The Inquisition: 035.Lights & Motion

photography by Fredrik Sellergren

1. How did you came up with the name of the band? 

I really wanted to have something that would sort of stick out and have some sort of visual impact. I was thinking about what kind of music I wanted to write and how that might be best put into adjectives. Then I saw clips from a huge U2 show they did at a stadium and as they walked on stage the house lights turned on and Bono said ”Light and motion” into the microphone towards the audience in awe and that just stuck with me. 

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

That varies a great deal. I have a 1000+ of recorded voice memos and small recordings on my phone, and it features everything from a hummed melody to a drumbeat and a piano hook. There is no sure way of knowing how the songs come together. Sometimes I´ll just set up all my guitar gear with my pedalboard and jam and see if anything jumps out at me. When that moment come where I feel like I might have something worth working towards, I pretty quickly starts to sketch out the bigger picture in my head - Where do I want this to go, what should the production look like, that sort of thing. But usually there is some sort of main hook that I build around, and that is often a guitar line or a piano melody. The way I like to write is that everything affects everything. So by adding a small piece of sonic identity in the song, that in turn will completely change how that piano feels because now they interact with each other, creating new colours. It sounds somewhat abstract, I know, and I guess it is.. But that is just how I see it coming together. It´s almost like sonic architecture. 

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

My influences vary greatly, and have done ever since I dived headlong into music in my teens. One thing that is a red thread is melody; I always choose a good melody over anything else, like speed/virtuosity or production tricks. I love older Coldplay stuff and I was a really big fan of U2 for a few years. Now I listen to a lot of film music actually. Currently spinning Alexander Desplat´s score for The Imitation Game, but other favourites are James Horner´s score for A Beautiful Mind and of course most of what Hans Zimmer is doing. However, I do mix all of my own music so the sad truth is that often times I´m walking around listening to mixes of songs that I´m working on, taking notes of that I want to change in the mix etc. I´m an avid perfectionist and most tracks on Chronicle have probably gone through 25-50 mix revisions before I felt like it was all like I wanted it to sound. So that takes up A LOT of time. 

4. How did you feel, when you realized that your music will be used for such big movies trailers?

That was definitely a "pinch me” moment. I have always been a huge fan of cinema and I love watching movies. When I was 18 I got a big big book called ”1001 Movies you need to see before you die” and I made it into a habit to devour a decade of that every week. By then I thought that maybe I would go into working in movies somehow, like in production, but it´s now that I can look back at that and see it come full circle in a way that I never would have expected. But most of all it is just an extraordinary honor and it´s nothing that I would ever take for granted. I feel like I need to earn those spots every single time. 

5. Which is the one album you can't live without? 

I tend to overindulge and just listen to stuff until my ears bleed and then move on to something else.. But I would have to say Metallica´s S&M Double Disc concert from back in 99 when they played alongside a full orchestra in San Fransisco. To this date it gives me goosebumps, and I have listened to that album so much that I used to be able to tell what song it was based on the sound of the crowd applauding before the band even started. 

6. What's the first record you've ever bought?

 Believe it or not but I vaguely remember it being the Backstreet Boys Millennium album. I actually still think those songs hold up today. Great craftsmanship of coming up with memorable hooks that stay in peoples brains after all this time. Not sure if we can say that about much of the contemporary music that´s being played on the radio today. Also, a lot of it was written by Swedes so maybe I’m partial in that way. ^^ 

7. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

Well, if I could dream it would definitely be Coldplay.. But M83 would be cool, and if Hans Zimmer would ever feel the need to come out on stage with his piano he would be more then welcome to pick a spot in my hypothetical lineup. 

8. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

I think so, yeah for sure. I have been working super closely with my label Deep Elm from day one, but we have always had to put our hopes to word of mouth and for people to tell other people. I started getting emails and messages around the time of the Reanimation release, from people over in China and Malaysia. That was mind-blowing to me, and I guess one of the perks of being a musician in the 21h century. You can reach far beyond your personal geography with the help of the internet and that is just amazing. We are so thankful to people that write about the music we put out, because it´s almost always a passion project from their side, much like this is for me. Without that kind of support, we wouldn’t have managed to get to where we are today, of that I´m sure. 

9. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify?

When you are a musician, you want to get your music heard. That is priority number one. The digital era have changed a lot about how music is perceived and at what value people are willing to consume it. It´s far to easy to just view it as something that just magically appeared infront of your computer, and don’t realise the months (if not years) of hard work that is behind it, and the thousands and thousands of dollars being put into something like a full-length album. But then again many people are students and are struggling with their own economy, so we figured that we would make it available so that everyone who wants to hear it can. We greatly appreciated any support people show us, and sometimes it just knocks the breath of you when you see that a guy or girl at the other side of the world have paid 3 times the regular amount for your album. What kindness that is. 

10. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years? 

I would love to have gotten the chance to write a full score for a feature length film. It has been a dream of mine for some time. 

11. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

Man, I obsess over artwork to an insane degree and usually go weeks feeling miserable thinking about what I want, how it should reflect upon the album and what it should say to the listeners. But then again I am very determined and involved when it comes to all things visual. There is no real line drawn between that and the music, for me they coexist. 

12. What is you favorite album cover? 

U2´s Joshua Tree.

13. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

It does! I guess people are returning to the value of having something physical in your hands, and something you can save for years to come. You will never accidentally loose it on a hardrive or delete it by accident. I think you invest more of yourself in the music when you have something to hold on to, and therefor I think Vinyl is the optimum medium for that. CD´s are still around but Vinyl gives you that little extra sense of exclusivity maybe? I gotta say that for me, I listen digitally 99% of the time. I´m always on the move and I cant go anywhere without my headphones, I freak out if I don’t have music to fill the silence of everyday life. 

14. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band? 

That would be sitting at home in Sweden, watching my music being played at the 2013 years Oscars. That was pretty mind-blowing to put it lightly. Still feels like a dream.

Lights & Motion recently released yet another amazing album called "Chronicle". Check it out here: deepelmdigital.com/album/chronicle

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The Inquisition: 034.A Swarm Of The Sun

1. How did you came up with the name of the band?

Jakob: We used to have a horrible name, and now we don’t. I carried a notebook where I scribbled down words and combinations until the name appeared. It just fit.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it?

Erik: It varies a bit between productions. We generally try to do things a bit different each time in order to not get stuck in the same patterns. For The Rifts, the essential tool was to write all the material on piano, which was something completely new for us. I believe it allowed us to create an album that’s more true to its concept, and much more of a whole than our previous albums.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home?

Jakob: The past months have been almost completely devoted to our own album “The Rifts”. But I’m a sucker for atmospheric Norwegian stuff like Biosphere, Nest and Deathprod. During the writing process I’ve been listening to a lot of Anna von Hausswolff, Deaf Center and black metal, all of which probably influenced the result. Recently there’s been a lot of Year of no Light, Cult of Luna, Chelsea Wolfe and Pink Floyd. And when all else fails there’s always Mogwai and Labradford. And Logh. There’s so much music. Visually I’m always influenced by the photographer Sarah Moon. She’s a genius. There’s no one better.

