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  1. Morgan

    November 7, 2006 by admin

    On her debut CD, “…and the moon was hungry…,” Morgan manages to flawlessly bring together the classical training she’s had since childhood and her love for darkwave music. What makes it work so well is that she obviously has a deep understanding and heartfelt appreciation of both genres. This isn’t like when a singer/songwriter just adds electronic beats to give their music an edge, or when a synth band experiments with orchestral samples. Together with the production team Wizardz of Oz, Morgan has truly managed to fuse styles in such a way that sounds natural and extremely powerful. In an email interview, Morgan told us a bit about the CD, her work on a “Harry Potter” trailer, and more!

    I know from your bio that you got started with music as a child, but can you talk a little bit about what you were doing musically immediately before this project? Had you been involved with other bands/projects?

    Morgan: I was noodling on the piano and learning the cello prior to making my EP. Nothing serious, just fishing around for what I wanted to play, who i was musically. The EP was my first attempt at combining the classical instrumentation with the industrial beats. It was born purely from my love of both genres.

    What initially inspired you to combine classical elements with rock and electronic music? Was it just a love for different styles, or were there particular bands who influenced you?

    Morgan: Like I said above, i really love industrial and classical music in general. Since I was trained classically in voice, piano and cello, it was natural for me to incline the music in that direction. However my appreciation for Front 242 and various darkwave bands really boosted my desire to incorporate industrial beats to the recording process. Bjork’s album “Post” was also a huge inspiration in that the production was beautiful and yet heavy and metallic at the same time.

    How did you come to work with the Wizardz of Oz?

    Morgan: The Wizardz were actually friends of my manager and when we sat down for the first time, it just clicked.

    Are there particular ways that your music changed or evolved once the recording process got underway?

    Morgan: Oh goodness yes. For example “Nice Day (for a murder)” is a very simplistic almost music box-like song, but once we got into the studio, the layering of strings, the clock sound… the layering transformed the piece. Production, particularly good production, can take a tune and turn it into a “piece”. I feel that the Wizardz really have a gift for transforming my ideas into a reality.

    Why go by just Morgan, as opposed to your full name (Morgan Grace)?

    Morgan: Well, Morgan just went better with the music i suppose. However now that i’ve got such amazing players to create with, we are thinking of becoming a full-on band.

    The artwork on the CD and website is really interesting. Can you explain a bit about where it came from, and what inspired you to use it?

    Morgan: As a child I admired the artwork of Edward Gorey and Im also a huge lover of bizarre Victorian drawings. I happened upon some amazing source books at an art store when I was finishing a collage project and I knew immediately that the images would be perfect for the artwork of the album. I do a lot of collage in my spare time and that had a huge effect on the type of art I wanted to incorporate.

    Do you have a general approach to song writing in terms how the process generally starts? (lyrics first, melody first, etc). Or does it really vary by song?

    Morgan: I hate to say it but the process is always different! When I first began writing, it was purely short stories and stream of consciousness. It only occurred to me to put music to my writing at the encouragement of my piano teacher. As a result I tend to write words first, but lately I’ve been pushing myself to write the music initially in order to keep it interesting. In other words, I try to go with what gives me the most inspiration.

    How did you get involved with the “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” trailer? Why weren’t you heard in the US version?

    Morgan: Well, I got lucky! The producer of the trailer happened to have been given my EP by a mutual friend and called me in for an audition as they were prepping for the recording. I got a call the next day and was told that I needn’t audition, I was hired! It was truly a lucky break as they say. Trailers tend to be marketed differently depending on what the audience is. For some reason the marketers decided that the US version would have a larger impact with no voice at all, hence the lack of my voice on the domestic version.

    Your CD is available through CD Baby, but can people buy the songs online as downloads (iTunes, eMusic, etc)? If not, do you have any plans to do this?

    Morgan: Yes, the music is available on iTunes, however Im not sure that all of the tracks off the album have been uploaded yet, hopefully this will be rectified soon

    What is your opinion on the use of the internet as a promotional tool?

    Morgan: What I love about internet promotion is that you dont have to be a big name to make it work for you. Its easier to connect to fans on a personal level, spread your image and music, and develop a fan base that is not just local, but world-wide. I love the internet, and I am extremely grateful for the benefits it has afforded not only me, but other artists as well. It is also a wonderful way to meet other like-minded artists and communities of performers.

    What’s in the immediate future for you? Any touring plans? Morgan: Right now we are working on finding the right tour, yes, but distribution is also something that I have been navigating the past few months. In truth, I’m more focused on a grass roots effort at the moment. I want to get the music to people that really love it and then take it from there.

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  2. Ladytron

    by admin

    The following is an interview with Daniel Hunt of Ladytron. It was conducted on Saturday, April 15, 2006, the day after Ladytron kicked off their North American tour with a show in Washington DC. The band returned late last year with their 3rd album, “Witching Hour,” and recently released a new EP/DVD, “Extended Play.” Be sure to also read this interview we did in 2002.

