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After a rigorous seven years of non-stop writing, touring, and interviews, twenty-two-year-old Wendy Madeline announced at the end of her tour that she would stop making music. However, after an indefinite hiatus, she returned with her critically praised album, A Rumor from Ground Control, released in April 2016. Since then, she’s reentered the music scene full force—embarking on multiple tours, playing at numerous festivals, and making it clear she has no plans to slow down anytime soon.
Wendy had never envisaged herself as a likely candidate for mainstream stardom. If anything, she imagined a career as a first-chair violinist in a prestigious orchestra or singing operatic pieces. She had grown up diligently training and performing in classical recitals for voice and the violin. But after being spotted by a label scout, she signed with Griffin Music Group and entered their Artist Development Program. Even after getting this far, Wendy fought with tooth and nail to get her label to agree to start creating music more independently with the help of her friends. Over her twelve-year career, she’s released five albums, including Selkies, The Canary, and For Show.
A Rumor from Ground Control marks her return to an eclectic fusion of classical undertones with the dynamic rock sound she was known for in the 2000s, now layered with deeper vulnerability and growth. The album bridges the coolness of PJ Harvey with the innovation of Björk and Bowie, and the unapologetic energy of Bikini Kill. From its opening line, Geyser—“You’re my number one, you're the one I want / And I’ve turned down every hand that has beckoned me to come”—it’s her most honest work yet. A major factor in this independence is her switch to a new label, Whiplash Records. This project embraces the unforgiving tribulations she has to harbor, from something so human as a breakup to more pressing issues from the music industry. Above all, though, “A Rumor from Ground Control” manages to capture Wendy’s jubilant and explosive energy in performance, even in recording.
Praised by the likes of Billy Corgan, Tori Amos, Halsey, and even David Byrne, I recently got to sit down and have a conversation with the artist while she wrapped up her Space Station tour. The conversation has been condensed and edited.
How are you?
I’m well, thank you! It’s definitely been a while since I’ve been on here, yeah?
Yeah, for sure! I think the last time we had you here with us was when you released The Canary back in 2010.
Yes, and I’m pretty sure we were all there, too. Tweek, Craig, Red, Heidi, Jenny, and I think it was pretty chaotic. [Laughs.]
That was seven years ago. How much have things changed since then?
That’s a very loaded question, uh—but that’s fine! Headfirst into these types of things is fun.
We’re all still together. I’m so grateful for that. With every album and every tour, we’ve only grown closer. Some bands burn out from constantly seeing each other and fighting over creative differences, but not us. Especially since Tweek and I share a classical background and grew up in the same city, we can almost read each other’s minds when writing. It’s almost telepathic, if I’m being honest. It helps when you know where you want to steer creatively, even if you can’t always articulate it.
If you’re asking like, emotionally, where I’m at, I’m better, infinitely so. Much better than before I went on break. It was a much-needed reset cause I was at a breaking point then.
I’m really happy to hear that you’re doing much better. Were you at all nervous to release the new album? It’s been four years since your last one, yeah?
It has. It never gets easier to release an album. You have this thing you’ve worked day and night, heart and soul, on, and it’s a reflection of your vulnerability and personal inner workings. Then it’s given to the public, and you can only hope that they appreciate the thought and effort you’ve put into it. It’s in their hands to take care of this time capsule of feelings I had when I was 25.
It was even more nerve-wracking to release an album now, just like, after all this time. The landscape of the industry has changed a lot, even within just a few years. Actually, the world has changed. Time has dealt much damage, even in such a short span of time, within the general grand scheme of things, so I don’t know what kind of reception to expect.
On top of that, it feels like there’s an expectation to outdo our last one with more than just flying colors since we’ve come back from a break. The truth is that none of us knows what we’re doing! We’re just doing stuff and hope it sticks.
Is there anything special ongoing in your life right now? Something, someone?
Someone ? Interesting to see that you’ve come with an expectation that I’d openly talk about my personal relationships. The public will be the last people to know about that.
Your new album, “A Rumor From Ground Control,” revisits and even reworks some of that earlier rock sound you had when you were younger. Is there any reason for that?
While making the album, we found ourselves listening to a lot of the music that inspired us back then. In a way, it’s embracing my roots—but also using that nostalgia to elevate the album’s themes. Especially as it reflects on my early years in the industry, starting out at fourteen and fifteen.
You signed with Griffin Music Group so young—it’s been more than a decade since. Is there anything you’d tell your younger self now?
I was fourteen when I was invited to join the label’s artist development program. Fourteen! That’s way too young to have anyone sign their next ten years away. It’s a gamble—either you make it, or you come crawling back home with your tail between your legs. I thought we were gonna go through the latter at some point. I didn’t want that because it feels like the town you’re coming from will almost shame you for even trying to get out.
