Since their first single in 2018, the Brooklyn duo Bathe’s brand of leftfield R&B has grown at a steady rate. Their newest release, Inside Voice(s): Side A, is the first of two parts of a project structured around the strictures of old-school physical media. It’s the next step for a duo clearly in command of their sonic and musical language, which fuses influences from indie, R&B, and beyond into a mesmerizing whole. We sent over some questions to Corey-Smith West—who is one part of the group along with Devin Hobdy—read the interview and listen to Inside Voice(s): Side A below. 

How does Inside Voice(s) differ from Bicoastal, thematically?

Corey Smith-West: Bicoastal is about wanting to be somewhere you’re not. It felt very relevant to us as NYC-based 20-somethings grinding and aspiring to have our music heard and to be able to travel and play shows. Inside Voice(s) is a bit darker and more melancholy. It’s about that cognitive dissonance that arises when your mental environment doesn’t at all match your external environment. I guess both albums have to do with place in their own way. Inside Voice(s) just approaches it in a bit more psychedelic and less literal of a way.

How about musically?

I think we’ve both grown as producers and songwriters and that is reflected in the sonic palette and topic matter on Inside Voice(s). Just getting better as a group, we’ve been able to render things we perhaps didn’t have the words for in the past on songs like “Hosannas” and “BabyBoy” and pull from a wider range of genres and influences like on “Here” and “Capsize.”

Do you listen to vinyl or cassette tapes? What do you like about the ability to bifurcate a project?

I love listening to vinyl. It feels deliberate in a way that’s hard to emulate in the era of streaming. Just like how movies have acts and novels have chapters, it feels cool for an album to have sides that split it into more digestible thematic portions. That’s a vibe that we wanted to really tap into, hence us naming the two EPs that make up Inside Voice(s) Side A and Side B rather than Part 1 and Part 2 or something of that sort.

Is there a typical way a Bathe song comes into being?

Honestly, no, ha ha. Dev is more of a songwriter first and I’m more of a producer first, though we both wear both hats. Dev usually brings me demos he makes in his bedroom studio. I often bring him loops or beats I’ve made. Sometimes we cook together in the same studio but not as often lately. From there it always feels like a unique path from the idea to its finished version. Sometimes it takes a while, like with “Avalon,” other times it only takes two weeks, like with “Capsize.” Each song feels like its own mini journey.

Is there a particular instrument or piece of gear that has been inspiring your process lately?

Ableton is endlessly inspiring for me to be honest. You can configure it in some truly crazy ways. No producer I know uses it the same as the next. I find that when I have a great idea I can manipulate it into something I never would’ve dreamed of by digging deep into my bag of Ableton tricks. I also love that it seems like whenever I’m bored with it they update it and add in a bunch of new stuff. Right now I’m making new beats with Ableton 12.1 and the Move groovebox they just put out. I’m having a great time. 

"Avalon" is about a desire to transcend your everyday conditions. What's the worst job you've ever had?

In college I worked for a library that will remain nameless lol. At one point my job was to go into the farthest annals of the library and dispose of old versions of books they were replacing. It was pretty tedious, there was no AC in the middle of the humid Philly summer, and I always felt super icky destroying books. That was by far my least favorite job. I was definitely dreaming of some version of “Avalon” the whole time.

What do your listening habits look like? Anything in rotation that might surprise your fans?

I’m either listening to music to soundtrack my life, pass the time, or to actively discover new stuff. I’ve been getting pretty into going to the gym and I’m originally from the suburbs of Connecticut so I think folks would be surprised by how much hardcore and metal music I listen to on a daily basis, ha ha. I can’t get through a gym session without running some Turnstile, Deafheaven, or Soul Glo. I also listen to an obnoxious amount of Alice in Chains, System of a Down and Slipknot. Pretty much exclusively in the gym but yeah that might throw folks who listen to Bathe for a loop. When I’m not pumping iron (ha ha), lately I’ve been listening to Laila!, Mavi, Baby Rose, and that new Leon Thomas album. My favorite artist of all time is probably Isaiah Rashad though. 

Best slept-on 90s R&B record, and why?

Van Hunt’s self-titled album hands down. To this day Van Hunt is so unbelievably slept on. Pull up “Dust” and thank me later. 

Photo Credit: Guarionex Rodridquez