The Nautilus Studio M31 Files interview Mandy Vodicka

Studio owners Yves LF Giraud (Studio M31) and Mr Bill (Nautilus Studio) interview singer-songwriter Mandy Vodicka.

Mandy on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/@ofthefae444

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:23

Well, uh, welcome. This is the uh studio M31 Files, and today in the studio our guest is Mandy. Mandy, can you tell me your full name and where you're from?

SPEAKER_03 0:36

Yes, my full name is Amanda Jean Vidichka, and I'm from Corpus Christi, Texas. Born and raised originally. No kidding.

SPEAKER_04 0:44

That's where my brother was born.

SPEAKER_03 0:45

In Corpus? Yeah. We're everywhere.

SPEAKER_04 0:49

It's crazy.

SPEAKER_03 0:50

I always meet people from Corpus, especially here, yeah, in the southwest.

SPEAKER_05 0:54

Wow, I would guess they'd end up here.

SPEAKER_04 0:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 0:57

Well, some do, obviously. Yeah. And um your last name. Uh do you know where it's from?

SPEAKER_03 1:03

Do you Yeah, Vidichka is Czech. My dad would say it's gypsy. And it means little water. Oh wow, that's nice.

SPEAKER_05 1:11

Now were you born in the US or were you born?

SPEAKER_03 1:14

I was born in the US. My family immigrated here and they were homesteaders and lots of different people, but you are from uh Colpus Christy.

SPEAKER_05 1:27

And um how did you when did you come to uh Cortez?

SPEAKER_03 1:32

I moved to Cortez back in 2021 from Durango.

SPEAKER_05 1:37

Oh, okay. So how did you get to Durango then?

SPEAKER_03 1:39

To Durango for college.

SPEAKER_05 1:41

Ah, Fort Lewis College.

SPEAKER_03 1:43

Yeah, Fort Lewis College. If there's any Skyhawks out there. Skyhawks. Yeah. Well, when I went there, there wasn't a hand thing. I think there's a hand thing now, but I don't know it.

SPEAKER_04 1:53

It's very small.

SPEAKER_03 1:55

I even worked at Fort Lewis. I still don't know it.

SPEAKER_05 1:58

And uh what what did you study there?

SPEAKER_03 2:01

I studied anthropology.

SPEAKER_05 2:02

Oh, very cool. Oh, I like that. That's nice. Me too.

SPEAKER_03 2:07

I wanted to be a park ranger. Okay. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_04 2:10

You still can be. I still can. Yeah, you could be a singing park park ranger, which would be extra cool.

SPEAKER_03 2:16

It'd be good for like the Star Talks.

SPEAKER_05 2:18

Yeah, yeah. And can you tell me when, if you remember, and why uh you got interested in music?

SPEAKER_03 2:28

I can't remember when I first got interested in music. Thank you for the question, by the way. It's interesting to think about when I was little, my dad played guitar. And I remember watching him play and singing and enjoying that, but I personally didn't start learning guitar or anything until college. I was just alone in my dorm room and I got a guitar from the pawn shop.

SPEAKER_04 2:52

Right.

SPEAKER_03 2:52

And started teaching myself some chords.

SPEAKER_04 2:55

You did. You you just learned on your own now. Was there something that sparked the interest and made you want to buy guitar?

SPEAKER_03 3:02

I love to sing.

unknown 3:04

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 3:04

I love to sing. I did a lot of choir growing up, and then I moved, it's about 18 hours from Durango to Corpus Christi, and I was just missing like music, missing people. So when you have a guitar, you can play and sing.

SPEAKER_01 3:17

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:18

All on your own. So I think that's where that came from is just wanting some music and being too shy to meet people. Durango has so much music, but I was so shy. It just would be my room. Yeah. Were you writing that early or oh no, I was just like looking up songs and figuring out like how to play them. Yeah. YouTube?

SPEAKER_04 3:37

Any were you YouTubing to learn a little bit?

SPEAKER_03 3:40

I watched some YouTube, but mostly just like looking up tabs.

SPEAKER_05 3:43

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 3:46

So the s songwriting, how did that start then?

SPEAKER_03 3:50

The songwriting started when I was living in my apartment in Durango. I don't even know what happened. I just sat down one night and I was like, I want to write songs. I remember as a kid I would write songs, makeup songs on the playground, sing them with my friends, but didn't know. I never saw myself as like someone who could write music.

SPEAKER_04 4:10

And you never know until you try.

SPEAKER_03 4:12

Yeah, you never know. I think we think it has to be a certain type of person or like it it just finds you though.

