HtH x SOTO

Music brings people together. Regardless of what genre or artists you're into, music has a powerful ability to provide both entertainment and solace, embodying the deeper truths of our hearts and lives when words simply cannot suffice. I recently sat down with Brighton-based band 'Soto' to discuss all things music, med school and more! The band consists of Calum on bass, Alex on drums and Sanjay on guitar (from left to right in pic above). It was truly a pleasure getting to know them and discussing the tips and challenges of nurturing wider passions alongside medic life. Their insight from this interview was both raw and inspiring, tackling the questions we all want to know the answers to...

"How long have you guys been a band?"

Calum: We’ve been playing music together since we first met about 5 or 6 years ago, but 'Soto' has only been going for just over a year.

"What changed in this year?"

Alex: When we first came to uni, I lived in the flat next door to these guys and I knew they were both musical. I was always between going to medical school or pursuing music, so I was looking out for other “musical people” from the start, but I didn’t have a drum kit so I couldn’t properly get into it. We used to have jams after nights out, where the 3 of us would be playing guitar and hitting some saucepans :')


Sanjay: Yeah, that’s the main difference btw 'Soto' and our original stuff at the start. The medium changed. Alex went from playing pots and pans to having an actual drum kit. We also took it a bit more seriously in terms of writing and actively trying to get things out to people, instead of just jamming with friends. 


Alex: Buying the drum kit made us all think “right, we’re actually gonna do this.”


Calum: Our old stuff used to be quite "bluesy" and "folky", while now it’s a lot of Jazz/RnB stuff, similar to what we’ve been listening to. 

"Songwriting process?"

Calum: It all starts as jams – everything we’ve ever released has started as a jam. We’ll just be playing and having fun, but then it’s like…whoa…what was THAT?!


Alex: Sometimes Sanjay may have a guitar lick or Calum may be playing something on bass, or I could be improvising on drums... But as Calum said, things usually come from improvisation. 


Sanjay: I’d say the most exciting thing is when someone comes with a small idea, then we all just flesh it out and build it into something.

"Do you guys have any artist inspo?"

Sanjay: There are a few names that come up pretty regularly for us. We all listen to quite a big range of music, but Alfa Mist is a keys player that we take a lot of inspo from. 


Alex: Drummers like Aaron Spears and Benny Greb. I used to find myself on Youtube watching Church drummers a lot, I love the rhythm section in Gospel music. I'm interested in blending that style with a lot of Jazz stuff coming out of London.


Calum: Snarky Puppy is another big one. Of course, a bit of Victor Wooten on bass too.… We’ve all got very individual music tastes, kind of all feeding around this UK jazz scene. It’s cool how Jazz artists are all featuring on eachother’s tracks nowadays... Misch, Loyle Carner, Barney artist, Yussef Dayes… 


Sanjay: I remember being gutted when I was growing up, because all the people I liked listening to were dead! Jimmy Hendrix and loads of others… So now, I feel blessed to be alive and listening to the rebirth of musicianship that's been happening over the last 5 years. Young, new are artists continuously putting out their best material. 


Calum: Jazz is on a comeback. The UK jazz scene is going crazy, there's a lot of jazz in the charts now. A lot of local bands too. 

"Describe your music in 3 words?"

Alex: Weird.

Sanjay: Confusing…?

Calum: Jazz!

*then we started talking about how random our spotify playlists are and how it makes the crossfades kinda jarring sometimes...bit of a weird concept, but if you know, you know.*

"Can you tell us a bit about your new EP?"

Calum: It’s called Shogun, it’s out now! With each track, we wanted to capture the different aspects of our current sound, which is really varied. My favourite track is Shogun, I’m sure the other guys will agree. It’s out most 'UK jazz' track. We’ve got Elm Grove, which is written locally about Brighton – that’s more of an R&B track. We’ve got Jekyll & Hyde which features another local medical student. That’s more of a Hip-Hop/R&B track. Four Fifths shows more of our funk side, where a lot of our original jamming started.


Alex: I think this EP will be a good platform for showing what we sound like and what people can expect from gigs. With a limited budget and studying medicine full time, it was a matter of getting something out there that represented us well. 


Sanjay: I kind of see Shogun as a foot in the door to the next room...  It was also a good culmination of things - our sound engineer has been with us since our first gig and our photographer did all the artwork.

"My blog discusses how to maximising our time in med school and live holistically. You guys are great examples of this! How did you guys find the process of starting to branch out and do other things?"

Calum: For me it was necessary. I definitely over-identified as a medical student, which caused a lot of pain and stress. You kind of get stuck in that medic bubble, only doing medic societites and extra-curriculars. I took a lot on board and things eventually just got too much. So for me, it was a necessary step that I wish I’d taken earlier. We all have capacity to be top of the year and the best if we put our minds to it, but what’s the point if you’re not happy? Taking time out to do other things helped me to enjoy the course more and be more engaged and pressent during placements. I’m more productive at uni because I have time off to engage creatively.


