Connectivity with Mahogany - An Interview

Andrew Prinz e Jaclyn Slimm formam um verdadeiro patrimônio chamado Mahogany. Cultuado dio de NY que tem ao menos duas magistrais pérolas em sua discografia, "The Dream of a Modern Day" de 2000 e "Connectivity" de 2006 sem contar uma infindável série de EPs, singles, splits, cada um deles seguinte uma lógica sonora que para os iniciados dispensa maiores explicações.

Vale apenas citar que o Mahogany é uma das mais elegantes, sofisticadas e refinadas bandas surgidas na entre safra da primeira fase do shoegaze para o seu então resgate, por assim dizer, mas categorizar o Mahogany apenas com o rótulo de shoegaze chega a ser uma heresia, tamanha a variedade de referências em sua rica e soberba música.

O fato é que, após uma grande hiato o Mahagony recentemente anunciou sua entrada no selo Saint Marie Records, e o TBTCI foi tentar buscar repostas para o que poderíamos esperar dessa frutífera união, mas, como sua música, o Mahogany permanece abstrato e misterioso, todavia algumas revelações surgiram.

O TBTCI aconselha, vá atrás ao menos dos dois álbuns deles, e faça isso imediatamente, e não me agradeça, agradeça a Andrew e Jaclyn.

***** Interview with Mahogany *****

Q. When did Mahogany start? Tell us about the history...
A: Some people have written things on Wikipedia, mostly accurate!

Q: Who are your influences?
A: Those who create from necessity.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
1. Section 25 'From The Hip' in original sleeve
2. Bee Gees 'Odessa' in original velour sleeve
3. 'Xanadu' Original Motion Picture Soundtrack LP
4. Françoise Hardy 'Ma jeunesse fout l'camp'
5. James w/ Brian Eno 'Wah Wah'


Q. How do you feel playing live?
A: Holographic. One passes through every emotion one can hold.

Q. How do you describe Mahogany sounds?
A: Onomateopaeically, usually. Sometimes there is a feline characteristic.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
A: Very concentrated with intention. Specifics are achieved. A lot of preparation.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
A: Perhaps select bands one thinks will be around for a while. It's a shame when bands split up!

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
A: None really — there is a standing joke with Ulrich Schnauss on a covers split 12" — who knows if that will see light of day.

Q. Now you are part of the wonderful cast of Sainte Marie Records right. How did this happen? Can we expect re releases soon?
A: Lots of discussion over the years — we try to be open to labels, but have never really sent out demos. Vinyl versions of the back catalog will come together soon.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
A; Certainly different from the past!

Q: Any parting words?
A: None yet — we've only just begun!
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Thanks

https://mahoganyinthecity.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/MahoganyInternational

Figure It Out with Violetic - An Interview

"Ethanol" foi o EP de estreia do trio londrino Violetic, isso em 2014, e desde o debute já estava nítido e explícito que o mix de pós punk com pequenas doses de shoegaze, enficado sob uma aura cinzenta e densa nos traria ainda muita coisa boa pela frente.

Eis que em Março os caras soltaram um single mais poderoso e intenso do que "Ethanol". "Figure It Out" é como se o The Cure se aventurasse por caminhos noventistas e desembocasse em pleno 2016 soando como novidade.

O Violetic promete muito mais pela frente, cabe a nós cruzar os dedos e aguardar para que a espera não seja tão grande.

***** Interview with Violetic *****

Q. When did Violetic start? Tell us about the history...
A. We met about 3 years ago. We all wanted to do something a bit different and that drew us together. There was lack of music that we wanted to hear so we started making it for ourselves.

Q: Who are your influences?
A. It's good that each of us brings something different to the songs. Our tastes are so different but we’re not so interested in being a specific genre, so our influences just naturally mix together. Musically we only really agree on Andy Stott!… but Mitch is into Portishead, Rory saw Conjurer the other day and Chrisy has been getting into Hiatus Kaiyote recently. Other than music, Gwen Kanson (Teenwitch photography), books by people like Anita Lasker-Wallfisch… There’s this amazing place called the Live Art Development Agency in East London where they have a huge resource library full incredible work and writings to explore.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
A. Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska
A Place To Bury Strangers - Exploding Head
Andy Stott - Faith In Strangers
Talking Heads - Remain In Light
The Smiths - The Queen Is Dead

Q. How do you feel playing live?
A. It’s what we enjoy the most. We really care about what we’re communicating and the approach is totally different from playing on a recording. Anything can happen live and the night can take the performance in a unique direction. It’s an exciting thing to surrender yourself to.

Q. How do you describe how Violetic sounds?
A. We feel free to put in ideas that come from different directions… it’s not a very conscious decision. We like music that surprises us, it’s unpredictable, goes from sparse to dense, delicate to harsh. The foundation is usually dark, anxious and melodic. We talk about the music visually, so it’s a result of what stirs an image in our heads.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs?
We like to record the core of the song live and then build it up from there so the feeling of the initial performance is captured. We do as much as we can at home. In a studio with the time pressure you don’t have time to experiment and discover the songs. There’s something about the atmosphere in a studio too that can lead you to ironing out some of the little imperfections, which actually turn out to be the best bits in the end.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Yowler – she has a beautiful voice and the songs on The Offer were recorded at home so they have such a raw, demo feel to them which is so emotive. Body Hound – incredibly talented musicians and through and through an unbelievable live band Tidelines – we were honoured to have these guys play at our last single release for Figure It Out and they were completely mesmerising Bo Ningen – most intense live act, you have to see them if you get a chance. Ben Fleury-Steiner – His stuff is great in the background, as you don’t have to think to deeply about it and just enjoy.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
It would be fun to be Slipknot or Beastie Boys for a day!

Q: What are your plans for the future?
We’re really excited to be visiting in Wales and Manchester soon. We’ve got some exciting plans for upcoming releases that we’ll be recording throughout the year, as well as touring and writing new songs!

Q: Any parting words?
Thank you for the interview, we hope to come to Brazil some day! Fo now, you can find out latest single Figure It Out on Soundcloud here: https://soundcloud.com/violetic/figureitout
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Thanks

http://www.violetic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/violetic/

Daydreaming with Wild Firth - An Interview

Conhece o Wild Firth? Não? Pois deveria....

