Independent Artists Unite

Independent Artists Unite: Song Series - Ep. 51

"Ryder Houston: 'Knows No Bounds'"

March 6, 2024

SCOTT: Everyone, welcome to another episode of Independent Artist Unite: Song Series. Today, very excited to have Ryder Houston here from the City of Brotherly Love: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Welcome!

RYDER: Thanks for having me, Scott.

SCOTT: Is it still the City of Brotherly Love, or did they give up on that?

RYDER: They still call it that. I don't know where that came from, but it is in my heart.

SCOTT: (laughs) And how long have you been in Philadelphia? You originally came from Dallas, Texas, right?

RYDER: Yeah, I was born in Dallas, lived all my life in Dallas, and I came in 2020.

SCOTT: So you haven't been there that long.

RYDER: Feels pretty long now.

SCOTT: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, I read in your Spotify bio you started off as a filmmaker before you tried music — is that right?

RYDER: Yes, and I am still a filmmaker.

SCOTT: Well, the song that we're gonna talk about, "Knows No Bounds," does have a cinematic quality to it. In fact, I hope I'm not going to offend you, but I could almost hear it as a James Bond theme if it got the full treatment.

RYDER: (laughing) Love that! Well, I’m a big fan of Garbage’s Bond moment, so — I think I actually was referring to that song while I was mixing a little bit.

SCOTT: Is that right?

RYDER: That is right, yeah.

SCOTT: I was thinking as I was listening to it, "is he gonna take it to like full orchestra here?" And there is like a little touch, right?

RYDER: Yeah, there are some samples... I have no chill. I have a big problem with going full melodrama. And I am waiting for the day when I can just — and it's going to have to be with a collaboration — where I can just make a song that doesn’t need to go that far. But I can't. I can't do it!

SCOTT: (laughing) I can't do it either! I get it. My excuse is I worked at the Metropolitan Opera for eight years as an actor on stage there. So that’s what I blame my melodrama on. Of course, I had it before then, but, you know, that's what I'm saying now. But same thing with me — every song’s got to go to the stratosphere. (laughing)

RYDER: It knows no bounds. It knows no fucking bounds.

SCOTT: And how would you categorize yourself as? Are you synth-pop, would you say?

RYDER: I used to hate that label because I would get just grouped with these bands that are just — I’m just frustrated that it’s hard to categorize what I do. Right now, I would just say that I’m... "alternative." Usually I’m pushing more towards rock. This song especially is the rockiest song that I’ve ever done. But it's more downtempo, trip-hop, electronica...

SCOTT: And how do you know Ryan from Ruin the Mind?

RYDER: We just met online. And I love all the stuff he puts out.

SCOTT: Yeah. It's so cool that you can make these connections with people.

RYDER: I have a friend, Poison the Vicar, who did a remix for me a couple years ago, and he lives in Shanghai. We met because he found my song on Reddit and he is actually moving to Philly now. He just actually came up to visit me and my friend DeShawn, who is Voix in the Dark, who was also featured on one of my songs. So it’s crazy that you really can meet the weirdest people you never thought you’d ever meet.

SCOTT: Yeah. I mean, a guy that pretty much has turned out to be my best friend, I have to say, or one of them, is James K Ultra from Pain in the Ass. I don’t know if you know them at all, but he’s producing all my songs now. He lives in Virginia and I’m in Denmark. It’s funny... (laughing) but you can do these things nowadays!

So let’s talk about how "Knows No Bounds" came about. When you’re sitting down to write a song, is it always the same kind of method, or was this one a bit different? How did it start out?

RYDER: This one was a bit different. I struggle a lot with writing. I’m more of a producer- arranger. I’m really good whenever I’m working with my writing partner, Ariana Kelly. She’s classically trained, she sits down at the piano, comes up with some chords, and then I’m able to expand on that — think of all the other instruments that can come in with that. It’s really hard for me musically to come up with something out of thin air.

