The band comprises sisters Natalie, Meegan, and Allison Closner and began almost ten years ago when Natalie found herself in a musical rut after self-releasing an EP in college but felt something was missing. After making the monumental decision to enlist her sisters–twins Meegan and Allison–Joseph was born.
The new record takes us through themes of self-realisation over the course of ten elegantly etched tracks, sparking emotion and taking you on a journey toward your innermost self whilst tackling complex concepts and heart-rending themes. Throughout, the sisters traverse the rocky road to self-realisation and impart crucial bites of wisdom they have gathered through their own healing journeys.
The opening track and previous single, ‘Nervous System’, talks of Allison’s longtime struggle with anxiety and how she learned to undo the thought patterns contributing to it. Elsewhere, the scintillating track ‘Fireworks’ speaks of Meegan’s frustrations and self-doubt which can accompany refusing to compromise on romantic ideals. Not wanting to settle for less, Meegan wants the feeling of ‘Fireworks’. The whole record feels personal and as if you are reading text conversions the sisters have sent to each other.
Growing up, they were born into a very musical household with their father being a jazz singer and their mother a theatre teacher. Benefitting from always having music playing at home, they realise the importance of their family’s love for it with how instrumental it was in moulding them as artists.
With their soul-searching songwriting on full display in the new album, Joseph have managed to create a body of work which many people will relate to and take heed of, the creation of which also served as a healing process for the sisters.
Being a band of siblings has a multitude of upsides, one of which is their genetically engineered three-part harmonies. The three voices lend themselves to each other in a way only voices with similar make-up could–adding a depth and dimension not often seen. Having previously appeared on ‘Later…With Jools Holland’, ‘The Tonight Show’, ‘ELLEN’, and ‘NBC’s Today Show’ to name a few, the band are reaping the rewards they deserve, gaining fans such as Billie Eilish, The Shins, and James Bay.
House Of Solo Magazine spoke to the band about their new album, finding a new closeness as sisters, and what’s next for the three.
Hi Natalie, Meegan, and Allison. The three of you are no strangers to penning deep, meaningful songs full of complex concepts and are now preparing to release your fourth studio album ‘The Sun’, can you please tell us about the creative process behind it?
Thank you! We started co-writing over zoom a few months into the pandemic in 2020. At first, we found we didn’t have much to say which felt frustrating because we had all this time to make songs and nothing was coming out quite right.
After letting everything settle and all three of us getting the chance to do some therapy, the songs presented themselves.
The album surfs various themes whilst on the course of self-realisation. Can you talk us through some of which you explore within the record? I read that your therapists had a huge influence on the album so did creating this body of work serve as a process through which to heal?
I love that question! Yes, I think the experience of writing a song that you truly mean is one of the most healing balms possible and this project was no exception.
We always approach an album by writing whatever we’re feeling on any given day, finding a common thread with the best songs that belong together. In this case, we started noticing a theme of recognising your own moreness. That concept happens throughout the project but it’s anchored by the title song ‘The Sun’ which describes the moment you realise you’ve been letting yourself be dimmed and diminished then you start to see you are more than what you thought.
Let’s talk a little about the recent single from your new album, ’Nervous System’. The track is described as being inspired by somatic therapy, being your own lifeline, and tending to ourselves with compassion. The song speaks candidly about learning to undo the thought patterns that contributed to your longtime struggle with anxiety, Allison. What has the reaction to the single been like? Have people resonated with it in the way you anticipated?
Wow, the response to this song has been incredible! We have been overwhelmed by how much people have related to it and have expressed camaraderie in that effort to self-regulate. We’ve all been through so much in our different ways so hearing so many people singing along, seeing the videos they’ve sent of themselves dancing to it, and listening to the comments and conversations it’s spurred on about nervous system regulation has been so beautiful.
For anyone yet to discover your music, how would you describe your releases and yourselves as a band?
We’ve always said it’s honest words and genetically perfected harmonies. We love a good pop melody and we write songs to help move through our experiences of being alive which can hopefully be a companion in both the tough and triumphant moments.
Natalie, before Joseph formed nearly ten years ago in 2014 you spent time alone recording and self-releasing an EP before enlisting your twin sisters Meegan and Allison to create the band. Your voices harmonise in a way that only genetics could allow and once your sisters joined the band, you said it was as if something clicked and everything began to fall into place. How does your creative process differ when writing with two other people as opposed to your early days as a solo artist? What other benefits do you think you all take from being a band of sisters?
I still write solo songs that have their own place but I absolutely love being a part of something with Meegan and Allie because they bring their own life experiences and unique perspectives to the table. When we make music, we draw from three different particular voices both figuratively and literally which adds a depth and dimension that I love so much.
The three of you grew up in a musical household with your father being a Jazz singer and drummer and your mother being a theatre teacher. How do you think that impacted each of you individually? Natalie, I know you were the person who was maybe the most passionate about music but how do you Meegan and Allison, feel your upbringing aided in finding your passion for music?
We listened to music all the time at home.
I, Meegan, remember a time in junior high when I asked someone what kind of music they listened to and they said they didn’t listen to music. It stopped me in my tracks and I realised at that moment, music was special and my family’s love of it was important.
Allie and I learned how to sing harmony by listening to the local country radio station and we really looked up to Natalie in all of her musical pursuits. It wasn’t something I thought I was good enough to pursue myself but it was something I always idolised as a kid and teenager.
With there being a four-year age gap between Natalie and twins Meegan and Allison, I love hearing how well you have all bonded since the beginning of the band, describing yourselves more as ‘acquaintances’ beforehand. This whole journey must have allowed you all to learn so much about each other as people and artists but I’m interested to know if the three of you have ever disagreed musically and had to compromise. If so, how did you overcome this to make sure everyone was listened to and appreciated?
For the most part, we agree but we also have a great built-in system being three people so sometimes one of us will bend to what the majority agrees on. That said we always try to get on the same page before moving forward with any kind of decision!
I’d say we all respect each other tremendously so we always hear everyone out and we’ve each had times of suggesting something that turned out brilliant as well as ideas that flopped. It’s very equal–always a group effort!
The three of you have had slots at major festivals and performed on some big television shows, already having conquered a lot, are there any other achievements–potentially a particular venue or festival–you wish to reach in the near future?
We’d really love to just keep doing this however it looks!
We loved playing Glastonbury, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, and Coachella and would be overjoyed to return.
We would also love to headline venues we’ve opened up like the Ryman and Radio City!
Finally, what’s next on the horizon for Joseph? Anything exciting in the pipeline you can tell us about?
We’re thrilled to be back on the road starting April 28–tickets for North America are on sale now!
We have a couple of fun surprises up our sleeves that we’re working on and we’re releasing our album the same day tour starts. We’re very happy!