4. Which is the one album you can't live without?

Jakob: Nine Inch Nails’ “The Downward Spiral” really defined me when I was growing up - I was 14 years old when it came out and I thought that I was the only one who really got it (obviously I wasn’t) - and I still hold it as one of the true greats. If I brought that one, Mogwai’s “Come On Die Young” and Low’s “Trust” to a deserted island I’d be satisfied. And the soundtrack to The Hours.
Erik: The soundtrack to The Fountain by Clint Mansell has been a favourite for very long now, so I’d pick that one. It always gets me in the best mood. “Frengers” by Mew is also a candidate.

5. What's the first record you've ever bought?

Jakob: Iron Maiden’s “A Real Live One”.
Erik: Alice Cooper’s “Constrictor”.

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with?

Erik: Fellow countrymen Logh would definitely be something.

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

Erik: Absolutely. I believe blogs and communities are essential, but also social media. It always gets me in the best of moods when I stumble upon a forum thread or comment on a blog or social media that mentions us somehow. No matter which country, it’s always a surprise that we’ve manage to reach someone with our music, and the feedback we receive through this is what keeps us going. It means a lot.

8. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify?

Erik: I support all new ways of thinking in terms of distribution and availability. Bandcamp and streaming, in general, has opened up so many possibilities for bands that otherwise would have been out of the spotlight. I’ve discovered so much good music myself over the past years that I most likely would have never heard otherwise.

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Erik: More music. We don’t have any plans of world domination or fame, but we do want to create more and better music, hopefully based on new interesting concepts. It’s what we love.

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era?

Jakob: Definitely. And with digital distribution comes a whole new array of possibilities for visual presentation. There’s so much you can do, so many ways to expand the album as a concept. We’re still just scratching the surface.

11. What is your favorite album cover?

Jakob: From the top of my head I’d go for some early Sisters of Mercy. “Temple of Love” maybe?

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format?

Erik: For a lot of music enthusiasts, listening to a vinyl album is a much different thing than the alternatives. It’s a physical format that does not just look amazing, it’s something that requires attention. I often hear things on vinyl that I haven’t heard before on other medias. If it’s a good production, it’s more clear and vivid. I do listen a lot to vinyl, but of course streaming is probably my most-used format since all music is easily accessible.

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band?

Erik: We aren’t really a band that are gonna tell a lot of stories about crashing hotel rooms. Our most vivid moments are all pretty much related to us writing and recording, and everything around that process. But if I were to pick one of the most recent one, I’d definitely say the recording of the church organ that we did for The Warden. That was absolutely a powerful experience.

A Swarm Of The Sun released today their new album "The Rifts". Go check it out: http://versionstudio.bandcamp.com/album/the-rifts

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EP: Go! Save The Hostages! - A Cloud Passing Over Cairo

Band: Go! Save The Hostages!
Album: A Cloud Passing Over Cairo EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015







Tracklist
01. The Man At The Window
02. I Heard From Someone You're Still Pretty
03. What Would Mbaye Diagne Do?
04. Djedefre's Starry Sky
05. I'd Rather Be A Sailor Than A Fighter
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Go! Save The Hostages! are a trio who have put aside traditional band roles in favour of a more compositional approach to song writing. They make straightforward and gimmick-less music for the weary of soul.

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The Inquisition: 033.NOMADS

1. How did you came up with the name of the band? 

Elijah: It’s funny because Adam and I were just talking about this over the new year holiday while we were finishing the record in Manhattan. We had brainstormed a few names (of which neither of us could remember) but came up with NOMADS because we had all moved around a decent amount. We booked our first show and needed a name, so we just went with NOMADS. 

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

Elijah: Out songwriting techniques have changed pretty drastically over the past couple years. Now that it’s just Adam and I and we live in different cities, our songwriting consists of each of us writing an idea and sending a session back and forth while we each hash out ideas. That’s the “official” answer but we also send a pretty significant amount of Voice Memos from our iPhones. Thank God for technology, right? 

Adam: On "When Those Around Us Leave" a lot of the songs started off as a riff or idea that one of us had. We then would collaborate on arranging, adjusting, and adding parts. After the "core" of the song is down, we would go into the studio together and try different instrumentation to emphasize the emotion we are trying to convey. 

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

Elijah: My biggest influences as a musician are (in no REAL order): Hammock, This Will Destroy You, A Winged Victory For The Sullen, Copeland, Nils Frahm. I listen to a good amount of vinyl at home and my current rotation is: Nils Frahm, AWVFTS, This Will Destroy You, and Sigur Ros. 

Adam: Some of my favorite acts are : The Six Parts Seven, M83, Boards of Canada, Sigur Ros, Mac DeMarco, Penpal, Del Paxton, to name a few. 

4. Which is the one album you can't live without? 

Elijah: My girlfriend would laugh at this question because she knows I hate answering “What are your favorite _______?” questions. For now, though, I couldn’t live without Nils Frahm’s “Says” album.

Adam: Hands down American Football's self titled LP takes the cake for me. 

5. What's the first record you've ever bought? 

Elijah: I was given a bunch of vinyl over the years, but I think the first vinyl I bought was probably an old Genesis album. 

Adam: The Presidents of the United States of America was one of the first cassettes I bought. Dookie was another great early album I loved as a kid. 

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

Elijah: There’s two ways I approach this; one being with friends and the other being with a dream band. So, I’d love to tour (again) with our dear friends in Del Paxton (Buffalo, NY) and/or Sigur Ros. 

Adam: If we got to open up for a reunion tour for The Six Parts Seven I'd be pretty stoked. 

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to? 

Elijah: Overwhelmingly, yes. When we released our S/T album we were immediately amazed with the response. We saw a huge benefit from blogs writing about us, friends sharing us on Facebook, people discussing the album on Reddit, etc. We literally wouldn’t be where we are without the people who’ve supported us. I was super excited to see our first download in Iceland. 

Adam: Ditto on what Elijah said. We’ve gotten such an overwhelming positive response all over the world online. It only makes us want to continue writing music knowing that music we enjoy creating connects with others. The internet is an amazing tool. 

8. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify? 

Elijah: Let me give a resounding YES to this. We’ve never charged for our music on Bandcamp and I’d like to think that would never change. Spotify is fine for what it is, but it’s never going to be a revenue stream for bands like us. That being said, we don’t hate Spotify for the absurdly-conservative share they give artists. We rely on the generosity of people and truly believe that people will support music they love. 

Adam: We have other "real" jobs, so we aren't making a living off of NOMADS. We just want anyone who'd want to listen to our music be able to. If you think it's worth a few bucks, great. If you don't have any extra money, that's fine too! You'd be surprised how many people pay anyways. 

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years? 

Elijah: Such a funny question. Adam moved to NYC about 4 months ago to work at a studio in Manhattan. Now, just days ago, he moved to Los Angeles to manage a studio there for a songwriter. He’s killing it! What does it mean for NOMADS? I don’t know what to say. Adam and I have discussed this at length and we always come to the conclusion that we want to keep making music together; whatever form it may take. 