Os caras são de Appleton, uma cidadezinha no estado de Wisconsin, e soltaram uma pequena pérola no primeiro dia de Março. O álbum homônimo é uma preciosidade que evoca tudo que foi feito de singelo, belo, melancólico, ensolarado no que diz respeito ao dreampop.

Canções feitas sob medida para embalar sonhos reais ou não, pouco importa, o Wild Firth é um verdadeiro "colírio" auditivo.

Apaixone-se agora.

***** Interview with Wild Firth *****

Q. When did Wild Firth start? Tell us about the history...
I started the band during the spring of my freshman year at college. I brought together some friends and we started working on the music I'd been writing. From there, the lineup has changed through the years, and so have the songs and feel of the group, but the core energy has been constant. I continue to write the songs and the guys help me finish them out.

Q: Who are your influences?
It's hard to just list a few, because I have so many influences from so many kinds of music... For this group, Deerhunter was a clear influence from the beginning, as were Captured Tracks groups like DIIV and Beach Fossils... now, I've been into much more 20th century classical music like Messiaen and Ives and I'm naturally synthesizing their polytonal language with more pop sensibilities, in my ear... Also, I think the latest MBV record is outstanding and even still so overlooked...

Q. Make a list of 5 albuns of all time…
Very hard. I'll just list some that come to my head, in no particular order... how about
Stratosphere by Duster...
Four & More by Miles Davis...
maybe And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out by Yo La Tengo...
Weird Era Cont. by Deerhunter...
perhaps Live at the Half Note by Lee Konitz...

I don't know.

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Depending on the place, oftentimes kind of uncomfortable. In the beginning, I was definitely more uncomfortable. Now I feel a lot looser though, most of the time, and like to mess around a bit and do strange things.

Q. How do you describe Wild Firth sounds?
I think we play pop music. Some songs are more jangly and dream pop, but we also have a kind of post-punk sensibility too, I feel. Maybe we're just like pop music with weird, nuanced chord progressions. I'm all about innovative chord progressions.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
Well, this tape that is out on No Problem Records was recorded entirely by Jordan Bleau, of Frankie Teardrop, and he did a stellar job. Otherwise, I've just recorded very low budget on my computer with some meagre gear stuffs.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
I haven't been listening to a lot of new stuff recently, so I'm not as well-versed as usual. But the band Palm is so cool, from Phillie. Also, this band Earring from Chicago. Oh and Sean Henry.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
I'd love to do some covers of some Sarah Records songs, from like The Field Mice and Another Sunny Day... that would be so much fun.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Living in Minneapolis and making music.

Q: Any parting words?
"Wild Firth ruined my life."
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Thanks

https://wildfirth.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/wildfirth

Get Home Safe with Teen Body - An Interview

"Get Home Safe" é a estreia do Teen Body, quarteto nova iorquino, que vai fundo em suas sutilezas sonoras.

Discípulos da aura mágica e misteriosa do Galaxie 500, os caras em seu debute, criaram uma atmosfera absolutamente encantadora e envolvente.

Ares de dreampop atual estão claramente infestando as doze canções de "Get Home Safe", dando aquele frescor juvenil melancólico.

Uma estreia poderosamente inspiradora.

***** Interview with Teen Body *****

Q. When did Teen Body start? Tell us about the history...
MM. It was actually our old guitarist, Evander who brought us all together back in the Spring of 2014. We were hanging out and this terrible thing happened that no one can ever speak of again. Ever since then we vowed to create a band in honor of the horrific events that occurred.

SL: ?:-)

Q: Who are your influences?
AB: Cocteau Twins, Sonic Youth, MBV, Slowdive, Galaxie 500, The Velvet Underground

MM: All Animal Collective related projects, and pretty much everyone they worked with, old school twee/lofi, new school twee/lofi, my friends <3 br="">
SL: What Bush said and I'm really, really excited for Angel Olsen's new record, I love everything she's been involved with and her solo work is so inspiring. Jonathan Richman's one...I also listen to a lot of WBLS. Rihanna's latest, Molly Nilsson... AF: I go through really sporadic music obsessions. I went through an 80's post-punk/new wave one about 6-4 years ago that probably ended up influencing this project the most. Bands like New Order/Joy Division, The Cure, Depeche Mode, Tears for Fears, China Crisis, Echo and The Bunnymen, Gang of Four, etc, etc.

 Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time… French lists his top 5 Hall and Oates records
AF: 1. Daryl Hall and John Oates' Private Eyes
2: Daryl Hall and John Oates' H2O
3. Daryl Hall and John Oates' Big Bam Boom 4. Daryl Hall and John Oates' Daryl Hall and John Oates
5. Daryl Hall and John Oates' Beauty on a Back Street
~or~

Q. How do you feel playing live?
SL: I still get physically nervous in spite of how comfortable I think I am. Somehow no matter how many times you play, it always feels kind of new.

MM: I usually don't remember most of what happens. Its kind of like being in a trance back there.

AB: After the first song, my nerves clear up because I'm reminded of how much fun it is to play together. AF: I usually feel like I have to be energetic or we will appear boring. I might be the first person to jump during a set. Also, we always feel way more comfortable when the crowd is loose and crazy.

Q. How do you describe Teen Body sounds?
TB: dreamo

AF: In some middle ground between loose/atmospheric and tight/orderly, pretty, melodic, chugging, vibing, ups and downs, melancholic.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
MM: We went into the studio with our friend Bryan Keller (of the dope band Softspot) and just sort of began exploring how to get the sounds and tones and moments captured in a way that was nice to hear on a speaker. The final product is a little chiller and laid back than how our music comes across live.

AF: In a lofted living space in Bushwick, the mic's were in the open ceiling portion of the apt, and the mixing board was in a second floor bedroom you could step out onto a balcony and yell down at the person playing. I was already fairly chummy with Bryan, but recording was the first time as a band we all got to joke around with him. The humor just got more and more obscure and by the end we all basically sounded nuts. Daymoon almost got renamed Damon because we only spoke in Australian accents that day.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
softspot, operator music band, pill, sean henry, navy gangs, current joys, baby birds don't drink milk, joy again, LODRO,

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
MM slowdive would be reeeeally fun!

SL take me down to pedal town!

