Interview: Sedona Schat (Cafuné)

Taking their name from the Brazilian Portuguese word meaning “running your fingers through the hair of someone you love,” Cafuné combines the talents of singer/songwriter Sedona Schat and writer/producer Noah Yoo in the form of intelligent, dance-friendly electro-pop.

Prior to the New York City-based duo making its Asheville debut — opening for none other than Scottish pop icons Chvrches on Saturday, July 30, at The Orange Peel — Schat spoke with Asheville Stages about making music in quarantine, the perks of being signed to a major label, and approaching the band’s first tour.

…on previously crossing paths with Chvrches

Noah in particular has been a big fan of them for a long time. I'm a fan as well, but I think he's more of an authority on them. And actually, when he was working as a music writer, he interviewed them. I do think we're complimentary in a way that's really cool. And it's really, really exciting that it worked out for us to open for them. They're such a cool group and I'm really excited to meet Lauren.

…on scaling up their show for playing their biggest venues yet

We've primarily focused on getting our band really tight. We actually brought on some new band members, and Chvrches was gracious enough to allow us to use their video wall. So we're going to have our logo up, which will be cool. We're definitely excited in the future to do a little bit more with visuals, but because this is our first tour, we just really wanted to focus on getting the band as tight as possible.

Another fun nerdy musician thing is we have in-ear monitors for the first time. That's a big deal for us. It's so funny how being able to hear one's self on stage is a luxury, but I'm really excited to fully hear myself. We actually just got them in the mail today, so we're going to have our first rehearsal with them right before we leave.

…on writing Cafuné’s debut LP during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic

Some of [Running] was written before the pandemic and some of it was written during. "Want Me Out," "Tek It"...those definitely existed pre-pandemic. We definitely wrote "Empty Tricks" in the middle of summer 2020. I remember writing “Running" — I actually got to stay at my friend's apartment to quarantine, and I remember writing that in April or so. It was kind of an extended writing process.

Obviously, quarantine was not a happy time or anything like that, but it was nice to have the space to focus on writing. Pre-pandemic, both Noah and I were working full-time jobs, so we essentially got one day a week to really work together. So, it was a blessing in that sense.

…on lyrics written before the pandemic taking on new meanings

"Tek It" specifically — those lyrics continue to apply to relationships that I formed during the pandemic. So maybe not their meaning [has changed], but they continue to be applicable, which is so sad. [laughs] But "Everyone Knows" and "Empty Tricks" I think were the most explicitly political or social, and those have only continued to be the way that we feel about how things are going. It's bleak out there!

…on getting a head start on remote collaborations

When we were making our first EP [2015’s Love Songs for Other People], we had practice working in that way because I studied abroad and Noah remained in New York. And also, because of our conflicting work schedules, even when we had the opportunity to "normally work," we still were doing a lot of virtual collaborating.

I think the biggest change was simply the amount of time that we had to take our time with forming the songs — and revising. We had many, many versions. This was our first album, so it was definitely a learning experience, and I think, going forward, maybe there won't be as many versions. And I think also going forward, we will be more…I mean, already, we are physically with each other so much more than we were pre-April. So, yeah, it's really interesting how our workflow will continue to change.

…on putting all that togetherness into action

Before everything went crazy and we ended up signing with Elektra, we had started work on the next EP. We went upstate to have a little “in the woods” moment. At the time, we were thinking the EP was going to take a sort of acoustic, intimate direction. We're not necessarily feeling that way anymore. So, yeah, we have some songs that exist, but I think given everything that's happened, we're going to rework them a little bit.

It's an interesting process, but we've definitely spent the last couple months A) just having kind of a second opportunity to promote Running. It's like Album Promo Cycle #2, which honestly is really wonderful because when we put the album out last year, it was just us and we did our best, and we were like, "OK, it's over now." And now the album gets a whole second push with the help of everyone on our label and everything. So, it's really cool because not only does it mean a lot of people are able to discover the album, but also I think it gives us maybe a little bit more time to to get our next project together.

We're hoping to have at least a single ready by the fall. But this tour with Chvrches was sort of unexpected. We'd planned on spending the summer getting the EP together, but those plan changed. Now we're hoping to get the EP done by fall/winter.

…on achieving their sync licensing dreams

We've always been really big fans of Phoenix. They're one of our favorite bands and we talk that iconic [Cadillac] commercial — that iconic "1901" car commercial. We would love a moment like that.

We’ve also got some comments on our Tiktoks where kids are associating us with Stranger Things. I don't really watch much TV, so I don't know if the [recent] two-hour [episode] was the finale, but if they were to continue making Stranger Things, that would be really cool to be involved in that.

And a lot of what sort initially made our songs start doing really well was we had kids start making anime edits using our songs. And so I think being associated with any kind of cool anime intro would be really, really amazing for us.

IF YOU GO

Who: Chvrches with Cafuné
When: Saturday, July 30, 8 p.m.
Where: The Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Ave., theorangepeel.net
Tickets: $35 advance/$40 day of show

(Photo by Noah Falge)