A Chat with Land Mass (27.07.26)
Weaving personal narratives into moving melodies, Land Mass is the solo project of London-based musician Greg Zucker. Recently releasing his debut EP, Fading, Zucker tells a story with each track – a project navigating life’s challenges and emotional circumstances. We speak with Land Mass about Fading, the use of AI, and much more.
OSR: Cliche, but what drew you to music? How did Land Mass come about?
Land Mass: I have a history in writing and recording music, usually in groups, but had been completely inactive for a long time. A few years ago I felt a strong urge to get back into writing and recording and went out and bought a new guitar and attended a couple of music theory and music production courses. I then felt I had everything I needed to kick off a solo project.
OSR: You recently released your EP, Fading, and mention that it wasn’t meant to be released, or rather you had no intent to release it. So, what prompted the change of mind?
Land Mass: It was a decision made at the very last minute. I had finished the recording and production of the EP and assumed that it just being finished would give me closure, but it didn’t quite do that. After sharing the music with a few close friends, I then plucked up the courage to make it a wider release, and I’m glad I did.
OSR: Fading is an entirely self-produced album adopting a DIY approach to music. What do you feel are the benefits of working on your own, and what are the drawbacks?
Land Mass: Having complete creative control can be very rewarding and fulfilling. But it took a while to get comfortable making all of those decisions myself; it’s easy to second-guess yourself. Once I reached a point where I was at ease, the writing and recording process was really enjoyable. Mixing was more of a challenge as I had to separate myself from the music slightly and look at things more objectively. Removing an entire guitar line that took you hours to record as the mix sounds better without it in isn’t an easy decision to force yourself to make! Having a piece of work at the end of the process that is 100% yours feels great though.
OSR: Fading flows as a single, immersive soundscape, but the tracks also show diversity from a soft, gentle indie-rock vibe in ‘Evader’ to the upbeat style of ‘Trojan Horses’, and a melancholic grunge sweep in ‘Head On The Ground’. Taking this into consideration, is Fading a true representation of you as a person and musician at the moment?
Land Mass: Yes, I think so. I listen to and enjoy a lot of different styles and genres of music at the moment. It would have been easy to take certain songs in very different directions or styles, but I wanted it to sound cohesive as an EP. All of the songs started out on an acoustic guitar, so probably sounded much more similar to each other in the beginning. It was a case of bringing enough to each song to make it interesting on its own, without going too far.
OSR: If you were to describe Land Mass using a single sentence, what would that sentence be?
Land Mass: That’s a tough one….Melancholic indie rock? Is that a sentence?
OSR: We live in a digitally evolving world, so what are your thoughts on the use of AI in music and the entertainment industry?
Land Mass: For me, music is all about human emotion and connection. Music without human involvement just can’t bring you that. I’d love it if we were easily able to filter streaming services to exclude AI.
OSR: Which do you find more challenging: melody or lyrics?
Land Mass: Definitely the lyrics. I’ll usually have the melody for the vocals near the very start of the songwriting, but it will take me until the very end of the writing process to finalise the lyrics. Again, it’s something I found difficult to get comfortable with, but as I had no intention of releasing the music at the time, that gave me the courage to be a little braver and obvious with the messages I was trying to get across in the lyrics.
OSR: What does music mean to you, and what inspires you to make music?
Land Mass: Music means everything to me; when I’m not listening to it, I’m thinking or reading about it. I want to know as much about all types of music as I can, new and old. Obviously the natural progression is to then play and/or write your own, but I’m surprised and pretty frustrated that I was inactive in that respect for so long.
OSR: What can we expect from Land Mass in the future?
Land Mass: Hopefully more music in not too long. I’d originally planned for Fading to be a full LP but the workload involved in that ended up feeling quite overwhelming, so I cut it down. There are other songs written in the same period that I’d love to finish off and release as a companion piece.
After that, beginning the writing process again and seeing which different directions that takes me in, which is exciting.
OSR: Do you have a message for our readers?
Land Mass: For anyone who finds the time to listen to Land Mass, thank you very much. I hope you get something out, whatever that may be, and that the music and/or lyrics resonate with you in some way.
Many thanks to Land Mass for speaking with us. Find out more about Land Mass on his Instagram, Spotify and Bandcamp.
This artist was discovered via Musosoup #sustainablecurator