AB - "What Goes On" by the Velvet Underground. Would be so much fun to duel solo with Shannon on that track. I think French could do a good Lou. AF: Taking Back Sunday.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Touring, recording the new stuff we've been working on, becoming an experienced mage, writing new songs

AF: Album is out mid-June (self-released, digital and tape), then we tour south as far as North Carolina in July. Keep playing our fair city until somebody offers us some sweet national tour support slot ;D

Q: Any parting words?
get home safe :-)
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/teenbodymusic
https://soundcloud.com/teenbody

Indecisive with Noirless - An Interview

Seguindo a tradição aqui no TBTCI, hora de apresentar uma grande surpresa e novíssima banda da Indonésia, Noirless.

Os caras tem apenas um single, "Indecisive" um delicioso exercício de noisepop bubblegum, com ruídos noventistas, e ambientação shoegaze, lembrando fortemente o início do Pale Saints.

Que venha muito mais do Noirless.

***** Interview with Noirless *****

Q. When did Noirless start ?
We met at a local gigs which held around the first quarter of 2015, and then we decided to form a band. Sandy (the drummer) left the band at the end of 2015.

Q. Who are your influences ?
Pretty every much everything hahaha, every band member has their own influences. Take example : The Cure, Pale Saints, Stereolab, Sleigh Bells, Swervedriver, Cocteau Twins, etc. So it's pretty much everything.

Q. Make a List of Albums of All Time :
It's a tough question to answer hahaha, but if we have to pick five, it would be :
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
Blueboy - Unisex
Codeine - Frigid Stars
My Bloody Valentine - Loveless
DIIV - Oshin

Q. How do you feel playing live ?
When we perform, we always wanted the audience to catch / get the atmosphere of each song. In order to achieve that, the energy between each band member is crucial. So mood is basically important.

Q. How do you describe Noirless sounds ?
We love reverbs! But our main focus is the song itself, rather than textures. We don't know how well we succeed, but at least that's what we aim for.

Q. Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
Nothing special hahaha.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend ?
Local bands :
Thunder Sanchez, Wreck, Brightful Corolla, Heals , Fuzzy, i , Scaller, Somnium, YST .
International bands :
Gold Celeste, Westkust, Tobias Jesso Jr.

Q. Which band would you love to made a cover version of ?
Gilbert o'Sullivan - Alone Again
Todd Rundgren - I Saw The Light

Q. What are your plans for the future ?
Albums, making good songs!

Q. Any parting words ?
Love is in the air.
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Thanks

https://soundcloud.com/noirless_band
https://www.facebook.com/Noirless

Cadence with Sea of Tranquility - An Interview

Shoegaze, ah o shoegaze, aqui no TBTCI, motivo de adoração máxima, obviamente.

E quando uma banda como os japoneses do Sea of Tranquility aparecem, é motivo de comemoração máxima. Os alicerces para os singles "Cadence" (maravilhosamente enigmática) e "Pisces" (beleza em forma de canção), são claramente Slowdive, Cocteau Twins e MBV, não há como negar.

Camadas e mais camadas de guitarras cristalinas e espaciais, uma verdadeiro deleite para os apaixonados por shoegaze.

Audição absolutamente obrigatória.

***** Interview with Sea of Tranquility *****

Q. When did Sea of Tranquility start? Tell us about the history…
We started in 2014, at the time when all of us were university students. Most of us met from the Music Club of our university. Our Bassist - Yan and Guitarist - Lunch came up with an idea of forming a shoegaze band when they realized they have similar taste in music. Soon, they invited our very first Vocal - Ellen and Guitarist - Sam to join the band. Once, our Drummer - Tommy just passed by the practising room and we just asked him to be our drummer, and this formed our initial lineup. Like most of the bands, we did start with covering some songs, from Radiohead, from Slowdive and from Daughter, and we soon started to write our songs. After one and a half year, our first Vocal - Ellen had to move to New Zealand for working, then we found Faye to be our Vocal until now.

Q: Who are your influences?
Well… the bands embracing classic shoegaze and dream pop textures have been influencing us a lot, like: Slowdive, MBV, Lush, Cocteau Twins, Eternal, etc. Apart from these bands, our members have a very wide spectrum of taste in music, we do always listen to some Post-rock bands like Sugar Plum Ferry and Mono. Some of these elements exist in our songs.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
Diiv - Oshin (Yan)
Beach House - Bloom (Faye)
Slowdive - Souvlaki (Sam)
MBV - Loveless (Lunch)
甜梅號 - 金光之鄉 (Tommy)

Q. How do you feel playing live?
In fact, we are quite shy and introvert like most shoegaze bands. We just can’t stare at the audience, instead, we just try hard to focus and look at the floor to make us feel secure. Honestly, every live performance is a great time to polish our skills technically and psychologically for us. We do enjoy the time being on stages even we are nervous and stoned most of the time. It’s always a valuable experience to perform on a stage, to share our emotion, to play some noise, to connect with the audience...

Faye: Could someone do the MC for me… (shy)

Q. How do you describe Sea of Tranquility sounds?
It’s a very interesting question. We think “Oceanic” and “Lacustrine” are the best words to describe our sound. Sometime, we sound tranquil and ambient like a lake of shattered mirror. Sometime, we sound violent and vigorous like a stormy sea with hurricane when we explode our energy with wall of sound. Also, we’d love to add different elements into our music, as you can find the trace of Post-rock and Ambient in our songs.

There are reviews saying that our songs sounds like Slowdive or Cocteau Twins. It’s definitely a compliment, however, we started to avoid this because it’s always fun to make our songs sound like “Us” instead of others as we hate copying other bands. We would like to make people know it’s our song when it’s played on a radio or something else, and this is what we have been trying to do.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
The first demo named "Pisces" was actually recorded in our guitarist Sam’s residential hall, using an simple audio interface and Macbook. The mixing works were performed in his home (on his bed). The second demo was recorded and mixed with the aid of our friend - Andrew Kan in the studio of The Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts. We can’t afford expensive recording equipments as most of us are students, and we tried our best to make the sound of demos striking a balance of crystal and vagueness. Hopefully we can spend some money to make a decent record in a professional studio someday.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Forsaken Autumn, FOR… , I mean us, Ninetynine Floor, CheeseBurger.

Faye: My favourite band in Hong Kong is TUX. They are also the sound from the ocean, I would say.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
Desktop Error! This is a very good shoegaze band in Asia, but we have to learn some Thai to do a cover of their songs...