Adam: Creating new music ... as always! 

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

Elijah: I can’t imagine it NOT being important. Nowadays we find ourselves browsing sites like Bandcamp in search of our next favorite band. If the artwork doesn’t strike a chord with the browser, it’s really difficult to get another impression with them. It’s kind of like online dating, you know? You get a few seconds in front of their eyes and if they don’t like what they see, <>. 

Adam: If it's done right, artwork should be a visual representation of the collection of songs. You still see it on your iPhone, so I'd say yes. 

11. What is you favorite album cover? 

Elijah: (See above statement about “favorites”) I can’t choose a favorite. A few that come to mind now are: Balmorhea “River Arms” , Copeland “Beneath Medicine Tree” , and Sigur Ros “Takk…” All of these are mostly because of the emotional attachment I have to each album, but they also are visually great.

Adam: American Football's self titled LP. TNT / Tortoise. Oui / The Sea and Cake. Kid A / Radiohead. Loveless / My Bloody Valentine. Interpol / Turn on the Bright Lights. Sgt. Peppers by The Beatles is by far my favorite though. I'm sure all these pop into my head because I really love the music too. 

 

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

Elijah: Everything comes back around, yeah? It’s just like the cassette renaissance. People like being different, so they like creating/having something most others don’t. Our parents grew up listening to vinyls and grew up on some really really killer music. I think we, as kids, now appreciate how great the music WAS and chase that sentiment. I know so many people who, as teenagers, dreamt of having a release on vinyl because it somehow signified some obtained status. Don’t get me wrong, I’m ecstatic at the thought of releasing “When Those Around Us Leave” on vinyl! For me, the thing that is most exciting is that it feels more experiential that tossing on a playlist in iTunes. On top of that, there are some labels creating legitimate pieces of art with their vinyl releases. I guess my short answer is that it gives the band AND the listener a feeling of exclusivity over other fans/bands. 

Adam: If you sit down and listen to a record on vinyl it's the center of the experience. A lot of times we listen to music in the background. I think vinyl has found it's niche with true audiophile and music lovers who want to sit down and really take in an album they liked enough to spend hard earned money on. 

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band? 

Elijah: This is tough. We’ve had some bad moments that come to mind pretty vividly, but I’ll spare you the details. One of my favorite memories, though, is recording our first album. Our friend, Sean, came in from NYC to video us while we recorded so that we could make a little documentary. Sean is a great dude and has done a significant amount of video for us, for pennies. The whole experience of focusing solely on the music and creating something tangible together for the first time was really amazing. 

Adam: We've played some amazing shows all around the midwest and northeast. Shared the stage with so many friends. When NOMADS first started, I really didn't know if we'd ever play a show, or record ANYTHING. Now 2 LPs later I feel stronger and more confident about the music we are creating. I couldn't be happier with the response with "When Those Around Us Leave". Knowing that people connect with it is honestly one of the best feelings.

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EP: Shipwrecks - Shipwrecks

Band: Shipwrecks
Album: Shipwrecks EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Telescope
02. Owls
03. El Rumpelstilzo
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Shipwrecks is a post-rock trio from Cologne, Germany founded on May 8, 2014. The self-titled EP, mastered by Magnus Lindberg of Cult Of Luna, is their amazing debut release which sounds promising and sets high expectations for the future.

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Buy: To buy a physical copy sent an email to info@shipwrecks-music.com

Album: Kermit - Litoral

Band: Kermit
Album: Litoral
Label: Itaca Records, Pin Music
Year: 2014








Tracklist
01. 1926
02. Samhain
03. Circumpolares
04. We Tripantu
05. Ingeborg
06. Magnitizdat
07. 1927
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Kermit is a jazz/post-rock project from Malaga, Spain, that was born in 2011 from the desire to experiment with the endless possibilities offered by two guitars, a bass and a drum-kit. The result is a landscape of multiple textures that make sense when played together, only when superimposed. Kermit is a melancholic trip that is sometimes subtle and tender, and some others aggressive and heartbreaking.

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Video: Képzelt Város - Albireo B

Album: A Nice Day For An Earthquake - Shockwaves

Band: A Nice Day For An Earthquake
Album: Shockwaves
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014







Tracklist
01. Airport
02. Nova
03. The End Of The Sun
04. Tides
05. Babydoll
06. Super Giant
07. Shockwave
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A Nice Day For An Earthquake is an instrumental post-rock band from Santoña, Spain.
Favorite track: "The End Of The Sun"

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Band: The Boats

Band: The Boats
Album: Perennial Love (Extended EP)
Label: Self Released
Year: 2006







Tracklist
01. Little Black Rays Of Hope
02. The Sea Is In The Boat
03. Strawberry
04. Perennial Love
05. Cold Ark
06. Asunder (Medley Of Studio Demos)
07. Los Musicos Perdidos (Studio Demo)
08. Little Black Rays Of Hope (live at Museum - 24/05/2004)
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Band: The Boats
Album: Los Musicos Perdidos
Label: Self Released
Year: 2007








Tracklist
01. Warmth From A Window
02. 2 AM
03. The Sea Is In The Boat
04. Los Musicos Perdidos
05. Strawberry
06. Little Black Rays Of Hope
07. Alone In Us
08. Asylum
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Band: The Boats
Album: Segundo (Bonus Edition)
Label: Self Released
Year: 2015








Tracklist
1. Trash Can Willy (Part 1)
2. Seize The Stars And Turn Them Into Cinders
3. There's Not A Fire That Can Warm Us
4. The Last Man On Earth
5. Hammer Down Your Gentle Sharks
6. Cold Ark Revisited
7. Trash Can Willy (Part 2)
8. The Astronaut (Bonus Track)
9. Tierra Del Fuego (Bonus Track)
10. I Remember....An Eon Ago (Bonus Track)
11. The Merchant (Bonus Track)
12. Flotsam (Bonus Track)
Streaming

The Boats are an atmospheric, dynamic and stunning instrumental experience. The trio formed in early 2003 and quickly developed their own unique sound; combining vintage guitars, drums, piano and bass to create sonic sketches and soundscapes.

Perennial Love was originally a five track EP consisting of a few pre-album tracks and two live rehearsal tracks recorded in May 2006. Released as a short run 3" CD, it was a chance to promote the band again and prepare listeners for what was to come from the album - Los Musicos Perdidos. This digital version is also bundled with a very rare promo EP 'Live & Rare' (2004), which consists of studio demos and a live performance at Museum, Melbourne, in June 2004. Perennial Love (Extended EP) is a look at The Boats when the band formed, and were starting out and finding their sound.

