Cold sand on a barren coastline. Spectral blackness. Godless nights. The calmness of undisturbed water. The illusion of belonging. Death As A Gift. These are but a minute illustration of the vast array of themes and explorations deliberated upon by Austin, TX trio Glassing on their sophomore opus ‘Spotted Horse’. Weaving together layers upon layers of dense textures, swirling blast beats and looming atmospheres, Glassing excel at the art of organized chaos through sound. Across 10 songs and 44 minutes, Glassing blend elements of black metal and post-hardcore with ambient explorations, dream-pop sensibilities and grinding walls of sound that defy categorisation. ‘Spotted Horse’ is, at its core, a construction of dynamic, beautifully unsettling soundscapes and nothingness unsurfaced... We talk to member Dustin Coffman about fusing genres, the growth of the band and hobbies…
TSH: What sort of discussions and direction did the band outline as ‘Spotted Horse’ was coming together?
Dustin: We wanted the songs on ’Spotted Horse’ to share a collective headspace. In order to keep it as consistent as possible we decided to write the entirety of the record in one location. After we wrote the songs, it felt only natural to name the record after the ranch we recorded it at. The first album was a collection of aggressive songs with a hint at some introspective ambience. ‘Spotted Horse’ though, is an album to us that has movements and a pacing that is much more deliberate this time around.
TSH: What would you say informed the bulk of the instrumentation this time around – riffs, vocal lines, jamming sessions?
Dustin: We developed the songs nearly from scratch with no ideas prior to us visiting the ranch. In our case, normally one instrument or member controls the progression in writing a song, maybe someone starts off with an idea or riff, but this process allowed all three of us to feel equally responsible for our contributions to the overall album. The first record was much more a "one person brings most of a song written entirely" deal, and Spotted Horse was a team effort more so.
TSH: What was the level of focus like in the studio on a daily basis?
Dustin: We were working with an amazing sound engineer, Andrew Hernandez. Andrew made the studio feel like a temporary home to us. What normally would have been a stressful intense few days turned out to be so relaxing and fun that we were bummed when it was over.
TSH: Can you give us an insight into the themes and subject matter that come into play for this record…
Dustin: Diminishing faith, loss and isolation.
TSH: Which track took the longest to get right?
Dustin:’When You Stare’ it’s a pretty long song in general, but when we were listening back to it in the studio we realised we had forgotten an entire verse and had to re-record it!
TSH: What sort of motivations do you draw on to pen a track like ‘Coven’?
Dustin: We’ve had a fascination with the idea of bridging beautiful and desolate together. ’Coven’ came from Cory playing along to a trance-like electronic sample we had made, the sample itself sounded really bright, but Cory’s guitar tone and note choices gave it the type of contortion that resulted in ’Coven’ sounding slightly like an ominous trance.
TSH: Also, what does a track like ‘Way Out’ convey to you overall?
Dustin:’Way Out’ lyrically, uses light and blindness as metaphors for intemperance and disassociation. More specifically, through excess we’re offered a temporary refuge from the pain of our human experience. The adverse of that is just as appealing, feeling content in being purposeless because existence is purposeless. Absolute brightness and absolute darkness have the same end result in the metaphor which is the inability to see the common experiences in which we derive our humanity. Musically we tried to represent this concept by creating something that sounded triumphant and bright with sections that were as harsh as we could possibly make them, possibly to convey that there is salvation from both absolutes but not without sacrifice.
TSH: What sort of emotions did you guys feel upon applying the finishing touches to the record?
Dustin: Relief and a profound appreciation to the people that helped us do it.
TSH: Is it pleasing to know that your range on this release covers mid-tempo shoegaze, aggressive post-hardcore, black metal and post-metal – a fusion of so many genres…
Dustin: It’s nice to know that we’ve managed to somehow make that amalgamation work. There are many great bands out there that brought a lot of inspiration to the table.
TSH: Knowing that you at times struggle with knowing when to finish with a song – did end up with several variations of certain tracks?
Dustin: Yes, definitely. We actually played ‘Sleeper’ on the tour with This Will Destroy You with a beginning that was wildly different than what ended up on the record, which we're much happier with. Also, the first and last songs on the record went through many variations up until the point that we were rearranging parts the day before we went into the studio.
TSH: You pushed yourselves a great deal with this album, but the growth came naturally. How rewarding was this factor?
Dustin: I think it helped shed some light on how this machine is supposed to work. We get to reflect on the process that helped us work together to make something we’re proud of, it’s not always easy finding compromise with one another but the coherent aspect of our growth as a band helped solidify that as something we can remember for the future.
TSH: What are your primary hobbies outside of the band?
Dustin: We all play in other music projects. Cory plays in a pretty heavy band called ’Zyclops’ and performs ambient sets at a Yoga studio. Camacho plays in a band called ’Windows 1995’ with one of the members of ’Troller’. I just finished working on the soundtrack for a table-top game called ’Planet Kamra’ and have an upcoming project with one of the members of ’Boyfrndz’ called ’Gnarly Parker’.
TSH: What would you say defines the band’s ethos as you look ahead?
Dustin: Our city shapes us a lot. Our scene is alive and well. Bands like Exhalants, Portrayal of Guilt, Grivo, Easy Prey, etc. are all just so badass so we're really just trying to throw down as hard as they all do. But in general, we’re going to try and not take ourselves too seriously and just keep playing what we’re into.
Electric Youth’s self-produced ‘Memory Emotion’ is the yang to the ying of their acclaimed debut: whereas ‘Innerworld’ had an inward focus and the immersive atmospherics of a headphones album, the new LP looks outward, exploring a wider spectrum of sounds, moods and tempos, resulting in their most dynamic body of work yet. ‘Memory Emotion’ is much more outer-world, an album focused on the external world we live in and the way in which we interact with the world as a result of the emotions attached to our memories. ‘Innerworld’ was finding that sense of self, developing and establishing a viewpoint, and ‘Memory Emotion’ is Electric Youth taking that viewpoint with us out into the world… The Seventh Hex talks to the gifted duo about being in hyperfocus mode, the Toronto Raptors and arcade games…
TSH: How would you sum-up how your creative partnership evolved as you readied material for ‘Memory Emotion’?
Bronwyn: We’ve always been consistent in how we work creatively together, ever since we started. We’ve known each other since we were 10 years old and learned how to work within each other’s strengths and weaknesses over the years. Naturally we’ve gotten more comfortable and confident with our ideas and that only makes our partnership stronger. Prior to ‘Memory Emotion’, we’d completed one studio album and two scores for feature films, so each of those projects gave us a further level of experience we’d never had before, a maturity we felt while preparing for ‘Memory Emotion’.
TSH: What was the level of focus in studio like as you formed and fleshed out these tracks?
Bronwyn: We’re always working; even when we’re not working we’re subconsciously preparing ideas in our minds. One process on ‘Memory Emotion’ that was different than how we prepared for our first album is that we started with 800 ideas that we were compiling over the last 4 years and narrowed them down to the strongest ideas. When we finally selected the ones we wanted to flesh out, then it was hyperfocus mode in the studio, with two week recording sessions that would result in a finished song each time.
TSH: Tell us more about topics regarding the way in which we interact with the world and the emotions attached to our memories coming into play on this body of work…
Bronwyn: While ‘Innerworld’ was more introspective, it was our intention for ‘Memory Emotion’ to speak on more of the external world. It’s impossible to isolate ourselves from world events, despite the fact that we would like to just create art, because we’re always inundated with information.
Austin: Looking outside of ourselves, these things worked their way into much of the material in the same way these issues work their way into daily conversation. Science has proven the strong link that exists between music, memory and emotion, so we explored playing into that with this record as well and finding ways to bridge a meeting point of all these things, be it musically or lyrically. And whether consciously or subconsciously, the way a person reacts to the world around them has as much to do with the emotional memories attached to their past experiences as anything else. So in that sense, these memories are always a factor in current issues.
TSH: Does working from a place of spontaneity and trial and error help to yield some unexpected results for you both?
Austin: For sure. Spontaneity is in the front seat during the initial stages of an idea, then as we develop it further, once we’re closer to finishing the production, it becomes less about spontaneity and more about the trial and error of different approaches.
TSH: Which parts of the track ‘Real Ones’ did you have to labour over mostly to get the song to sound just right?
Austin: Probably the drums, it’s the perfect example of the trial and error part of the production process for us. I knew I wanted to use layered 70s rhythm box sounds on that one, which isn’t really something we’ve done before. So I went through rhythm box drum sounds from at least 100 different drum machines before arriving on the layering of the dozen or so used on that song.
TSH: Also, what is the track ‘Thirteen’ is in relation to?
Austin: It’s the first time we’ve co-written lyrics with someone outside of the two of us. It’s a song inspired by real life experiences of ours and our co-writer, at the same time it’s very universal experiences of deciding if a relationship is worth making an effort for. In the song it says “two pure hearts since we’re seventeen” but the song is called ‘thirteen’ because we first became a couple when we were thirteen, seventeen just sounds better in a song. It’s not about teen love though, relationships of any age deal with these matters.
TSH: Bronwyn, do you feel there was a particular shift or notable changes with your vocal delivery on this record?