Q: What are your plans for the future?
We will continue composing new songs, hope that we can record and release an EP soon! Besides this, we always wanna step out of comfort zone trying something new and something exciting to create new sound of us. Touring with local shoegaze bands is always our dream and ultimate goal. It would be great if we can really make a tour in some countries like Japan and Taiwan.

Q: Any parting words?
Thanks the love all the way from Brazil! Hope that there will be chance to perform in Brazil !
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Thanks

https://seaoftranquilityhk.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/seaoftranquilityhk

Kaleidoscope with Cosmic Child - An Interview

Diretamente de Singapura vem o quinteto Cosmic Child e junto a eles o excelente e sonhador debute chamado Untitled lançado em Abril.

Um passeio por entre indie rock, dreampop, pitadas de shoegaze e por vezes sutilezas levemente psicodélicas,  mais sem haver viagens profundas, na realidade o Cosmic Child concentra seus devaneios em melodias assoviáveis e pegajosas, sempre com aquele reverb que tanto amamos.

Uma belíssima estreia para uma promissora banda. Que venha muito mais do Cosmic Child, nós agradecemos.

***** Interview with Cosmic Child *****

Q. When did Cosmic Child start? Tell us about the history...
Back in secondary school, Daniel was jealous that Bo wanted to form a metal band with another group of friends. So one way or another, the two of them decided to form an art rock band called Cosmic Child out of the shared love of Pink Floyd, David Bowie and the Velvet Underground. While covering the Velvet Underground didn't work out, we did play Wonderwall at a school concert (ew). From there, the rest of members, Teoh Yun, BJ and Shervonne picked up instruments and we played our first gig in December 2014 after graduating. It's a fucking miracle that we're still a band.

Q: Who are your influences?
Slowdive, the Microphones, any punk bands that plays two chords, Kids Bop

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
Daniel Johnston - Hi, How Are You?
MBV - Loveless (do i really have to mention this)
Now Thats What I Call Music 91
Macintosh Plus - Floral Shoppe
Best Christmas Music Compilation; Jingle all the way!!

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Love and hate relationship. Love it when nothing goes wrong and the crowd is cool. Hate it when shit fucks up and it just snowballs into a terrible show.

Q. How do you describe Cosmic Child´s sounds?
awkward pop songs with too much reverb.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
We recorded the album in more or less one week's time because we're really good at procrastination and really bad with time management. We stayed over at the studio on some nights and worked in 12 hour shifts. Everything was recorded using two SM57s and a pair of condenser mics. The vocals was recorded the day before mixing and mixing and mastering was done in a single day. This resulted in Bo's breakdown and we all learn valuable time management skills from the incident.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Long Live the Empire, Rûth and Cosmic Child.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
Velvet Underground

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Play shows, tour, record one more album then breakup.
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/cosmicchildband
https://cosmicchildband.bandcamp.com

New Swirled Order with Drinking Flowers - An Interview

Um dos grandes álbuns lançados nesse 2016 é certamente "New Swirled Order" terceiro trabalho do Drinking Flowers, lançado em Março pelo Manifesto Records.

Rotula-los chega a ser uma missão absolutamente impossível, ou digamos, desnecessária. Pense em elementos de psicodelismo, drones, ambientação que remete em inúmeros momentos ao pós punk e a new wave, resumindo, um verdadeiro caldeirão de referências que torna a sonoridade do Drinking Flowers envolvente e enigmática. 

Se por acaso você desconhece o Drinking Flowers, faça um favor a você mesmo, corrija isso imediatamente.

Simplesmente genial.

***** Interview with Drinking Flowers *****

Q. When did Drinking Flowers start? Tell us about the history...
Drinking Flowers started like many other bands meeting each other at work. We started talking more and more and coming to understand that we were all the freaks we'd been waiting to meet for a while.

Q: Who are your influences?
A lot of different elements. We're always evolving. Changing our minds. Questioning ourselves. I dont think there will be a permanent fixture in our influences. Right now I've been listening to a lot of various artists from the 1980's a lot of them lo-fi projects and experiments from folks who didn't quite make it in the post punk and new wave scenes.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
No.

Q. How do you feel playing live?
It's never really the same feeling. Probably leaning towards being tense and angry. We're trying to be more fun these days (shrugs shoulders*).

Q. How do you describe Drinking Flowers´ sounds?
We've recently abandoned the use of live/acoustic drums and have used drums programs and drum machines instead. This has really brought us into a new dimension musically. I think David the man who mastered our last record put it best. It's "ambient but really groovy." I like synthesizer and guitar and well everything floating around for quite sometime before they disappear.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
There is no process, it quite honestly is chaos.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Pale Dian (label mates of ours) really impressive three-piece from Austin. Our friends Part Time have made a series of amazing albums the past few years. We also have been really liking Cosmonauts, they're very strong live and I'm excited to hear their new album. Dinner is great! And you should also check out The Molochs.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
HEAVEN 17!

Q: What are your plans for the future?
We're wary of the future. Hopefully make a few more albums before the world implodes.

Q: Any parting words?
We're moving to Berlin or Amsterdam if Clinton or Trump wins. So come say hello if that happens.
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/DrinkingFlowers
https://drinkourflowers.bandcamp.com/

Heavy Doubt with Trench - An Interview

Heavy Doubt é o aperitivo para o EP estreia do Trench, trio de Syracuse, NY, que atenderá pelo nome de "Sun-Soaked".

De cara já dá pra sentir aquela aura melancólica e barulhenta, herdeira de gente como Catherine Wheel e que se assemelha de certa maneira aos atuais e prediletos Nothing.

Para ouvir no volume máximo.

***** Interview with Trench *****

Q. When did Trench start? Tell us about the history...
Trench started as a solo project that I always wanted to create. It was a mix of several styles, with heavily reverberated vocals, washy ambient guitars, and lyrical content ranging from life, death, philosophy, and any other subject I wanted to explore. After a year I missed the connection of playing with other musicians. This was also a reflection of my personal growth. I realized that to me life is about meaningful connections with others, and there are few things that bring people closer together than music. Now I can't imagine this band as anything other than the three of us. We all get along so well, and I couldn't be more happy with the music we are creating together.

Q: Who are your influences?
My personal influences are likely a little different compared to most musicians. My father was also a musician, and we grew up very secluded from popular music and mainstream media in general. I was hitting drums and strumming strings before I could walk, but my father didn't really listen to music. We had no cable, radio, and the only music I ever heard was my father's band. In fact, it wasn't until I was a teenager that I discovered so many other people created music.