SCOTT: Mhm.

RYDER: And this song is weird because it actually started from the title — which never happens. I always have to figure out what the hell the lyrics even are, and those come so late. And then I’m like, “Okay, I guess this is the title.” But, the title actually came from a — I think an episode of Judge Judy. (laughing) I have a list on my phone of all these, like, idioms and proverbial statements and I think Judge Judy said this one. (laughs) “Her jurisdiction knows no bounds,” or something like that. I said, “Oh, that’s good.”

SCOTT: (laughing) Is she still going? Judge Judy?

RYDER: You know what — I was keeping up with her like probably two years ago, and I don’t know. I think her newest show might have just stopped. That’s what I’m thinking, because I haven’t heard anything. But she was still going!

SCOTT: (laughing) Judge Judy! Oh, man. So anyways, after you had the title...

RYDER: I talked to Ariana, and she sat down with some chords. And although nothing directly came out of that session — I didn’t use what we came up with — it led me into the next steps of, on my own, finding the chords and what the song ended up becoming.

SCOTT: So, would you also sit down at a keyboard, or is it a guitar, and —

RYDER: No, I — I can’t play anything.

SCOTT: Oh! So you're just messing around, trying to find something?

RYDER: Yeah. Purists would hate me — I sit on my computer. I mean, I went to lessons when I was a kid, but it just — I don’t know, I couldn’t, like — I guess I wasn’t disciplined. I couldn’t put my mind there. So, I just noodle around on the computer. (laughs)

SCOTT: Well, why not? A few lessons as a kid actually goes a long way, I have to say.

RYDER: It does. Because it makes you think about things, even if you don’t practice it. It puts you in the right frame of mind.

SCOTT: So you noodled around on the computer, and it kind of came up with a structure. And then you said the lyrics came late in the game?

RYDER: I knew what I wanted to explore lyrically. When I was talking to Ariana about the song and kind of dictating to her what I wanted the song to feel like musically, I was telling her about what I wanted the theme of the song to be. I’d read something in a book called The Road Less Traveled — it’s like an old psychology book.

SCOTT: Mhm.

RYDER: And it was talking about ego boundaries and how when you are in lust with someone, or, you know, you think you’re falling in love with them, you get so addicted to it because you let down all your boundaries and you’re your most comfortable, fullest self with them. And then when you break up, it’s a mess because now you have to put things back up and go back into that melting, like — yeah.

SCOTT: (imitates robot) I don't know what you're talking about!

RYDER: (laughs) No, I don't think anybody knows about that, really. I'm still trying to know what that is...

SCOTT: Okay, so it was kind of about that process?

RYDER: It was about that. And I had some really clear musical inspirations. I was listening to George Michael’s — oh, I forgot what that album was called. It's the one that has "Fastlove" on it...

SCOTT: I don’t know if I know the names of his records...

RYDER: I can’t believe I forgot this... oh — it’s Older. He has a song on there called "The Strangest Thing," which has a little bit of a dance beat, but that’s really all it has. And it has this, like, sitar sample from some MIDI sampler, and I wanted to replicate something like that for the song. And I think I did to my liking...

SCOTT: (laughs) Cool! Well it’s a beautiful song. Can you read the lyrics for us?

RYDER: The whole lyrics? All right:

Making love in the sunlight, daylight

Light beams streaking through the windowpane

Yeah, the covers can’t keep it out

Did I hear you say you you like me better

When the light is right?

Well, we can wait for night to fall

I know my self respect is peculiar

Oh, won't you please understand me?

I know a place where we can go

Where the sun goes down

Where a kiss knows no bounds

No boundaries

No more

This tower’s ticking for you

To breathe into my mind

A new phase, a time to follow through

Can I hear you say it?

Say it’s never too late to change

A heartbeat’s well-been set into motion

I let you disregard this to cool the air

Oh, won't you take this from me?