SPEAKER_05 4:18

Yeah, exactly. Yeah, I think it finds you. And um in the case of songwriting, uh, do you remember uh your first time you actually brought one of your songs to a show?

SPEAKER_03 4:31

The first time I brought a song It had to have been in the last year because I wrote my first songs like three or four years ago, and then I thought they're they're too like out there and nobody's gonna get it, so I just kept it to myself and then started playing them out at mics, and then my first show at the zoo, like my very last song. You know, people were like encore. I'm like, okay, I'll play the song that I wrote, and people really loved it, and I was not expecting that. Like it gave me so much encouragement because I'm like, I'm not Eric Clapton, but he already wrote a bunch of songs, like people want to hear other things.

SPEAKER_01 5:09

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 5:10

And um, so uh vocally, I I really like your voice, and I'm intrigued to find out if you have some influences that helped you maybe uh define how you want to sing.

SPEAKER_03 5:25

Well, thank you for that compliment. I love like 70s, like old, old timey singers. I mean old to me. Back in the day, like Janice Joplin. It really grew out of karaoke. I remember in the fourth grade we had a karaoke like Friday, and my first song was Toxic by Brittany Spears. She's not really in my range, but it kind of unlocked me to like these powerful female vocalists and along that line.

SPEAKER_05 5:55

Awesome, awesome. Do you have a website by any chance?

SPEAKER_03 5:59

A website, not a website, I do have a SoundCloud. It's Faye Queen on SoundCloud, and that's where I put all of my voice recordings. Like, I'll just go outside.

SPEAKER_05 6:10

Okay, okay, and put it out there. And I know you're on Facebook, obviously.

SPEAKER_03 6:14

Yeah, and my YouTube also put some videos up there.

SPEAKER_05 6:17

Awesome. And what is the name of your channel on YouTube? Oh, how to find you on YouTube.

SPEAKER_03 6:23

How to find me. Well, I decided to put a bunch of numbers in my name, but it's Faye Queen, and the E's are threes.

SPEAKER_05 6:30

Okay, so Faye Queen.

SPEAKER_03 6:32

Yes, Faye Queen, like Fairy.

SPEAKER_05 6:34

Oh, okay, okay. Right, right. Faye Queen. Okay, I got you. Okay, cool. Now, so you live in Cortez. Um what what do you think of the area and uh the music scene and uh I mean it's a small scene, but it's still a scene in the venues and uh the other musicians out out here.

SPEAKER_03 6:56

Totally. Why about you guys can relate the town is small, but the scene is big. There are so many people making music, and everyone what touches my heart is how supportive we are of each other. If I could say we, but I definitely just like moving here. I remember playing with you at the Grange in Mancus. Like I just moved to the area and you had a gig. I think it was like the MLK dinner or something. It was one of their their dinners, and I was like, Can I do a song with you? And you were like, Yeah, pick from the list. Like what's sitting, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 7:30

Do you remember what you did?

SPEAKER_03 7:31

It was Long Cool Woman in a black jacket. Oh, yeah, yeah. I remember.

SPEAKER_00 7:35

I remember.

SPEAKER_04 7:36

We were playing outside in the backyard.

SPEAKER_03 7:38

Yes, outside of the tent.

SPEAKER_04 7:39

Yeah, Long Cool Woman, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 7:41

Definitely that's like my dad's favorite song, and that's what hit me. It's like That was you! That was me, that was you. That was me.

SPEAKER_05 7:49

Yeah, another proof of how small our community is. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 7:52

Yeah, it's so small, and if you just put yourself out there, like everyone I feel like is so supportive. Even the first time I played at your open mic at the zoo, it was Kevin who went up to Jody and was like, You need to book her, like you have to get her out here, and I just love how encouraging it is of like you deserve to be on stage and like come on, bring what you got.

unknown 8:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:14

So that's my feel of Cortez, isn't it? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 8:17

So positive. It is. And I'm glad you you feel that the way I'm I'm always uh hoping everybody does, but you know, you never know. But I think most of us it's really uh an interesting thing how how this area. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:32

And it is what you make it, you know, there's all it nothing's perfect, but I think if you put out uh good intentions of I want to meet new people and be friendly and just like show what I've got, it will be received. Yeah, absolutely. Because music is what brings us all together, that's what touches you, is that emotion.

SPEAKER_04 8:48

Yeah. Oh also yeah. Well, uh I was thinking you you started as a solo artist, and uh to me that's the hardest thing to do. You don't have anybody to help you or even distract uh that other person over there or anything. It's all on you. And that's the hardest. Uh do you have any intentions of uh uh playing with other like a full uh you know, a group maybe a band or something like that? I I would think people have talked to you about uh recruiting you to do that. Is that a something going on with you on that?