I suppose my influences in music come less from other music, and more from my experiences. As an adult, I am drawn to music that is dynamic, powerful(musically and lyrically), and genuine. Music that has depth and makes you feel something.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
Failure-Fantastic Planet
Pygmy Lush-Yellow Hall
Wild Sweet Orange-We Have Cause To Be Uneasy
Catherine Wheel-Ferment
My Bloody Valentine-Loveless

Q. How do you feel playing live?
It's funny you ask that because I've had this conversation with several musician friends over the last few months. For me it's almost meditative. Music is the easiest way for me to escape. It's like that feeling of true, unprocessed expression before your mind take hold and blurs the lines of reality.

Q. How do you describe Trench´s sounds?
Our intention is to create something that evokes some thought, emotion, or whatever it is the listener needs, and how that comes out depends on how we feel we can best express ourselves. To be less vague, it sounds like heavy alt-rock, with pounding rhythms, melodic bass lines, spacey guitars, and vocals that float just beneath the surface.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
We're fortunate enough to record with our new friend Tim Hall of UA sound in Syracuse, New York. Aside from the drums it was entirely recorded at my house. It was a great experience, and we are so happy with how it came out. We'll be releasing the three song EP titled "Sun-Soaked" on Flesh and Bone Records out of Chicago, Illinois in mid July.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Too many to mention! There's so much good music out there right now. First band that comes to mind is my friends band "Cloakroom" from Indiana. If you like midwest emo, stoner rock, and heavy music with a groove check out their full length "Further Out". Also, from the midwest(maybe we need to move there?) the Chicago 3-piece "Lume" is absolutely incredible. Super dark, super heavy, super nice guys. They just put out a beautiful album titled "Perennial Phase".

Q: Which band would you love to make a cover version of?
I've always wanted to cover My Bloody Valentine's "When You Sleep". It's so incredible catchy and beautiful.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Music is our passion and we'll follow it wherever it takes us. At the moment we're putting out a three song EP on Flesh and Bone records next month. After that we're going to write all summer and fall, and plan to record our debut full length for next year.

Q: Any parting words?
Thanks again for taking the time to talk to me and any of you reading this. This is our passion and we are so happy to be able to share it with you all!
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/trenchmusic
https://trench-ny.bandcamp.com/releases
https://www.instagram.com/trench_ny
https://twitter.com/trench_ny

Spring Inclination with Automatic Fiction - An Interview

Uma beleza cândida paira no ar durante a audição do EP de estreia dos franceses do Automatic Fiction. "Spring Inclination", lançado em Março, passeia por entre influências oitentistas, indie rock e doses poderosas de dreampop, criando aquela magia, aquele mistério que cativa desde os primeiros acordes de "Grass Glows By Itself", abertura do disco.

Conselho do TBTCI, dê play imediatamente e tranquilize sua mente.

Envolventemente sedutor.

***** Interview with Automatic Fiction *****

Q. When did Automatic Fiction start? Tell us about the history...
Tom : We start in spring 2015. Lise and I were in the same band and when the drummer left we met Dany and decide to go more electronic with synth and guitars layers.

Thats how Automatic Fiction Start.

Q: Who are your influences?
We listen to all of kind of music from classical to electro. We love chopin, panda bear, pixies, autechre, other lives etc... All music where we feel beauty

Q. Make a list of 5 albuns of all time…
Tamer animals (other lives), Tom Boy (Panda Bear), Nocturnes (chopin) , Solo piano (Gonzales), the Empyrean (john frusciante).

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Lise : I love playing live. for me it's the more important thing when you play in a band and to be honnest it's one of the most inportant thing in my life.It feels like we prepared a present for our audience. And I'm very happy to offer it during the gig and to share this moment with the listenners.

Q. How do you describe Automatic Fiction sounds?
Tom: i guess it's mix betwwen all our influences so i would say indie rock electro with synths layers .

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
Tom : We recorded our EP in a big old house in the middle of the country. It was a beautiful spot near a river that gives us inspiration for the songs. Drums ,bass and guitars were achieved very quickly while it took me along long time to make vocals because we want them to be perfect.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Tom : I was strike by LUH they are incredible and there is Pegase a french band we saw live in bordeaux . They sound a little bit like M83 in their begining.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
We would love to achieve the sound of the wind going through a poplar tree.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Lise : Right now, we reherseal for our new video wich will be a song played live and we work on new songs... We also put together some shows for september in France.

Q: Any parting words?
Lise: We are glad that our music get through ocean and being share with some people of your beautiful country .
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Thanks!

https://soundcloud.com/automatic-fiction
https://www.facebook.com/automaticfiction
http://www.automaticfiction.com/

Rhythmic Lizard Moon with Super Napkin - An Interview

Uma colisão desenfreada entre MBV e Eric´s Trip geraria um híbrido igualmente esporrento e viajante. Bem, esta alquimia nos dias de hoje, obviamente pode acontecer e já aconteceu na realidade.

Diretamente da Tailândia o trio, Super Napkin, e seu incrível debute "Rhythmic Lizard Moon" berram em formato college indie gaze noise a junção das duas matrizes cultuadas.

Pena que a mídia basicamente ignore o que acontece no submundo dos bons sons, e o Super Napkin infelizmente permanece restrito a poucos admiradores.

Cabe a todos espalhar a palavra. E o TBTCI cumpre sua parte neste quesito.

Escute estridentemente alto e depois saia pra rua.

***** Interview with Super Napkin *****

Q. When did Super Napkin start? Tell us about the history...
Yau: Super Napkin is a power trio with me (Yau) on guiar/vox, Nicole on bass/vox, and Vinnie on drum. We used to be in different bands and only started playing together in late 2014. Originally it’s Nicole and I writing some silly tunes at home just for fun/practice, but some of them were stuck in my head. They didn’t quite fit into the other band I’m in (Slack Tide), so I asked Vinnie to drum and see how those tunes sound like in a proper band. Several of them are still kept on this record. As a group we played well with each other and came up with the other half of tracks on the record pretty fast. That’s when we started to consider gigging and recording our first album (Rhythmic Lizard Moon) more seriously, keeping the band going and see how far it can go.

