Suzi Wu: “I like my colours vibrant, my characters complex and my story surreal”

You may have seen 19-year-old Suzie McDermott mentioned in Dork before; recommended by fellow Londoner and force of nature, Girli. Her debut EP is packed with attitude, and about to land.

Hey Suzi, how are you? Have you had a fun summer so far?

Hi, I'm great thanks, summer's been groovy.

You’ve said before that your debut EP, ‘Teenage Witch’ is in part inspired by comic book artist, Simon Hanselmann. What drew you to his work?

My older sister brought his first book of works 'MEGAHEX' back from Australia, and the art style was so beautiful, so I picked them up. The subject matter's funny, but I suppose very dark. I think what drew me to his books was a sense of relating to the lives of the characters. I guess I felt like they were looking at their unfortunate world through the same evil, rose tinted glasses as me.

Are you generally a fan of comics, or the fantasy genre? What else do you enjoy in that vein?

I'm a big fan of comics and cartoons all round. I like my colours vibrant, my characters complex and my story surreal. So I try and emulate that in my music. I also could watch Lord of the Rings for the rest of my life and still enjoy it, so there you go.

What first got you interested in making music?

It got me out of trouble, and it keeps me there.

How do you go about creating your songs? Where do you start?

It starts with writing words, usually. I'll see a friend or read a book I like, and it'll all start pouring into my head. The melody usually comes with it though, and when I finally get home, I go on Logic and put it all down.

We hear you’re pals with Girli - how did you guys meet?

That's a really good story actually. We met at an open mic and pretty much everyone there was doing soul covers and was 35. She came out with this mad pink hairdo and buffalos on and did a cover of ‘Hotel California’, GIRLI style. Some people there looked pretty startled, but she broke my brain that night. It was excellent! After that, we even lived together for a bit.

Do you ever do anything musical together?

We make stuff all the time; it’s just usually for ourselves though.

Are there any other bands or acts around at the mo you particularly like?

Pussy Liquor and Princess Nokia.

What are your plans for after the EP’s out?

I'd like to make more work, lots more.

Taken from the September issue of Dork. Order a copy here. Suzi Wu’s debut EP ‘Teenage Witch’ is out 8th September.