SPEAKER_03 9:24

There's some things. I mean, when I lived in Durango, I was in a few bands, a couple, and I would just sing, and we had like guitar players, bass players, drummers, and that's something I would really love to get back to. It's also been fun at one of my shows. Like Linda came up with her flute, and I have a friend who plays trumpet, like I love the different instruments.

SPEAKER_01 9:47

Sure, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 9:47

So we'll have to see. I mean, I'm not currently recording anything, but I'm so open to just jamming, like that's where the fun is with other people. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:57

Well, it's uh it's all beginning to happen. It's you you're down on the on the road and you're gonna be climbing up, you know.

SPEAKER_05 10:07

Mendy, um, how how many songs do you think you've written so far?

SPEAKER_03 10:12

I've written probably a couple dozen, and there's a few I would play out, but songs to me, they're just poems that I would write. A lot of times it'll be like in nature and then it's set to music later. So I would so desperately love to be in a band, like love to expand and grow. I don't know.

SPEAKER_04 10:36

I I would think that uh if you keep playing out, there's gonna be people asking you. I don't think you'll have much problem. You'll you'll be in a band here. I'm I'm predicting this right now. Whatever this date is. By the camera. By the first of the year.

SPEAKER_03 10:50

By the first of the year, I like that. I'll claim that.

SPEAKER_05 10:53

Yeah, I claim that. Yeah, it's gonna happen. How many shows uh in how many places do you think you played by now?

SPEAKER_03 10:59

By now? Yeah. Probably like one or two a month the last couple years.

SPEAKER_05 11:05

Wow, okay. That's a good number already.

SPEAKER_03 11:07

I'm trying to think a hundred.

SPEAKER_05 11:09

I mean a hundred, maybe.

SPEAKER_03 11:10

Maybe that would be cool. Yeah, maybe a hundred. If we count Durango, it'd be a few more places, but around Cortez, probably like three to five different places. Like as I grow, I will grow to the surrounding areas, but just recently, like I've been loving Cortez and Dolores Riverfest.

SPEAKER_01 11:31

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:33

Yeah, I did. I played with I sang with me and Irene at the Riverfest.

SPEAKER_05 11:38

Do you remember a uh a wonderful experience at at a show like one that really made you feel s really good or that you still remember because it went so well?

SPEAKER_04 11:48

Yeah, long took cool woman in a black person.

SPEAKER_03 11:51

Yeah, I still remember that. Bill forgot it wasn't that great, but I remembered and um I think probably something that really stuck out was when I was living in Durango, the KDU R radio station, they do a different cover night every year.

unknown 12:07

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 12:08

So with my first band, we did Dolly Parton night, and that was so fun being on the big stage, like the theater with people out, like hundreds of people. Was that at the streamer? That was at the Animus City Theater.

SPEAKER_04 12:22

Oh, yeah, yeah, that's a nice place.

SPEAKER_01 12:23

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 12:24

On the same subject, the opposite a very bad experience somewhere, or a night that you didn't know. If not, great. I mean just injury.

SPEAKER_03 12:37

Bad experience?

SPEAKER_05 12:38

It wasn't some odd situation that happened, something broke and it was uh, you know, a nightmare, but you made it work, or something like that.

SPEAKER_03 12:46

Right, as far as that, which we would love to have right now, but there was one time a couple summers ago I was playing a show and it just started pouring, like had to trash bag all of the gear and pause the show because there was like lightning.

SPEAKER_05 13:00

Where was that? Do you remember?

SPEAKER_03 13:01

This was at the Starlight Lounge. So it was outside, and I just remember the water like coming in in sheets, and we would love that right now. We would love it. But at the time it was like, um, okay, I guess we're gonna pause and get back on or oh yeah, we went on. Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_05 13:18

It didn't last.

SPEAKER_04 13:19

Yeah. I want to know your first pawn shop guitar was uh how'd you pick it out? Was it a steel string and now you're playing a nylon string?

SPEAKER_03 13:29

Yes, it it was a steel string. Uh-huh. I don't remember the brand. I remember it was like this yellow wood and it sounded awful. My first two or three guitars were pawn shop guitars and would not hold a tune through a whole song.

SPEAKER_01 13:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 13:44

And I remember, yeah, the steel was really hard on my fingers, and there would be a point where like I needed some money, or I thought I needed some money, so I would sell it online. And every time I sold my guitars, like there was this part of me that just died.

SPEAKER_05 13:57

Like even the So you would go and buy another one?

