Fear of Men Interview
Fear of Men
TSH: How gratifying has it been for you guys to see your hard work recognised in the wake of your debut album release?
Daniel: We're on tour at the moment and the nicest and most rewarding thing has been seeing people sing our lyrics back to us and telling us what the songs mean to them at the merch desk afterwards.
Jess: We try not to focus on reviews much, but it has been really nice to see some of the reactions to the record.
TSH: Was the aspect of releasing the album and sharing the body of work a vulnerable process for you guys?
Jess: I think right before it was released I had a moment of panic, thinking about all the lyrics I wrote either for myself or specific people, and the thought of sharing them was daunting, but it's good to do things that you're afraid of. I think a record without vulnerability would be dull.
TSH: In what ways did you feel you challenged yourselves as individuals to bring out the most cohesive body of work you could possibly give?
Jess: Having never made an album before the whole thing was a massive learning curve, and we worked on a lot of songs that didn't make it to the final track listing.
Daniel: Making a cohesive body of work was always something that was on our minds during the making of the album. I like albums that are self-contained worlds. We thought a lot about the narrative of the album and the pacing of it and as a result some songs we recorded didn't make it, which was difficult but necessary I think.
TSH: Did you guys adopt any unorthodox methods to allow for a more versatile outcome?
Daniel: We thought a lot about production and methods of recording to ensure the album was as rich an experience to listen to as possible and to reflect some of the themes of the album. For instance, I wanted to create a sense of isolation at times, especially with Jess' voice and so we used a hallway that led to the studio to record some different parts. Unlike a regular recording room, which is designed to kill the natural ambience of a room, with the takes in the hallway you can really hear the room and Jess' place in it. You can hear that effect most prominently at the start of 'America'. We also recorded drums in there for a similar effect, much to the annoyance of the other company that shared the building the studio was in!
Jess: We recorded a lot at night after work and I think that definitely contributed to a nocturnal and claustrophobic atmosphere that informed the album.
TSH: For the progression of the music, what elements would you say are central to the band’s vision?
Daniel: We have our own rules that Jess, Mike and I seem to implicitly agree on and we have a good understanding between us of how we want to progress and push ourselves and the band's sound. I'm pleased we did quite a lot of recording in different places before recording this album as it allowed us to learn a lot about what works for us and what doesn't. As we start to think about the next album, we're interested in distilling some of those things we consider to be at the core of the band and pushing then to make something that could only be ours. I think that's the aim of most bands really.
TSH: Talk us through the aspect of getting the distortion just right for the album sound…
Daniel: I struggle with distortion a bit, especially when recording lead lines because it can all end up sounding so macho and overblown to me. I wanted to try and find a sound that was thick and broken up but without that rock lead quality. In the end I recorded most of the distorted guitars through a 10watt amp that was basically broken and then we drove it all really hard through the analogue mixing board. It was a really hard sound to replicate across the tracks though, sometimes it sounded great, and other times I just couldn't get it sounding like that. I probably spent days of recording time just trying to get that sound again!
TSH: ‘Vitrine’ is a standout song which conveys a sense of isolation and intimacy. Tell us about developing the song from a compositional sense and giving the song its reflective feel and aura…
Jess: When I initially wrote it, it was with a rhythm guitar so it had a very different feel. Dan's decision to take that out and work with organ as the main instrument gave it this feel of being some kind of personal hymn, which worked really well. It's very sparse and delicate with a feeling of despair.
TSH: Moreover, tell us about the sequencing significance of the album opener ‘Alta’ and album closer ‘Atla’ – again both songs are very intimate, stripped down songs…
Jess: There is a theme of twins running through the record, and those songs feel to us like a pair, two sides of the same coin. They could have been developed further but we felt that they stood for something interesting as they were, fully formed in their skeletal states.
TSH: With your musical productivity, how often do you keep in mind the feature of wanting to make music that evokes a feeling?
Jess: I'm not particularly prolific, so I do tend to write where the feeling takes me. I do sit down for active songwriting sessions, which can be fruitful, but I think the best things come to you fully formed, like ‘Alta’ and ‘Atla’, when you're really feeling something.
TSH: How key is the element of compromise within the band’s vocal discussions?
Jess: We all have a specific role in the band, and we have a level of love and respect for one another that we are able to be very honest in discussion. Generally though, we have a shared idea of what we want the band to be, so opinions that differ wildly are pretty rare.
TSH: Outside of music how do you guys like to unwind? …Also, whilst having downtime throughout tours do you guys still relax by watching David Attenborough nature documentaries?
Jess: I paint a lot, and spend time by the sea and with friends. Dan is very active and plays a lot of sports, and Mike has a motorbike. We still love David Attenborough!
Fear of Men - “Tephra”
Loom