Bronwyn: Not really. If anything I’d say we’ve only refined my vocal sound and really made a point of the vocal performances while recording. You may notice a lot of vocal layers in some of the songs on the record and what you’re actually hearing is a vocal synth we created specifically for ‘Memory Emotion’. Inspired by learning of the process 10cc underwent to do a similar thing for their timeless classic 'Not In Love', for ‘Memory Emotion, we built a sample based synthesizer we call the "B48", consisting of 624 individual samples of my voice, with each note consisting of 48 layers of my voice. It’s a big part of the sound on ‘The Life’ and ‘Breathless’ and ‘Real Ones’.
TSH: What were your intentions when you touched on wanting something more environmentally versatile with this record?
Austin: Creating an album that has songs for different moods rather than one specific mood throughout. By design, ‘Innerworld’ is an album that is much of the same mood throughout, and with it being our first album; we really wanted to make a point of establishing our core sound on that. Almost 5 years later, we’re still really happy with that record, and we accomplished what we intended to with it creatively. So for ‘Memory Emotion’, we wanted to explore different areas on the spectrum of our sound and create songs for different listening environments.
TSH: Are ideas regarding childhood still at the forefront of your minds and seeping into your music?
Austin: Not consciously, but on this album we experimented with what the subconscious effect would be of having certain items from childhood in the studio. Not with the intent of putting childhood memories at the forefront of our minds as much as just giving us a long running sense of self while working, of who we are and where we come from. We wanted to work in as personal of an environment as possible for this album, so we moved our studio from the commercial space it had been in since 2012 into a home studio environment, where we still had access to world class gear but in a space that was home. So we decorated it with things like the rug that was in our childhood living room, and art that used to be on our walls.
TSH: How rewarding has it been on your journey so far for you both to be honest with yourselves by not compromising creatively?
Austin: We’ve been so fortunate in that the things we’ve done that have resonated the most with audiences so far, have been the things we’ve been the most honest and uncompromising with. We’re happy to know that following our heart and coming from a place of true emotion with our work has done the best for us.
TSH: Which recent soundtracks have you been most impressed by lately?
Austin: In the last year or so, the First Man Soundtrack from Justin Hurwitz, Phantom Thread from Jonny Greenwood, Suspiria from Thom Yorke, and Cliff Martinez’s score for Nic Refn’s Too Old to Die Young. We wrote a couple songs for the series that didn’t end up in it, but Cliff’s score is really one of his best, the series didn’t end up requiring much in the way of songs outside of the score.
TSH: Have you managed to play any arcade games recently?
Austin: We haven’t been able to keep up with video games for years; our plan is to catch up when we’re retired. We still play old classic arcade games once in a while though and have a small collection of our own. The most recent we’ve played are A.P.B, Toobin and Galaga (Bronwyn’s Favourite).
TSH: Assuming you’re both NBA fans – your thoughts on the Raptors bringing joy to Toronto?
Bronwyn: Honestly, we don’t watch basketball that often, or many sports for that matter, but this was historic for the city. We couldn’t help but watch, and feel a sense of pride for Canada and the city of Toronto specifically. It was an opportunity for the city to connect. Never before have I seen so many Toronto Raptors fans wearing merch on the streets to support their city.
Austin: Drake is also a driving force for Toronto and the international profile of the city today, so it was only right that he’s been involved with the Raptors the way he has. He really broke some glass ceilings that had been in place in Toronto until he came along. He’s made a lot more people proud of where they come from and this year with the Raptors has been another glass ceiling broken.
TSH: What matters most with your musical endeavours as you look ahead?
Bronwyn: We look forward to touring ‘Memory Emotion’ in 2020, and getting deeper into the world of scoring film and creating our third studio album. Our next release will be the soundtrack to a film we scored last year that will be out next year, we don’t want to get in trouble so we can’t say the title yet.
Austin: It’s only been a few weeks since the release of ‘Memory Emotion’ so we’re really looking forward to it making its way out into the world further. In a lot of ways we’re still just getting started, there’s still a wealth of creativity to explore, we look forward to the next few years.
Ceremony make their Relapse Records debut with their highly ambitious new album, ‘In the Spirit World Now’. The album sees Ceremony at the height of their creative output, as the always-evolving Rohnert Park quintet take various influences from post punk and rock to create one of the summer's most compelling and infectious records. ‘In the Spirit World Now’ is full of layered sonic fury and anxiety, each song building up to a point and then descending down through a militant, catchy hook.‘In the Spirit World Now’ marks a milestone for this Northern California punk outfit who have stayed true to themselves as songwriters throughout massive sonic growth throughout their storied career… We talk to band member Andy Nelson about creating looking forward, performing live and recharging off tour…
TSH: What was the band dynamic like as you guys reconnected and began work on ‘In the Spirit World Now’?
Andy: Well, no Ceremony record really ever comes together without challenges. I think this is because we always have a goal of never doing anything that comes about easily. Nothing is ever predictable with us; as a result the only thing that we knew when we went into the studio this time was that the thing we were going to make would be an entirely new record on all fronts. Other bands probably approach things differently and stick to their distinct sound, but not us.
TSH: Did you outline certain goals this time around?
Andy: Our goal is to make stuff that we haven’t made before. It’s not really an issue of having to challenge ourselves. When you get to your 5th or 6th record it does get hard. It’s a pretty tense and emotional time for all involved in the band because we all are very unified in wanting to do better, and we aren’t gonna do something half hearted.
TSH: Did you create with a specific level of focus?
Andy: In creating the artwork, lyrics and what the songs were going to be, we created looking forward rather than anything else. The mindset of the band was to try to create something fully distinct and new. Ceremony wanted to create something that stood apart from anything we had done before.
TSH: Ross has mentioned that he used to be afraid of change, but now he embraces it...
Andy: I think with Ross there’s a sort of duality to it. He’s always sort of scared of change - not just with his creative choices but with life in general, but only he knows why he embraces this factor. I mean this band is so important to him and as a creator he constantly has the instinct to be something else and switch things up.
TSH: What led to the songs having more expansive palettes this time around?
Andy: The songs we wrote just led themselves to expansive palettes sonically, which meant using piano, synths, lots of guitar tracks and weird pedals. We didn’t really set out to instrument the album in a particular way, we just wrote the songs the way we always do and when we started tracking them and they took shape, we then realised what each song needed.
TSH: What stands out most when you overlook a track like ‘Turn Away the Bad Thing’?
Andy: That song actually took a while. The demo had a bridge that was just not quite right. However, we kept thinking about it, and then Anthony had the idea of bringing the bridge down like a Pink Floyd type of style. The verse and chorus was written the same way we write any other song but the bridge was new territory for us.
TSH: What does ‘Years of Love’ signify to you personally?
Andy: When you’re in the musical part of the band and you’re not in the lyric or singing part of the band, you tend to have a funny relationship with songs. I mean they are not your words or thoughts. I experience Ceremony through the lens of my friend. I feel that Ross has this great ability to write lyrics that are both energetic and they pump you up but the content of the lyrics are also inner-looking and forlorn... and these are along the lines of what this song means to me.
TSH: Do you feel that not reflecting on the evolution of the band keeps you motivated?
Andy: I guess so. This way of thinking is not cynical or reactionary that’s for sure. It’s tempting to simplify a lot of what our music is about and label each record with a certain style or angle or gimmick. However, in reality Ceremony has always written music in the exact same way whether it’s a demo from 2006 or the new record now. It’s the same people in room writing what feels good. When we finished this latest album, it felt good to know that we finally made a record that fully encompasses what we are capable of doing. It’s us at the height of our powers doing the stuff we do - whether it’s moody introspective stuff or unpredictable stuff - it’s all catchy and has a personality to it.
TSH: There’s always an atmospheric and pulsating feel when Ceremony performs live. How do you feel with more music to incorporate into the live shows?
Andy: I feel in ways it’s best to experience Ceremony live because it becomes clear what we are able to do as a band. We play a range of music - both old and new - our set ends up going to a lot of places. With regards to playing new material, it’s like using a colour metaphor - we’re adding some new colours to our palette, which allows our shows to be different and engaging for the audience.
TSH: Are there particular inspirations that you’ve been drawn to in recent times?
Andy: I’ve been thinking a lot about a writer named Mark Fisher. Mark used to do this blog called K-Punk and he wrote a bunch of books and essays about music and culture. He also wrote about capitalism, which was really great. He killed himself a few years ago, which was really tragic because he was one of the great thinkers in my opinion. Mark wrote a lot about the problems of living in the world these days, in particular how people don’t really have the ability to envision the future anymore. As a mass culture people have been broken down by the world being really bad because of things capitalism, or in this day and age Brexit or Trump. We’re stuck in constant loops of revisiting the same things over and over again - which explains nostalgic culture, band reunions, television reboots and even irony seeping into advertising. It’s a horrible way to live.
TSH: What are your touring downtime essentials?
Andy: You never get much free time on tour unless you have a big bus crew; then you can fuck around all day. I used to be a big record collector, but I have gotten spoilt over the years and I don’t want to have to look after the records I’ve purchased. Maybe this makes me old and boring, haha! I’m also a big coffee guy. I like to figure out where the best coffee places are on tour and experience them.
TSH: Is recharging and rest when you’re back home a must for you?
