Jeremiah Rouse é o responsável e a mente por trás do The Quality of Mercury que recentemente soltou "Transmission", seu debute.
Uma intenso exercício de como se criar melodias espaciais e envolventes sem tornar-se cansativo ou extremamente experimental. O TQOM soube dosar precisamente devaneios do space rock com elementos clássicos do indie.
Feche os olhos e boa viagem, ou se preferir viaje de olhos bem abertos.
***** Interview with The Quality of Mercury *****
A. I have been writing and recording songs as The Quality Of Mercury for a good 15 years. In the past I was only sharing what I had recorded with my close friends. I had other musical projects going on at the same time that i was more focused on. A handful of years back i decided to focus and work on doing a proper release as The Quality Of Mercury and that is how Transmission came about.
Q: Who are your influences?
A: I have many different influences but the greatest influences for this project are the bands Hum, and Failure. I have always tried to emulate the sound of both of those bands. My vocals are probably more influenced by bands such as Sunny Day Real Estate, Mae and Death Cab For Cutie. I was and still am an avid old school Emo fan.
Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
A. I hate this question. There are so many great bands/artists in all different genres that i hold in high regards. So I will answer the question this way. These are my top 5 albums that are relevant to The Quality Of Mercury.
1. Hum - You'd Prefer An Astronaut
2. Failure - Fantastic Planet
3. My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
4. The Life And Times - Tragic Boogie
5. Jimmy Eat World - Clarity
Q. How do you feel playing live?
A. I love playing live and miss being part of a band. I haven't played as The Quality Of Mercury live yet. It would be a challenging endeavor for me to pull this off the way I envision it. I would love to do it but, at this time I do not have any plans to put a band together.
Q. How do you describe The Quality of Mercury sounds?
A. I would say that The Quality Of Mercury sounds melodic and dense. There are many overlapping guitar melodies loaded with FX that makes it sound a bit complex. I really tried to make it heavy and pretty at the same time.
Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs?
A. Almost all of this album was recorded and mixed in my home studio. Usually i have the rhythm guitars structured out and maybe a vocal melody to go with it before I start recording but, mainly I'm writing as I record. I'll program basic drum beats to give myself a foundation to record the rhythm guitars to. After the rhythm guitars are recorded I'll start building everything else on top. I'll be working the programmed drum track the whole time during the recording process. Bass and vocals are usually last for me. It's a bit backwards when compared to the traditional approach to recording. For this album, when I was finished laying all of the tracks down and had good static mixes I took my session files to another studio to have real acoustic drums recorded. I am not a great drummer so I hired Kevin Soffera and his Hybrid Studios to perform and record the drums for me. He basically played what i had programmed however, I was there to produce him and work parts out that I felt needed to be changed. Once we were done tracking the drums i brought those tracks back in to my Protools sessions and mixed everything in my home studio. I really enjoy the process of recording and mixing and can't wait to get back to it.
Q. Which new bands do you recommended
A. Some newer bands that i have been really enjoying and finding inspiration from are Sidewave, Spotlights, Machines Learning, Big Jesus and Cloakroom.
Q. Which bands would you love to make a cover version of?
A. I find songs that I would like to cover all of the time. I'm embarrassed to say that most of them are 1980's pop songs.
Q: What´s the plan for the future....
A. My intentions are to get back into the studio to work on another album. I have a handful of demo material all ready to go. I want to approach the recording process differently this time and work on refining my sound a bit more.
Q: Any parting words?
A. I really just want to say a huge thanks to everyone who has helped me accomplish the record and to everyone who is now supporting me by getting the word out. I am very grateful.
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Thanks
https://www.facebook.com/thequalityofmercury
http://thequalityofmercury.com/
https://thequalityofmercury.bandcamp.com/
