin. And I feel like my collaborators, Danny and Jason, really understood what I wanted to bring into it — drifting between this southern twang, sort of Americana sound and this whimsical sound as well. Me and Danny, my producer, I feel like our musical brains are connected; we never disagreed on anything, ever, at any point in making the record.
IAN SAINT: Is Danny from West Texas, too?
SOLYA: Yes.
IAN: Wow, okay. “Queen of Texas,” the album’s opening song and title track, reminds me of a pipe organ in a grand cathedral. Maybe that’s my own bias showing, though, as I grew up in an Irish Catholic family. [laugh] Has church music influenced you?
SOLYA: I don’t know if I’ve heard much church music, honestly. I think what really inspired the beginning of “Queen of Texas” was the Wall of Sound, and it’s very synth-y. It’s the perfect introduction to the record, because it has elements of electronic [music] and then also slide guitar tremolo…
IAN SAINT: Yes! Your sound is a remarkable marriage of guitar that reminds me of the ‘50s, but then there are also many synths — I wanted to ask you about “Silver Swan,” as the synthesizers there remind me of the Cocteau Twins…
SOLYA: Yeah, they’ve inspired me a lot; I love the Cocteau Twins. When I was in high school, I had a little iPod and listened to their [1984] album Treasure literally all day. So that’s definitely been an influence. I am very into synthesizers. I like analog synthesizers; I think my favorite is the Mellotron…
IAN SAINT: Gosh, we are so on the same wavelength. Listening to “Iris,” I wanted to ask if that’s a Mellotron?
SOLYA: Yes, it was. I put down the flute setting on the Mellotron for the bridge of “Iris.” And then “Movie Star” also has the string Mellotron setting on it. “Queen of Texas” has Mellotron. I put Mellotron all over the record.
IAN SAINT: And you’re the one playing Mellotron?
SOLYA: Yes, I played the synthesizers and rhythm guitar.
IAN SAINT: Amazing. When did you get to start playing the Mellotron? Because it’s not exactly an everyday instrument.
SOLYA: The first time I ever played a Mellotron was making the album. I’ve been playing piano since I was six, then I got my first synthesizer when I was 14; I started playing guitar at 14, as well. And I had just been making music in my bedroom up until this album.
IAN SAINT: Tell us about the music video for “Silver Swan.” It was so beautifully shot — I’m dying to know the location, and how it all came to be.
SOLYA: Thank you. There’s this big mansion near where I live, that’s been restored — I don’t remember what time period it’s in, but I recorded part of that there.
And then there’s this ballroom outside of where I live. [Pioneer Hall in Anson, TX.] Every Christmas, they have country bands come and everybody dresses like the 1800s and dances [for the Texas Cowboys’ Christmas Ball]. We called and [asked if] we can record a music video there, and they said yes. The location was pretty strange, but that’s why I liked it.
IAN SAINT: That’s remarkable, too. I think most people don’t know much about West Texas, and they wouldn’t think this beautifully ornate mansion is out there. I can only imagine how much it would cost to rent something like that in LA.
SOLYA: The idea to record my music videos in LA was proposed to me; and I said no, that I would find a way to do it here. I can’t imagine doing any part of the Queen of Texas record anywhere but Texas. I think it wouldn’t make sense, and wouldn’t be true to the record.
IAN SAINT: I was looking back at your 2024 Jewel Box EP. There’s a lot of heavy guitars on there. “Take Me” reminds me somewhat of Type O Negative, or even “Every Road I Know.” Are they an influence on you?
SOLYA: Oh, I don’t know if I’ve heard any of their stuff. For that, I was really inspired by Black Sabbath and Danzig.
IAN SAINT: Okay, Danzig would be the same era — I think you’d dig Type O Negative, their drummer Johnny Kelly played with Danzig for a long time. What has been your sonic progression from Jewel Box to Queen of Texas?
SOLYA: I recorded Jewel Box in my bedroom and used a lot of MIDI sounds, so I wasn’t able to fully get the sound that I wanted, because I didn’t have all of the analog equipment and synthesizers available. I was making lots of patches on my computer through MIDI, so I don’t think that I was able to quite achieve the full effect that I would’ve liked to — but that’s just part of the journey. For the guitar sounds, I really like using heavier guitars; and I’d like to incorporate that more in the future.
IAN SAINT: As I understand it, the Queen Of Texas Tour will be your first with a band?
SOLYA: Yeah. What’s going to be really special about this tour is that Danny, my producer, played drums on my album and he’s playing drums on tour. Jason, who played bass on my album, is playing bass. They played as my band on my record, and they’re going to play with me as my band on tour; I’m very excited about that. We’ll be playing the entire album, and maybe five or six old songs.
IAN SAINT: Cool! How did touring the UK go?
SOLYA: That was so much fun. I loved that I was on stage by myself — I had my synthesizer, guitar, drum machine, and looper. But I’m excited to get the full [band] sound with me.
IAN SAINT: I’m wearing my “Deep Ellum is for lovers” Bonnie and Clyde shirt from Kettle Art. Your “Born Wicked” music video reminded me of Bonnie and Clyde. They’re from Texas; did they inspire your video?
SOLYA: No, that idea came out of nowhere. I filmed that with my brother; that’s me and my brother in the car, and my best friend Michael, who I kill in the music video.
IAN SAINT: Have you been to Deep Ellum, my neighborhoodhood — and the funky entertainment district in Dallas where you’re launching the tour?
SOLYA: I don’t think so.
IAN SAINT: Ah, I think the aesthetic is perfect for you. There’s so much music history here, and Club Dada was a pillar of the legendary Deep Ellum nightlife surge of the ‘80s.
SOLYA: I can’t wait. You should come to my show.
IAN SAINT: See you there!
For Solya tour dates and tickets, visit her official website: https://www.solyamusic.com/