"I often believe that there is an accompanying geography to any given piece of music, whether apparent on the surface or buried deep in the psyche of the work. On The Boats’ Los Musicos Perdidos, the geography is striking. Reverb and tremolo heavy, yet crisp guitars and soft-brushed snares illuminate sagebrush covered flatlands and jutting plateaus defined by drenching, unrelenting sun. The curiosity here is that the geography of Los Musicos Perdidos is most readily identifiable as American, at least the West and Southwest. However, The Boats hail from Melbourne, Australia. Having never been to Australia, I can only imagine that there are similar landscapes with which to relate their sound to. On "The Sea is in The Boat," guitars softly duel as a pair of gunslingers reluctant to draw first. Instead, they dance awhile, awaiting the other’s move with light cymbal work as spurs underfoot. There is hope in their tone, tinged only by the pragmatic knowledge that an end must come. The slow, rising horns of "Little Black Rays Of Hope" immediately call to mind Ennio Morricone and the undying butt of a cigarillo cornered in the thin lips of a lone drifter. Then there are the slow clacking castanets and shakers of "Strawberry," a song that is undeniably the soundtrack to a tracker hunting down a fugitive. Violin slinks along the ground like a rattler idly passing the hooves of the tracker’s horse, and when he spots his target, the tempo surges as the chase is on.

All the while, coursing through the eight songs, which average out at nine minutes apiece, there is an arid heat that boils all about. It is anticipation, alertness, hyperawareness in a vast emptiness filled by the sounds of despair. Part of what is amazing about this continuity of mood in sound is the evident freedom by which it was produced. According to what little is written about this band, they loosely compose pieces and fill in the rest with improvisation. It works quite well, because there are only a couple little minutes of meandering. Most noticeably in "Warmth From A Window," when they shift between motifs on a chord change and the piano seems to be struggling to find its place. However, it does and the song remains relatively unharmed, as does their particular sound. A sound that is unafraid to point to its influences like friends in the crowd. There are certainly touches of Red Sparowes, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and the most recent manifestation of Do Make Say Think contained in Los Musicos Perdidos. While The Boats are certainly unabashed at playing to their influences, they do not become engulfed by them. Nor are they swallowed by the unforgiving geography of their sound." -Gabriel Bogart (Silent Ballet)

The Boats second album, aptly titled ‘Segundo’, arrives 8 long years after the debut release of ‘Los Musicos Perdidos’. It’s a long time between drinks, but the difficult second album has survived many set backs. 

Segundo was produced by J. Byron and recorded by Stuart Seers at JMC Studios in Melbourne, over the summer of 2006/2007 - and two of the hottest days on record. The approach was simple…go into a recording studio and improvise, everything. For the most part, this was true, a majority of the album is purely improvised. Several tracks were born from riffs brought to the table, others were spawned from inspiration. What followed was forged through the driving emotion of Melbourne’s extreme heat, and the kind of raw intensity that can only be produced from the marriage of glowing Fender valves and vintage Ludwig drums. 

With tracks like ‘Seize the Stars and Turn them into Cinders’, ‘There’s Not a Fire that can Warm Us’ and ‘The Last Man on Earth’, the band discovered a balance between their familiar improvisational approach, while maintaining a sense of structure. Other pieces, such as the epic ‘Trash Can Willy’ parts 1 and 2 are an exception; originally formed as an entire improvised jam, over 28 minutes long and later broken into two parts. Another complete, unedited improvised track was ‘The Merchant’, coming in at approx. 17 minutes in length, and included as one of the bonus tracks in the special bonus edition. 

Segundo is an epic, sprawling, largely improvised and yet focused instrumental post-rock album, fully formed and complex. A much darker record than its predecessor; it explores themes of urban aggression, the inherent destructive nature of modern society and the beautiful, yet tragic imagery associated with human isolation. There are larger concepts at work on Segundo, and the wait could almost be perfect timing.

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Album: Lights & Motion - Chronicle

Band: Lights & Motion
Album: Chronicle
Label: Deep Elm Records
Year: 2015








Tracklist
01. Fireflies
02. Glow
03. Antlers
04. Reborn
05. Northern Lights
06. Particle Storm
07. As The World Goes Away
08. Paper Wings
09. The Spectacular Quiet
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The ability to strike emotion on a universal level, to touch the heart without words, to transport you to otherworldly realms in which anything and everything is possible...this is the power of cinematic post-rock luminary Lights & Motion. The level of emotional intricacy achieved by the band's braintrust, Christoffer Franzen, is nothing short of remarkable. And this is not only music you can feel, it's music you can see. Music is truly a work of art when an artist connects with the listener in a way that transcends the music itself. From the flawless guitar structures to the beautiful piano melodies, the ebb and flow of Chronicle is brilliantly orchestrated. Accessible, deep and totally captivating, the album picks your spirits up where all else has failed. It inspires feelings of awe and wonder. It calls to the depths of the soul where reverie awaits. It breathes new life into all who listen. And it further expands the band's sonic palette into bold waters with the dark Reborn and to new celestial heights with The Spectacular Quiet. A polished and perfected homage to everything that came before it, Chronicle is a stunning, glorious and triumphant album from start to finish.

"The ambition for my third album was to write something that was truly cinematic. Given my lifelong passion for everything cinema, it felt natural to take another step towards that widescreen, big canvas sound, while still maintaing the various elements and components of Lights & Motion's trademark sound. The process hasn't changed at all for the albums I create. Everything is played for real. It's all created from scratch. It's still all written by me, every note in there. I named the album 'Chronicle' as sort of a play-by-play narrative or score of certain events in my life. A diary, if you will, captured through sound. During those periods when I'm composing day and night, the music tends to color my memory of a particular passage of time. After a while it gets hard to distinguish one without the other. On this album, I felt it would be fitting to frame the music in such a way that you get a glimpse of me from the outside as well. This same theme runs through the sequence and titles. One of the main reasons why I like to write songs is that they become bottled emotions. They are mirrors to memories" says Franzen. 

Franzen continues, "For my two previous albums, it's been quite easy for me to feel what color the album reflects. For Chronicle however, I'm not so sure...and I like that about it. It's not just one color, and even though it has a red thread running through it, it's hard to pin down. It changes throughout. And just like a movie, I hope it will keep you on your toes until the very end. I want people to feel inspired after listening to Chronicle. That's the very best thing I experience when I listen to someone else's music. It's that magical moment, that involuntary reaction when you start to walk a little faster, you get goosebumps or tense up when something is playing both in your ears and in your mind. I hope Chronicle becomes an album that people will bring along for company on evening walks or the album they play in the morning to get energized as they're leaving their house. The biggest thrill of all is when a complete stranger tells me that they've played my music during a significant moment in their life. To be a part of those moments, those chronicles of another's life, in even the smallest way...that is an incredible honor." 

Last year was an absolute whirlwind for Lights & Motion's multi-instrumentalist, composer and musical savant Christoffer Franzen. Having released what both press and fans have called "two of the greatest post-rock albums ever released", being named "Best New Artist of the Year" in a poll of 11,000+ respondents and being featured in Hollywood film trailers, television spots worldwide and global promo campaigns, you'd be shocked at just how humble this young gun of 26 years remains. He is without doubt, one of the biggest musical discoveries of the decade irregardless of genre. And this is still just the beginning to what will be one of the most awe-inspiring discographies ever created. All done by one single, solitary man, working feverishly alone in a dark corner of Sweden. Chronicle anchors Lights & Motion as a post-rock point of reference, ensures the album's resting place among the highest echelon of post-rock releases and further justifies Franzen's spot on the short list of great cinematic songwriters.