Even with that, though, it’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of opportunity, and I don’t think you could blame anyone for making a decision like that. It’s essentially every other kid’s dream, one way or another, to be onstage and perform. I don’t think anyone could’ve predicted the huge success that would follow my career. Again, I doubted I’d make it, and I wish I had someone who could’ve warned me about the trajectory of where I’d go and how to deal with it.
I’m proud, though, of how far I’ve come. When I first signed, the people there wanted to make me a popstar, almost like a classically trained Britney Spears—I guess that would be Mariah Carey, no? But I’ve always trusted my gut, and it’s safe to say I didn’t fancy the idea of exhausting myself daily with dance routines, media training, and songs I didn’t believe in. I fought hard to write my own music, and that’s when Tweek came in, cause I knew what I wanted; he just knows how to lay it down much better than I can.
I was the first person in my family to ever go this far in the show industry, and it was all on gut instinct. I want to thank little Wendy because it was so overwhelming to be so helplessly clueless about your surroundings and always feeling at odds with yourself, rethinking whether the decision you made is more self-serving than beneficial. I remember being plagued with thoughts of doubt that it would flop, and it would just be a waste of my parents’ work. All the while, I had Math homework to finish. [Laughs.]
You all were around that age, right?
Around the same age, same grade. We were wide-eyed and hopeful, but we all had this unspoken worry about what our plan B would be if this failed. None of us wanted to go back cause we had to start homeschooling after touring. What’s funny, though, too, is that we thought we were hot shit and were far wiser and more complex than our peers when we first debuted. We really weren’t. We were a bunch of kids with just as big feelings as anyone else. We just went around the country and played instruments while talking about those big feelings.
Time is really weird cause it really doesn’t feel so long ago since we first dropped that first record, travelling in a little van and hitching the road almost five hours daily. Somehow, between there and here, we’re suddenly playing these huge, sold-out venues—consistently, too! It’s really mind-boggling how far we’ve made it.
This album reflects on your old days, even touching on classical roots with that witty yet profound songwriting you’re known for. Midshipman, in particular, intrigues me from the title alone.
Actually, Midshipman is something we’ve had on the back burner for years now. It’s Red’s favorite, just because of how it turned out sonically.
This song is kind of a retrospective on my sixteen- maybe seventeen-year-old self, and how disillusioned I became when I first entered the industry. I knew freedom was truly seldom given to label-signed artists, especially of those in subsidiaries of the big four, but I never could imagine it was to this extent. I still could write my own stuff, for sure, but all of the music you’re hearing from us is a lot more melded in the image the label wants us to project than you think.
The “midshipman” metaphor is about that early respectability I was granted, but without real agency. It’s an acceptance of the tribulations I’d have to live with just to continue this career.
The album title is from a Bowie song, right? Which other artists did you listen to during writing and recording?
Yeah, it’s from Ashes to Ashes, which is one of my favorite songs. It’s a little too real, though, I don’t listen to it too much, or else I’ll get sad. But I always loved the phrase “a rumor from ground control” and wanted to slap it on a project someday.
We listened to a lot of artists, and the record is an amalgamation of that. Alanis Morissette, Portishead, Misfits, Spiritualized—a fun one is Camille Saint-Saëns. He’s collectively our favorite classical composer. He has a way of building these thick, dreamy landscapes, and we try to mimic that sound through a little bit of strings and a lot of fuzzy guitar effects.
Any plans for the future? Collaborations, EPs, albums, or tours?
[Laughs.] Wouldn’t you like to know?
We’ve established that you’ve been around for over a decade now, and you’ve been tested time and time again. You’ve stood long enough for a new generation to rediscover your music. Why or how still stands so tall this far?
Not to get all sappy and cliche, but it’s the fans. We may make the music, but it’s their support that helps us continue working on this dream of ours. They fund our records and tours, and they continuously support us and give us the chance to prove ourselves and our capacity to create. I hold so much love because they instill this much faith and expense in us because of who we are and what we’ve done.
I’d also say it’s because of the collaboration Tweek, Craig, Red, Heidi, Jenny, and I have just harbored. Tweek specifically, I’ve known him since we were, like, 5 or 6 years old. That’s 20 years of friendship! It’s partially the reason why the two of us have never pursued our own projects independently of each other. We’ve been so glued at the hip, and we’ve been able to communicate with each other so well, that it’s a bit difficult doing all this stuff on our own.
It’s all that and that, our love will always be rooted in our music. I’m gonna be really cliche now, but it’s the one thing that’s stayed consistent in our lives. It’s the reason why we’re here. It’s taught us many things, and it’s the catalyst of our growth and development. We’ve discovered so many things because of the opportunity music has given us, and we’ll forever stay thankful and morbidly curious about what comes next.