Interviu Environments: “Muzica este in prim-plan, nu noi”
Luna trecuta, am fost la concertul Syndrome / Environments, unde acestia din urma au lansat albumul “Fraktal”. Prietena mea cea mai buna, Alexandra, a scris un review excelent pe contul ei de tumblr, aici. Asa ca ne-am gandit, de ce sa nu urmeze si un interviu cu ei? Cititi-l mai jos:
– Salut si multumesc pentru ca ati acceptat acest interviu. Tocmai ati lansat noul material discografic. De ce l-ati intitulat “Fraktal”? Am cateva teorii, insa as vrea sa-mi spuneti ce reprezinta numele pentru voi?
S: Puteti lua numele ca un cuvant cheie care deliminteaza universal visceral/brut/granular spre care ne indreptam viziunea/sound-ul.
M: Nu ne-am gandit asa de mult la asta, totusi. Stefan avea deja o piesa “My name ist Fraktal” si ne-am dat seama ca tot ce lucrasem la album pana atunci era legat de fractalii care se formeaza in mod natural. Asa ca am alunecat in aceasta directie si cu artwork-ul, video-ul si toate celalalte. Cuvantul este esential pentru ce am creat pana acum. Nu credem in coincidente.
– V-am vazut live de doua ori – o data deschizand pentru AmenRa si a doua oara cand v-ati lansat albumul si Syndrome a deschis pentru voi. Pentru mine cele doua concerte reprezinta doua entitati separate. Primul degajand o aura soundscape introspectiva, iar celalalta m-a uimit cu elementele explozive si riff-urile grele. Incercati sa descrieti procesul de creatie a unei muzici atat de variabile si fluctuante?
S: Consideram ca live set-urile reprezinta entitati fonice care umplu diferitele spatii de concert. Mereu avem de-a face cu altceva deoarece fiecare abordare este unica. Urasc sa fac acelasi lucru cand sunt pe scena, sa abordez totul in aceasi maniera. Ca sa fiu sincer, nu pot face acelasi lucru de doua ori, asa ca explorarea unor noi stari ma ghideaza intotdeauna cand sunt pe scena.
– Spuneti-mi cate ceva despre ideea din spatele concertului de lansare “Fraktal”. Ati cantat ascunsi in spatele unor panouri, prin care va intrevedeati doar cat trebuie. De ce ati ales un astfel de aranjament scenic?
S: Tot conceptul musical/vizual este important, nu noi, asta ca sa nu ma mai intind.
M: Am vrut sa facem in asa fel incat sa directionam focus-ul audientei catre mediul in care se afla in acel moment, pentru a face publicul sa se piarda intre sunete si visuals, si sa nu se uite la noi pe scena si la ce folosim. Nu suntem staturi rock si nu avem nevoia sa ne umplem in van ego-urile, ceea ce facem nu ne plaseaza pe noi in prim plan.
Anul trecut am deschis pentru Bohren & Der Club of Gore cu proiectul meu Discordless si din cauza unor probleme tehnice care m-ar fi putut obliga sa renunt la partea vizuala a show-ului, am ales in schimb sa nu fiu prezent pe scena, ci undeva deasupra tuturor, nevazut de majoritatea audientei. A fost foarte amuzant si interesant sa vad cum lumea venea in sala si se gandea ca nu a inceput inca concertul, doar pentru ca scena era goala. Ca un contra exemplu, cred ca in cultura EDM exista o groaza de petreceri care sunt considerate gresit concerte sau show-uri, doar pentru ca apare cineva pe scena, desi nu se canta nimic live.
Poate fi o coincidenta, dar eram cu Stefan la acel concert, caci se ocupa de sunet pentru Bohren & Der Club of Gore, asa ca am inserat si niste material Envrionments in set, caci de-abia lansasem al doilea album. Cred ca a fost prima oara cand aceasta muzica s-a auzit intr-un cadru deschis.
– Mi se pare ca aveti o conexiune speciala cu AmenRa, mai ales ca chitaristul lor a deschis pentru voi cu proiectul lui Syndrome (Mathieu). Marius, am observant logo-ul lor pe laptopul tau si ati si inregistrat o piesa cu Mathieu. Cum a fost sa lucrati cu el?
M: Avem cel mai mare respect pentru Church of Ra ca muzicieni si artisti. Nu stiu ce se intampla in Belgia zilele astea, dar sunt o groaza de trupe interesante care apar din directia aceea. In afara de Amenra, am vazut de curand The Black Heart Rebellion si Ilydaen care au fost foarte faini live, dar am descoperit si proiecte ca Maudlin sau Sequences, ca sa dau cateva nume. De abia astept sa iasa si ultimul album Oathbreaker, pe care o sa-i si vad live in cateva zile.