Lights & Motion is Christoffer Franzen. He plays all instruments on the album. Chronicle was also produced, recorded and mixed by Franzen at UpSweden Studio in Gothenburg. Mastered by Dave Cooley at Elysian Masters in Los Angeles (M83, Serge Gainsbourg, Polyphonic Spree). Sisters Amanda and Lina Ahlberg performed additional harmony on "Fireflies." Amanda also performed on "Antlers." Cover artwork by Will Sutton adapted from his short film “Under The Same Sky." Photo and teaser video by cinematographer Fredrik Sellergren. A music video for "The Spectacular Quiet" is now online (www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAK6bEC5Mvo) via the UK-based 'We The Conspirators' collective. Videos for "The March" (www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zYu0OqZ7T0) and "Home" (www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBxkJ0Bl9mY) are also online. Chronicle follows "Reanimation" (January 2013) and "Save Your Heart" (November 2013) also released on Deep Elm Records. Other Lights & Motion releases include the 20 track "Unreleased (Music for TV & Film), Vol. 1" and the 5 track "Holiday Visions," both of which are available exclusively on deepelmdigital.com. Lights & Motion has 750,000+ followers on SoundCloud alone with over 1.5 Million plays. 

The music of Lights & Motion has been featured in several movie trailers with a combined 40+ million views including Transcendence (Johhny Depp), Lone Survivor (Mark Whalberg) and Homefront (Jason Statham), television spots including A to Z, So You Think You Can Dance, The Voice and the 2014 Tour de France, promotional campaigns for Visa, NBC, NBC Sports, Google, MTV, RipCurl, Toyota, Vans, Square, Hilton, Budweiser, Aston Martin, Red Bull, Tesla, Princess Cruises, Canon, Singapore Airlines, Four Seasons and many more. Franzen resides in Gothenburg, Sweden. 

For fans of: Sigur Ros, M83, Explosions In The Sky, Hans Zimmer, Brian Tyler, U137, Moonlit Sailor.

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The Inquisition: 032.Beware Of Safety

1. How did you came up with the name of the band? 

Sometimes the most inane and cheesy things provide inspiration. In the case of the band name, I had this “Stupidest Things Ever Said” daily desk calendar at work. One day it featured a sign in China that read “Beware Of Safety.” It wasn’t really funny at all, but in the context of a band name, it had a nice ring to it. And I discovered multiple layers to the meaning as I thought about it more. So I added it to the list of band names we were considering at the time and it made the cut after we all voted. It’s no Soundgarden or Deftones (two band names which I think are fantastic), but it works.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it?

Often, one of the guitar players (Adam Kay, Jeff Zemina, or I) bring a riff or a theme to the other guitarists. The three of us will then work out some general ideas and later present them to Morgan Hendry (drums/keys) and Tad Piecka (bass). At that point everyone goes to work in a more collaborative format (“Wash Ashore In Pieces” from Lotusville, “The Supposed Common” from dogs, “O’Canada” from It Is Curtains). 

In other cases, we’ll jam on a musical passage in the rehearsal space which is a more democratic approach (“Crooked Nails for Catching Skin” from Leaves/Scars, “Cut Into Stars” from the BoS/Giants split). 

Other times, Morgan or Tad will present an idea and we’ll flesh out the construction of it together. (“Raingarden” from dogs originating with Morgan, and “To Be Curious Is Dangerous Enough” from Lotusville originating with Tad).

During the writing of Lotusville, there was a great sense of togetherness in the writing process. I certainly felt most connected to my band mates and the process was very transparent and honest. There was very little ego to sift through; it was a culmination of years of work and communication that made it a healthy and productive environment for us.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home?

Direct musical influences are tough to pinpoint. More often, I am influenced by life experiences and I don’t consciously reference specific passages of music when I write. One thing I pay most attention to when writing new material is what I’ve done before as a guitarist and musician. I like to approach new music by attempting to do things I’ve never done before, or at the very least, put a new spin on existing strengths.

Lately, I’ve been listening to Sinoia Caves, My Morning Jacket, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Boards of Canada, Lorde, and some other goodies.

In December, a couple of guys in the band took part in an annual show we host with some friends called Winter Jam. A lot of my friends are musicians, so a few years back we decided to get together and play covers of pop songs at a local venue just for fun. We form three bands (typically drums, bass, guitars) and rotate singers on multiple songs. Over the course of the four years the multiple bands have played songs from Katy Perry, Tame Impala, The White Stripes, Superdrag, Hall & Oates, RATM, Backstreet Boys, Bing Crosby, Outkast, the theme from Team America: World Police, and others. It’s basically live karaoke. And wicked fun. The bands rehearse two or three times, then get on stage and let loose. 2014 was our fourth year putting on the show and it’s always an awesome night. Some songs I played I had never even heard until a week before the performance. It’s cool learning guitar parts for mega-pop songs from the likes of Katy Perry and Taylor Swift even I’ll probably never listen to the songs again in my entire life.

4.    Which is the one album you can't live without?

At this very moment, I’d have to go with Tiny Music… Songs from the Vatican Gift Shop by Stone Temple Pilots. That record has aged really well. The production and tones they found are near perfect and timeless. It also brings me back to my teen years when I was a total newb on guitar struggling to learn “Art School Girl” and “Adhesive”. It’s a really beautiful collection of music.

5. What's the first record you've ever bought ? 

I’m 35, so the first record I bought was actually not a record at all, but a cassette tape back in the 80s. And technically, my mom bought it for me. It was Beach Boys tape that had pictures on it of attractive women wearing swimsuits. I just Googled it to try to link the artwork, but had no luck. Maybe it’s still in a shoebox in my mom’s house with Motley Crue’s "Dr Feelgood" and Weird Al’s "Fat". Ah, the 80s.

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with ? 

Tool. Without a doubt.

7. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

The internet has been HUGE in our band’s success. I’m sure every band nowadays would agree that its presence for worldwide communication is something previous generations never could have dreamed of. One of the main supports for BoS in our early career was The Silent Ballet. They had writers all over the world covering bands and artists in the instrumental realm. Without their support, who knows where we’d be at this point? But they wrote honest reviews about musical genres they cared about. Genres that weren’t (and still aren’t) getting any attention from larger music information sources. So they were big for us at a time when people wanted a central source for niche music like ours.

We played a show in Poznan, Poland – 6,000 miles away from our home in Los Angeles – in 2012 and had an amazing and memorable time. The club owner was wicked gracious, the sound guy was talented and kind, and the crowd was overwhelmingly supportive. After the set, many of the folks in the crowd stuck around and bought us countless Polish vodkas and shared stories about their culture and home. It was a blast.

8. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify?

Personally I think Spotify is a joke. The royalties a band receives from the service are laughable (http://www.complex.com/music/2011/07/you-need-4-million-pays-on-spotify-to-make-1200).

