INTERVIEW // Buff Ginger: Heartache, Diet Coke, and Oddly Specific Spotify Playlists

Ry Minter, the face behind Buff Ginger, stood with complete ease on the concrete sidewalk outside Our Wicked Lady as they candidly spoke about their music, totally unbothered by the noisy trucks and cars whizzing by. They carried this ease onto the stage later in the night too, you got a sense watching them perform that making music came as second nature to them. Buff Ginger effortlessly commanded the audience as they glided through the set, bringing us all into their chaotic and magical world. 

It’s hard to believe that they only started making music their freshman year of college and that their first EP, My Social Security Number, was the result of two weeks spent inside their apartment following a bad breakup. But, isn’t a lot of music we love and consider iconic born out of heartache? Souvlaki by Slowdive, a shoegaze-y dream with elements reminiscent of Buff Ginger’s music, was also the result of a breakup between two members of the band. (See also: the poem I wrote at age 14 when I learned my crush didn’t like me back).

As music from the first band’s set upstairs drifted onto the sidewalk we were standing on below, Ry warmly led us into their relationship with music..

First off, please introduce yourself to our readers!

Ry: Hi, I’m Ry from the band Buff Ginger. And that’s about it! That’s all they get!

How did you get into making music?

Ry: I learned how to play the guitar when I was, like, 14, and I never really made anything. But, my freshman year of college I was just in my dorm room, and I was just making stuff. And I was like, maybe this could turn into something and so, I just put it on Soundcloud. And then after that, I went through a really bad breakup. So I was like, “I'm just going to sit in my apartment and just make something.” So that was the first EP that I released, and then it caught traction like a tiny, the tiniest, minuscule bit. But I was like, oh, maybe this could work. So, I made the record after that.

I wanted to ask about 15 Joan Drive, the first track you put out on SoundCloud-

Ry: That one’s so bad! (chuckles)

I was wondering, why is it called 15 Joan Drive? 

Ry: It’s my mom’s old New York address. When she was a kid, she used to live somewhere in Westchester, or near Westchester. What is it, Chappaqua? There you go!

Also, why is it entirely instrumental? Is there some symbolism there?

Ry: I didn’t (pauses to laugh) have a microphone at the time, so that’s mostly what it was.

So, how did you get to My Social Security Number from 15 Joan Drive? What did that process look like? I know you mentioned a breakup…

Ry: It's a really funny reason to make something, but I don’t know. I was doing really poorly and I was just kind of like okay, I'm just going to, you know, sit. And apparently, I had a lot more ideas than I thought. I’d only made small demos here and there, but it wasn't really anything until I was like, I'm going to sit down because I'd always said  “I'm going to make an EP at some point.” Yeah, I just kind of sat down. I finally found the time and made it over two weeks.

Two weeks? You made the whole EP over just two weeks? Wow! I also noticed a shift in the sound between My Social Security Number and your newest EP, I Don’t Like Haunted Houses, what were you trying to do differently with the latest record?

Ry: I think I was probably, just trying to make it better? I wanted to make it a little bit less lo-fi because the last one didn’t have drums as I didn’t know how to program drums at the time and I didn’t have my new synths. But, I think I finally built up the confidence to layer stuff and figured it out from there.

All your music so far has been written, recorded and produced by you. Could you tell me more about that choice? 

Ry: Oh, I'm a control freak, absolutely. That’s also because that was before I really ended up making friends who made music and stuff, because now we have the whole band and everything. So the next record I'm probably going to get Ian, our drummer, who's super talented to track drums just to make it a more well-rounded thing. But also, I really like just sitting by myself when I do this stuff because it's a lot less embarrassing. I feel like if I fuck up on my own, then it's just kind of like, oh okay (laughs).

How long did it take for I Don’t Like Haunted Houses to come together? Also, I’m super curious to know about how you decided the progression of the album.

Ry: I think, about 3 to 4 months? It was a bit of a slow burn, but once I finished all of it I thought about how I wanted the songs to lean into each other. I wanted to open it up with something bigger, so it starts with I Don’t Like Haunted Houses which is faster after which the EP slows down before speeding back up again, getting louder still and then slows down again. I really like having an arc. Honestly, one of the best parts about making an album is being able to move it in a certain direction. 

If your music was in a playlist, what would the playlist be called? For example, ‘music to dye your hair at 3 am to’ or, ‘music to have a manic depressive episode to’.

Ry: (laughing) Actually, the second one’s pretty good! I feel like I’m usually having a manic depressive moment whenever I’m writing a lot of my music.

I have to ask, who was your top artist and what was your top song for Spotify Wrapped?

Ry: My top song was Chores by Feeble Little Horse and they were also my top artist.

What’s your favorite pre-show ritual?

Ry: Diet Coke!

Diet Coke is so good! 

Ry: It is, I have one upstairs right now!

How would you describe the person you see listening to your music?

Ry: I hope they’re queer. I like to make music for queer people. Also, I like to open it up for different types of people to come in and listen. Because I feel like my music, what’s been released so far, is a toned down version of the genre. So for people who are trying to explore a certain type of genre and branch out, I would love to be a gateway artist for them.

For my last question, please tell us how New School students can support you!

Ry: Come to the shows! The shows are really fun and usually we have some pretty good bills. Also, I’m Buff Ginger on Bandcamp and all the other shit like Spotify, Apple Music, it’s the same everywhere.

Words: Pari Marwah // Photos: Jenna Ferayo

Stream Buff Ginger on Spotify and Apple Music, support them on Bandcamp, and keep up with them on Instagram.