Q: Who are your influences?
Mount Eerie/The Microphones, Eric’s Trip, Yo La Tengo, My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth, and Bob Mould just to name a few. There are also many local indie bands in Taiwan that inspire us hugely, not necessarily on music, but on making music independently.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
The Microphones – The Glow Pt. 2
My Bloody Valentine – Isn’t Anything
Yo La Tengo – Painful
Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Rust Never Sleeps
Eric’s Trip – Love Tara

Q. How do you feel playing live?
We love playing live. As a trio it’s pretty intense yet free at the same time. Little adjustments on sounds here and there can make huge differences to the room and crowd, so most of the time we need to be absolutely focused on the sound and react instantly. The concentration and direct interaction with the listeners is an exclusive experience only happen to us during performing live. Our day jobs, similar to most office workers, are pretty trivial and separate us from the other human beings emotionally. Live is a therapy process.

Q. How do you describe Super Napkin sounds?
Hard clipping soft pop.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs?
We did it all on Garageband ourselves except for mastering, which is done by West West Side Music in the US.. Drums are all recorded in a public rehearsal room we rent and practice most of the time. Guitar/bass/vocal are all done in my room. We only have some basic recording gears, such as Scarlett 2i2 audio interface, three audix mics, macbook, and several Sony and Bose headphones.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
For local bands, I’ve been listening to U.TA, No Party for Cao Dong, Acidy Peeping Tom, and Wayne's So Sad a lot. For Western bands, Solids, Elvis Depressedly, and Tony Molina (not exactly new I guess) caught my attention.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
Pixies, just for shouting.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
We’ve been making progress on the materials for the second album. Rhythmic Lizard Moon is only streaming online for the moment, and we want to get it printed someday, alone with a new album.

Q: Any parting words?
Thanks to TBTCI for inviting us to do this interview. It is a rare chance for us to introduce Super Napkin and Rhythmic Lizard Moon to the audience outside of our circle in Taiwan. If you like it, welcome to download the full album on www.supernapkin.com. We’ve also worked with a talented director friend and released a music video, please check it out! https://youtu.be/uoLYfKt-l38?list=PL-sOS6nB4CD3moZT-Qbs9PhdFlNCB_X5n
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/SuperNapkin
https://supernapkin.bandcamp.com

Odds and Ends with Frana - An Interview

Hora de barulheira gratuita no TBTCI.

Diretamente de Milão, Itália, Frana, quarteto post hardcore/noise e seu arsenal esporrento de barulho na medida perfeita. Seguindo a tradição de gente como Fugazi, At The Drive In entre outros, os caras simplesmente destroem tímpanos e o que mais estiver pela frente.

Experimente "Odds and Ends", perfeita introdução para a a artilharia insana dos caras.

Propício para chutar tudo e todos que estiverem pela frente e claro, expurgar demônios.

***** Interview with Frana *****

Q. When did Frana start?
Luca:​ It goes back to 20​11, Francesco and I sort of knew each other from Milan, we were both living in Munich and we had no friends​​​. We decided to start something like a band, but could have been also something else, like a dancing school or a scouting society, luckily or not it was a band.
But we were not quite well understood by the Münchner who had no clue about our "influences" and we were both bass players, so I bought a guitar... I skip to the end, the actual lineup is scattered around, I´m in Milan, Francesco B. as well, Sascha in Munich and Francesco S. in Florence. If it´s not complicated, we don´t like it ;)

Q: Who are your influences?
Fra​: it's hard to be short here...we're all quite eclectic listeners. I'd say basically all Touch and Go and Amphetamine Reptile bands as well as screamo bands from the 00s. Few names over all, well...We all like Shellac, Unsane, Don Caballero and Fugazi, but also Botch, Daïtro, Trail of dead...


Q. Make a list of 5​​ ​albu​m​s of all time…
​Luca: oh, noooo, I suck at this... Fra?

Fra:​​ I hate lists. I'm just gonna say 5 random great albums that are crossing my mind right now...
At the drive-in - Relationship of command
Slint - Spiderland
Joy Division - Unknown pleasures
Pavement - Slanted and enchanted
Unwound - Leaves turn inside you

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Luca: Mainly drunk, if not​​ pretty good, well, pretty good anyway. I like to talk lot of nonsense, I claim songs talk about silly stuff, like the cotton balls in the belly button or the queue at the p​​ost office. Sometimes I´m understood, sometimes not at all...people look at me like there´s something very wrong with us and sometimes they even ask me if the lyrics are really about that. No they´re not.

​Fra:​​ it feels good, I mean...it's cool. We like to establish a dialog with the audience, mostly based on gags...sometimes we are the only one laughing, though. But this makes it funny, before we eventually kill everyone's ears with the next unreasonably loud song.

Q. How do you describe Frana's sound?
​Luca: well, it´s quite hard to tell from the inside, most of the time I´m not even sure if what we write it´s good or not or which kind of influences it has, I describe Frana as pretty much the only music I can write​.​

​Fra:​ Frana is the multi-faceted result of what we ingest and experience. It's one possible way how we can work together in making music. I would say we are not entirely monotonous people, so that's what comes out...mixed tunes, mixed feelings. Have a look at the lyrics, you'll also get a feeling about the sounds, how we mean them.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs?
​Luca: I can tell you the story of Odds and Ends' recording session. At that time we were all living in Munich and we decided to record at Trai Studio, near Milan, since he´s a good friend and one of the goddamn master of Italian noise rock. We decided to play two concerts on the way there... In something like 48 hours we had to drive 1000 km, play 2 shows, record 4 songs, while sleeping something like 0 hours. Never again...

​Fra:​ never again? Or maybe the same but 10 songs next time? We'll for sure go back there.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Fra:​ hmmm...how new is new? Just out of my last week's hits, I'll go for Greys from Canada and our friends Opiliones from Germany.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
​Luca: I´m not really a cover person, cause in principle I am not able to play anything except what I wrote... But maybe I´d like to cover School by Nirvana.​

​Fra:​ I'd like to try out Chartered Trips by Hüsker Dü or Eggshell by Autechre (whenever I can convince the others).

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Luca: ​The plan for the future is simple, make a juicy LP record, not that easy to write since we are far away from each other, but we are working on it and we have already some fresh material!

Q: Any parting words?
Luca: thanks a lot for the interview!