Andy: Yes, rest and sleep is so important when I’m back home. I meditate at home and do a fair bit of yoga. I started transcendental yoga a few years ago and it’s really helpful. I’m a huge movie guy too. I saw the new Tarantino movie (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) recently and it was really good. It’s definitely one of his more upbeat movies, and it’s more sophisticated than people give it credit for. Also, I’m really excited to see this movie Parasite too; it’s by this Korean director Bong Joon-ho. I recently finished this book called On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by a poet named Ocean Vuong, which was great. It’s written as a letter to this kid’s mom. I love it when poets write novels.
TSH: What is your biggest drive with Ceremony as you look ahead?
Andy: My greatest interest with music is creating stuff with my friends. Also, it’s so vital to try to communicate on some level. This aspect itself can take lots of different forms, it’s doesn’t just have to be a chat between people - it can be all kinds of things. Travelling and playing music is part of this for me too. Also, creating records that become part of people’s lives is part of this too. In a sense I do agree with Oscar Wilde that art is useless, but it’s also kind of the only thing. It’s important to have even a small effect on the world. Our way to have impact is via collective action, and being in a band is a form of this. All of us in Ceremony create stuff because that’s what we do - and there’s not really an off switch for that.
Drax Project are an exquisite marriage of stellar musicianship and killer songs. This combination, coupled with their incendiary live show has led them on a two year run of sold out venues as both headliners and openers. The group gained a following after re-working vocal hooks of famous pop songs into saxophone licks. Their cover of Kimbra’s track, “Goldmine,” went viral and caught the attention of an influential producer and soon they were signed to a major label. With a new body of work underway, Drax Project is currently gearing up to release their debut album and take the world by storm. Deemed “delicious pop with a prodigal feel” by Clash Magazine, Drax Project has seen an astronomical rise to success. The four-piece, comprised of Shaan, Matt, Ben and Sam, went from busking on the streets of Wellington, NZ, to playing alongside massive acts such as Ed Sheeran, Camila Cabello and Lorde... We talk to Sam Thomson about performing live, theme parks and table tennis…
TSH: What’s satisfied you most with regards to the band’s amazing progression to date?
Sam: I think seeing people singing our music back to us at shows all around the world is pretty satisfying. I don’t think we seriously pictured that happening when we started busking!
TSH: Are there certain distinct memories that come to mind from your days of studying music together at university?
Sam: Missing morning classes because we were playing in a club till 3am springs to mind. It was awesome to be playing jazz and studying music during the day - followed by playing heaving club gigs at night. Those early days definitely informed our sound.
TSH: You’ve touched on enjoying playing live just as much as writing and recording music – which features with both of these in mind do you appreciate most?
Sam: For us, writing and recording is about getting the best possible product of everything we do, from the guitar part to every vocal take, to getting the drums just right. It’s so satisfying when we get the final version back! With playing live, it’s all about creating energy and making sure everyone has a great time! We have the most fun when we’re on stage and feeding off of the crowd.
TSH: Knowing you’re a high energy band, can it be a challenge at times to translate this into your recording?
Sam: Absolutely. Our latest release, ‘All this Time’ is a prime example. We’ve been playing that song live for over two years and couldn’t quite figure out how to get the massive saxophone drop to work on the recording. Luckily we had some help from some amazing producers (Roget Chahayed, Wesley Singerman and Tay Dex) who helped nail our vision for the song!
TSH: You’ve also stated that you’re ‘more and more comfortable writing in the last year’ – what sort of topics have you been drawn to expressing for your album?
Sam: I think we’ve become a lot more comfortable expressing how we’re feeling about a lot of things. One song on the upcoming album is about how it’s been for us being away from home for extended periods. We’ve also gravitated towards exploring how thoughts and emotions interact, which is fun! The album has grown with us over the last few years and it’ll be something we look back on very fondly in the future!
TSH: What was the energy and level of focus like as you fleshed out ‘All this Time’?
Sam: We first came up with the ‘drop’ in Sam’s old work place in Wellington and knew we had something good to work with. We tested it live and it went off at every show for a couple of years before finally finishing it this year. To be honest, there was a time when we thought we wouldn’t ever release it because we couldn’t get it right but once it started to come together, it was pretty exciting. It’s probably the most anticipated track of ours, by us mostly!
TSH: Moreover, what was the experience like in collaborating on ‘Light’ with Famous Dex?
Sam: That was super fun. We were sent the song with space in the hook for us to write over and came up with something in a hotel room in Auckland and it stayed! It was the first thing we came up with. Dex has some crazy energy and it was cool to collaborate with an artist people might not have expected.
TSH: How beneficial and vital is it for Drax Project’s camaraderie that everyone has equal input and that you try every idea that gets put forward?
Sam: This is very important to us! Having the freedom to test every idea makes for a better product in our opinion. We each have unique and interesting ideas to offer and there’s no weak link. It’s also great if anyone’s struggling to come up with anything to have 3 other guys to lean on!
TSH: How rewarding is it to know that fans all over have made personal connections with your music?
Sam: It’s what it’s all about. Without people supporting us and our music, we don’t get to do the things we do! We’ve had countless messages about how our songs have helped people through different seasons and tough times. On the opposite side, just seeing people dancing and having a great time while listening to us never ever gets old!
TSH: What makes ‘Nacho Libre’ such a top film?
Sam: Characters, plot, conflict, resolution, structure, scenes, dialogue and visuals!
TSH: Also, being fans of theme parks, have you visited any new ones in recent times?
Sam: We’ve only really experienced Six Flags but are more than willing to try any others if we get the chance. Theme parks rule.
TSH: What have you been playing on your Nintendo Switch recently?
Sam: Shaan and Ben are the Switch fiends. They play a lot of Supersmash Bro’s but as a group, the new Crash Team Racing is life changing. They’ve managed to perfectly balance introducing new characters and maps etc with keeping it real to the OG.
TSH: Who is the current king of Drax Project’s table tennis duels?
Sam: Matt, no question. He is so dominant and we all bow down to his greatness.
TSH: What’s been getting most regular rotation on your YouTube binges lately?
Sam: ‘Tiny Desk’ concerts and ‘Genius - Deconstructed’ videos are always a favourite.
TSH: Finally, how key is the notion of staying humble and grounded as you progress further?
Sam: It’s not something that works well if you are ‘trying’ to stay humble! At the end of the day, we’re just four friends from New Zealand on a crazy adventure making music! We are so grateful for everyone who listens to us, comes to shows or even just sends nice messages.
In addition to his role as one half of Wye Oak, Stack has gained notoriety in recent years as a multi-instrumental collaborator with Lambchop, EL VY, Helado Negro, Madeline Kenney, and Thor Harris, among others. ‘Release the Dogs’, Andy Stack’s solo debut full-length as Joyero, is impacted by the solitude of West Texas and how the musical community in his new home of North Carolina pushes his current project forward. With his debut solo record, Andy Stack puts his own voice front and centre. Written and recorded primarily in Marfa, Texas, during a transitional moment between records, cities, and relationships, ‘Release the Dogs’ occupies its own liminal space between the natural and the man-made, between the structures we create to keep ourselves safe and the terrifying enormity that exists beyond them. Throughout the record, organic and electronic elements are seamlessly woven together into a single fabric that can be both intimate and explosive… We talk to Andy about working in isolation, walking his dogs and future plans…
TSH: What was the starting point for you in taking the solo route?
Andy: The starting point for me was reconnecting with my voice as a songwriter, which I had kind of let slip for years. When I was in the beginning with Wye Oak - the first couple of records - I was singing more. Both Jen and I were looser with our roles in the band. But for a number of reasons we fell more into specific roles and when that happened I kind of fell away a little from lyric writing and using my voice. So it was definitely a process of exploration for me to get back in touch with my voice and my lyric writing.
TSH: Does Joyero give you a specific stance knowing you’re more hands on?
Andy: Absolutely. It felt different to picking up an instrument after all these years. I feel more physically connected to the music because it’s my body I’m using, you know?
TSH: Did you outline certain aims from a production standpoint?
Andy: I brought a sensibility into this record that I think was pretty similar to how I always approach stuff, but the difference here was that it was a solitary process. When I was writing and recording for this album, most of the time I was living in a town in far West Texas and it was a really isolated place.
TSH: With the record being completed a while ago, what have you learnt about yourself in the time since?
Andy: The record’s been done for over a year now, but I’ve been sitting in line waiting for a release date amidst touring and doing a bunch of things for other projects. A couple of winters ago is when it was coming together. I lived in Marfa for 4 years and what it did was it forced me to change my process a little. I’ve always been a collaborator and thought of myself in that way and then I found myself in this place that was very solitary and I had to work on my own. If I wanted this thing to come through, I had to do everything myself. It was a process of having to take leave and trust myself a little bit.
TSH: Did you embrace this challenge?
Andy: Yeah, I love working on my own. I mean it was a pretty raw time in my life and I think that a lot of these songs capture that space emotionally. I really enjoy occupying a liminal and emotional space that evokes confusion and ambivalent feelings about the world. I spend a lot of time making this record and inhabiting these sort of expressions. These are not always fun topics to cover, but I certainly found it rewarding.
TSH: Does the notion of covering paranoia on this record stem from certain avenues?
Andy: That’s mostly to do with the state of the world. We’re living in this paranoiac weird dream state right now and it’s seems to be the new normal. I’m definitely channelling some of that on this record - it’s not a literal thing, but there’s a lot of personal parallels in the songwriting that are to do with different things going on in my personal life or stuff that I was meditating on that weirdly was able to exist in the same space as this paranoiac stuff. I guess I’m implying that in a existential humanistic way we’re all dealing with these crazy problems in the world.