Sanjay: I think there’s this idea, not just within medicine but society as a whole, that it’s great to be really busy and all-consumed. Medicine is probably the most validated thing in this area – thinking that your life is so busy and consumed because you’re a med student or doctor. But fundamentally, I think it’s a bit of a façade that society as a whole has become so willing to accept. I have friends that definitely work as hard as me and definitely friends who work harder. I think relinquishing that whole identity gives us time and freedom to be more creative. I’m happy to not be the busiest person in the world and actively make time for other things, that doesn’t make you a worse doctor or student. It also helps you relate to others better. Medicinie is a bubble field that you can get swept up in, forgetting there’s a world out there. The more you forget that, the harder it gets to relate to people. I think it’s really important for us to be relatable to people.  


Alex: Medicine is seen by society as a highly valuable career. When you talk to others about difficulties you're facing, the response is often “at least you’re doing something meaningful”. But I think meaningful is such a subjective experience and can be anything you connect to. Cleaner, therapist, musician, lawyer - these jobs all have meaning and all impact people’s lives. I’ve felt disconnected to medicine at times, so after having 3-4 years of putting music aside, having the band and opportunities to indulge in other things has been really nice to come back to. I also think I take a lot of the same discipline from medicine into my music, such as structured practice times. I find a lot of meaning from music.


Sanjay: To be honest, I’ll be quite sad if  I’m only doing 'doctor things' in 5 years time! Variety is amazing and I love gardening and cooking, as well as music. I’m not giving up on anything. I’m just trying to do as much as I can! Some people funnel all their energy into medicine alone, which isn’t actually necessary.

*At this point, Pandora’s box had definitely been opened and I was trIGGERED*

“I talk about this stuff a lot because I just think it’ so important. If you constantly focus all your energy on one thing, all the other passions will die off”

Calum: I think you’ve hit the nail on the head there. People come to uni quite well-rounded with so many extra-curricular hobbies and interests. But by the end of first year, they’ve stopped everything. Mental health rates are absolutely through the roof at uni...

"We definitely have to make an active effort to nurture our other passions and interests. How do you guys sustain the band and other things, despite being medics and leading busy lives?"

Calum: I think for me it isn’t a choice. Those things have to be in place, because without them, life comes crashing in and you’re forced to re-build. I think a lot of it is to do with self-compassion too, as well as being loving and making time for other people.

"Any big upcoming releases / gigs people should know about?"

EP:

https://ffm.to/2e6dv0w

GIG Dates:

1. Rossi Bar 4/3/2020 £3 OTD
2. (THE BIG ONE) - KOMEDIA 06/04/2020 £3 early bird (limited amount) £5 ADV
3. Mesmerist Funk and Soul Alldayer 12/04/2020 (£ ~ charity donations)
4. The Workshop (London) , 16/04/2020 £8 ADV

~          The HtH Verdict          ~

Chatting with these guys was sooo lovely. Their vulnerability and honesty reminded me of how privileged we are to be part of the medical profession. Getting to be such a huge part of people's lives is a rare blessing, but it definitely comes with challenges, to which no-one is immune. 

Over the years, I've learned that the skills required to practice medicine are truly gifts. I believe that having a heart that cares for the wellbeing of others, alongside the capacity to feel deep empathy for them, comes with responsibility for good stewarding. Although it's true that caring for others requires caring for ourselves, fear of under-performance should not be the driving factor for self-care. We shouldn't wait until we feel burned-out to start taking our own health and wellbeing seriously. Instead, actively making time for things outside of our daily grind provides a richer life with greater perspective and contextualisation, as opposed to feeling all-consumed by our circumstances. 

^"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."

~ 1 Peter 4:10 

Music serves as a powerful vehicle for millions of people everyday. I personally love making music as a form of worship to God, allowing my spirit to convey thanksgiving and emotions that words alone simply cannot hold. For others, music can act as an escape route from the stress and unpredictability of life, as well as a buffer for connecting with others and expressing joy.  For everyone else, it simply makes them feel happy and is fun to listen to! So big love to the guys from 'Soto' for nurturing their gifts, even when circumstances doesn't always favour creativity.

I've put their social media links below - go show them some love <3

https://www.instagram.com/sotogram/
https://www.facebook.com/SotoBrighton/
https://soundcloud.com/sotobrighton
https://open.spotify.com/artist/457Psu3V0biTiMds5Gx5ku?si=ybvmSrsaTUW2KsjPOofEjA
https://sotoofficial.bandcamp.com/
https://twitter.com/sototallysoto