    The US tour just kicked off in DC – how did that show go?

    “It was good. The last time we played DC I think it was about 3 shows in, and it was in the middle of a blizzard. It was a bit better this time. The weather was good, and we sold out.”

    What can people exact from this tour?

    “We played live a lot after that last US tour. In fact we were touring for about another 8 months. I think it’s a lot more powerful now. It’s definitely progressed, the live show.”

    Have you made any major changes in terms of live set-up or instrumentation?

    “Not really, it’s exactly the same as it was last time, it’s just that there’s a guitar as well. I play guitar and keyboards. That’s the only addition. There’s 8 synths on stage, and one guitar, if that gives an indication.”

    Have you added guitar to songs that in the past were performed on just keyboards/synths?

    “Just on a couple of songs where it made sense. The way we record, there are loads of guitars on all the records. But when we didn’t have a guitar with us, we’d approximate with synth going through a bunch of delays or something. So we just use whatever is appropriate. We’re not purists, at all. The bands that we like are not afraid to use whatever instrument works. A guitar, when you feed it through a few pedals, is just a sound generator, really. Using a guitar doesn’t mean it’s going to become kraut rock or Oasis or something.”

    Can you talk about the new “Extended Play” EP?

    “The EP was done because the label wanted something to put out while we were on tour. So we did some exclusive mixes for it, and released some that hadn’t been out before. We also put together a DVD, which is the “Sugar” and “Destroy” videos and this film we made when we toured in China. A mini documentary.”

    And “Witching Hour” just came out on vinyl?

    “Yeah, we always think all our records should be released on vinyl. It was always intended. It’s just that the label wanted to tie it together to when we came to tour. It seems to be pretty standard now to release something on vinyl after it comes out on CD. But as long as it comes out on vinyl eventually we don’t care.”

    What was the reason for switching labels, from Emperor Norton to Ryko?

    “We’ve switched labels about 7 times since we started! We’ve been in this long enough … it’s kind of irrelevant. The most important thing is the team around you and the people you work with day to day at whatever label it is. Ryko is good at the moment, because a lot of them are Ladytron fans. So they’ve been very enthusiastic.”

    The music industry has changed so much over the past decade or so – what do you think has been most effective in terms of getting the word our about Ladytron? The internet? Radio? Club Play?

    “I don’t know. The internet has definitely had an effect, especially in between albums. There seems to be twice as many people into us than last time, even though we didn’t do anything in between. The best way for people to hear the record is the radio or online. Myspace is really good for bands. We’ve only been on that for the past 6 months. Things have changed a lot in 5 years even. Something like Myspace, there’s probably going to be a point where it gets saturated and possibly useless, but it’s good for the band. Things aren’t being forced down people’s throats. It’s not like a record company making some big Flash animation site or sending a lot of unsolicited stuff out. The fact that it’s actually people networking around the band, on their terms, it brings them closer to the band in a way. I think that’s really cool.” What are your thoughts about online music distribution?

    “As far as file sharing, that debate is dead now. It exists, and everyone does it. There’s a certain naivety about who it actually affects … some people are adamant that it doesn’t affect the bands, that it only affects the labels. Which really isn’t true. Because there are now legal downloads as well, people really do now have a choice. If someone doesn’t spend any money on music, there are other ways to support a band. Going to a show, etc. If someone does want to spend money on music, but doesn’t want to go out and buy cds, they can instead go to iTunes of whatever. At least they have a choice. And if they like a band, it’s not like the only way they can support them is by going into a store a buying a record. Because it might not even be available where they are. We’ve played places in the world where none of our records have been available, and the only way to get them is to illegally download them. And then you go and play a sell-out show, and everyone knows all the material. That’s amazing. It wasn’t possible even five or six years ago.”

    Some people see it as bringing back the single. Have you considered releasing individual tracks between albums?

    “Yeah, we might possibly do that. You could put a track out as an individual release, and that’s very easy to do now. It’s not like you have manufacture and distribute them. I still think that we consider ourselves an album band.”

    All three of your albums sound a bit different from each other. Do you think it’s a natural thing, or do you intentionally set out to give each release a fresh edge?

    “It’s evolved naturally because we were playing the tracks from Light and Magic live for a year. And when we were playing them live, they became heavier and more dynamic. We were playing them with live bass, and live drums triggering sounds. And by the end, it got to the point where we were like ‘if we were recording the album now, this is what it would sound like.’ Rather than it be kind of a bedroom production. We ended up finishing in a studio with a producer, but that’s what it started off as. So this album, it was just a natural thing where as we were working on it we were aware of things that we weren’t aware of before. Just from playing live so much. Also, we felt like we had the freedom to make the record we were capable of, rather than the record people expected. Our label in the UK, when they got the demos they were like ‘oh, we know you want to make the big opus or whatever, but can’t you just make Light and Magic 2 first?’ I think you can do more for the reputation of the band by making each successive record different. There are a lot of bands who get big by doing the same thing over and over again, but we don’t want to do that. We want to be successful by making the music we’re inspired to do. Rather than what people who don’t actually like music very much want.”