TSH: Do you assign new meanings to your songs afterwards?
Andy: There are lot of layers to my music and I often don’t try and peel them. I let them marinate and I hope someone else feels the layers when they hear the songs. Hopefully they can take on new meanings with listeners in various ways.
TSH: Does ‘Salt Mine’ have a clear-cut narrative?
Andy: It’s a fictional narrative of a song. It’s about dumping a body, haha! Again that’s a song that inhabits a lot of emotional space and sort of asks the listener to not look for clear answers.
TSH: What are the origins of ‘Smalltown Death’?
Andy: That one is a pretty free-flowing track and it came together very quickly. It’s sort of a mediation on where I was living. It started out as a country song and then went in some other directions. I was living in Texas when I wrote the record and there’s a good bit of stuff on this album that’s front porch music, and this song is one of them.
TSH: Do you pull from much non-musical elements for your creativity?
Andy: Yeah, totally. A lot of this record came from walking my dogs. I would just go out in Texas for long walks in the middle of this empty ranch land. I’d often roll around ideas in my head for hours as I was walking my dogs. The solitude of walking the dogs and the meditative repetition of doing this is where a lot of ideas came from.
TSH: Is that you’re way of relaxing and getting into a good headspace - via being in quiet nature?
Andy: Yes, I love it so much. I also love to go running and hiking - it’s so therapeutic. Also, a lot of my lyric writing is a lot to do with tricking my brain into shutting down and going into steam of consciousness and then letting stuff come out. I like to often be in a flow-state via hiking, running and being disconnected from all the garbage that is constantly being fed to us these days. It just feels so healing and productive to get away from it all.
TSH: In addition to the dogs, there’s a cat named Yoko on your Instagram too...
Andy: Haha! I miss Yoko. She was my friend Madeleine’s cat, who actually sings on the record. She moved away and had to leave Yoko behind unfortunately. I was heartbroken, but I’m glad I snapped her loads. She was a wonderful cat.
TSH: Are there notable aspirations that you have for this project as you look ahead?
Andy: I certainly have creative aspirations for this project. It feels like I’m already moving in the right direction, especially since I’ve been playing more shows. The live aspect is really informing the creative direction of this project. The textures, instruments and arrangements that I’m adopting for the live format are already informing where the next record will go and that’s really exciting for me. And because of this I can already tell you that my next record will be more sax heavy, ha!
‘Big Dread Moon’ by Claire Cronin is a record of spiritual urgency. Cronin's lyrics and melodies draw on the stranger aspects of early American musical tradition, revealing the genre’s ties to “folk horror,” wherein supernatural and mundane worlds merge. Quietly sinister ballads like ‘Tourniquet’ and ‘Wolfman’ arise from the weird logic of dream, myth, and half-forgotten memories. Suburban homes, TV screens, and city landscapes are haunted by saints, beasts, ghosts, seers, and a “calm and decisionless” god. Lyrics which implore or command act like prayers or spells embedded inside Cronin's fever dream stories and personal confessions. These are devastatingly spare, delicate, emotionally intense songs, arranged around electric guitar, viola, and Cronin’s singular voice… We talk to Claire about her natural songwriting style, orange wine and mystery walls…
TSH: As you readied ‘Big Dread Moon’, were you drawn towards certain types of expressions and perspectives?
Claire: I didn’t have a message going into making this album; I just sort of proceeded intuitively and wrote the songs over several years. At the end of it, I realised that I had records worth of songs and that a lot of them had very similar themes and images. I generally let the songs guide the way. I soon realised that the songs were extremely gothic and that there was a lot of horror imagery and recurring moods coming into play. From then on, everything fell into place so naturally.
TSH: It must have been pleasing to have a range of personal interests like your PhD, poetry and horror films bleeding into this album...
Claire: Yes, all these factors definitely informed parts of the album. It was just nice to see things come together so naturally with my songwriting. With other forms of writing like an essay or a non-fiction prose I generally have to have an indication as to what I’m doing. However, songwriting is much more intuitive and it just has its own intelligence - I feel like if I step in too much and try to mess with it, it makes the songs worse.
TSH: In what ways does reciting ancient prayers feature on this album?
Claire: I think that’s just to do with my background and my current spirituality. I come from a very devout catholic family on both sides, but I’d say they are both superstitious Catholic types that pray to dead people and saints a lot, ha! However, I’m interested in the occult and I’ve done some different things in relation to this. I just have the kind of mind that no matter how sceptical or nihilistic I’ve been at different moments in my past, I still tend or want to see things in religious terms as though there’s this invisible battle going on and if I say the incantations then I can protect myself, haha.
TSH: You recorded the record at Figure 8 studios in Brooklyn with Shazad Ismail. What was it like to have him on your side?
Claire: Shazad was great and so helpful. My husband who plays viola and some other instruments with me when we play shows is friends with him and that’s how we set that up. It was all very fast and we were only there for one weekend. We flew in from Georgia with all that we could afford in terms of money and time. I think it worked so well because the songs were so sparse and I didn’t want to make a big studio album. I didn’t look to add a million things and the record was pretty close to the live sounds.
TSH: In terms of sequencing for this album did you identify ‘Tourniquet’ early on as the album opener?
Claire: Not initially, but once all the songs were recorded I thought it was one of the strongest songs and so did Owen, who runs the Orindal record label. That song is very stark and straightforward, I feel like it sets me up as a sort of speaker or a character and the rest of the songs proceed from there. So it’s like you know who's talking to you.
TSH: What do you recall in bringing together the song ‘Six Guns’?
Claire: That was a really hard song to write. I went back and forth with the verses but I loved the bridge and how the timing changes so I couldn’t give up on the song. There was something about the rhythm that reminded of an old Irish fight song or an Irish step-dance. I was trying to feel a little bit of those styles with the instrumentation but not in some obvious way.
TSH: Do your vivid and mundane dreams still seep into your songwriting?
Claire: Yeah, I guess so. I mean I don’t have a specific example, except that songwriting itself is very dreamlike and when you’re in the right state of mind - which is rare - it’s a bit like a trance or a dream. You become sort of passive and you give yourself over to these images from dreams or things that you’ve seen or that have happened to you, but you barely remember them and they form new stories.
TSH: You also admire some current gifted songwriters such as Aldous Harding and Adrienne Lenker (Big Thief) too...
Claire: Yeah, they are both so gifted and talented. I don’t think I could ever write songs like either of them and they write totally different songs from each other. Nonetheless, there’s something so unusual about both of their songwriting styles - it feels very emotional but also a little abstract. I really enjoy their music because there’s something else going on with their songwriting besides the traditional diary entry.
TSH: You recently moved from Georgia to California. Are you still having to deal with having no internet?
Claire: Ha! Well, the internet came today - thank goodness. Also, I made the crazy choice to adopt two dogs - now I have new issues to deal with…
TSH: Leaving them behind whilst touring is going to be quite the hassle...
Claire: I know! I’m really going to miss them. First things first though, I need to get them to stop peeing on the furniture!
TSH: Being a fan of crime style TV series like True Detective, have you delved into any other notable TV shows lately?
Claire: I mainly watch a lot of the HBO series - they have all the classics and highly rated stuff. Also, I’ve been watching a lot of old Unsolved Mysteries too.
TSH: Speaking of True Detective, you made a crime/mystery type wall in Georgia - have you put one up in your new place?
Claire: I do need to create one! But first I need to find out what the mysteries are in my new area. I actually went to this sort of block party and met a bunch of neighbours last night. I was trying to ask what the mysteries of the street and area were, but nobody wanted to tell me. I’ll wait, ha!
TSH: How valuable and beneficial is it for you to have your partner Ezra on board and so closely attached to your musical ventures?
Claire: It’s so great to have him on board and I really appreciate the support both emotionally and logistical. Ezra is a talented musician with his own background. He’s played in a bunch of bands and done some solo stuff too. He has really good taste and he makes really smart choices. I most definitely value the input that he adds to the songs, even though the songwriting still has to remain a private endeavour for me.
TSH: Is orange wine a strong preference for you to choose to unwind with when you’re not immersed in music?
Claire: Haha! I love orange wine! I wish I could find some more out here. Outside of music I like the regular things that people do. I mostly like taking walks and having drinks with friends. Oh, and I really like to exercise.
TSH: Do you have certain goals with your artistic choices as you look ahead?
Claire: The main goal is honestly to just keep writing songs, making music and recording a new batch of songs. Essentially I’m just trying to spread the word to more people. I’ve really appreciated the reviews in the press for ‘Big Dread Moon’, it means a lot to me - the positive reactions have been so pleasing. Heading forward, I just want to play more shows and I’d love to go over to Europe too. I’m taking things in my stride and just enjoying the ride for now.
Empath goes far beyond the sound of birds faintly chirping. They’re a band that writes songs like communing with nature, bringing all their fuzzed and tripped out idiosyncrasies into harmony. Empath began in 2016 when Garrett Koloski, Emily "Jem" Shanahan, and Catherine Elicson moved into a house in West Philadelphia together, with Randall Coon joining shortly after. Even with the simple vision to shred, there’s a natural sensitivity in the way Empath communicates. Between the contrast of Elicson’s lush, almost delicate vocals, Koloski’s boisterous drumming, and the half-harmonious wash of guitar and Shanahan and Coon’s synths, Empath equips us with a healthy dose of emotional repose… We talk to the band about timeline restraints, touring downtime and desert island records…
TSH: Were there specific primary experiences you drew upon for your album ‘Active Listening: Night on Earth?
