segunda-feira, 7 de março de 2016

Mindbenders with Mercury Rocket - An Interview


Uma verdadeira preciosidade shoegaze psicodelica aterriza agora nas páginas do TBTCI, Mercury Rocket é o nome dos caras, algo como um Loop fazendo uma jam daquelas com o Love & Rockets.

Shoegaze, pós punk, psicodelia, barulho em altas dosagens, basicamente é isso que se encontra em Mindbenders o debute deles que esta com edição limitada em K7 pela sempre parceira Moon Sounds Records.

Aumente no máximo e bom divertimento.

***** Interview with Mercury Rocket *****


Q. When did Mercury Rocket start? Tell us about the history…
(Ben) I have been kicking around various band projects, one was a surf garage instrumental band , and then I wanted to have an early Pink Floyd tribute called Atom Heart Suns in reference to Atom Heart Mother. The band could never really find a keyboard player like Richard Wright, so the band just started making up original stuff when we weren't jamming live from Pompeii material ... Which led me to want to form a band doing new music again, Graham came in on drums and we came up with a name Mercury Rocket because I always wanted to be apart of the space program. Project Mercury was already taken.. So basically we just started making music that way off improvisation .

Q: Who are your influences?
(Ben) I grew up listening to the oldies like Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly and then golden nuggets like the Champs etc when classic rock wasn't Nirvana . Early garage and psychedelia music had a lot of influence over me , lasting impression , but I also loved Black Sabbath and early punk bands like D.R.I.

I learned how to play bar chords that way. Later on when I got more into Syd Barrett I really got into delay pedals and reverb effects. My first guitar was just a shitty acoustic from a pawn shop I would play everyday until my Dad took notice I really liked music, he bought me an electric guitar and I remember getting my first pedal ever , a wah wah pedal. From there on I learned to play by ear and eventually could write down the songs I hear in my head.

Q. Make a list of 5 albuns of all time…
(Ben) I was just thinking about this the other day, seems like different times of your life you can always fall back on particular piece of music that is comforting... It's hard to pick just 5 , but right now I would say Neil Young's "Everybody knows this is nowhere" Pink Floyd "Meddle" PJ Harvey " 4 track demos" Iggy Pop's "the Idiot" Rolling Stones " Their Satanic Majesties Request"

Q. How do you feel playing live?
(Ben) On another planet, out of this world at times...like I am channeling this cosmic energy through my hands , like an alchemist conjuring sounds through my guitar , summoning visions high on the universe with my eyes closed feeling everything.


Q. How do you describe Mercury Rocket sounds?
(Ben) I would like to think its a universal sound...Like you are about to go on a trip, the anticipation builds up , you get a nervous tick , head nods, feet tap, and before you know it you are blasting off into outer space .

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
(Ben) a lot of the times when we are writing songs , we are jamming in the practice space, we record it so when we improvise, we won't forget it. On MINDBENDERS the new album we recorded at Aqualab Recording studio in Deep Ellum with Josh White, we had two days to record all the songs we had. We rehearsed the songs for a few weeks and went into the studio and knocked them out .... There where some parts on songs that we left up to how we just let the sounds take over, improvise , we let those areas of the album stay new but we basically just had fun and threw a party in two 10 hour days ... We had most the drums , bass , guitar all recorded live, no overdubs, then the second day we layed down my vocals and mixed a little...

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
There's so many !

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
(Ben) the doors crystal ship

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Krissy lives in SF now so we have been working on the best way to keep doing what we are doing with home bases both in Dallas and San Francisco. First part of that is planning on a west coast tour this summer, and working on writing and recording new material later in the year.

Q: Any parting words?
(Ben) Thanks for listening to our music and finding us , you help keep the creativity alive . Hope to make more music to be included in the soundtrack of your lives.
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/TheMercuryRocket/
https://moonsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/mindbenders
http://mercuryrocket.com/