    What are your plans for after this tour? When can we expect the next release?

    “Well we’ve already started to work on stuff for the next record. ‘Witching Hour’ was delayed for a year, between recording and release. We don’t want to have a big break again this time. We want to just be on the way with this record. At some point we’ll have a break from touring ‘Witching Hour’ and we’ll go record maybe half of it. And then hopefully get the next record out pretty quickly. Early next year, hopefully. Rather than wait so long again.”

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  3. Halou

    by admin

    Having given up on record labels, at least for the time being, Halou is back with a new self-released CD, “Wholeness and Separation.” (street date of May 23, 2006) Their third full-length album, “Wholeness and Separation” once again features highly organic sounding electronic tracks and breathtaking vocals. Based in San Francisco, Halou is comprised husband and wife Ryan and Rebecca Coseboom and Count. The following the first part of a phone interview with Count. Be sure to check back soon to read the rest!

    You joined the band after the first album. How did you come to be a member of Halou?

    COUNT: “We were actually in a band together, and Halou was more or less a side project. It seemed to be really one of those situations where our other group was a true band and everyone contributed their part to it. And it didn’t necessarily all come out the way we wanted it to. But I don’t think anyone really had the guts to sort of say ‘Hey, this isn’t really quite what I think it could be.’ And so instead of any of us saying that, Ryan and Rebecca, who are married, were just kind of quietly doing this stuff. Finally, when I heard it, I said to them ‘That’s what we should have been doing all along!’ Because the early stuff was very electronic, it didn’t necessarily call out for live drums. Since I play drums I wasn’t playing on it. But I was actively involved helping them put that first record together. There just wasn’t anything that I played on or co-wrote or anything like that.”

    What was the name of that original group?

    COUNT: “[Laughs.] I won’t tell you that name of that other band! If someone has a copy of that record on the Internet I don’t want people to know about it. We all live and learn, and that was the learning experience.”

    Can you describe what it was like?

    COUNT: “It was a lot more rock, and I think that had a lot to do with the fact that the original guitarist was a big rock guy, and our original bassist was as well. Although they had good taste in music, you could tell that there was a sort of sense of�I don’t know how to describe it…not virtuosity, but they were much better players than we were and that was a big focus for them�making sure it sounded like they played their instruments well. That’s just something that Ryan and Rebecca and I have always sort of I guess rebelled against. It’s just something that we weren’t very much interested in. Guitar solos � you’ll never hear one of those in a Halou song even if there’s a guitar in it. We don’t care much for that; we’re more interested in making interesting juxtapositions and combinations of sounds. The parts aren’t necessarily difficult to play, they just sound really good to us. None of us care about our part being too boring, or ‘Are people going to think I’m not a good drummer because I’m not playing something difficult?’”

    Did improvements with electronic drums and other musical technology play a part in your joining Halou?

    COUNT: “Yeah, a big part of forming the band, or my assimilating into the band, has been the technology. When I started hearing this stuff, I didn’t really consider playing with them. But around that time, Roland came out with V-Drums and we decided, ‘Hey, these are actually good enough so that I can chop up every little drum hit from the album, assign them to drum pads, and actually play these electronic beats instead of having them pre-recorded.’ So I learned how to do that, and that was one of the first steps in the band developing from being purely electronic to something which was more organic. That was a huge technological leap in terms of our live show. In terms of making the record, it’s kind of interesting because the record that’s just come out is very old. Some of those songs are over 5 years old. But we’re constantly recording new stuff, and recently a lot of software synthesizers emerged that do what used to take us hours with the press of a key.”

    With this new technology, our first gut reaction was ‘Wow, that’s so cool.’ There’s this one company in particular, Native Instruments, that makes really incredible stuff. And it’s very unusual, it’s not for pop musicians, it’s for people like us who enjoy the weird sounds. Because of the fact that the sounds are so instantly unusual, there’s an initial temptation to use it the way it is. But our tendency is to kind of go a lot further beyond that. It’s almost like we’re not using the crazy weird sounds any more, we’re focusing more on things like how to get something really interesting out of an acoustic instrument. If anything, it’s caused us to rethink ‘What are the sounds that we truly enjoy the most?’ Weird sounds are so easy to get and anyone can get them, so it almost makes us less interested in them.”

    Do you see any limitations with the software synths? For example, is there anything that old equipment can do, but the software cannot reproduce?