Empath: We wanted to create something immersive and other-worldly yet accessible and filled with memorable hooks. There were times in the van together where we listened to a lot Tegan and Sara or Fleetwood Mac and the melodies and perfect pop songwriting just felt overwhelming at times. When certain parts of songs hit, it just makes you want to cry. For us, a good pop melody can be a vehicle of transcendence, so a lot of inspiration is drawn from those experiences. Similarly, noise can also feel transcendent. The idea of layered sounds that aren’t really graspable on first listen and take you through a sonic journey were also driving forces behind the record.
TSH: How many voice memos did you have to choose from and tamper with?
Empath: When the songs are in their bedroom phase it’s all kind of recorded in voice memos. And then every evolution of the song requires more voice memo-ing. But beyond the songs themselves, there are a lot of field recording type noises that ended up on the record too. Some were in voice memos and some on a Zoom recorder. Total voice memos for this record = 60 with titles such as “Pasta recording” and “Rowing with Keyngs”.
TSH: How would you describe the band’s jamming sessions when new music is coming together?
Empath: Catherine brings a riff down into the basement, and that’s when Garrett and Catherine figure out the tempo, vibe and how freaky we wanna get it. Once us two, jam it out / loosely structure it (which usually doesn’t take that much time, we’re quick), then Randall and Jem add their keyboard parts and at that point it’s usually nothing like the original riff that Catherine came up with in her bedroom.
TSH: What were the most challenging features in bringing together this record?
Empath: Timeline! We tried to bust it out pretty quick. We started writing it mid-summer 2018 then we recorded it in 5 days in mid -November 2018. Then mixed and mastered it by early February. It was a very expedited process because we were all sick of working for meagre wages. We yearned to achieve something more than serving rich kids and yuppies lattes and pizza. We still have to do that but there are more things to look forward to now… It was also quite difficult to find a recording space since we had no funding. Then Walter Schreifels came to the rescue, and we ended up renting his beautiful home in upstate New York for cheap and set up everything there.
TSH: Do you embrace the notion of having spontaneity and trial and error when you formulate new songs?
Empath: I think some of my favourite parts about writing songs are meshing two things that don’t typically fit together. I like making somewhat pop formulations but making them as heavy as possible, or as fast as we can make it. Being sloppy and tasteful is fun. Always trying to fit as many things together with little space.
TSH: What is your song ‘Pure Intent’ in relation to?
Empath: Waking up and remembering all your thoughts and feelings, then getting out of bed.
TSH: Also, how many iterations of the track ‘Heaven’ did you have before settling on the final version?
Empath: Just the one on ‘Crystal Reality’ and the one on ‘Night on Earth!’ We thought the song deserved a higher quality recording with Randall’s parts added.
TSH: Do you feel touring is all about the little pleasures, bearing in mind the limited time you have to sight-see and take in of various landscapes, cultures etc.?
Empath: We always try to have some fun extracurricular activities when time allows. We’re going to SUR restaurant in Los Angeles for Cathy’s birthday this upcoming tour and NOTHING could be more exciting. In the past we’ve made time for Glacier and Zion national parks, which were both mind-blowing. The best aspects of touring are the never ending sleepovers with your best friends.
TSH: What features of West Philadelphia does the band love most?
Empath: Clark Park, our houses, friends, beautiful cherry blossoms in the spring, stinky ornamental pear trees, so much Ethiopian food, staying inside during rush week and the free pickings when the students leave, they literally throw everything away.
TSH: What’s pleased you most about Empath’s progression to date?
Empath: The opportunity to focus more of our time on creating art rather than clocking in to work.
TSH: What are your downtime essentials when you’re not involved with music?
Empath: Cathy loves reading, cooking, walking while listening to podcasts, drinking coffee, putting outfits on and watching Real Housewives or Vanderpump Rules. For Garrett it’s all about always staying busy and always being on the hunt for cool old music and sounds. Randall likes spending time in his garden and a soldering station, as well as hiking and hunting for mushrooms. Finally, Jem likes going to the park, going to happy hour, watching rom coms, day dreaming, eating cheese boards, late night hangs on her porch and pondering nature.
TSH: How did your previous band name Insane Clown Puss come to be?
Empath: It just popped in to our genius minds one day. Then when we ran into some copyright issues we had to think fast and came up with Empath by combing Catherine and Jem’s names. Whoop whoop!
TSH: What does it mean to you to express yourself through music?
Empath: Applying everything you’re inspired by to creating a listening experience for yourself and other people.
TSH: What are your top 5 desert island records?
Empath: Garrett: Antichrist Superstar… Catherine - I See a Darkness by Bonnie Prince Billy… Randall - Replicas by Tubeway Army… Jem: Paul Simon- Rhythm of the Saints… And as a collective we’ll go for Tegan and Sara - the Con!
Albums by Maria Usbeck unfold like the pages of a travel diary. Inspired and informed by her childhood in South America, her young adult life in New York City, and her many world travels in between, it’s music made by a visiting outsider, tapping into a shared core of human expression. Maria returns with her sophomore album, ‘Envejeciendo’, a collection of songs three years in the making, written and recorded across New York City, New Zealand, Japan, and Florida. Titled for the Spanish word for “aging,” ‘Envejeciendo’ is a concept album exploring the universal obsession with youth and our preoccupation with growing older. The tracks are anchored in Usbeck’s personal experiences with adulthood. Navigating unpopular subject matter with humour and tenderness, ‘Envejeciendo’ manages to be much more than a vehicle for sentimentality, and comes with the added benefit of a slew of beach-worthy, rose-tinted toe-tappers… We talk to Maria about using more of our brain, religion and visiting Galapagos…
TSH: How would you summarise your songwriting stance as you readied ‘Envejeciendo’?
Maria: The concept for the record which is the aging process is sort of what guided each song as I was writing them. Like I did for ‘Amparo’ my first solo album, I compiled ideas and sounds that I thought worked within the concept. Slowly mixing it all and defining each track to tackle its subject. It’s almost as if once I’ve got the overall idea for the record, I start living life slowly collecting whenever I find something that fits.
TSH: Having delved into youth and death on this release, do you feel you aligned yourself with these topics for certain reasons?
Maria: Yes, the idea came to me when a friend that I had not seen in a while mentioned that I had a lot of greys - meaning grey hairs that had grown on my head. At first I took it as an offense, it made me feel strange. Then later after reflecting about it more and more I came to the conclusion that it’s all in my head literally. The idea that changing and growing is frowned upon or not as interesting or attractive as youth is something we’ve been told by society - these strange norms of beauty that have been inflicted onto us. That’s just the physical aspect; I started noticing that my way of thinking was changing in regards to activities in my life such as partying. Going out doesn’t seem as appealing to me and certain things are becoming more of a priority over the “fun things”. This record is a reaction of how I feel about the topic and trying to get myself to embrace changing.
TSH: Having looked into the aging process, what did you take away from this subject overall?
Maria: It’s a process that I could dig into for eternity. I wish, obviously I won’t live that long. What I took away is that I really don’t have any answers on many things such as why certain people live longer than others, is it climate? Is it lifestyle? There really are a lot of factors and there is no real true way to prolong life. But we shall see what stem cell research comes up with. I also think that writing this record has helped me embrace the changes that age brings and hopefully people feel this way when they listen to the songs. Best to relax about it. Loving my greys now.
TSH: For this record was the idea of using your surroundings and travels to collage the songs a factor that came into play?
Maria: Yes, but not as much as it was on my previous record. On this one I did spend a lot of time digging the internet for answers. Technology rather than the real world came into play.
TSH: You had the gifted Jorge Elbrecht on board to mix this record, what was the experience like in working with him?
Maria: I’ve known Jorge for ages and he is endlessly talented. I’ve been wanting to work with him for a very long time. Very happy he was able to jump in and mix this record. He is very sensible and has the ears of a moth. Moths have the best hearing supposedly of any creature on earth. Moths and Jorge. I would recommend anyone to work with him if given the chance.
TSH: Talk us through the incentives that you drew on for the track ‘Adios A Mi Memoria’…
Maria: Well, I’m not sure if its technology dumbing us down or if it really is just aging but I find myself forgetting things. And the main inspiration for this song has been watching my grandfather deal with his hints of Alzheimer’s. Sometimes he is super sharp; sometimes he has no idea where he is. It’s really shocking to encounter this, but it also made me think that for him it’s a relief perhaps from some realities. Maybe when we get the brain chip implant that connects us all to the internet we won’t need to memorise or forget anything at all. Joking! I really hope we don’t go there, sounds terrifying and sort of the opposite of evolution in a way. I think we should be pushing to utilise more of our brain rather than just outsourcing it to devices.
TSH: What led you to selecting ‘Nostalgia’ as the album closer?
Maria: That’s what it all comes down to really. I can be nostalgic about physical things as well as emotional. I can miss certain smells and sounds from home as well as miss how my skin looked like 10 years ago. It all falls into this feeling. So it made sense for me to close the record with this song. Sound wise it also captivates some of my favourite sounds; it’s the dessert of the record.