I know a place where we can go

Where the moonlight’s out

Where a kiss knows no bounds

No boundaries

Tapering off my medication

Seeing a sexual vindication

Let it go, tell me in my ear

Those secret words I hold so dear

Endless blood, subvert proportions

Sealing off your love distortion

Herein lies my pale complexion

Underneath your sex inflection

Let’s stow our self-obsessed little barriers

Oh, with these hands, I command thee

I know a place where we can go

Where the light is right

Where a kiss knows no bounds

No boundaries

No more

SCOTT: Beautiful.

RYDER: I’ve never had to just talk them out before. It’s really weird. (laughs)

SCOTT: I know, I know. It is weird. But I like to have people do that because it’s interesting for me to hear how someone that wrote lyrics recites them, you know? But yeah, that’s beautiful. That stands right alone as a poem as well.

The — uh — “tapering off medication” — that line... (laughing) can you talk more about that or is that too personal?

RYDER: That whole bridge section there was actually a hold-off from my last single "Running Out Of Road." I was working on that to be the pre-chorus for that song. Both songs mention "sexual vindication," so they’re tied in that way. And basically, I’ve been off my meds for almost a year now. It just gets to the point where you’re just like, “I know this is turning off any anxieties and worries I have, but it’s also turning everything else off.”

SCOTT: Right.

RYDER: Which is something that is kind of devastating as an artist. (laughs)

SCOTT: Yeah, I was wondering if that’s what it was about. Because I’m on, like, max antidepressants.

RYDER: Oh, really?

SCOTT: I had a big, um — a big kind of crash last year. And I was just, like, in the fetal position, you know, for days. (laughs) Not able to do anything. So I went on these meds, and then I just kept going on more and more. So now I’m just, like, on the max dose. And, um — you know, certain parts of my body don’t work the way they used to. (laughing) And I don’t care! That’s the strangest part, you know? (laughing)

RYDER: Well, there you go! Basically, the way that I gauge it is if the movies that used to make me cry can’t make me cry anymore — we got a problem.

SCOTT: But I’m very interested in, you know — now that I’m on these meds at this volume, or this quantity, it seems impossible to even consider tapering it off. But I would like to do that myself. There’s part of me that just thinks, “Oh, I’m good,” you know? I’m not having those real bad crashes. At the same time, there’s a lot of things that I miss. I miss the ups and the downs a little bit too — of life, you know? It is a big part of being an artist, like you said.

RYDER: Well, here’s the thing — we just came out of winter. And I think it’s getting better now that the sun is actually out. But that seasonal depression was tough. So, what I’m starting to realize is like — maybe should I go back on? The grass is always greener.

SCOTT: I don’t know if you know anything about Denmark, but in the winter the sun comes up at, like, 8:30 in the morning, and it sets at 3 in the afternoon — it’s brutal.

RYDER: That’s terrible.

SCOTT: So it’s really challenging. Maybe that caught up to me too, because I’ve been here for 13 years. And maybe I just had had enough of that shit. (laughing)

RYDER: I could never. I could never. Well — you know, in the lyrics there’s a lot about the sun going down and about the condition of light. So it’s kind of interesting. (laughs)

SCOTT: Interesting. I was looking at your Instagram — you do a lot of live shows, right?

RYDER: Um, not as much as I would hope for. But I do have one coming up, yes.

SCOTT: And what do you do when you play live? Do you sing with the computer, like backing tracks, or are you —

RYDER: That’s how I had been doing it, yes. I have a little special device that’s like a mixer-player thing that’s really portable and brand new. So I would usually just do that. No instruments. It’s just like glorified karaoke. But for this upcoming show on the 20th with Ronnie Stone — who, if you don’t know him, you gotta fuckin' know him.

SCOTT: Oh, no, I don’t.

RYDER: Oh, my God — fabulous. Fabulous. His shows are kick-ass.

