Josef. Are you wearing eyeliner? What's that? You're not? Oh, well whatever you're doing in that white t-shirt it is working for you. I tell my guy friends again and again: you can't beat a white t-shirt and a pair of well fitting blue Levi's. James Dean knew what he was doing. But I digress. Let's not objectify this Aussie living in London, because the truly spectacular thing about Salvat is his songs, the first to pique Noisey's interest being the velvety lust of "Every Night"—a delightful smoosh of The Flamingos and Chris Isaak.That dropped almost a year ago and every dusky cut since has been better than the last. Take his latest, newly released EP, In Your Prime, below as an apt taster. It's not crooner pop per se, but there is a an emotional through line, an exacting balance between epic instrumentation—all swelling strings and booming beats—and knowing the moment to pull back and let his tones do all the talking. In moments of relative sparsity, his vocals are startlingly intmate, as if delivered mere millimeters from your ear; as pleasing as hot breath on expectant skin.That being said, we decided to track down Mr. Salvat and make him fill out this OkCupid-cribbed questionnaire. Read on.
25/yes/London mainly.My self-summary:
I tend to overthink things.What I’m doing with my life:
Grafting and learning. Swallowing my pride. Battling narcissism whilst trying to raise my self-esteem. Peddling my music.I’m really good at:
Climbing ("bouldering" to be precise), wasting time, drawing not-to-scale floorplans of houses I would like to build.The first things people usually notice about me are:
My tranquil disposition. I also often get asked within the first few minutes of a conversation if I’m wearing eyeliner or mascara. For the record, I’m not.Favorite books:
I love short stories, especially those by Roald Dahl and Somerset Maugham.Favorite movies:
Anything that looks beautiful. Style over substance here I’m afraid. Apart from that some specific films that spring to mind are The Godfather trilogy, Le Mepris, 8 ½, and Aladdin. Favorite music:
This is seriously a mood thing. I generally enjoy most of whatever is in the top 40. But as for "obsessions" right now I love the Jungle record, some of the new stuff from Kindness and Alt-J, and Leonard Cohen. Things I return to frequently are Nina Simone, Bjork, Eurythmics, and Chris Isaak. Favorite TV shows:
Things I have, or would, watch again: House of Cards, The Killing (the Danish one but I haven’t seen remake so maybe that too), Modern Family, Twin Peaks, and this UK skit show that was on when I was in high school called Smack the Pony, which I really wish would come back. Favorite Food:
Growing up, the national cuisine was pretty limited so we outsourced to various South East Asian countries (in particular Thailand and Vietnam), Japan, Italy and Greece, all of which remain, to this day, my favourite food go-to areas. Recently I had good tacos for the first time, which was a revelation. Six things I could never do without:
A piano and my voice (I count this as a single thing), the possibility of sex, the possibility of love, frequent sun, conversation good or bad, certain fruits. The most private thing I’m willing to admit is:
I have been known to occasionally become obsessed with celebrity conspiracy theories. On a typical Friday night I am:
Depends on the week. If it’s been a busy week, Friday night is catch-up time and I’m working. If it’s been an empty week, Friday night is adventure night and I will say yes to whatever comes my way. You should message me if:
You shouldn’t. Ask for my number, I will give it to you and you should call. I’m really bad at replying to messages.In Your Prime is out now.Kim applauds the throwback of a good phone call. Follow Kim Taylor Bennett on Twitter.
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Age/Sex/Location:
25/yes/London mainly.My self-summary:
I tend to overthink things.What I’m doing with my life:
Grafting and learning. Swallowing my pride. Battling narcissism whilst trying to raise my self-esteem. Peddling my music.I’m really good at:
Climbing ("bouldering" to be precise), wasting time, drawing not-to-scale floorplans of houses I would like to build.The first things people usually notice about me are:
My tranquil disposition. I also often get asked within the first few minutes of a conversation if I’m wearing eyeliner or mascara. For the record, I’m not.Favorite books:
I love short stories, especially those by Roald Dahl and Somerset Maugham.Favorite movies:
Anything that looks beautiful. Style over substance here I’m afraid. Apart from that some specific films that spring to mind are The Godfather trilogy, Le Mepris, 8 ½, and Aladdin. Favorite music:
This is seriously a mood thing. I generally enjoy most of whatever is in the top 40. But as for "obsessions" right now I love the Jungle record, some of the new stuff from Kindness and Alt-J, and Leonard Cohen. Things I return to frequently are Nina Simone, Bjork, Eurythmics, and Chris Isaak. Favorite TV shows:
Things I have, or would, watch again: House of Cards, The Killing (the Danish one but I haven’t seen remake so maybe that too), Modern Family, Twin Peaks, and this UK skit show that was on when I was in high school called Smack the Pony, which I really wish would come back. Favorite Food:
Growing up, the national cuisine was pretty limited so we outsourced to various South East Asian countries (in particular Thailand and Vietnam), Japan, Italy and Greece, all of which remain, to this day, my favourite food go-to areas. Recently I had good tacos for the first time, which was a revelation. Six things I could never do without:
A piano and my voice (I count this as a single thing), the possibility of sex, the possibility of love, frequent sun, conversation good or bad, certain fruits. The most private thing I’m willing to admit is:
I have been known to occasionally become obsessed with celebrity conspiracy theories. On a typical Friday night I am:
Depends on the week. If it’s been a busy week, Friday night is catch-up time and I’m working. If it’s been an empty week, Friday night is adventure night and I will say yes to whatever comes my way. You should message me if:
You shouldn’t. Ask for my number, I will give it to you and you should call. I’m really bad at replying to messages.In Your Prime is out now.Kim applauds the throwback of a good phone call. Follow Kim Taylor Bennett on Twitter.