SPEAKER_03 14:01

Yeah, so then I'd go buy another one, another beater guitar, and then I finally got some new guitars that don't need a bunch of work. But yeah, I think that that was my first real guitar, it was just this pawn shop one. And I don't know if I sounded awful. I feel like it was both of us, me and this guitar.

SPEAKER_05 14:19

Well, it it really helps if you have an instrument that trees that on its own stays in tune while you're trying to figure out how to play well, you know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 14:28

Yeah, your new guitar looks real nice, uh and uh seems to play and sound real nice. Uh how long have you had that one?

SPEAKER_03 14:36

I've had this one since last winter.

SPEAKER_05 14:38

Oh, okay. You mentioned that um you had a fairly new song, a brand new song, I believe.

SPEAKER_03 14:47

I have a new song.

SPEAKER_05 14:49

So uh why don't we uh listen to it? Okay, we're gonna let you play it and yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:55

Let's play it.

SPEAKER_05 14:58

We are ready.

SPEAKER_03 15:00

Hi everyone, this is Green Gate, and it was written when I went on a hike through Green Gate. Pretty easy.

SPEAKER_02 15:26

Of the ancients feel the changes, hidden worlds up as we love Two Spirits can symphony can't see it, but you feel it sacred cross can't see it, but you feel it all around the sacred crow. We are here by the green field pine and tall pine clear the mine, wild horses hide in the shadowy places, some have ghost faces. Will you take me to your secret laces? Can't see, but you see, get into the pattern and times the psalm. Can't see it, but you feel sacred. Can't see it, but you think that was a great song.

SPEAKER_05 19:17

Thank you for sharing it. Appreciate it.

SPEAKER_03 19:19

Thank you for listening. It's just just from the heart. So was this uh the first time you performed it uh in front of somebody or I think I played it earlier in the month in Mancas.

SPEAKER_05 19:32

Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_03 19:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 19:33

Yeah, that's right. You said it was on your own call, right? Uh yeah, yeah. Was it at Zoo?

SPEAKER_03 19:38

It was at well, I wrote it just this last month. I was actually cooking up at a retreat center. But long story short, I played it recently. But this is the first time it's been on the internet. Oh right.

SPEAKER_05 19:51

Well, we'll we'll see how it be. We may have had uh uh what do you call that? Like an exclusive.

SPEAKER_03 19:57

Yes, an exclusive. It's like a tiny desk.

SPEAKER_05 20:00

Yeah, it's it's exactly. Maybe we can submit it to I don't know if they still do that. Do they still do the desks? I don't know. Do you know about tiny desk? I knew about it. And you had to have a tiny desk in your video.

SPEAKER_04 20:13

Yeah, to get anything right here.

SPEAKER_05 20:15

Yeah. And and microphones on top of it were cool. That's perfect. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, they don't care how you do it. Yeah. Awesome. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 20:22

If people want to listen to music, yeah, check out SoundCloud, Faye Queen, or YouTube, Faye Queen.

SPEAKER_01 20:29

Okay. Okay.

SPEAKER_03 20:30

I like to put up a new video every week on YouTube.

SPEAKER_01 20:34

Okay. Wow.

SPEAKER_03 20:34

Every week. So starting this summer, I challenge myself, put a new video up. There's some covers, but it's more originals. I just like to go out into nature, go out on a hike, and play some music. Oh, that's awesome. Yeah, you can hear the birds, or if there's a river, you can hear the river. And that is very personal to me. That's how most of my songs are written, is just going out in nature and listening to the trees.

SPEAKER_05 20:59

Okay, that makes sense. That makes sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:02

Um, this is so cool. Thank you so much for being here.

SPEAKER_05 21:05

Love you. Thank you for having me. I love you. Sounds so good.

SPEAKER_03 21:08

Thank you for having me. You're welcome.

SPEAKER_05 21:10

Well we'll have you again, by the way. Um I mentioned that to everyone quickly when they come. Uh we we like the idea of rotating people and bringing them back and seeing so how's it going now? Oh, cool, yeah. The progression fan, who knows? Yeah, maybe in six months. And you're in the gutter with your interested.

SPEAKER_01 21:30

Thank you.

SPEAKER_04 21:34

I'm uh in your fan club, huh? Really?

SPEAKER_03 21:36

I'll get y'all some shirts.

SPEAKER_04 21:38

Oh, oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:39

They're crop cops though.

SPEAKER_05 21:40

We didn't know that. Okay, why not?

SPEAKER_03 21:42

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 21:42

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Um, well, thank you again. And thank you, everyone. That was it. And uh uh please catch uh Mendy at uh show near you. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:53

Yeah, it's like a bay queen.

SPEAKER_05 21:55

That's right.

SPEAKER_03 21:56

Vidichka's too hard to spell.