Bandcamp on the other hand, is a great service for bands and fans alike. They provide an easy-to-use platform to point your fans to, have excellent customer service, and don’t gouge the artists’ income to support their site. Still, you run into a few difficult issues, the biggest being promotion. How do you reach people who don’t already know who you are? I spoke to a friend recently who had a conversation with the head of a large indie label in NY. My friend asked him, “If you have $10,000 to spend to make a record, how would you allot the money?” The owner of the label said to him to put at least half – and even as much as three quarters – into promotion. He feels nowadays, you can make a solid sounding record for relatively cheap, but promotion is the thing that takes time and money and, unless you have the deep connections or the credibility an established act may have, you can’t do it on your own. Without it you’re just another band with another record competing for a share of a drowning voice.

All in all, the financial landscape of music as art has become pretty bleak for those who aren’t the top 1% of musical acts. I generally expect to make very little money if any when releasing a new album. But BoS isn’t making music to make money. We do it because we love what we do. We love challenging ourselves and bettering ourselves musically and personally. When it comes to music and art, why you do it and how you do it is infinitely more valuable than what you can get once it’s complete.

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

With all that Spotify income, we’ll be sipping pina coladas on a beach in Mexico, of course! But seriously, in five years, I have no idea. I’m not one to look that far into the future. I recognized a few years ago that the unexpected has a way of keeping you grounded and in the present moment. I’m much more concerned with the next phase of BoS. Which I see as a venture into the unknown. This next writing phase will be for our fifth release. We’re certainly not going to write the same stuff again. Perhaps it’s time for a major departure from what we know. Or maybe we put heavier constraints on ourselves creatively or in the way we manage time. At this point, we don’t know. But I know none of us want to keep doing the same thing over and over again.

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era?

Absolutely. The album artwork is the visual representation of the music…even if it’s a 200x200 px icon on iTunes. We’ve released all our records on vinyl and CD as well as digital, so artwork plays a large factor in the presentation across each medium. Vinyl is the most fun to design because the artist has a much larger canvas on which to work. One thing that has been fun for BoS is to have multiple versions of artwork for each release. For example, our first release It Is Curtains was first issued in hand stamped CD cases and issued later on vinyl with completely different. The CD and vinyl versions of dogs were simultaneously designed quite differently. Each BoS release has at least one small portion of the artwork different between the vinyl and CD versions.

11. What is you favorite album cover?

One of my favorites is Bersarin Quartett’s self-titled LP. I reference it often when BoS begins discussions about album art of our own. I think it’s important for a cover to beg questions of the audience, to provoke some sort of visceral response. BQ’s does this by showing what I perceive as the frightened reaction of a young girl putting her hand in front of her face, but it doesn’t show what she is frightened of. It’s very powerful. It reminds me of the first line of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The opening line is “Who’s there?” As an audience member it captivates you and makes you want to know who is there, it makes you want to listen to every single note on that record.

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

Listening to vinyl is an event. You must be engaged when you do it; it’s an interaction between the record, the player, and the listener. You have to flip the record every 20 minutes or so, unlike iTunes which can play forever. I love vinyl for that reason. I love sitting down with a lady friend or my buddies to spin some wax. It feels like we’re there for the experience of listening to music, not just talking over it while it plays in the background. Nowadays physical touch can feel so distant – it’s the internet age – especially with the way we consume music. Too many folks don’t ever hold in their hands an actual album or even see its artwork or know the album or song titles; it just hides in their iPhone or on their hard drive. I love the touch of records and the fact that I have to be careful with them, treat them like the delicate treasures they are.

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band?

From August, 2012 until March, 2013, BoS was unexpectedly forced into a period of downtime. On September 11 and 12, 2012, I suffered two strokes. Long story short, I tore an artery in my brain (cause unknown), the wound clotted, cut the blood supply to my brain, and caused the first stroke. I was rushed to the hospital and stayed there for over a week. (The second stroke happened the next day while I was in the hospital). Thankfully, I avoided death and surgery, but it was a terrifying experience for my family, friends, and me. My BoS guys were super supportive throughout the whole thing – Jeff and Adam even brought my acoustic guitar to the hospital so I could make sure I could still play. It was like when Gandalf exorcises Saruman from Théoden in Lord of the Rings.

Gandalf the White: Breathe the free air again, my friend.

Théoden: Dark have been my dreams of late. [looks at his hands]

Gandalf the White: Your fingers would remember their old strength better... if they grasped your sword.

Thankfully, I lost no mobility (or my sense of humor) and was able to play without any issues.

During a long recovery process I was ready to take the stage again. It was March 2, 2013. We were asked to support our friends The Victor Ship who were playing their final show as a band. I generally don’t get nervous for shows; it’s more of an excited anticipation of performing. But this time, the nerves were kicking in. Not so much for the performance, but for the fact that I wasn’t sure how my body would respond. I was very conscious of the doctor’s orders to avoid any sudden head/neck movements for fear of exacerbating my healing artery and I wasn’t sure if my emotions would get the best of me. At a few points in my recovery, I had honestly thought I would never get to perform again, so this was a very big deal to me. As I set up my pedal board, warmed up the amplifier tubes, and slung my guitar over my shoulder, I kept picturing myself falling to the stage in a heap mid-show and how the crowd would respond to seeing me die during a performance. It shook me to the core and it was hard to focus on the job at hand. But I maintained with the help of the calmness of my bandmates and the support of my friends in the crowd.

Other than help with technical issues before or during our sets, the band members’ communication with each other on stage is generally musical or via eye contact. But right before we were about to start, Morgan called to me from behind his drum kit. I turned and leaned over his ride cymbal thinking he may need more guitars in his monitor or maybe an extra minute to dial in his drums. Instead he leaned over towards me, put his hand on my shoulder, and said to me: “I’m so glad you’re here”.

I will never forget that moment as long as I live.

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Update: Dayluta Means Kindness - The Ground Is Lava

Band: Dayluta Means Kindness
Album: The Ground Is Lava
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014








Tracklist
01. The Ground Is Lava
02. Everywhere You Look There's a Mountain
03. Young Savagery & General Debauchery
04. The Sun's True Brightness In Comparison With Other Stars
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Dayluta Means Kindness is an instrumental post-rock band from El Paso, TX, USA and now their album is available as pay what you want.

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The Inquisition: 031.stonefromthesky

1. How did you come up with the name of the band? 

Well, if you are familiar with 'A Sun That Never Sets' album by the mighty Neurosis, then it should not be too much of a riddle. I listened to the closing track a lot at the time, and using the name of the song somehow appeared to me pretty clever and appropriate. Of course, I couldn't suppress the urge to use singular form instead of plural, to write everything in a lower case, and to glue all the words into one. 

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

The procedure is different all the time. The thing that is constant is an idea. I always start with it. Sometimes I just pick up the guitar and come up with a cool piece. Sometimes I just tweak some sort of synthesizer and somehow come up with a theme. Other times I can just record a sound of a train or my own voice, or whatever and distort it so much that it becomes something completely different. Then I build up a full track from there. I just listen to it and think what it needs. My imagination paints a picture and I try my best to express it. Regarding the train. Half of the instruments in the track 'Weightless' were made out of a single sound sample - interior of a moving train. 

