Shy Girls isn’t nearly as popular as they should be.
The dreamy electronic/pop/R&B music project from Portland was born four years ago in the bedroom of its talented lead vocalist and producer, Dan Vidmar, which is fitting. His sound is the epitome of sexual tension in the very best way. It’s the perfect anthem for your next champagne-induced 2 a.m. make-out session.
Vidmar has performed and recorded with various artists from different musical backgrounds, including Tei Shi, Junglepussy, Antwon, Cyril Hahn and the world-famous ODESZA — his entrancing voice can be heard in the song “All We Need.” He even sang with ODESZA during their Eugene show last April. And it was amazing.
Shy Girls is finishing its first national headlining tour with a grand finale in its hometown. Their concert will be at Portland’s Wonder Ballroom at 8 p.m. this Friday, May 29.
The Emerald got on the phone today with Vidmar to talk about his music, his tour and his advice for other young musicians wanting to get involved in the music business. Here’s the Q&A:
E: It seems like your music started getting attention in 2013, and since then you’ve started becoming more and more popular. What’s happened in the last couple years that has led to that?
DV: I’ve been getting better at what I do — songwriting and producing and all that. And you know, just meeting some of the right people at the right times helps. Obviously, there’s some element of luck involved. But I think it’s been a pretty organic, word-of-mouth thing in a lot of ways. And also I think being open to a lot of different opportunities, whether it’s working with certain people, playing shows in cities that I’m not familiar with, things like that.
E: What was it like recording and performing with ODESZA?
DV: You know, I did that song with them over a year ago at this point. This was before they really had as much following — they certainly weren’t what they are now. So they reached out and asked if I would do something with them and I said, Sure. And then over the course of the last year they sort of blew up. And performing with them was cool. I did a couple shows with them and it was really fun. They’re great guys. Maybe I’ll do more shows with them in the future — I’m not sure.
E: What is it like going on a national tour? Is it what you expected?
DV: Touring in general takes some getting used to. Honestly, I’m so used to being on the road and traveling at this point that sometimes being home is weirder for me. Having a show to play every day, traveling, seeing new things and all that becomes sort of a routine. And when I’m at home, I just get kind of anxious.
E: This is your first national tour, right?
DV: Well last year we did a bunch of tours, opening for people. So I toured with Haim, I opened for Little Dragon and Maxwell. And so I did a bunch of touring last year, but none of it was me as a headliner.
E: What’s it like being a musician in Portland? I know you haven’t lived there for too long.
DV: I’ve been in Portland for about five years. I love Portland. Especially when I showed up, there was a lot going on and it was a great place to kind of get started. I didn’t really have any experience in a city at all, so it was a great place to work my way into some sort of music scene. And now that I’m doing things on a more national level, Portland is a really great place to come home to.
E: What’s your favorite thing about Portland?
DV: I think just the scenery. Portland is one of the most beautiful places. Or Oregon in general. Being on tour, driving throughout the entire country, I get back to Oregon, and I’m like, this is the best we have.
E: Do you have a favorite song to perform?
DV: I think it changes every show, but right now, either “Xhampagne” or “Synthesize Me.”
E: Have you been performing your old stuff on your tour too?
DV: Yeah, we still play all our stuff from (our first E.P.,) Timeshare, and all that.
E: One of my favorite songs is “Without,” from Timeshare, so I’m really hoping you’ll do that one at your show on Friday.
DV: We occasionally do that one, but not as often these days. It’s one that gets requested a lot though, so we’ll probably start doing it more often.
E: I’ll keep my fingers crossed. So how would you describe your performance style?
DV: I try to just be as authentic with myself and the audience as I can. And I hope that that comes across. I mean any time you’re performing, there’s some showmanship involved. But we’re not really out there to perform in a traditional sense. I’m out there to perform for myself and feel my music and be authentic about it — in front of other people. Which is weird.
E: What kind of music do you listen to in your own free time?
DV: Everything. I listen to a lot of classical at times, I listen to a lot of pop music, I listen to the radio a lot when I’m driving because I don’t have a CD player or an aux cord or anything. I listen to a lot of new hip hop, music from the ‘80s, French music from the ‘60s.
E: Do you see yourself staying in Portland for a long time?
DV: I don’t know. I love Portland and I think I’ll always be in Portland from time to time, even if I don’t live there forever. But it’s hard to say. I’ve been spending a lot of time in L.A. and New York and it’s possible that I’ll try and move around for a couple months at a time to different places.
E: What advice would you give to young musicians who hope to be as successful as you?
DV: I would say always work on getting better at your craft, and that means making a lot of terrible music before you start making good music. Don’t be afraid to play it in front of other people and finish things. I know a lot of people are too scared to show their music or their art or their creations to other people and then they never get better at what they do because they get stuck. And I think just always putting yourself in a position where when luck does strike, you’re ready for the opportunities that might come up. ‘Cause everyone gets lucky sometimes. Also just be realistic about things, but be as hopeful as you can because it’s hard.
E: Any thing new and/or exciting happening with you in the near future that we can look out for?
DV: I’m working on new songs, making new music for sure. Definitely by the end of the year there will be new music. Hopefully fairly soon. I think I’m going to be staying off the road for a while because I just did this tour. So definitely no touring to announce in the near future, but new music for sure.
Check out a couple of our favorite songs by Shy Girls:



Follow Andrea Harvey on Twitter @andrearharvey, and look out for her review of Shy Girls’ show this weekend.