Fra: ciao! visit our bandcamp http://franafrana.bandcamp.com, where you can download our music for free. See you in Brasil one day (that would be actually incredible).
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Thanks

https://franafrana.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/frana.band/

Transmission with The Quality of Mercury - An Interview

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 *****

Q. When did The Quality of Mercury start? Tell us about the history...
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/

George Street with Great Ytene - An Interview

Depois de décadas de experimentações das mais diversas possíveis, hoje tudo pode ser objeto de mais e mais experimentos, pense em fundir kraut, pós punk, shoegaze, psych e soar como se tudo isso fizesse todo o sentido desde sempre.

Pois é, este exercício freak foi digerido e expurgado pelos ingleses do Great Ytene, seja em seu fantástico EP de 2014, homônimo, ou no novíssimo single "George Street", tudo faz sentido na receita esquizofrênica e viajante dos caras.

Música para iniciados.

***** Interview with Great Ytene *****

Q. When did Great Ytene start? Tell us about the history...
Great Ytene came to life in 2013 through the demise of a band called Colours we were all in together. Tom had come in to replace our old guitarist in that band, and after we wrote and recorded some new material we realised our sound and direction had changed somewhat, so it just made sense to start afresh.

We’ve know each other for quite sometime and have all played music together prior to being in London and Great Ytene, so the progression and development of the four of us a band came pretty naturally.

Q: Who are your influences?
I feel that we have a very eclectic range of influences, but I guess the ones that come through quite prominently in our music are bands like Sonic Youth, This Heat, Women, PiL, Fugazi, MBV, Deerhunter and Tina Weymouth to name eight.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
I can never make up my mind and feel that my top 5 is always changing, so the best I can give you are 5 albums I’ve been listening to a lot recently.
Flaming Tunes – Flaming Tunes
Sonic Youth – Bad Moon Rising
Can – The Lost Tapes
Tomaga – Familiar Obstacles
Cindy Lee – Act of Tenderness

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Playing live is great! Our current set is comprised of all new songs, so it’s been really fun fleshing them out and working them together as a whole. Interacting with one another and with an audience is a pretty great feeling; we’re looking to try to get some more shows around the UK and Europe before the year is out.

Q. How do you describe Great Ytene sounds?
A little bit of post punk, a little bit of shoegaze, a little bit of repetition and a little bit of noise. A friend of ours once described us as “Fugazi with delay pedals.” Haha.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs?
We’ve been pretty lucky to work with some pretty talented people when it’s come recording! A lot of our early stuff we did with Rory Attwell (Warm Brains) on Lightship 95 as well as with our good friend Iggy B at Bella Union Studios. We recently recorded an album’s worth of songs with Iggy at this real amazing studio called Holy Mountain Studios in Hackney before sending it up to Suburban Home in Leeds to get mixed by MJ from Hookworms.

We’ve done a lot of stuff ourselves in the past, mainly bedroom recording and practice space demos which is a really good way to work, but we’ve always felt that working with others and having that contribution from someone outside the band has really helped to achieve best results.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
I don’t think Housewives, Psychic Markers, H.Grimace, Ice Baths and Joane Syklar are necessary ‘new bands’ but they are all superb acts that I recommend people should lend an ear to.

Q: Which band would you love to make a cover version of?
We’ve actually done a few covers in our time. We did an Orange Juice cover a while back and recently recorded covers of Mission of Burma’s This Is Not A Photograph and Pavement’s Two States that were really quick and fun to do!

I think people tend to set a lot of rules when it comes to doing covers, there’s a lot of pressure on providing a radical take on a track, re-performing a song can give it a whole new context. I think that’s great, but it’s also just as good to pay homage to a band or song by not over thinking it and just playing it however it comes to you. The manner in which Sonic Youth have covered a wide range of songs and artists over their career is a testament to the latter way of going about it, which I admire.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
So we’ve got an album that will be out this year, which we’re real excited about! Just working out the final details for that now. We’re also sorting out a stint around the UK and potentially a couple of Euro dates!

Q: Any parting words?
Obrigado por espalhar a boa palavra Renato!
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/GreatYtene
https://greatytene.bandcamp.com
https://soundcloud.com/greatytene

Anywhere but Here with Lanark - An Interview

Definitivamente não é de hoje que a Austrália nos brinda com excelentes banda, e aqui no TBTCI, atenção total sempre para a efervescente ebulição de novas e ótimas bandas vindas de lá.

O Lanark não é assim tão novato, os caras iniciaram suas atividades em 2012 e possuem um álbum absolutamente envolvente, o disco homônimo lançado em 2014 é uma daquelas preciosidades escondidas no submundo dos bons sons, mesclando vestígios oitentistas atrelados ao bom e velho indie rock como era feito em tempos atrás, e claro, sem contar com sutis pitadas sonhadoras e gazers.

Melodias singelas e elegantes para que a mente fique em estado de graça. Soberbo.

Ah sim, detalhe para o novo single deles "Anywhere but Here", uma pérola, simples assim,

***** Interview with Lanark *****

Q. When did Lanark start? Tell us about the history...
Lanark started in early 2012 after a few of our initial projects fizzled out.
Damian and I (Sandon) used to play in HiHelo together whilst Mikey, Temily and Darren used to play in a band called All Eyes On Saturn. It felt pretty natural to line up a jam after both bands went separate ways.

Everything is ultimately linked back to an old derelict share house in Perth (Western Australia) on 'Lanark’ street; where we all used to hang out/met each other and other key people who have influenced the Lanark journey.

Q: Who are your influences?
Our influences are frequently changing.
With this being said, we all initially bonded over our shared love bands like Radiohead, The Antlers, Explosions in The Sky, Mogwai, Port St. Willow, Foals, Boards of Canada, My Bloody Valentine, Tycho, Interpol, Deerhunter, Slowdive etc.

Q. Make a list of 5 albums of all time…
John Frusciante – Shadows Collide With People
Lotus Plaza – Spooky Action At A Distance
Augie March – Sunset Studies
Interpol - Turn On The Bright Lights
Elliott Smith – Figure 8

Q. How do you feel playing live?
In Lanark there are so many different elements running parallel to each other that live performances can be quite different from show to show. When we are all locked into each other’s groove and the general vibe is right, it’s pretty hard to beat the feeling of playing live. I (Sandon) feel pretty lucky to play in a band with some of my favourite musicians who are also some of my best friends. I tend to zone out a little if I’m in the right space when we play live. It sounds very cliché’, but I tend to just move around spasmodically and not think too much about the stupid faces I might pull or my ‘chicken head’ movements. Most songs allow for some improvisation in tones/swells or guitar parts. I try to judge the general feel of the performance with everyone’s general vibe on stage. If the vibe is a little mellower; I try and hit a note a little softer or play a little less. But if there seems to be a tension or nervous energy/excitement, maybe I’ll play a note/chord in an aggressive or violent manner. Mainly I just like heckling our drummer Darren mid-song and he usually steadies the ship or changes the vibe/feel as we play.