3. The combination of post-metal/sludge with breakcore/idm/glitch is the most original/interesting combination I've heard for a while. How did you end combining those two genres? 

I like them both. This combination is completely natural for me. I know that lots of people tend to choose either side and close their minds to another. This phenomenon created a stereotype that it is impossible to combine these genres properly. Well, this particular challenge boosted my inner artist even more. In my opinion, genres are nothing but fancy words. Music should never be confined into any particular genre prison because this kills any artistic effort. You know, something like "I feel that this latin beat should sound cool here, but I won't use it because we play metal", etc. Finally, stonefromthesky is not limited to post-metal/electronics. New album should be broader than that. 

4. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

My music was influenced by many bands. Neurosis, Rosetta, Cult of Luna, Apparat, Deftones, Dryft, Massive Attack, Down, Gridlock, Venetian Snares - to name just a few. Additionally, there are lots of other things that inspire me. For example, woods, cityscapes, paintings, books, movies. Anything I find awesome. What music do I listen the most now? Again, to name just a little fraction - Massive Attack, Morphine, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Apparat, Swans, Rosetta, The Chariot, Every Time I Die, (Hed) P.E. 

5. Which is the one album you can't live without? 

It is a hard question. I can't answer it right away because I like LOTS of music. However, to be fair, 'Mezzanine' by Massive Attack is my numero uno at the moment. 

6. What's the first record you've ever bought? 

I guess it was 'Dynasty' by Kiss. These guys sure knew something. 

7. Do you have any plans of touring and playing these tracks live and if yes how will it work as stonefromthesky is an one man project? 

Yes, I already play live. I perform by myself (similarly to electronic artists like Long Arm) and people seem to dig it. However, I'm not yet happy and I try to improve every time. Also, I tried to play with a drummer and it sounds cool too. Maybe this will be another way of performing live, but it's too soon to say. 

8. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

Any good band. 

9. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to? 

Yes, of course. Your blog in particular helped a lot. However, I don't really track my music. 

10. Do you support the idea of bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like spotify?

Yes. I believe that music should help people, broaden their horizons, paint their reality with brighter colors. 

11. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 

I don't know. I live in the moment. 

12. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

Making great music should be the utmost goal of every artist. However, we live in the era of impatience. And picture is the fastest media out there. Way faster than sound or video. Yes, you can say "fuck it", but isn't it a bit square - to put lots of effort into your music and cover it with a shitty image? 

13. What is your favorite album cover? 

Again, I can't pick one. I like the cover of Led Zeppelin's first album a lot. Maybe because I'm a fan.

14. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

It is easy to answer. Vinyl gives you the highest quality of sound. As for me, I pay much more attention to the music, not a format. Although I like tapes a lot. 

15. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band? 

It was really cool when I left everything and lived in a house in a forest for a week. It was a distraction-free pure creative experience. You know, when you have nothing except music and woods. Such reclusion is absolutely necessary to sort things out in your head and to create stuff.

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Album: Captains Of Sea And War - Captains Of Sea And War

Band: Captains Of Sea And War
Album: Captains Of Sea And War
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014







Tracklist
01. Call Again
02. Kurtz
03. Aboard
04. You Need To Restart
05. Far
06. Zittersheim
07. Five Times The Sea
08. East
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Captains Of Sea And War is a post-rock band from Barcelona, Spain.

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EP: StarFunkSimples - Jacob's Ladder

Band: StarFunkSimples
Album: Jacob's Ladder EP
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014








Tracklist
01. Set Sails
02. Hide 'n' Seek
03. Jacob's Ladder
04. Death By Planet
05. Draw Sails
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StarFunkSimples is a Hungarian band from Pècs. Its music can be characterized by a blend of styles ranging from rock to metal spiced with improvisational melodies and airy pshychedelia. For a rock band the setup is unusual, having drums, guitar, bass, clarinet and no vocals. Since the members have been friends (and brothers) for ages a special writing chemistry is present which provides the framework for instant, improvised ideas that result in an eclectic musical journey.

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Video: Crib45 - Into The Abyss

Album: Nanaki - The Dying Light

Band: Nanaki
Album: The Dying Light
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014








Tracklist
01. I Have Outlived Myself
02. Sackcloth And Ashes
03. The Land Surveyor
04. Unholier Than Thou
05. Anonymous
06. Yorda
07. Hiraeth
08. Perpetual Commotion
09. There's No Such Thing As Good
10. An Absence Of Hope
11. False Optimism
12. ...Lest Ye Be Judged
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Nanaki is an instrumental project from the Isle of Man. Once an up to six piece band, nowadays it has returned to being the sole work of Postcode guitarist Mikie Daugherty.

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The Inquisition: 030.Kubark

1. How did you came up with the name of the band ?

Kubark is the moniker of the CIA heavy interrogation manual, focused on intimidation and domination. We aren’t interested in military stuff, but we were enthralled by the humiliation concept.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it?

We started our musical process by jamming, but for this new record we worked in a different way: we were interested in composing something near to the pop concept of song. Working in this direction we found that writing a “verse-chorus-verse” composition is more difficult than joining together a couple of riffs united by a strong musical identity.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home?

We all listen to different kind of music. In the last few years we started listening to a lot of electronic music because we think that nowadays some of the best and groundbreaking ideas come from electronic machines and their employments. Sometimes, when we want to listen some good rock records, we look to the past, but we all know that this kind of approach is quite easier, because nowadays if you take a look at the music scene, you can find great bands mixed with a lot of shit.

4. What's the first record you've ever bought ?

Two band members are answering to this interview, so the comeback is a little defective. Anyway, the first record bought by Enrico was Led Zeppelin IV and the first record bought by Elia was In Utero by Nirvana.

5. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with ?

Nirvana and all the 90’s alt scene (Sonic Youth, Melvins…) Amazing.

6. Did the internet and specially the blogs helped to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached to?

We think that the internet, and especially social networks  has a strong impact and gives a new dimension to the band’s work. The other side of the coin is that a social network can’t always select people who are on the same wavelength with you. This creates a strange situation. On the other hand, blogs, webzines and of course specialized magazines make possible that bands can approach a smaller number of people but that are really interested in the right kind of musical scene for their tastes.We were really surprised to know that our music reached Teheran.

7. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp, where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify?

We think that the price of music has to be made by the band, not by the fans. And by the way, we prefer something like Bandcamp rather than Spotify which has killed the concept of music. We know that Spotify is something like a drug because it’s easy to use and gives you access to an incredible library of music but absolutely doesn’t help the artists on the economic side.

8. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years?

Probably where we are right now.

9. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era?

Absolutely. We think that the graphic side is very very important and we hope it’s the same for other bands and people who still buy music.

10. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format?

Vinyl has a different sound quality and the large packaging help to get involved with the album.We definitely love the 180gr. vinyl.

11. What's the funniest story or moment as a band?

We enjoy a lot the trips in our van. Sometimes strange things happen!

12. Are you planning any new releases or tour right now?

Actually, we released our new album and we are working to make the largest possible number of gigs in Italy and Europe. And we hope that this will happen.