    COUNT: “Well, I have to admit that for financial reasons and lack of space, we’ve never been collectors of gear. We’re not against it�we just haven’t got down that road. Being a producer and working with bands of all different genres, I definitely recognize the importance of having the old gear. Each piece of gear, even if it only does one thing � sometimes that sound is damn near impossible to recreate with the new stuff. And I can appreciate that. However, being a producer and having to work with other bands on low budgets, over the years I’ve figured out how to get sounds to work that aren’t made with the classic hard-to-find, difficult-to-use, often-breaking-down gear. So I appreciate it, but it’s not something that we have even been able to afford to deal with.”

    Is “Wholeness & Separation” self-released?

    COUNT: “We’re releasing this directly through Bayside distribution, which is a great situation for us that is basically bypassing the label all together and going directly to our fans. Bayside is either the second or third largest distributer, and they can get our record literally to wherever we want it to be. We can book a tour, and they can be right on it. I can forward them tour dates and they can do a marketing plan and turn it around very quickly. So I think it’s a lot better of a situation for us. To be honest, Halou has never fit in, and we haven’t been a part of any trend. So it seems like whenever a certain kind of music is very trendy among people, we’re doing almost the exact opposite. And it’s not on purpose, it’s just that’s what we happen to be into. Records labels tend to work under the model of the trendy stuff. So they’ve never really known what to do with us, and I’m not going to pretend like that’s ever going to change. So we’re going straight to our fans and are just going to continue to do things on our own, and not worry about industry so much.”

    What are your thoughts about online music distribution?

    COUNT: “For me, I have to say [laughs] that maybe I’m a bit of a snob. There are two main things. One is that as a producer and an engineer, my ears are very sensitive and there is a sonic difference in what you download online versus a CD. And I find it pathetic that CD’s have been around for 20 years, and the format that we use online is actually lower sound quality that what we came up with over 20 years ago. We’re not moving forward, we’re moving back. I don’t think people want that, but somehow or another a few people have decided that being able to download something quickly is more important so that’s the way it’s going to be. As for the physical thing versus the download, that’s immediately the one thing that most people never talk about, but I find it to be one of the worst things. I love artwork, it probably makes me sound like an old man and I remember people having this conversation when CD’s came in � talking about ‘Oh, I used to love looking at the big album covers and now the CD’s that the kids are listening to are so small!’ But you know, the artwork is definitely a part of establishing the mood for a lot of bands. It’s not the end of the world, but is something that I wish was more appreciated.”

    You mentioned that some of the music on “Wholeness & Separation” is five years old. Why has it taken so long to get released?

    COUNT: “The music industry kind of dictates that. Finding the right situation for us to release our records is something that I anticipated being less difficult. First of all, with our original record deal, it was a year after the album came out before we realized that it wasn’t going to work. So that’s a year gone. About half of the album was done at that point. We spent another year finishing it, and then the next two years looking for a good situation that basically doesn’t exist anymore. Because the record industry changed so much during that time that even independent labels � their purpose in the world should be to release the more left of center, boundary-pushing music � even those labels have started to consolidate and operate essentially as junior major labels. I could give you countless examples of that, and in fact many are now owned by major labels. So you’re talking about a shift in that direction, so these independent labels are becoming way more trendy and completely afraid to release records anymore because people aren’t buying them. They are financially a lot more inhibited. So that’s when we made the decision to bypass the label completely. It just didn’t make financial sense. In a typical artist deal, the artist gets 10%, and the label gets 90%. Well if they’re dong a hell of a lot for you, and they’re taking you from ground zero to an established act, yeah that’s still pretty extreme but it’s not exploitative. But unfortunately, labels aren’t doing that now. To give someone 90% of something and have them do very little, well that isn’t fair. And it doesn’t make financial sense.”

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  4. Ghostigital

    by admin

    Ghostigital, the band, is a continuation of “Ghostigital,” the solo album by former Sugarcubes member Einar Örn. A collaboration between Einar and musician Curver, Ghostigital creates unusual free-formed music that makes extensive use of cut-up techniques. Combining live instruments and electronics, the Ghostigital sound has a somewhat improvisational feel. It never feels over-produced, even though editing and manipulation is used extensively in building the tracks. And it provides the perfect outlet for Einar’s unique, often spoken vocals. The band recently did a short American tour, with two dates on the West Coast followed by two on the East. The following is an interview conducted with Einar and Curver before the final show, in Hoboken, NJ.

    How did Ghostigital go from being the name of the first Einar Örn solo album to being the name of the band?