Q. How do you describe Lanark sounds?
Our sound has changed pretty extensively since we started in 2012. We initially struggled to take a cross section of everyone’s influences and make them work as a cohesive song. But after a while we realised that drawing from completely different sources/ideas helped us write songs that we are all really proud of. Our debut album is the ultimate amalgamation of our different interests and passions for post rock, shoegaze and pop music.

Since the release of our debut record in 2014 we have continued to explore different genres and will continue to explore new ideas whilst writing our next release. Our new track “Anywhere But Here” doesn’t really fit alongside any of our other tracks, but I think we all like that feeling of contrast between our songs.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
Our new track ‘Anywhere But Here’ was written/recorded in a completely different manner to how we would normally work. Darren, who mainly plays drums in Lanark, had written a chord progression that we all really liked. We therefore just decided to swap instruments to see if we could approach writing from a different angle. I personally think that playing an instrument that is foreign to you can help you write something that is less convoluted and sometimes more poignant. It can allow you to focus on the actual idea in its simplest form. Our previous keys player Tem is left-handed and had to channel a bit of Hendrix when writing some guitar riffs on a right-handed guitar. Our bassist Mikey also enjoyed working on the drums, as did I (Sandon) working on the bass. I think that this method of writing may reappear in future writing sessions.

When we recorded ‘Anywhere But Here’ with Dave Parkin, we alternated between instruments again to ensure that the track had the best feel, regardless of who was playing what part.

This exploration of new writing techniques has also inspired Darren and I (Sandon) to start a new project called Peppermint Showers.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Whilst this band isn’t necessarily new, the new HYLA track ‘Chaos for you’ is great - https://soundcloud.com/hyla-music/chaos-for-you

Cheeky plug – Peppermint Showers are due to release new material soon; which is exciting.
Here is there first track 'Soto'.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HnOBH5zP88

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
A few years ago we learnt/rehearsed a cover of ‘Swimming Pools’ by Kendrick Lamar but never played it live… Maybe we should one day. Our good friend Billy Reeves was spitting some fat rhymes over the track, so it was a lot of fun. Who knows maybe it will make an appearance in the set one day.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
We are looking to continue working on new material and hopefully release an E.P later this year. Maybe some exciting vinyl plans to follow also…
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/lanarkmusic
https://lanarkperth.bandcamp.com

No Man's Land Anthem with Holy Machine - An Interview

De Paris, vem o shoegaze gélido com ares oitentistas com os dois pés na cold wave alternando esse ar denso com barulho caótico, nitidamente fazendo conexões com a família Skywave. Este é o Holy Machine.

Experimente imediatamente "No Man´s Land Anthem" primeiro EP dos caras ou ainda o novo single "Never Turn Your Back" que serve como prenúncio do que será o primeiro álbum do Holy Machine.

Barulho gélido para estourar tímpanos e cortar pulsos.

***** Interview with Holy Machine ******

Q. When did Holy Machine start? Tell us about the history...
Damien : We started this project in 2013. We were both in a band called but we started to get bored of it. So one day, we took a drink at home, start playing some shits and it actually worked. So we decided to start a brand new project. We played live in a duo format for 2 years, then, we took Quentin as a keyboard player/machines.

Q: Who are your influences?
Damien : I think you just have to listen Holy Machine to understand that we are clearly into cold wave and shoegazing stuff. We really wanted to mix both, like using big chorus bass, wall of sould, huge reverbs, untombed voices. I actually think it works good.

Kent : I don't know if you can listen it on this project, but we a also huge fans of metal.

Q. Make a list of 5 albuns of all time…
We are two answering so 5 is not enough, so pick up the most relevant for you…
Damien :
- Nine Inch Nails - With Teeth
- Of The Wand And The Moon - The Lone Descent
- A Place To Bury Strangers - Exploding Head
- Joy Division - Close
- Slowdive - Souvlaki

Kent ;
- Pink Floyd - The Wall
- Neil Young - Harvest
- Metallica - …And Justice For All
- Behemoth - The Satanist
- The Beatles - White Album

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Damien : So so mad. We FUCKIN love to play live, we give ourselves to much.

Kent : Yeah we like to perform sweaty and with a lot of energy, like a bit crazy. And obviously, the ultimate goal is to get laid and the end of show !

Q. How do you describe Holy Machine sounds?
Damien : We like to say that we play a "wild coldwave". It's the result of the mix of styles we wanted to get. We compose our songs in a cold wave way but with lot of shoegaze sound elements. You can easily listen it in our song "Never Turn Your Back", the guitar is so agressive and noisy, but the form stays more into 80's stuff.

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
Damien : We are totally DIY in recording but we have the chance to have Kent into this band. He is a fuckin genuis to make this kind of recording sound good. For the process, nothing really unconventional.

Kent : Thank You You are so lovely Damien ! I do my best, trust me I spent hours watching professional tutorials on the internet and looking for the best pulgins and effects.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Damien : Wow, there are so much new awesome bands ... I really loved the solo project M!R!M.

Kent : And also some really good post-black metal stuff such as Regarde Les Hommes Tomber a promising french band.

Q: Which band would you love to made a cover version of?
Damien : Actually, we already did a cover of "Under the milky way" of The Church. I personaly want to cover "Shackles and chains" of Second Glance.

Kent : I’d loved to make a cover of a huge metal song … like O Father, O Satan, O Sun by Behemoth but in our way.

Q: What are your plans for the future?
Damien : Our first album is fully recorded, we found an awesome label that follow us from our first show, so i guess our plan is to launch it real and play it live as much as we can !

Q: Any parting words?
Kent : Today, The weather is shitty in France and the girls are cold. So have you got any plans for us to come and play in Brasil ?
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/holymachinemusic
https://holymachine.bandcamp.com