LUCIDMEDIA

Solo Career

Written by Sebastian Frye Monday, 14 May 2007 10:37

Firstly, thank you for answering some questions. I would also like to just say congratulations on making a superb album.

Thank you very much!

This album, Season Finale, is it an approach to the end, or the beginning of a new direction?

The title just refers to this being the best recordings from the eight gigs we played between 1997 and 2002 - our first  "season" - both in terms of performance and recording quality. It also seemed like a humorous title for a debut. If we ever get around to doing a second release, we already have a working title: "Return To Form"!

I'd like to just ask, what is your guys' musical background?

We all come from a combination of rock, jazz and experimental influences. Bob Lee and I are closer to rock, although we do enjoy improvising. Nels, Ken and Woody are all highly trained musicians who can play pretty much any style of music and add their own distinctive styles.

Is your music more related to the creation of a soundscape than to making a "nice tune"?

It's usually just a matter of listening to what everyone else is doing, then adding something that fits, even if that means just laying back. A key to what makes the performances sound so planned is that after we were done, I took the recordings home and did a lot of micro-editing to improve the flow - you know, two minutes here, two seconds there, wherever it was needed. The album is just under 43 minutes, but the unedited version runs about an hour. There wasn't much to remove, just a few things here and there to tighten it up.

What is the group chemistry like? How is it when you play together? From the record there are moments when the band really peaks as a whole and everyone is really jamming.

Well, the three guitarists have all worked together in different musical projects for years. It's really hard to gauge how well an improv session will turn out. The tracks from 1997, with only two guitarists, are a good case in point. It was one of our first gigs, and both Nels and I had played with Ken before, but Ken and Bob had never met before the show. Ken literally introduced himself to Bob, plugged in, and

away we went! It took about five minutes for us to warm up, but once we did, it ended up being one of our best shows, which is why it takes up almost half of the CD.

Do you have an opinion on the studio album vs. the live performance? It seems some bands make it simply on crafting a studio record. Is the actual performance and experience more important to you as and your listeners?

Good question. As much fun as it can be to perform live without a net, there are often too many barriers that prevent things from going as well as one would like - for example, lack of a good mix on stage.

The two tracks which we did in 2002 were done in a rehearsal space. We were originally set to do a live gig that weekend, but the club double-booked, and as Woody was still out of town until the night before, touring with Bobby Womack, I couldn't very well set another date without his consent, so luckily for us,

everyone was available that afternoon. It was a much more relaxing atmosphere than a live gig, where you're on and off in 40 minutes with no time to discuss different ideas, and where you may not even be able to hear each other properly. In the rehearsal space we were able to take long breaks between jams and decide what to do next. I don't know when or if our next gig takes place, but I'd like it to be a little of both: a rehearsal space where we can take our time, but with a few invited friends to give it that live vibe.

How do you guys begin to create music? What elements do you start with and how do you end up with the final creation?

We basically just start, then go until we're done! As long as everyone keeps their ears open, we can go all sorts of unexpected places. The most important step is getting the right musicians in the first place. Bob and I are basically the core members, and while we've enjoyed working with different musicians, it really seems that these three guitarists are the closest to what we try to achieve, through a combination of their sheer playing ability and their mountains of sound processors. The piece called "Returning" features the two guitars and bass utilizing effects to make us sound like we're playing in reverse - that was all live, none of that was added afterwards.

What musicians or musical styles influence your music? When listening I can hear all kinds of different genres boiling; a little blues, some rock, ambient, funk, even a some moments of metal.

We hear a lot of those things too, but we never really think about it while we're playing - just pull whatever tricks out of the hat.

Do you take any inspiration from the jazz methods of improvisation, or is this something that you believe is inherent both in your music and in music and general?

Well, Bob and I wouldn't call ourselves seasoned jazzbos, but we do like to swing, and the abilities of the three guitarists are really beyond reproach in that area. All three of them are highly sought after on the Los Angeles jazz and improv scenes. We're very lucky to have worked with them. Of course, having them as friends in the first place doesn't hurt! When I play music like this, I try to play in a style similar to what Hugh Hopper did in Soft Machine. One trick that goes a long way is for the bass to avoid playing the thirds of a chord - this allows the other instruments more freedom in the chords and solos they choose.

When listening to the album, I was watching a train go by outside and the puffs of smoke spewing from the top were exactly in time with the music. Do you attempt to fuse your music with nature, or even your own nature, or is the music simply a product of this?

That's a hard question to answer. I guess, the more you live, the more you're able to put it into the music. I think a lot of the playing on "Season Finale" is very organic, with the solos coming about naturally, rather than just spewing out rapid-fire cliches.

The seamless stream of tracks on the album lead me to believe it was recorded in one strong solid session, is this so?

I'm glad to hear you think it sounds that way, because as you know, it's actually from two different sessions. It was just a matter of finding a canny spot to link the two together, which happens between tracks 1 and 2. Tracks 2-5 are all from the same session. Rather than fuse the entire program together, we thought a few seconds of silence before the final track provided some relief to the listener, almost like a postscript.

I think of your music as a storm; brewing, spinning around until it completely engulfs the listener. Is this an image you can agree with? (This sort of feeling is well captured especially on the track "Ms. Furry")

Yeah, that track really swirls around, almost without resolving until the end, where it only really resolves by segueing into the next track. It's pretty tense, so it's nice when the next piece comes in and provides a little relief.

Does location and environment have anything to do with your music or do you attempt to transcend this?

Location and environment always affect the way you play. So does the mood you're in, what happened the night before that's still weighing on your mind...there are a million different factors.

When playing does one band member lead and the others follow, or does each maybe play a role and everyone simply builds on each other?

A combination of both, really. When one guitarist takes a lead, the others know instinctively to back him up. They're all great lead players, but what makes them special is their excellent knowledge of chordal theory. It's all I can do to keep up with them! One thing that helped the 2002 recordings was that all three guitarists set their amplifiers up next to each other to one side of the drums, while I set up my bass amp on the other side. That way they could really hear each other well, while I was able to stay out of their way.

The major themes in your music, I find, are those of chaos and order, of harmony, and disharmony. Is this a conscious effort to build and break down or does this just come out of the experience of creating the music?

That's a nice way to describe it. I think I'll leave it at that!

I must ask, does your music relate to painting in any way? I ask because of the celestial album art and the final song "The Painted Desert"?

Improvising is a lot like impressionistic painting, which is probably why those Paul Whitehead art pieces fit it so well. Although we didn't set out to use art that corresponded with specific tracks, I've always thought the two-page piece on the inside of the booklet seems like a painted desert.

What does the band plan to do now?

I have no idea. Nels is busy with Wilco. Woody and Ken have their own bands, as well as paying gigs. Bob has a day job, besides playing in a million bands around LA. I've barely been playing any music myself these days - not sure why, probably just my muse hit a cul-de-sac or something. It's okay, I've been playing for decades and I've had a great time, but right now other interests are beckoning. Never say never, though.

Thank you for your time in answering these questions. I wish you the best of luck in your musical endeavors.

And thank you as well!