TSH: Can you tell us more about the significance of the inclusion of the recorded interview with your late grandmother on this album?
Maria: My grandma was such a magical person. So full of life and very in touch with her emotions, and she lived in dreams. She read a lot and transported herself into stories. She would often talk out loud about her life and once I decided to record her. That’s where the sample came from. It just happened to be that she talked about this idea of a long lost loved one and I coincidentally was writing about this after meeting a man in New Zealand who brought up the topic. I had to then include her. Also, her voice was always one of the strongest and most emotional I’ve ever heard. So from the perspective of the sound itself it was a no brainer.
TSH: How vital can it be when forming new music to step outside of your comfort zone to allow for new perspectives?
Maria: I think it’s vital; I really did do that for my last record as much as I could. For this one I wasn’t able to as much. It’s interesting that you just get completely different results by experimenting more and more. That’s why I also try to work with others; always working with someone to co-produce helps me get that outsider perspective. I can get pretty wrapped up in concept and sounds very quickly.
TSH: Being immersed in music, which aspects do you feel most deeply connected to via being a musician?
Maria: The writing process and once I’m onstage - I love it. I feel at home. Right before it, I’m insanely nervous and weird but when I get up there it’s comfy. But yes, writing is my favourite part of it all: being able to express ideas via sounds.
TSH: Does religion and experiences of religion seep into your state of mind and thinking?
Maria: It did in the past. I grew up catholic so for my last record I had to express that. Let it all out and confess to the world, haha. I just had a lot of anger and resentment towards religion. I’ve calmed down quite a bit since then and now I choose to just practice my own beliefs which are purely scientific. But I do think that it’s important to embrace and to understand that we are small in this large universe and whether it’s just this one or multiple parallel ones, one has to keep centred and remain calm. It’s easy to overwhelm yourself thinking of the origin of things and the fate we may have. So if religion helps you to remain centred from any outer type of spiritual guidance, that’s excellent. Just no fanatics for me, thanks.
TSH: What were your highlights in visiting Galapagos for the second time recently since childhood?
Maria: Talk about a spiritual journey! It was incredible! The whole thing was a highlight. To be able to experience being there is beyond anything I’ve done anywhere else. It’s a magical place. I recently learned to swim so I was able to go snorkelling and that was definitely one of my favourite moments out there. Looking at the fish and sea turtles was great and I even saw a penguin swimming around and a manta ray. I felt like I couldn’t breathe for the first few minutes because it was so special - my body was in a slight shock. The ocean is a magnificent place and we must work hard to protect it. I’m cutting down my usage of plastics as much as possible and I hope this catches on for everyone.
TSH: What’s downtime like for Maria Usbeck?
Maria: Chillaxing in the woods on my hammock, spending time with my dogs and reading. And the most important part is the wondering. My friends and partner think that I space out a lot… I’m somewhere else sometimes in my head. This is my downtime - my mental exploratory time. It’s very important to wonder. I feel nowadays with phones and so much visual stimulation we don’t have the time to do so. Make the time if you can.
TSH: Finally, what sort of ambitions do you have in mind for your musical endeavours as you look ahead?
Maria: Just to continue to be able to work on more music. Hopefully it’s something that I will enjoy more and more as I grow older rather than the opposite. We shall see! I’m not interested in material success, I just want to able to find the time to express myself musically. If not, I guess there is always therapy and I’ll go there to express my feelings instead.
Introducing a singular genre of “social pop”, Petite Meller’s dance the pain away, melancholic dance music has been praised by outlets such as PAPER, Noisey, i-D, TIME and more. She carved out an inimitable niche on her 2016 full-length debut, ‘Lil Empire’ and has racked up over 50 million streams and counting across all platforms. Following the release of her critically acclaimed debut album ‘Lil Empire’ and breakout hit ‘Baby Love’, Petite Meller returns with the unpredictable, undeniable, and upbeat ‘Aeroplane’. Tribal North African wedding drums, rooted in the origins of Petite’s mother, give way to shimmering strumming before spiralling off towards a tropically-inspired bridge. Her voice careens from bouncy verses into an immediately irresistible call-and-response chant. Petite’s new single heralds the arrival of more new game changing music coming later this year — promising a side of her we have yet to meet… We talk to Petite Meller about genius and madness, Tokyo streets and reading…
TSH: What are the primarily influences that have informed and impacted your latest batch of songwriting?
PM: Mental disorders really fascinate me. For this album, I wrote my thesis in philosophy on psychosis and the sublime, about the connection between the genius and madness, and how art affects the mind, similar to a psychotic seizure. Dying and sanity are topics I deal with on this album. It has darker sides I dealt with in these last 2 years and it has big ballads too. It's about pain in the heart, sometimes asking let us be, let us rest - about the sprawled position of our era, lying passive on beds behind screens, we are striving to say the unsayable. For me, it can be only through music.
TSH: Your vivid imagination has always left an imprint on your music. What’s at the heart of your thinking in recent times?
PM: I always imagine the visuals whilst in the studio writing the songs. I have the treatments for my next videos already envisioned - every second of it, scenes from Tarkovsky The Trial by Orson Welles and George Lukas. It's all information of classic cinema moments I love or scenes I've experienced in the last year. ‘Aeroplane’ is about how music can uplift the soul and the body can fly through any borders and connect hearts. In the video, I fly through USA - the reference scene is Juliette Binoche in Bad Blood, where she is flying on the runway and take-offs like an aircraft.
TSH: Tell us more about your approach in having the idea of sacrificing yourself and following the music…
PM: My ear is my compass, a single note or sound can lead me to write songs. When I landed in Rio, I recorded the sturdiest sounds as I fell in love with the Portuguese language. I used that recording in the ‘Aeroplane’ song as things I collect from my travels lead me to write music. The bongos sent me to Africa, the flute to Mongolia, etc.
TSH: What sort of grandiose and classical aspects have you incorporated into your upcoming music?
PM: I wanted to give the album a grandeur and classical feel – like living on an earthquakey world - a soundtrack to the meaning of life. I always see something genius in mental disorder. I don't see it as a disease, but as an expanding of the mind that fascinates me. It takes pain to deal with reality. To grasp 1,000 dimensions, plateaus - to understand it is like trying to interpret a piece of art, a Bach composition. I recorded 40 pieces of strings in Russia, orchestrated by Vladimir. It was funny as we did it via Skype, but to see 40 people in suits sitting and playing your songs, it made me cry. It was truly a larger than life situation.
TSH: What pleased you most about bringing together your latest single ‘Aeroplane’?
PM: I wrote it with Malcolm McCarthy (Bubba) who used to be my keyboard player. His roots are African and so are mine. The beat came from "Eskista", a dance of a bird in Ethiopian dance; it’s quite a complicated beat of 6 on 8. It's fast and dancy. Me and Malcolm were singing together into the mic while dancing, he’d never sang before - only in church – and we felt like flying. I think you can feel it while listening. After Jocke Ahuland (Baby Love) brought his magical touch and sent the track to the sky, I found Izacc Dorn later, on an open stage night… he sang like Aretha Franklin. I approached and asked him to do bv's for ‘Aeroplane’, which is my favourite part in the track. Isaac and I were love at first sound. The first thing he told me is that he got so addicted to carrots - that they literally fixed his vision! I knew then that he was my kind of a guy.
TSH: Does death, losing your mind and psychosis still intrigue you for certain reasons?
PM: I guess as a child I was always fascinated by philosophic existential questions like "What we are here for?" Later I had an incident which made me fascinated by psychosis. In my eyes, it never looked like an illness when I study psychoanalysis of Freud and Kant. I've noticed the connection between the genius and madness, to talk a different order of language, to think a different thought of norm, to use a different set of words. It's like an overjoy that is painful; we call it ‘jouissance’ in French. To interpret a mad man - it’s like explaining a piece of art.
TSH: You’ve previously stated that when you write a song the sounds send you immediately to a certain universe of imagery – where have your recent sounds sent you?
PM: My first album ‘Lil Empire’ sent me to Africa, Senegal, Mongolia, Hawaii, America, Argentina and Miami, but this time I travel into myself and into my fears. I feel this album has really changed me.
TSH: When you think back to your mother listening to French chansons like Charles Aznavour and Brell, which memories come to mind?
PM: My mom was listening on her radio, singing in the kitchen, in a melodrama like it’s a matter of life or death. That's the chanson way: to sing or not to be. The African beat came from her roots, and that is why albums like Graceland, bongos and choirs are fundamental in a song like ‘Aeroplane’.
TSH: How beneficial is it for you to know that with music you can constantly learnt new things and approach things from new vantage points?
PM: I think the purpose of music is to restore, repair, and revamp the soul - to create a catharsis, like in a Shakespearian tragedy. I donated my song ‘Baby Love’ to the NSPCC children in risk organisation ad and then I realised that’s the reason why I write music. You can call it social-pop.
TSH: What’s the most inspiring advice that you’ve been given in recent years?
PM: Wear your trauma proudly.
TSH: What do you like most about the music played on the streets of Tokyo?
PM: I love how in Tokyo music plays on the streets - it's like walking inside a dream like entity, a fairytale fantasy movie, or a video game. The trippyness is like a soundtrack for your life.
TSH: What brings about most clarity, peace and bliss in your daily life?
PM: Reading. I love libraries and reading more books is the only regret I'll have in my life. Time won’t allow me to read all the books I wish to.