    EINAR: “Simply because when we first started doing this, it was to be me, Einar, doing a record. Me doing a record with Curver, who I had asked to work with. There was never sort of a band feeling to it. We were just concentrating on doing a record. Then we were joking about how it was me doing digital, the record was Einar goes digital. Our little slight pun. After the record, we did play live and then there was something there for both of us. It turned out to be not right and fair that it would be called Einar because it is just as much Curver as it is me. So instead of finding something else to call it [we used Ghostigital as the band name]. It’s like a collapsing ladder, you put the ladder down and then you extend by making it fall again. So we don’t know what the next record is going to be. Maybe there will be four of us!”

    How did the two of you come to start working together?

    EINAR: “Well it started many years ago when I started a record company and put out records, and Curver started buying those records. ”

    CURVER: “Then I started making records for the record label.”

    EINAR: “I knew of Curver, and Curver knew of me. But the breaking point was really that…”

    CURVER: “I’ll take it from there! The main starting of Ghostigital doing music together is that I was producing a band called Minus who got Einar to sing on a song. We were doing some cut ups with the vocals and Einar said: ‘Yeah, I want totally cut up techno-ish vocals.’ And then he was working on a soundtrack with Damon Albarn, for “101 Reykjavik” and asked me and Minus to do a remix. And it grew from there.”

    How did the recent US tour go?

    EINAR:” These concerts have been very good for us. We’ve enjoyed them thoroughly. We’re not tired of doing it. The traveling has also treated us kindly. So we’re just really fit and flammable.”

    Why was it only four dates?

    EINAR: “This time around, we are just introducing ourselves and we haven’t penned in what we will do next. It was just like an experiment for us to take our sound here. We’ve played in Europe but wanted to check it out, and put it to the test, how our music would go down here [in America.] So it’s better to do a few dates and say: ‘Yeah we want to do more’ or ‘This is so bad we don’t want to come back!’ Hopefully we’ll do something further in the fall.”

    How did those shows compare to performances you’ve done elsewhere? Did you scale things back because you were only coming to the US to do shows?

    CURVER: “We actually expanded it a little bit, because we’re playing some of the old songs as well. So it’s not a lot different. The live lineup is totally free because it’s more or less improvised. We have two guitar players, or three guitar players, sometimes we have a turntableist. Sometimes Einar’s son plays trumpet, sometimes not. Everyone plays through headphones and it all goes through the mixer and it’s all kind of improvised within a framework.”

    EINAR: “The process is very much organic.”

    When you are writing and working in the studio, what is the creative process like?

    CURVER: “Well we work a lot on it. Maybe Einar does a bass loop, and I cut it up and do something else with it. Or I do a beat and Einar says: ‘Yeah, but let’s slow it down.’ We call it like the meat grinder�the process. It’s all cut up, cut after cut. When we have some kind of a ground, then Einar sings over it. It’s improvised, with a lot of takes, and then I cut that together and try to make a story out of it. Then the live players improvise over it, and we cut up that. So that’s what keeps it alive. Even in the mixing stage, we’re still reworking it.”

    So how do you know when a song is done?

    CURVER: “A song is never done because then we play it live and it’s totally different. A song is a song, but the format, what happens on this album is not the final version.”

    EINAR: “But still, it is the final version for the format. We’re happy with what the songs sound like on the album.”

    Are there any particular songs that radically changed from their album form through performing them live?

    EINAR: “There’s a song that we don’t do live at the moment, “Strange as it Night Seen”. The first song that we did for the album.”

    You’re featured on the new Gorillaz single – how did that come about?

    EINAR: “Well we have this energy policy in Iceland, which is basically drowning the highland, the high plateau of Iceland. It’s the biggest preserver of unspoiled nature in Europe. Now they are building powerplants, building dams, which will drown a big portion of this land, flood it. So we had this concert in the beginning of January, with Ghostigital and Bjork and Sigur Rõs, Damon Albarn, Damian Rice. And the idea was the protest against this. Being friends with Damon, we decided to do a song together to make it a bit special. That was called ‘Aluminum’ and then we changed the title to ‘Stop The Dams,” which is different to what we played live, it’s a bit slower. And so he was putting out the new Gorillaz single and said: ‘We should put it out on the b-side,’ which we did. All the proceeds go to providing information about this type of activity occurring in Iceland.”

    What are your thoughts on the internet and online music distribution?

    EINAR: “Well I think this is a question for Curver, because he spent a lot of time in designing the album cover. So if people just going to buy our album online, then we don’t have to spend so much time on covers!”

    CURVER: “We couldn’t decide, so there’s actually 3 different covers. There’s the American release, the British, and the Iceland.”

    EINAR: “The internet has, since day one, been very important to us. We’ve had our weblog, and we premiere our videos online. We put out remixes done by friends of ours. And we use the internet when making the record in order to make the work process go faster.”

    CURVER: “Einar is a total computer guy in Iceland. He had one of the first servers in Iceland. When I was really young, he started the first internet cafe in Iceland [in March 1995]. I only use the internet because of Einar’s influence!”