Nu pot spune ca exista o poveste de presa in spatele colaborarii noastre cu Mathieu. Sunt un mare fan al proiectului sau solo, Syndrome si a fost singura optiune ca guest pentru concertul de lansare al abumului nostrum.
I-a placut ce am compus (sper, haha) si pentru ca este un tip foarte ok, a zis imediat da cand a venit vorba de o colaborare pentru albumul nostru. Totul s-a materializat intr-o piesa care semnifica mult pentru mine. Cred ca la lansarea albumului nostru, cele doua show-uri s-au completat foarte bine, si sper ca o sa mai repetam experienta si cu o alta ocazie.
– In aceasta vara va veti lua toate sculele si veti veni sa cantati live la Rasnov Ghost Festival, pentru prima oara intr-un ambient out-door. Cum credeti ca va impacta acest lucru experienta create de muzica?
S: In bine, sper. Nici nu incerc sa-mi imaginez, pentru ca de obicei imi place sa aman momentul in care trebuie sa ma gandesc la acest lucru, pana in ziua concertului. Dar sunt sigur ca va fi o experienta intensa si puternica.
– Legat de asta, credeti ca “environment-ul” poate influenta perceptia artistica?
M: Bineinteles. Perceptia in sine reprezinta decodificarea semnalelor transmise de simturile noastre pentru a putea intelege ambientul.
Daca discutam strict despre ce facem, Envrionments inglobeaza sunete, locatiile si publicul, pentru ca actul artistic sa se transforme in relatia dintre muzica, acel loc si oamenii din jur. Totul este interconectat.
Este amuzant ca primim feedback diferit de la public, depinzand de locatia in care a fost show-ul – de la liniste abosoluta la vorbaria enervanta, chiar daca muzica per total este cam aceeasi, si poate sunt si aceiasi oameni in sala. Asa ca pana la urma “environment-ul” se poate transforma radical chiar daca schimbi doar un element, cum ar fi camera.
– Lucrati de ceva timp in industria muzicala underground romaneasca. Cum a influentat acest aspect creativitatea voastra muzicala? Sunteti mai constienti de unele lucruri?
S: Cand scriu sau fac muzica sunt foarte departe de “eul” meu zilnic. Creativitatea este transcendenta.
M: Poate ca suntem un pic mai putin naivi si nu ne mai facem probleme, deoarece unele lucruri nu sunt importante atata timp cat esti creativ. De asemenea experienta faciliteaza oarecum legatura cu forma, insa creativitatea chiar este transcendenta.
– Ce alte forme the creatie va inspira? Carti, filme, arta vizuala?
S: Tot cu ce creezi o legatura, ajunge sa te inspire, chiar daca esti constient de asta sau nu. Totusi imi place sa cred ca unele scrieri si filmele sunt cele care contureaza eforturile mele creative.
– Ca veni vorba de arta vizuala, spuneti-mi cateva lucruri despre artwork-ul de pe “Fraktal” si cine a lucrat la el?
M: Alexandru Daș de la Valerinne este mintea din spatele artworkului “Fraktal”. Tinem sa-I multumim inca odata, caci chiar a inteles directia albumului, si in doar cateva zile ne-a trimis nu una, ci mai multe versiuni de cover. Si ele completau muzica extreme de bine asa ca a fost greu sa alegem doar una. Sunt toate acolo!
– Am ajuns la final, ati mai vrea sa adaugati ceva?
M: Nu ma pricep prea mult sa vorbesc fara sa fiu intrebat, si nici Stefan. Asa ca ne mai vedem si multumim pentru suport!
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Last month, I was at Syndrome / Enviroments gig, where the latter released “Fraktal”. After the concert, my best friend Alexandra wrote an excellent review on her tumblr account, read it here. We thought, why not an interview with the band next? So here it is.
– Hello guys thanks for agreeing to do this interview. You just officially unveiled a brand new material. Why did you call it “Fraktal”? I have a few theories but what does the name represent to you?
S: You can look at it as a keyword to the granular/visceral/raw universe we want to guide our sound/vision to.
M: We didn’t think about it for too long, I guess. Stefan had a song named “My name ist Fraktal” and we realized that everything we worked on for the album upon that point was related to naturally occurring fractals somehow so we just moved forward in that direction with the artwork, the video work and everything. It’s indeed the keyword for everything we’ve done. I don’t believe in coincidences.