But for this next show, I will have my bass player and my guitar player from this EP with me. 'Cause as much as the backing track sounds like the record, I really strive to have that — you gotta give the audience a little something to look at, to root for! If someone’s shredding out a solo, they’re gonna root for that, you know? But if it’s just playing all around them, they don’t really believe it. (laughs)

SCOTT: Does it go over all right though with the backing tracks — with the audience?

RYDER: I think I push it to the limits. (laughs)

SCOTT: Yeah?

RYDER: I think I sell it pretty good, yeah.

SCOTT: That’s awesome. I think someone told me about those things too. Is it like a — what are those things called?

RYDER: A USB? No, it’s this brand-new device that just came out that’s like maybe the size of one of those tinier iPads. It looks like a little interface and it has many outputs on it, and has a little dial on it...

SCOTT: That sounds cool.

RYDER: It’s basically like a glorified MP3 player.

SCOTT: So it’s just kind of more sturdy.... it’s made for doing gigs?

RYDER: Yes. And that’s what I was searching for so long. And I finally found it.

SCOTT: I had many live bands in the ’90s and into the 2000s a little bit and I was thinking about doing some live shows to the backing tracks. So I’m always interested to hear how it goes for people.

RYDER: Well, with this thing you can split off and customize any stems you want. It auto-syncs video projections, DMX lighting... so it really does it all.

SCOTT: So, when did this EP come out that’s got "Knows No Bounds" on it?

RYDER: Um... February 9th.

SCOTT: Oh okay, so it’s just come out.

RYDER: Yeah. It's brand new.

SCOTT: Okay, so you’re not planning anything else yet, are you? Are you always writing or are you just working on promoting this for a while?

RYDER: Oh man. I have this movie that I have been dying to get together, that I’ve been writing for the past five years since my last film came out. And, you know, the reason I got into doing this solo work was because I composed the soundtrack for my film and released a promotional single for it. And then I was just like, “Oh, let me keep doing this — it’s cheaper than making a movie!” (laughs) But I’ve been really tempted to start putting all my focus on this movie. But I don’t want all this music to — you know, all my efforts in this — to go to waste. So I’m trying to just build up some steam or some attention so that my other art can survive. But no, as of right now, I can’t imagine the next record. But I am planning on doing many remixes and collaborations.

SCOTT: Oh, cool. And remix people — these are people that you’ve met online too, you said? Was that the guy from Shanghai?

RYDER: Yeah. He did a remix for me a couple years ago and I’m always looking for more. It’s just hard because basically I’m just like, “Can I just clone myself and have myself do a different version of this song?” (laughs) But no, I’m really trying to work on being more open to collabs. It’s just hard to find people that you really are dying to collab with... that will pay attention to you! (laughs)

SCOTT: Have you done collabs before?

RYDER: Other than the collabs with my writing partner Ariana, who also is, like, an opera singer — she does all the beautiful backing vocals — um, no. So other than that and the featured rap verse from Voix in the Dark in my song "Neither Wrath Nor Punishment," no, not yet. But definitely am planning to do some.

SCOTT: I was seeing people doing collabs and stuff and I was — I don’t know — it’s weird. It’s very vulnerable, you know? To let someone into your creative process, isn’t it?

RYDER: It is. And I am such a terrible control freak. I don’t know how I’d be able to do it!

SCOTT: (laughing)

RYDER: In that situation though, that’s why you want to get someone who you’re dying to work with so that whatever they do you’re just like, “That’s better than anything I could have ever done. Like — yes. Please. Take the reins!" you know? Because I just feel like I’m always fighting with someone. And I just hate it.

SCOTT: I just did a collab with Ruin the Mind, actually. One day, I just had this music idea. I was kind of angry and, you know, going through a breakup. I was just like, “I’m just writing a Ruin the Mind song!" So I sent it right to Ryan. “I just wrote this song for you. You don’t have to use it.” But he ended up loving it. And then he wanted me to sing on this cover he did that I had never heard before. So that was challenging.