    EINAR: “For us, it is important to be able to share with people over distances.”

    CURVER: We’re really into checking things out, and also getting feedback. We got something from New Zealand, which is actually on the totally opposite side of the world from Iceland. They’re like: ‘Yeah, we’re playing your 7 inch record.’ I wonder if it turns backwards then, plays backwards? [Laughs]”

    EINAR: “The thing is possibly with the sound quality, it’s better to have bigger files to listen to. But to consume the music by downloading and buying it online is just wonderful. Still, it’s good to expand on things a little bit with a good album cover.”

    CURVER: “The only thing that bothers me is that we made it as an album, it has a beginning and a middle point, and it’s really structured. It’s not totally a conceptual album, but you’re supposed to listen to it in order. So that’s the only old school thinking I have about it. People can buy individual songs, and the singles format is getting stronger again. It used to be like that, like in ’62 with the Beatles. After the conceptual albums came out people started thinking: ‘No, it’s not good if you make a single.’ But that’s crap, you know. I think in the future we’re just going to see more interesting things all around.”

    Are either of you working on other projects?

    EINAR: “No, this is the main thing right now.”

    CURVER: “And it has scope, we can do pop, we can do noise, we can do long improvised songs, get remixes. It houses everything.”

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  5. Carmen Rosa

    by admin

    The following is an email interview with Carmen Rosa, a British band who shares their rhythm section with the Cranes live line-up. While the connection has helped spread the word about Carmen Rosa, the band has more than enough talent and originality to stand up on their own. Their recently released debut album, “You Only Think You Know,” showcases a highly rhythmic guitar-driven sound complimented by touches of electronics. The CD can currently be purchased from their website, carmenrosa.com, and music samples can be found on their myspace page.

    Can you briefly explain how Carmen Rosa came together?

    Carmen Rosa came together from the demise of Dragontree. Dragontree was a band which included Ben Baxter and Steve Verdin. Ben and Steve started a new project initially studio based. Around the same time Jonny Callender was coming to the end of his time with Vex formally Velcro. Ben and Steve had developed some tracks and Jonny soon made the move over to the project as Vex became no more. Dave was the last piece of the puzzle. Found by Ben, Dave formerly of Eclipse brought driving rhythms and bass lines to the band. After time writing and developing tracks in the studio Carmen Rosa was born.

    Had Jon and Ben been working with Cranes prior to that, or did that come about after the formation of Carmen Rosa

    Jonny had already been playing for The Cranes live set-up prior to coming on board with Carmen Rosa. Ben became a natural selection for the bass role with The Cranes, this was due to the fact The Cranes and Carmen Rosa are all mutual friends. The involvement of Ben with The Cranes came about after Carmen Rosa was formed.

    In the long-term, do you see yourselves continuing on being part of both bands, of would it be necessary to focus more on Carmen Rosa in order to take it to the next level?

    We think both bands will continue to be an important part for Jonny and Ben. However Carmen Rosa provides the creative outlet for them both. With The Cranes Jonny and Ben are more part of the live set-up than the creative element.

    For those who have only heard you on CD or online, how would you compare the live sound of Carmen Rosa to the recordings?

    Most people who have seen us live prefer it. The music comes across much more dynamic and experimental. We are not afraid to experiment live, some of the tracks on the record that are 5 minutes long can turn into 10 minute psychedelic epics. The major difference between Carmen Rosa Live and Carmen Rosa on CD, is the fact we don’t end up at giant party when listening to the CD.

    How extensively do you play live in the UK/Europe? Any plans to tour America?

    We have played occasionally in Europe last year. In the UK we are playing a lot at the moment, mostly around London. With a new record we have to do this to create interest within the music industry. America is completely different. We have to gain distribution for the album in USA before we can even think of touring. Of course we would love to come over. The majority of our online sales of the album are to the USA anyway. If anyone reading this wants to help get in touch.

    How can people get hold of “YOU ONLY THINK YOU KNOW…”?

    Its very straight forward go to www.carmenrosa.com and then send us an e-mail with your address. We are setting up a paypal link from the website to pay immediately. But in the meantime you can send $, euro, pounds we take anything!!! To buy from the USA the album is #10 UK, this includes postage and packing. You can also find us at http://www.myspace.com/carmenrosamusic.

    Is the CD currently self-released? If so, are you shopping it to labels or have you chosen to remain independent?

    We are independent at the moment, we have a good album, we are however looking for distribution deals and licensing in the USA and parts of Europe.

    How has the website and Myspace page been working out for you?

    They have made things a lot easier for us to contact people, people can access information on you and have a listen easily. Myspace has been a breathe of fresh air. This has brought music lovers together. We have developed a fan base and keep them up to date with our progress. It is also a great place to discover other new talent and meet great like-minded people. The internet site has been a lifeline, being able to sell albums online is essential for any new band!!!