– I witnessed you perform live two times – one opening for AmenRa and the other one it was for your album launch and Syndrome opened for you instead. The two concerts were completely two separate entities for me. The first one revolved around introspection and soundscapes, while the latter consisted of a lot explosive moments and the introduction of heavy riffs. How do you manage to create music that’s so wavering and variable?
S: We think of our live sets as phonic entities filling that peculiar space/venue. It’s different because every approach is kind of unique, i hate performing the same thing over and over again, playing in the same manner every show. To be honest, i can’t never do the same thing twice, so a new journey is always guiding my performance.
– Tell me a little about the concept behind your performance of “Fraktal” live? You played on stage hidden behind panels that concealed you just enough from view. What was the story behind this choice of stage arrangement?
S: The whole music/visual thing is important, not us, to make the long story short.
M: We wanted to shift the audience’s attention to the environment they are a part of at that moment and to make them get lost in the sound and the visuals and not look at what we do on stage or what gear we use etc. We are not rockstars and we don’t need any ego boosting, this is not about us.
Last year i opened the Bohren & Der Club of Gore concert with my Discordless project and due to some technical issues that would have forced me to drop the visuals part of my show, i chose not to be on stage performing but somewhere above everybody, unseen to most of the audience. It was really funny and interesting to see everybody walk into the venue and thinking that the concert hasn’t started yet, only because the stage was empty. Vice versa i guess, with the edm culture going on, there are a lot of parties mistaken for concerts or performances only because there is someone on the stage, even though nothing is being performed live.
Coincidence or not, i was with Stefan at that show as he was handling sound for Bohren & Der Club of Gore and i also inserted some Environments material in my set as we had just released our second album. I think that was the first time that this music could be heard in a open space.
– You seem to have a special connection with AmenRa, as their guitarist opened for you with Syndrome for your album release. Marius, I noticed their logo on your laptop and you’ve also recorded a song with their guitarist, Mathieu What was like working with him?
M: We have a deep respect for the Church of Ra collective as musicians and artists. I have no idea what goes on in Belgium these days but there are a lot of amazing bands emerging from those parts. Besides Amenra, i recently saw The Black Heart Rebellion and Ilydaen who were amazing live and also discovered great projects like Maudlin or Sequences to name just a few. Can’t wait for the new Oathbreaker album as well, also seeing them live in a few days.
There is not much of a press story behind our collaboration with Mathieu. I am a big fan of his solo project, Syndrome, and it was the only option as a guest for our album release performance.
He liked our stuff (hopefully haha) and being the swell guy he is, he said yes immediately to a collaboration for our album which turned out into a track that means a lot for me. I think that at our album release party the two shows really complemented each other and hopefully we will repeat this with another occasion.
– This summer you’ll be taking all your gear and move to an outdoor environment to play. How do you think playing open air would affect the overall experience created by the music?
S: In a good way, i hope. I’m not even trying to imagine, because that moment is something i like to postpone thinking about it until that day. But for sure we will deliver some great volume and intensity,
– Related to that, do you think the “Environment” affects the artistic perception?
M: It does without question. Perception itself is the translation of our senses in order to understand the surroundings.
If we are discussing strictly about what we do, we think of Environments as a sum of sound, location and audience so the artistic act becomes the relation between this music, that particular space and the audience. Everything is intertwined!
It is funny that we get different feedback from the audience depending of the venue we perform in, ranging from complete silence to obnoxious chattering even though it is more or less the same music and sometimes even the same people in the audience; so the environment always morphs, even radically if you change only one element, such as for example the room.
– You have been working in the music industry for some time. How does this fact influence your artistic creativity? Are you more aware of certain things?
S: When I’m writing music or I’m performing it I’m way out of my daily me. Creativity is transcendental.
M: Maybe we are a little bit less naive and worried about things that are sub sequential to being creative. Also maybe experience brings a little bit of easiness in dealing with form but creativity is indeed transcendental.
– What other forms of creation inspire you? Books, movies, visual art?
S: Everything you relate to somehow inspires you, whether you’re aware of it or not. I like to believe that literature and film are the main guide lines of my artistic endeavor.
– Speaking of artworks, what’s the story behind the “Fraktal” cover and who made it?
M: Alexandru Daș of Valerinne conceived the “Fraktal” artwork for which we would like to thank him again. He really understood the direction of the album and in just a few days he sent us not one, but three different versions of the front cover. All of them were perfectly in sync with the music and it was really hard to pick one. It’s all in there!
– In the end, do you have anything else to add?
M: Speaking without being asked is not something that I am really good at and it seems that neither is Stefan. So maybe see you around and thanks for the support!
