Sophia Allison\u2014better known by her stage moniker Soccer Mommy\u2014has been making consistent waves in the indie world for more than seven years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since the release of her latest project, the excellent Sometimes, Forever<\/em> (prod. by Daniel Lopatin, AKA Oneohtrix Point Never), Soccer Mommy and her band have been touring the world. And while the new album still features Soccer Mommy hallmarks, like her grungy-yet-dreamy instrumentation and gut-wrenchingly beautiful vocals, it also represented a shift in tone and aesthetic for the Nashville-based artist. Lopatin\u2019s production allows Allison to bring her dark, cinematic, fantastical inspirations under the umbrella of her music, without ever compromising on the central vulnerability that gives her work such appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In advance of Soccer Mommy\u2019s show at Osheaga 2023, we caught up with Sophia to talk about the tribulations of touring during the hottest ever July on record, top films of the year, and the joys of being bandmates with your boyfriend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n PAN M 360: It seems like it\u2019s been a really busy but successful year since the release of Sometimes, Forever<\/em>. How has this leg of the tour been treating you and the band?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sophia Allison: <\/strong>It’s been great. And it’s been really fun, pretty chill. Very, very, very hot, so far. It’s outside, so it\u2019s definitely been a very sweaty tour at this point, but you know, that’s what showers and swimming pools and everything are for. I\u2019m in a parking lot in New Jersey, but we\u2019re gonna be in Philly later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n PAN M 360: Have you gained any new insights or ideas about these tracks over the past year and a bit of playing them? Or do you try to keep it more in line with the sound and style of the recordings?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Sophia Allison:<\/strong> <\/strong>They’re usually fairly aligned, not just necessarily with the original recording, but with whatever we work up for the live show in the beginning. Because obviously, there are lots of things you have to change, you know, there’s usually a lot of parts that you add in, and you can’t play them all. So you pick parts and see what you can do to fill the space and make it feel the same, but still keep everything important. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But honestly, it stays pretty aligned. I mean, we change little things all the time. It can even be like, \u2018Oh, I’m gonna play this part like this, this time, and start playing this chord differently.\u2019 Just little, little tweaks that kind of adjust the feel, and you make them because of the nature of how the live shows are going. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes you want a song to feel a little bit more energetic, because of the fact that you’re playing it live and trying to, you know, get people excited. And you make small changes, but we do it all the time. I mean, I still make changes. I made a change to \u201cYour Dog\u201d recently. I’m still making changes to stuff, even the first album occasionally. So it’s always little tweaks that you could think of that would make it just gel a bit better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n