    Do you see any DISADVANTAGES to the internet as a promotional tool for bands?

    The major disadvantage we can see is that money will be the driving force, once again with the major record labels dominating the market. The result will be independents squeezed out of the market once again!!!

    What are your thoughts on selling music as digital files (rather then CDs/records/etc), both as a band and as music fans?

    As music fans ourselves we are old school we want gatefold albums with masses of artwork. You don’t get that with digital files. But as a band we realize online digital files are the future. The younger generation are majorly computer literate. You cannot halt progress, you have to evolve. The internet allows access to huge numbers of listeners. You cannot argue as a band that this is not a good thing!!!

    Do you have your own studio set-up, and if so can you describe it? (key pieces of gear, etc).

    The studio “YES” its called 128db studio. To describe it it’s red, smoky, erotic, sweaty and fuelled. It has a mixture of old school and new stuff. Its mostly digital recording hardware/software. Old tanoy speakers AR18,s among other stuff.

    What is the future for the band?

    We want to tour the album very extensively, whilst at the same time staying creative. We have started work on the follow up album and are well into the production. We need to gain more distribution and licensing in order to achieve this. Our major goal is to reach more people!!!! We would love to tour the USA in the near future.

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  6. Bit Shifter

    by admin

    Thanks to independently developed software such as Nanoloop and Little Sound DJ, the Nintendo Gameboy has turned into the instrument of choice for a growing number of electronic musicians. While the Gameboy’s 8-bit soundchip is somewhat limited, it has a warm, crunchy sound that works well when taken beyond the context of simply supplying video game soundtracks. Musically, Gameboy tracks run the gamut from energetic electronic pop to weird, often scary-sounding experimental stuff. On the more danceable end of the spectrum is New York’s Josh Davis, aka Bit Shifter, who will soon embark on a world tour with fellow NY Gameboy artist Nullsleep. In an email interview, Josh explained a bit about what goes into making music on a device only intended to play games.

    When/how did you first get into gameboy music? What was the first program that you used?

    I was pretty fascinated by the texture and mood of video game music as a kid, my favorite was the background music of the game Balloon Kid, which I recorded to cassette tape from my sister’s Game Boy, just so I could carry it around with me in my Walkman. A few years ago I found out about independent musicians making music using Game Boys and homebrew musicmaking cartridges Nanoloop and Little Sound DJ. This was really appealing to me, kind of like finding a key to the secret universe of game sounds and music. At the time both programs were available as physical cartridges, I bought one of each and really fell in love with what they could do. Technically Nanoloop was the first one I used, but Little Sound DJ arrived a few weeks later, so it was pretty much a tie.

    What program do you primarily use now? Can you briefly describe how it works (in terms of how you compose on it)?

    I still use both programs, probably 60/40 in favor of Little Sound DJ. Both programs run directly on the Game Boy, and both are synthesis-based, making use of the Game Boy’s onboard four-channel sound chip (as opposed to using predefined samples). Each program provides an on-screen sequencing interface, although the conceptual model behind them differs. LSDj is the more conventional and versatile of the two in terms of its setup, it’s a pattern-based sequencer where 16-note phrases can be constructed numerically and then arranged as units to build a composition. Nanoloop is more unconventional, which turns out to be really advantageous creatively. It’s pattern-based like LSDj, but instead of using standard note designations, sound characteristics are altered graphically. A sound’s amplitude and decay, for instance, are defined by the positions of a small dot and a small dash in a square region representing a particular step in a 16-step loop. Hard to really describe verbally. It’s a pretty abstract system, which to me is really a plus — it forces you into an unfamiliar mode of conceptualizing music and sound, which can lend itself really well to happy accidents and unexpected results.

    Were you actually a gameboy player before starting to use it for music?

    I was a casual gamer, I’d say. I still am, although my interest in gaming has been revitalized by the recent experience dabbling in Game Boy musicmaking. I don’t buy a lot of games, but I will admit to being addicted to Gunstar Super Heroes on the Game Boy Advance.

    Do you feel that it is more difficult to compose on the gameboy software than on other tools? Did you ever question whether it is really worth it, or if maybe you were attracted to it because of the ‘cool’ factor?

    Actually, it’s been the opposite — the economy and efficiency of these programs’ interface design has really spoiled me. It’s at a point now where it’s difficult for me to use anything other than LSDj for songwriting and sequencing. Basic song ideas can be sketched out in minutes, and fleshing them out is a really efficient process once you get a decent understanding of how the program works.