TSH: Finally, what is your biggest drive with your music as you look ahead?
Dead to a Dying World’s ‘Elegy’ is a foretelling of a post-human world which explores themes of loss, grief, and the dawn of a new ecology through the eyes of a lone wanderer. The last human grieves the end of humanity, reflecting on the temporal insignificance of man and the sixth extinction caused by the Anthropocene – the end of our kind brought about by our own hubris, greed, and desire for power over one another. ‘Elegy’ marks the third chapter in the trilogy, which explores our relationship to our world by reflecting on our past, present, and impending future. Produced by Billy Anderson, ‘Elegy’ stands as one of the most riveting productions from the acclaimed producer in recent times. The album sees the band’s seven full-time members welcoming contributions from a small cast of guest musicians, including Thor Harris (ex-Swans, Thor & Friends), Jarboe (ex-Swans), Dylan Desmond (Bell Witch), and Emil Rapstine (The Angelus), Pablo C. Urusson (Sangre de Muerdago), and Tim Duffield (ex-Sans Soleil). The new contingent of guests helps elevate the narrative of ‘Elegy’ to a new plateau… We talk to the band about experiencing loss, taking risks and escaping the pandemonium in life…
TSH: Talk us through the band’s recording experience as you readied ‘Elegy’…
James: It was different from every other album we’ve done in that at no point were we all in the same room together. Luckily, the endeavour of writing with people all over the country prepared us well for such a situation. We have finally learned to give ourselves enough time in the studio for embellishments and ideas. Billy always keeps us on track and has wonderful input.
TSH: What sort of narratives and themes were you feeling compelled to express with this album?
James: The overarching theme is certainly grief. I, personally, am feeling this more and more each day. It seems clear that we aren’t, as a species, going to mobilise in a fashion large enough to stop the coming irreversible changes. How do you plan for a future that science says is so uncertain? I don’t know but here we are. A lot of that sentiment went into the album.
Sean: I feel like a lot of these themes manifested on a much more personal level with ‘Elegy’ as well. Grief not just for a dying world, but for our own humanity.
TSH: It’s been noted some of you experienced great loss during the lead-up to this release – in what ways did this impact the writing process?
Mike: Everything must die. Even the ideas of who we are and what we think we know about life. It's a process though, and in my opinion real loss is one of the most challenging things anyone can experience. It's extremely difficult to fully express how far reaching a loss can impact one's life even to our closest friends and family. I think music allows us to get close to expressing the emotional turmoil, or at the very least it's a cathartic way to step back and work through it all.
TSH: When you referenced the ancient past for this record, what ideas were you intrigued by?
James: I’ve always been intrigued by the ancient world. When people worshipped the things they needed to stay alive: worshipping the land, the rain or the sun. We’ve lost that largely as a species. It’s something we need to return to, desperately.
Sean: These are truths that indigenous cultures have long known, before settlers arrived and homogenised the world. Unfortunately we are still living in that world borne from such genocide and oppression. Returning to these ancient ideas must be inherently tied to dismantling white supremacy and settler colonialism.
TSH: Talk us through your intentions in opening with the lighter tones of ‘Syzygy’ and then delivering the mighty ‘The Seer's Embrace’…
Sean: We sought to be much more deliberate with our musical intentions within ‘Elegy’ than any of our previous efforts. The musical juxtaposition between both ‘Syzygy’ and ‘The Seer’s Embrace’ is undeniable, but more so than that we wanted to challenge any expectations or presumptions of what was to come. ‘Syzygy’ has a foreboding emotional weight to it that can feel inescapable. It sets the tone for what we wanted to explore through ‘Elegy’ as a whole, as well as being upfront about our musical intent. It can be easy to see our shorter, lighter pieces as breath from what we typically do, but we seek to challenge that assumption altogether.
TSH: What were the key factors in getting ‘Empty Hands, Hollow Hymns’ to sound so concise and refined?
James: I have to hand it to Mike. He really pushed for the call and response vocal part while some of us didn’t quite get. It worked out beautifully. As to the rest of the piece we spent much more time making sure the parts worked cohesively, much closer to Sean’s vision on our first record than ‘Litany’.
TSH: Was it rewarding to use this album to force deeper questions of yourselves?
Mike: Indeed. Asking deeper questions of myself is always part of the writing process. If I can help the listener achieve the same sort of thing then I feel like I’ve done what I set out to do.
James: It’s definitely made me think about how I live day to day into perspective about how much more I could personally do to help stop the impending cataclysms.
TSH: Moreover, how vital is it for the band to continuously take risks and push boundaries?
Mike: I feel that it's essential to take risks and push boundaries. That's the only reason I care to make music in the first place and the only way I know I'm growing as a person and an artist.
James: I cannot stand just walking the same well-worn territory again and again. Always push the envelope. Sometimes you win. Sometimes it’s a mess. Nobody dies. It’s fun.
Sean: Through any creative process there will always be expectations or limitations, and we have always outwardly challenged them in any way we can. However, the most challenging boundaries to push will always be the ones we’ve placed on ourselves.
TSH: Was there a specific type of balance and natural harmony that you feel defines your band’s ethos?
Mike: If anything I would say it’s our combined styles, interests, and influences that create our ethos. Balancing all of those unique traits results in something original or unexpected and authentic.
TSH: How pleasant a factor is it to know that this band inspires and keeps you connected with other amazing musicians?
Mike: I am very aware of how privileged I am to make music with such amazing people. The fact that we have met and made music with so many other inspiring musicians has been a real honour and something I never take for granted.
James: Now that we are so spread out its good just to spend time together and it’s an honour to meet and play with so many talented and pleasant musicians along the way.
Sean: It is always such an honour to be surrounded by such passion. We’ve met and worked with so many fantastic people and tremendously talented musicians over the past decade. It truly is such a testament to the strength of community through music.
TSH: Does possibly soundtracking in the future still intrigue you?
Mike: That’s a very exciting idea and one that I think we would strongly embrace given the right opportunity.
James: James Cameron we’re looking at you.
TSH: What does the band bond over and connect over most whilst on tour?
Mike: I would have to say our varied influences, interests, and lives. Everyone brings a unique perspective to the table and we all very much appreciate and respect those elements from each other.
James: We try to build in some field trips along the way. It helps to spend some time with each other that isn’t just hustling to spend four extra hours at the venue staring at our phones.
TSH: What were the highlights with your time spent in Grand Canyon National Park recently?
James: I drove the van overnight from Albuquerque direct to the South Rim, so I was pretty delirious. Just as we arrived a snow storm came blazing through. The abyss was swirling, filled with fog, and freezing rain was spilling down from the sky. It was magic.
TSH: Given all the chaos and pandemonium in the world, which attributes in life would you say bring you most bliss and clarity?
Mike: Just spending time with my family and friends and helping out wherever possible. We all come up together, ya know.
James: The natural world always tamps down the noise and harsh realities of the modern world. Falling water and towering trees offer an iota of relief.
TSH: Finally, what sort of challenges and exploration do you relish as you look ahead as a band?
Mike: With the trilogy closed out we are totally unbound by a working concept and the idea of labels or genres. I can't wait to push our personal limits and see where things end up.
James: Probably something self-indulgent either that or syrupy pop.
Dead to a Dying World - “Empty Hands, Hollow Hymns”
The Mojave Desert reverberates with mysticism. It’s a landscape of boulders seemingly transported from the moon alongside Joshua Trees, their tops angled upward like hands grasping at the heavens. This is where everyone from John Lennon and Keith Richards to Victoria Williams and Gram Parsons have come for inspiration. And early last year, it’s where The Head and the Heart decided to shed old skin before writing their fourth album, ‘Living Mirage’, a sweeping, artful expansion of the earthy folk rock that once defined them. This recent “rebirth, a spirit quest of sorts, came from growing pains from their last album. ‘Living Mirage’ refers to a return to the curiosity that begat the band, the album’s tone of rumination and liberation is apparent and striking. ‘Living Mirage’ lives up to its title, a shapeshifting fever dream of unease, angst, and ultimately hope…. The Seventh Hex talks to Jonathan Russell about a having renewed band spirit, stage design and chilling in San Francisco…
TSH: Your personal life changed so much in the lead-up to ‘Living Mirage’, how impactful was positive thinking to your work on this album?
Jonathan: I guess it all started in the desert, that’s where we went to start writing again for the first time after our last extensive tour. You know, the first sounds that came from the title track almost felt like a self-discovery to me - suddenly everything made sense! I kind of felt like there were things that I should have figured out a long time ago, especially my thinking in choosing to do things in a positive light and choosing to believe that love exists. Not to sound corny but I feel like I’ve carried a lot of armour. At one point I needed to wear this armour to make it through the world as an artist for better or worse. This record is me removing my armour and choosing to trust my band members and choosing to trust myself.
TSH: The band covers a variety of different sound dimensions this time around, this came down to yourselves bonding like never before...
Jonathan: Yeah, which was so cool. Again, having faith in my band members was key. Overall, we wanted to speak to each other more about musical ideas. Previously, a lot of the time I would come in with mostly finished songs and when that was the case there was already a fixed spot as to what you could add musically. However, this time I wanted to be a reactionary musician to my band members, so we let each other in and allowed ourselves to just play music and not necessarily think of the end result. We used to self-edit in the moment before, but this time we just got back into wanting to make the music and not overthinking.