Kubark released their new album "Obedience" a few days ago.

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EP: Take This Town - Waking Dream

Band: Take This Town
Album: Waking Dream
Label: Self Released
Year: 2014








Tracklist
01. Lead Astray
02. Dust Remains
03. Waking Dream
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Take This Town is a four-piece band from the Bavarian Forest in Germany that draws influences from black metal, sludge, doom and hardcore (think of Rorcal or Celeste).

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The Inquisition: 029.Whale Fall

1. How did you came up with the name of the band? 

Dave (guitar) came across a time-lapse video of a whale fall (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQbGk4sHROg), which for those who do not know is the term that refers to the process of a deceased whale which, coming to rest on the ocean floor, spawns a sizable community of sea life who thrive on its nutrients. We liked the sound of the phrase and what it represents, so we went with it unanimously, which is notable in and of itself as so many of us have seen our previous bands nearly break up over trying to choose a name.

2. Do you have a standard procedure of creating a song? Do you just jam around or is there a main riff and the track is build up on it? 

It is a bit of both, usually the former. More often than not we will just be messing around and Tokle might throw out a bass line spontaneously and everyone will just start chiming in and it sort of takes a loose shape. Often we record these initial jams on Zoom and come back to them. Most never see the light of day again (though they may yet) but others get refined over time. Usually they are not fully arranged until it is time to record or play a show. Less commonly, as with “Onsen,” “Kodiak,” and “Depth of Field” from the first record, and “I Shall Sail No More (No More Shall I Sail)” and “Heart Space” from The Madrean, Dave or Ali (guitar) will come in with a riff or set of riffs written at home and that will become the basis for a song. This was more common with the first record, which was initially written before Tokle and Aaron (drums) joined the band, whereas these days the jamming model dominates.

3. What are your influences and what kind of music do you hear when you are at home? 

Our influences, as may be apparent from listening to our music, are very wide ranging. As with just about anyone, we have all been through many phases in our music listening lives going back before adolescence, and all of it probably gets in there somewhere. That more subliminal swath would include, depending on the band member in question, anything from metal and punk to folk to 80s and 90s alternative to Americana, to name a few. To be more specific about more direct influences, the main thing that caused us to find each other and come together as a band was a mutual appreciation of instrumental bands, whether ambient or more uptempo, in the vein of The Dirty Three, Mogwai, Godspeed, Johann Johannsson, Rachel’s, Labradford, and, well, we could go on and on… and on... We have a penchant for the transcendent and otherworldly. That said, on The Madrean and to some extent on the debut record, some folkier Americana flavors and even a touch of norteño managed to seep in, which, we assume, derives from our shared geographical heritage in the American Southwest (specifically southern California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Colorado, for respective band members). What we listen to at home does not always coincide with this. For example, J-Matt (trumpet, keys) has been on a classic Motown kick this week.

4. Which is the one album you can’t live without? 

Well, you are talking to five individuals, so that is hard to answer in unison. I think it is fair to say that the artist we cannot live without would be Radiohead, and there is a good deal of healthy dispute as to which album is the most indispensable. OK Computer, In Rainbows, and Hail To The Thief have all garnered votes.

5. What’s the first record you've ever bought? 

A randomly selected unnamed band member with initials JMG says: It was a 7-inch of KC and The Sunshine Band’s “That’s the Way (I Like It),” at the age of about 7 (and on a side note he knew he found his soul mate when he learned she had the same first record). I challenge anyone to detect that bright and snappy influence among our darker and rounder tones.

6. Name a band that you would like to share the stage or tour with? 

There Is No Teenage Love.

7. Did the internet and especially the blogs help to spread your music around the world? Name a place (country) that you were surprised to know your music has reached? 

Emphatically yes, as to the first question. The five of us lead busy lives outside of music, between our various careers and families, and so while we would love to tour and bring our music straight to the people, our ability to do so is very limited. So the timing of the internet age and its now-dominant role in the music world has been an indispensable boon for our exposure, and we are certainly very grateful to all the bloggers and net denizens who have helped us to reach a wider audience (so thank you!). In terms of the unexpected, we recently received a SoundCloud comment in Arabic. We are left to guess what it says but will have to assume it’s complimentary.

8. Do you support the idea of Bandcamp where fans can decide the price or services like Spotify? 

We strongly support the former and have serious reservations about the latter, although at the time of this writing, and amid ongoing discussion, our music can be heard on Spotify and other subscription services, and we have to acknowledge that for less-established bands like us these do offer a useful outlet for exposure.

9. Where do you see yourselves in 5 years? 

Making more music, playing more shows, recording more records, and, in terms of a specific longer term goal, increasing our involvement in creating music for film. We have been honored with the inclusion of two songs in the documentary Code Black, and are hoping to branch out more in this area.

10. Is the artwork of an album important nowadays in the digital era? 

We strongly feel it is. As an instrumental band lacking lyrical content, visuals are in one sense what takes the place of lyrics in terms of telling a fuller story that we want to convey. This being the case, we went all-out for the artwork on The Madrean, enlisting Jordan W. Lee, an amazing visual artist and designer, to create eight conceptualized photographic images, one for each track, as well as an overall packaging concept for the double vinyl LP. The vinyl version, currently in production, will have full page versions of each image in a glued-in booklet, and digital versions of the images are available for all interested parties (but we still recommend the vinyl). There is caveat to the foregoing, however, which is that our music and arguably all instrumental music stimulates mental visual imagery for many listeners, which is a highly personal and valuable experience, and one can argue that album artwork might interfere with that organic process. Ideally, listeners will allow this to occur in an unfettered way when listening, while still being able to enjoy the artwork as a separate experience.

11. What is your favorite album cover? 

One band member polled says: Wish You Were Here, and honorable mention to all of the 23 Envelope covers for the 4AD label.

12. It seems that a lot of people are turning on vinyl again. Why do you think that is and which is your preferable media format? 

It seems to be a reaction to the over-proliferation and overreach of digital media which lack any tangible component. Something valuable has apparently been lost along the way, which probably includes the tactile, visual, and even motoric experience of holding and playing records, the importance one places on something by virtue of acquiring and holding onto it rather than it being invisibly transmitted from an inexhaustible list on some remote server, the thrill of sifting through LPs at a record store to find the hidden gems, and, again, the appeal of viewing the 12-by-12 artwork. For these reasons we do have a preference for vinyl in terms of sharing our own music, but, truth be told, it is the response within the brain of the listener that matters, so any medium that gets the music to the 8th cranial nerves will do just fine.

13. What's the most vivid story or moment as a band? 

In terms of a moment, probably the creation of the last section of the track “The Madrean.” We were in the recording studio making the album and knew we needed another section, but the changes we had been jamming on weren’t working. Then Tokle came up with that bass line and everyone started playing along, and we recorded the first or second take. It just somehow came together with no rehearsal, with most of us improvising our parts on the spot. That was a magical moment for us, especially listening to it back off the tape, and to tell the truth, try as we might, we have never played it that well since (but aim to by our next show).

Whale Fall recently released their second full length album "The Madrean".

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