    With the limited number of buttons/controls, how well suited is it to live performance? What exactly are you doing when you perform live? (what elements are you manipulating, etc)

    I still haven’t found the best way to perform with this setup, to a large extent I’m still exploring how to make it all work. Nanoloop and LSDj both have some pretty cool provisions for live use, allowing real time interaction with song structure, waveform attributes, channel muting and soloing, that kind of thing. The approach I’ve been having the most fun with lately has been to do semi-abstract, beat-driven material using two Game Boys running Nanoloop, synchronized via a GameLink cable. With this configuration I use one Game Boy to run through a predetermined sequence of loops to provide structure, and the second Game Boy for loading additional patterns and loops on the fly, creating interesting polyrhythms and unexpected collisions of sounds. It’s an exciting exercise in controlled chaos, and it’s especially fun for me because it reintroduces an element of chance and risk, which I think are crucial to the fun of live performing. Nanoloop is the program I’m doing this with at the moment, but Little Sound DJ also supports Game Boy sync, which is something I also want to start exploring.

    In terms of song storage, are you limited to the memory of the cartridge? If so, how does the affect the way you work (do you need to recreate sequences for performances?), and if not, how do you go about archiving songs?

    Nanoloop has 4 song banks per cartridge, and recent versions of Little Sound DJ can save up to around 8 and 10 songs directly on the cart. Song data can be transferred to a PC using third-party transfer hardware, but the gear is unlicensed and technically illegal, so it can be hard to come by. There are other options too — like the Mega Memory Card, which was a licensed, legal third-party Game Boy memory accessory designed for saving the progress in long-term games. Conveniently it can be used to save Little Sound DJ songs too, although the units are prone to failure and data loss. Song archiving is a bit of a battle in general, and I think anyone making music on Game Boys has experienced song loss, data corruption, cartridge failures, and other heartbreaking circumstances. What doesn’t kill you just makes you stronger…

    What are the advantages to creating music on the gameboy as opposed to just sampling the sounds into modern musical software or equipment?

    The biggest tradeoff in doing sample-based work is that you lose the dynamics of actual real-time synthesis. There are synthesis-dependent sounds, effects, and behaviors that you’d miss out on when working with samples. So that’s one advantage to working directly on the hardware. Another is just the portability of the setup — even as portable as laptops are, they can’t really compare to the pocket size of the Game Boy. Plus the Game Boy is more roadworthy and more replaceable. Drop a Game Boy, it’ll probably be okay, and if it’s not, you might need to spend ten bucks on eBay to get another. Drop a laptop and it’s a different story.

    Are particular Gameboy models better suited to music than others?

    The software runs a little more smoothly and responsively on the later models, the Game Boy Color and Pocket. But the oldest “Classic” models have the best sound — better bass and lower noise. I mostly work on the old Classics.

    Can you describe the equipment set-up used for Bit Shifter? (how many Gameboys, additional gear, etc).

    These days I’m running three classic Game Boys through a small mixer, and that’s about it. I saw Crazy Q (an amazing chiptune musician from Sweden) play a few years back on Atari ST machines, using an outboard filter unit to do sweeps at transition points and whatnot, and it was a really effective touch. It inspired me to want to investigate outboard effects, but so far I still haven’t gotten around to doing it.

    There’s certainly an element of novelty to the idea of composing/performing music on a Gameboy … what do you see as being the pros and cons of that?

    I can’t think of any real pros to it actually. The cons are easier to identify, but they’re pretty mild and predictable — people misunderstanding the motive as retro-fetishism, people yelling “play Contra” from the audience. But I these obviously aren’t serious drawbacks.

    For someone interested in hearing more Gameboy music, can you suggest any others musicians to check out?

    There are a ton of truly amazing Game Boy musicians out there, from all over too. I’d recommend Bubblyfish, Covox, Lo-bat, Glomag, Nullsleep, K->, Random, David Sugar, Blasterhead, Trash Can Man, Chesterfield, Saitone, Snoopdroop, Sidabitball, Aonami, Herbert Weixelbaum, Handheld, Nim, Zabutom, Role Model, 6955, Huoratron, 11HzRobot, x|k, Receptors, the list is almost endless.

    When can we expect a follow-up to “Life’s A Bit Shifter”? For those who’ve only heard that CD, how would you describe you more recent material?

    Actually, in the time it’s taken me to respond to your interview questions, I released a 6-song EP called Information Chase on 8bitpeoples. I also had 3 kids and put the oldest one through college. The EP is a deliberate (or “shameless”) foray into melodic chiptune power-pop. I wanted to take advantage of the Game Boy’s minimal, stripped down sound to see if I could get down to the essence of pop songwriting, to see if once instrumentation is reduced to a bare minimum and flashy (or even standard) production embellishments are stripped away, a pop song can still have an impact. Which is all just an elaborate way to try to make a power-pop release sound artistically valid.

    Are you currently involved with any other musical projects?

    I’m in a band called The Charm Offensive, which is more of a rock project. If you imagine the offspring of The Wedding Present and Carter USM and subtract 125 IQ points, you have a decent reference point.

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