RYDER: The "Barbie Girl" cover??

SCOTT: No —

RYDER: (laughing) I was like, “Oh, you’ve never heard that song before?”

SCOTT: You’d never heard that before? You know it’s a Danish band, actually — Aqua.

RYDER: No... I grew up as a little gay boy on YouTube. That music video had a tight grip on us as children. (laughs)

SCOTT: (laughs) Okay! I didn’t know if it made it over to the US at all, actually.

RYDER: Oh, hell yeah.

SCOTT: It's huge in Denmark.

RYDER: My mom says, “Oh God, that song used to annoy the hell out of me.” They would just spam it on the radio back in like ‘97. I think it had its moment where it was just everywhere. But I love that song. That song is science. Science. That song is scientific!

SCOTT: (laughing) It’s funny, because sometimes when things are big in Denmark, I have no idea whether it’s made it to the rest of the world, you know? And if it’s a Danish band, I just assume nobody's ever heard of it. But everyone’s heard of Aqua, I guess.

RYDER: Me & My — is that Danish? Do you know them?

SCOTT: Me & My?

RYDER: They did “Dub-I-Dub.” (sings chorus) Do you know that song?

SCOTT: I don’t know that one, actually.

RYDER: Just some random late ’90s — I always go down holes on YouTube about these Euro bands that are just... weird pairings of two people put together doing some weird, like, Japanese-inspired thing or something. But the lyrics are in English — it’s just a whole, weird amalgamation of so many different things. (laughing)

SCOTT: So, I’m curious with your filmmaking, do you also act in it as well?

RYDER: Hell no! (laughs)

SCOTT: No? You looked a little cinematic in your music videos and stuff.

RYDER: Well, I love acting! I want to get into it so bad. I did theatre in high school. But the thing is is that when you’re in front of the camera, you can’t be behind the camera. I have a really good DP who I trust a lot right now that I collab with, so that has been very helpful. But God, it’s just — it’s so much easier when you’re not dealing with, “Okay, what do I look like?” but then also “What does the shot look like?” Not good. It’s a nightmare.

SCOTT: Are you a fan of, uh, Philly cheesesteaks?

RYDER: (laughs)

SCOTT: I had to ask because I went to University of Delaware, which is not too far. And my band in college actually — we rehearsed in Philadelphia. So I went back and forth quite a lot. But the Philly cheesesteak was the thing. I don’t know if it still this.

RYDER: Well, when I came here, I quickly learned from the natives of Philly that Pat’s and Geno’s, those touristy places? Those places suck. The real places are the family-owned — you know, like the juicy ones. ’Cause, I mean, to be honest with you, I’ve had those touristy cheesesteaks and they taste like cardboard and dog food. But they’re good! Same way fast food is good.

SCOTT: And is South Street still the rock 'n' roll street?

RYDER: I love South Street. Me, Poison the Vicer, and Voix in the Dark just recently had a huge hangout there. We were looking at tons of late ’90s music magazines at this thrift store. So, I was feeling that magic. I don’t know if anybody else does, but when I go there, I know that history. Tattooed Mom is still there. (silence) You don’t know Tattooed Mom?

SCOTT: I don’t think so. Is it a tattoo parlor or is it a —

RYDER: No, it’s a bar / restaurant / venue.

SCOTT: Oh, okay. I just remember we went to South Street to get rock and roll bracelets or like a decent studded belt and stuff like that.

RYDER: That’s where the great thrift stores and record stores are.

SCOTT: Well... thanks for doing this! We're gonna get cut off in a second, but it was great to meet you, man.

RYDER: It was nice to meet you, too!

SCOTT: And congrats on the EP; I didn’t realize it had just come out. Let’s stay in touch.

RYDER: We definitely should.

SCOTT: (laughs) Alright, thanks, Ryder.

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