By Sean Maldjian, Contributor

Meet Mallard Westcott

A self-portrait by, Mallard Westcott

Would you rather…

know the history of every object you touched or be able to talk to animals?

Hmmmmmmm… quack quack quack quack quack.

Some questions with Mallard Westcott

Do you remember the first album/CD/tape you ever bought? Has it had any impact on the music you are making today?

My first CD purchase was a bundle of Phoebe Bridgers, Death Cab for Cutie, Hop Along, and The Mountain Goats albums. These were all artists I had been streaming for a while but being able to hold their music made me feel enlightenment as well as entitlement for being able to tell people not only that “You’ve probably never heard of them…” but also, “Yeah, I spun their album the other day…” That’s probably why I made CDs so impulsive for my self-titled album; so I could give Mallard Westcott fans that same feeling (but heightened because I am soo underground)!

Where do you see yourself in five years?

In five years I hope to be in college studying psychology or to be done with college and practicing psychology in some way!

Can you tell us a little about your upcoming release “Cross Country Kids Are Robots”? What was going on in your life while the release was being recorded? Did it influence your creative process?

CCKRR is a mishmash of ideas, thoughts, and feelings about lots of different things. I made this album just after leaving basically my whole social life for a while so not much was going on. Some songs are about absolutely nothing at all and I just liked how it sounded, some are about how I cut myself off from virtually all of my friends (for good reason haha), and some are about some niche feelings about dealing with my bipolar disorder. Oh, there’s also a song about how people said I looked like my name is Jane (it’s not).

Tell us about the lovely illustration on the cover.

I was hoping you would ask this! I made this drawing for fun in eighth grade (4 years ago) and always thought it was so cute so I kept it in my camera roll and in a little folder in my room for the longest time. It’s a busy little colored pencil picture and I really love colorful and childlike art so using this drawing as a cover was a no-brainer for me. Of course the album title came attached.

What were you listening to when you were creating “Cross Country Kids Are Robots”?

While making this album I listened to a lot of different artists, especially from lo-fi or bubblegrunge scenes. Some of these artists include but are jot limited to… Ditch Effort, Naomi Alligator, Spencer Radciffe, Thanks for Coming, Emperor X, Blue Foster, and Elaiza Santos’s projects Whatever, Dad and 100%. I also listened to a lot of TikTok singer-songwriters like Kevin Atwater, Ash Twosday, or Tofusmell. I swear you can find so much good stuff and inspiration from the places you least expect!

Do you feel like your creative process evolved or changed working on this release?

Hmmmm well for the first album I put a lot of pressure on myself to make it live up to my expectations which resulted in the album sounding super weird, unorganized, and gross like there was no vision or glue at all. For this album, I put it together after each song was made and just threw the songs under the album title. One might think this would make it seem super unconnected but as I’m writing this I thought of something that makes sense and connects all of the songs together. Remember when I said this album is about a bunch of random stuff that doesn't fit? WELL! The title is actually* me looking back at familiar things after quitting cross country, which for me was a huge blow and also marked me changing in a lot of ways. Each song relates to feeling sort of “alien” and like an outsider to things you once were so comfortable with.

*the title was actually originally made to exclaim my thoughts about how kids who run cross country are actual machines. Looking back, I for sure was one of them even though I never really felt like it.

What is a band you would want to get a chance to tour with?

Oh my gosh so basically there’s this awesome and cool and sweet band named Fanclubwallet and I reached out to them before starting to produce music to ask about how they produce. They gave me such amazing advice and in the kindest ways possible and they have helped me so much. I think I would bring the hype energy down opening for their shows but the thought is sweet! I think a more realistic option would be this other amazing band I’m acquaintances with called Warm Wishes. They’re lo-fi, I met them off TikTok, and they are absolutely amazing! I went to one of their shows (for like 10 mins because my dad gave a strict limit) and they were so sweet and amazing! I loved the vibes of their music, their bandmates, and even the crowd they attracted was so kind! If ya’ll are reading this, hit me up…

What is the best piece of merchandise you have ever bought?

Oh my gosh I’m a sucker for band merch and I think Lucy Dacus is the master. I saw her live twice and whenever I go to a show I always have to grab merch. Anyways, her heavy metal tee is so amazing. It’s the black one with the animal skull and the really scary letters. I wear it around and for sure people think I listen to satanic death metal. Love that. I aspire to chave merch like that, but for now I just have crochet hats for sale! Still cool and awesome.

Would you prefer people to be able to see the colors or taste your music when they heard it?

That’s so interesting… I definitely see colors because I think songs, not just my own, have such distinct vibes that it would be so cool to connect visually as well as audibly. I’m so obsessed with music that sometimes I will put on music first and then think of something to do while listening so I think seeing colors would alleviate that boredom a little bit.

Any Final Comments?

Thanks a million times over for interviewing me! It’s such a sweet surprise for someone with under 100 monthly listeners to be interviewed and made to feel so important! I promise this won't boost my ego (too much, wink wink). Thanks! Quack quack!