As she sits in her parents’ antique shop, I find myself chatting with Maz (the stage name of Utah based indie pop artist Marley Guevara). She has an effortlessly ethereal vibe, which only matches the effortlessly cool sounds on her debut EP, NPC, out now. 

“I’m from Logan,” Maz explains in an interview with Culture Cabinet. “It’s a small town in Utah. I grew up with very artistic parents, but they weren’t musical. I’ve always been really into creating. I had a friend in high school send me beats that he made, and he was like, ‘You should write these.’ I had written a little bit before, just like poems and stuff. I top lined it and put it on SoundCloud, and it did pretty good. So, I was like, ‘Oh, this is fun.’ Since then, I’ve just been exploring music and writing.” 

It was that sense of exploration that led Maz to create NPC, which offers a sampling of five tracks that touch on themes of growing up, the complexities of relationships, and the importance of self-empowerment. Sonically, they sound like a mix of the new modern indie-pop you’ve been craving, while paying homage to greats of the past like Blondie, Kate Bush, or even throwback pop-punk groups like The Veronicas. 

While the EP is cohesive, and suggests that Maz is just getting started, it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing that led her to record it. She had initially began working on the EP while enrolled in school in Salt Lake City, but found herself having to return home following the death of her grandfather. While simultaneously battling a personal tragedy, she also found herself fighting off a creative lull within her own process. 

“I was kind of battling the idea of whether or not I should keep doing music,” she says. “I don’t know. I was in a spot where I was like, ‘Should I go to school? Should I work full time?’ I was stuck in my own head, trying to figure stuff out. These songs were little spurts of creative venting. I didn’t have too much creative time because of my own self isolation.” 

But, as is often the case with life’s defining moments, it wasn’t all bad. Through her artistic struggle, she also began to find inspiration. 

“I really love a lot of different genres. I think that’s a big part of what makes me unique. I wanted to not put myself so much in one genre. I wanted to play around with electronic elements, but also add elements that I’m inspired by. I love post punk, I love the 60s and 70s acoustic sounds. I wanted to play around with that and show people my range and what I can do.” 

And if NPC is any indication of what Maz can do, we can expect the biggest and best from her moving forward. While the EP is quick, each song is a strong entry from all sides: lyrically, compositionally, and from a production standpoint. The EP opens with “Too Bad,” a song that has a sunny 60s pop sound, showcasing Maz’s airy and light vocals over an upbeat percussion line and perfectly crunchy guitar licks (“It reminds me of Blondie,” Maz says of the song. “It was the first time I had my lower register introduced, and that was really fun.”). It then transitions into “Wa Oh,” the EP’s standout track, which is slower and even a bit darker. “Kiss Kiss Boom” is a more electronic sultry song, utilizing more synthesizers and drum beats. It’s not afraid to take turns or shifts, but never so drastic it pulls the listener out of the drive. 

With such an upward trajectory, it seems only certain that Maz is an artist to watch. And, while she’s excited with the present journey, she already finds herself looking toward her future, and what she would like to do next. 

“I learned a ton from this past EP that I want to take to improve the next one. I feel like I just barely started playing live, and I realized I need to make endings to my songs,” she laughs. “I want to make lyrics that I want to share, and lyrics people will love. I don’t have any regrets, but there’s times where it’s like, ‘don’t listen too hard.’ I want to have a story to tell and put more heart and soul into it with upcoming stuff. I was living at my grandparents house after my grandfather passed, and there was a ton of photos of him. He’s Mexican, and he just has such an inspiring life story. I think it would be really fun to take that with my next project, letting my roots influence it. I’ve been playing with Latin sounds, which is fun.” 

Given the hell of a first impression she leaves with NPC, it feels only natural that Maz will see an influx of watchful eyes (and ears) on what she’ll do next. But, that’s really the goal. 

“I want listeners to feel curious on what I’m doing next. I want them to get to know me in a way. I feel like I was vulnerable enough [on this EP] and raw enough. I want them to be curious of what I’m going to do and write about, and I hope they want to get to know me a little bit more as an artist and a person.” 

With that, I’d invite you to get to know Maz. It’s well worth your time. 

You can stream NPC below.