TSH: Charity’s vocal parts being a nice counterpoint to yours must have been so pleasing...
Jonathan: She was great. I felt like we’ve been keeping her as our secret weapon for so long and the sound of her voice was such a great counterbalance to the rest of the compositions. Also, her lyrical writing is so different to mine and we really wanted to bring more of that to the forefront and not just have my perspective and my voice. It all worked out so well.
TSH: Did you have to labour over getting ‘See You Through My Eyes’ to sound just right?
Jonathan: Yeah, that song actually took the most work. This song reminds me that there were so many different phases of writing for this album. I wrote this song with a writer outside of the band named Asia Whitaker, which was a first me. For this one we decided to utilise the other great signers in the band too. The challenge was to take an external voice and make it our own - this really pushed us in a way so the outcome was inevitably going to be something that we’d never heard before.
TSH: What does the track ‘Saving Grace’ signify to you?
Jonathan: It takes me back to when I was in Haiti doing some work for peace and justice. I was down there with a few amazing musicians making a record and that song came about one day when the power went out. The only thing available was an acoustic piano and there was a certain spirit in the air that catapulted this song to feel so right. This was also around the time that Trump had been elected and you could sense fear, anxiety and question marks in a lot of people’s minds. The notion of finding your own centre is what this song relates to, as well as finding your own sense of hope and strength.
TSH: This album has also been plastered on massive billboards throughout America too...
Jonathan: I’ve heard! It’s insane, man. I feel like there’s something very classic about a billboard. But yeah, this type of support is overwhelming and we’re all happy to see ourselves magnified.
TSH: Having an updated stage design for your live shows has also become so essential...
Jonathan: The stage designs are so important because they are there to support the new sonics of this current album, in addition to adding a unique touch to our previous works. The live format sonics have been growing for the last 5 years or so and now they are coming out in such a strong way. I feel like we have a sense of new power with the lights and design for the songs now. These songs can now really exist in the way they should be existing onstage.
TSH: Do you embrace the idea of playing festivals for the reason of winning over new fans?
Jonathan: Yeah, totally. That’s one of my favourite reasons for playing festivals actually. I like that fact that we can potentially obtain brand new fans. Anytime you’re not the main event, it can actually be really refreshing - you kind of figure out that people may not give a shit, but this pushes someone like me in an almost competitive way. It’s like being the underdog - there’s less expectation, however, it frees you up to reinvent yourself in a way.
TSH: How cool was is it to perform ‘River and Roads’ backstage with Jimmy Fallon?
Jonathan: That was pretty mind-blowing. It’s always a pleasure to play late night, but who would have thought that one would be one of Jimmy’s favourite songs. Apparently that’s his drinking song and he loves to say ‘play it again’. We were so surprised to know this. When we found out he wanted to do it with us, we were over the moon and honoured. It was a really cool moment and Jimmy’s got a great voice too. You could tell that he was genuinely passionate about that song. It was an amazing day.
TSH: How do you spend the pockets of limited time whilst you’re on tour?
Jonathan: Everybody has their own go to preferences for downtime chilling. One of my favourite things to do is find the best vinyl record stores around and just get lost in that. Chris, our bass player, is our music guru and he’ll find some old gems in terms of music documentaries. We’ll just put them on loop in the bus. Recently I watched an awesome Bob Dylan documentary. I guess it’s interesting to try and find out more about true iconic artists and see what they do when they go through these massive shifts in their artistic adventures. In a way it helps to put you in the right headspace to go out and play music like you know you should.
TSH: Is spending time with your fiancé in San Francisco a nice way to reset from too much songwriting?
Jonathan: Yeah, at times I just like to spend time with my fiancé and get away from it all. So yeah, I live in San Francisco now and I met my fiancé 3 years ago - she’s from the Bay Area. I like to take advantage of this beautiful city that I live in. If you go an hour within any direction of San Francisco there’s just beautiful nature everywhere. Plus I’m quite an aggressive songwriter so I need to give my brain a break, otherwise I’ll just mull over one word all fucking day long, ha! When I do put my instruments away I also like to go hiking and canoeing too.
TSH: Is the shared love of music and trying to heal with your songwriting a main philosophy for the band?
Jonathan: Yeah, this type of thinking is still at the forefront of why we do what we do. You know, I had no idea initially that I would become a musician, but I was always writing for my own therapy, whether it was in my journal log or math class. I started learning music so I could heal my own wounds. Then I noticed there were parallels between what I was going through and what others were going through. I’ve slowly but surely realised that there needs to be one united voice to heal and that’s how I feel and hope our music resonates with people. If you can tap into a shared creative idea that’s about healing, chances are others can tap into it and feel the same emotions. It seems like our music has been able to heal some listeners for a while, and that truly is an honour.
Carla Geneve burst onto the West Australian scene in 2017. Her debut single ‘Greg’s Discount Chemist’ was released to overwhelming local radio support including love from triple j. After releasing her second single “Listening” and garnering praise for her showcases at BIGSOUND, the end of 2018 saw her lead with seven nominations at the 2018 WAM Awards where she won Best Single for “Greg’s Discount Chemist” and Best Rock Act. Named one of The West Australian’s Six Brightest Young Stars of 2019, this year will solidify Carla Geneve as one of Australia’s most exciting up and coming talents as the Perth-based artist announces her striking and earnest debut self-titled EP… We talk to Carla about writer’s block, touring America and downtime essentials…
TSH: Your latest EP is a collection of songs as opposed to an album with a narrative or arc going through it. Was this an intentional approach for you?
Carla: Yeah, I just wanted to switch things up. It’s nice to have a collection of songs that I’ve played live for a long time and to have them placed together on an EP. It’s just cool to have them all together and to make them into a thing; I’m really pleased with the end result.
TSH: Are expressions stemming from a personal lens still informing the bulk of your music?
Carla: I guess so. I suppose I’ve also been putting a bit more time into each song recently which is really refreshing. Song to song my compositions are always different and I’m always going for a personal approach with my subject matter and topics. Everything is from my own perspective because that’s the only perspective I can really speak for.
TSH: Is the notion of delving into new instrumentation a factor that you’re looking forward to with further new material?
Carla: Totally! Especially knowing that I’ve not done it much with this current EP. I’ve been writing a lot and I‘m excited to experiment more with new gear and different instruments when I get into the studio. I think it’s always important to explore and to go down some fresh new avenues.
TSH: Do your changing surroundings impact your music much?
Carla: Yeah, definitely. I mean if I go to a new and different place, I’ll be more inclined to write a certain type of song. It’s all the obvious ways in how new places can allow for fresh reference points and new triggers for music. It’s an obvious statement but you really do think about things differently when you are seeing different things.
TSH: You’ve mentioned that when you started signing it just felt right for you and like you’d found your passion. Do your vocals unfold in a seamless way?
Carla: Yeah, I’d say so. The melodies, words and vocal treatment usually come together at the same time. However, for the songs on this EP, I’ve played them so many times live; therefore it’s become a very live sounding record. The vocal treatments just sort of wrote themselves over the years and we’ve been experimenting in a lot of ways to always keep the songs fresh and engaging.
TSH: What do you recall in fleshing out the song ‘Empty Stomach’?
Carla: That song was so free-flowing. It’s a less narrative driven track and more consisting of abstract words - it’s also got a bit of an angry feel. It’s one of the first darker guitar riffs that I wrote and it was fun to take a gloomier direction.
TSH: What resonates with you most when you overlook a track like ‘Juliette’?
Carla: This song takes me back to a moment in time. This was the first song that I wrote for the EP and after playing it on acoustic for so long this was one of the first times I picked up an electric guitar and got to muck around with writing in this way. The riff was basically just me trying different ideas on another guitar.
TSH: How do you overcome the times when you have writer’s block?
Carla: Oh, that’s a hard one. I think you’ve just got to ride it out. I like to put myself in different places and even new rooms in my house, which works. Or sometimes you’ve just got to say it’s enough writing for the day and come back to it when you feel a little bit more inspired.
TSH: What are your touring downtime essentials?
Carla: I love podcasts so much! I’m into true crime quite a lot. I don’t understand why I’m so into it, I guess it’s so addictive to listen to and to see where people go and where they end up. I also end up watching a lot of movies on the plane journeys. Oh, and books are great to get lost in too.
TSH: You got to tour America recently, how rewarding was this for you?
Carla: I felt so lucky to go all the way to America. I honestly felt so privileged. Just playing the first show I’ve played outside of Australia was very a special moment for me. I can’t wait to go back.
TSH: A glass of wine is also another way for you to kickback and relax?
Carla: Ha! Yes, I love a glass of wine or two. It’s funny though because I do music for work and when I want to relax I often go and watch more music. I seem to always fall into musical related stuff all of the time.
TSH: Unplugging from social media is something you tend to do when you’re back home in Australia…
Carla: I love to put my phone away and just obtain a fresh and still state of mind. When you go on tour you have to update all of your socials constantly and be online all the time, so it’s nice to just put the phone away and get outside. When I’m back home I really enjoy going for bush walks, it’s so lovely.
TSH: What sort of ideas do you have in mind for your future preferences with your music?
Carla: Personally, I just want to continue to improve my songwriting skills and write the best songs that I can. It’s exciting for me to have this skill and I just want to keep working hard and get better.
