Arthur King is a unique music and art collective, creating landscape art that enriches the senses. Last summer, they took a trip to the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah to create a visual experience unlike any other. During that trip, they created a short film that is as breathtaking in its detail as it is simple and endearing in its concept. With music by Arthur King, projection art by John Schlue, filming by Nash Howe, audio recording by Tim Conrad Horner, and editing by Alex Lee Moyer, the project came together quite nicely and is something we wouldn’t mind having on repeat for the rest of the day.
Not only do we have the exclusive premiere of the project, but we got the chance to take a few moments with Peter Walker, the driving force and visionary behind Arthur King.
What is your first musical memory, or the first album or song you remember listening to? Does that memory or that music have any bearing on your art now?
Drawing with chalk on my older brother’s Sergeant Pepper vinyl album. Eventually I evolved into recording said Beatles records onto cassette tapes. Today, I love manipulating instruments and sounds to make something perhaps unintended from the original design.
We understand the concept of the project, but what inspired it?
This project was born out of my pursuing a Ph.D. in mythology and depth psychology. The premise is exploring the role of the unconscious in creative expression, and more specifically how we experience a given environment both consciously and unconsciously, and how art might bridge that gap.
What made you choose the locations for the video?
We were focusing on BLM land (bureau of land management) where you can camp and do other things without any heavy regulation or government jurisdiction. There’s a lot of BLM land in Utah, as well as magnificent rock formations and somewhat pristine environments.
The visuals aspect of it all is very endearing. How long did the visuals process take?
The visual component has been a part of this project from the very beginning, with the idea that the sound informs the visuals and the visuals inform the sound, creating a feedback loop and an overall experience involving both realms.
Could you take us through the process of all of this in general? It’s such a unique way to display an array of creativity, and we’re enamored by it!
The idea is fairly simple: 1) Locate an environment. 2) Engage it, consciously—meaning explore it and listen and look and record these things with microphones and video cameras. 3) Take these samples and use them in a total improvisational “performance” within the same environment. the result is akin to what happens when we dream, where sounds and images from our waking consciousness are thrown into the stew of our psyche and come out in an unexpected way, often bringing to light connections you didn’t know were there all along. In the end, the performance allows for a different way of experiencing the environment.
Any fun anecdotes from the production process?
During the performance there was a little scorpion that was crawling next to Tim, who was sitting on the ground and operating a recording device. Tim put an empty plastic box on top of it, thinking that would temporarily solve the problem and allow him to focus on his task at hand. He would of course release it afterwards… and avoid getting stung. But when we were finished, the scorpion was gone and he realized it had probably dug its way out in a matter of seconds. all part of the fun of being in the desert!
What do you think is the most important topic to address with art, at least at this point in our progression as a society? Is there a topic that you think is misrepresented or under-represented by its art?
I think art is a tool for connecting with ourselves and with others. Most importantly, in my opinion, effective art connects us with the unknown in ourselves and the “shared unknown” in others (or as Jungians might put it the collective unconscious). Art is a connector. Fear of the unknown drives the worst in us as a species, and its omnipresent in our society today. I’d imagine there is no topic under-represented right now, it’s more likely a matter of accessing the art that might be an issue. Or maybe better put: I’m certain there are artists making vital art that are not getting the kind of exposure that is just. and that’s where you come in!
How do you hope people feel after viewing this?
Moved. Curious. There’s really no hope for a specific feeling, I suppose I hope it invokes some feelings at all, whatever they may be.
Something off the cuff a bit… What superhero do you identify the most with?
Might seem like an easy answer…but I don’t think there’s anyone more badass right now than wonder woman!?
Smart, smart man. Anything else you’d like to add about the project or anything else coming up?
In between these Changing Landscapes adventures we’ve been busy with other fun things like live improv movie scoring and large-scale interactive art installations… So i encourage those who might be interested to please come find us!
Seattle-based shoegaze/post-punk/dream rock collective Nostalgist – comprised of Asa Eisenhardt and his cohorts in music – has been dazzling crowds since 2012 and, with the release of new music and their journey only gets brighter from here. March’s Disaffection gave us even more reason to keep our eyes peeled for live performances, its raw sound and instrumentals often giving us chills.
Check out the new album in its entirety below, as well as a quick interview with frontman Asa Eisenhardt about it all.
While writing music, has there ever been a time where you have experienced a severe case of writer’s block? How did you resolve it?
Yeah, constantly. If I have enough time I’ll just try to play through it as best I can– let my mind wander and hope for the best. I might also try working from a basic theory concept as well, like chord inversions, where relevant. In the bigger picture, as with most songwriters, I just make sure to write down and/or record whatever idea I’m working on as it might click into place at a later point. This question has reminded me to consult Eno’s Oblique Strategies cards more often.
During your time as an artist, have you been able to accomplish your goals or are you still working towards them?
Ideally, in my mind, it’s both: taking stock of and expressing gratitude for one’s opportunities and accomplishments while also keeping steady sights on the proverbial road and goals ahead.
When you are touring and performing on different stages, how do you pass the time?
We’ve only done one tour, which was down the West Coast about 3 years ago. In transit, time was passed with pretty standard stuff like conversation and listening to music. During venue downtime, I’m usually doing vocal warmups and/or trying to get in a good headspace.
Apart from music, what would you say your true passion is?
I have a number of other interests, but music is absolutely my true passion.
What can your current and future fans expect from you before the end of the year? Is there any exciting news that you can share with us?
I’m slowly figuring out a remix release. One of them is finished, a few others are in a nebulous state and some are still yet to be determined. These will be complete reinventions using the componentry of a certain track on our new MLP. I’ve also acquired multitrack audio from our record show for a possible live album of some manner, but haven’t listened back in a proper studio environment yet.
Performance-wise, we’re playing two local shows this summer — a serious goth banger on July 5th with Nox Novacula (Seattle goth ‘n’ roll that’s taken the city by force in just a handful of months) and Twin Tribes (synthy jams, on tour from New Jersey). The other one is August 2nd and we’ll be revealing more about that one as the date approaches.
Is there one thing that inspires your music, or is there a wide variety of things that help you come up with the lyrics and accompanying music?
I’ve taken to the phrase “love and lack thereof” as being the central inspiration/subject matter. Film always plays a role as well, usually in how I mentally envision the imagery I’m trying to capture with words or atmosphere. In the first few years, that always meant classic noir, but I’ve branched out a bit. Really, it’s anything I can aesthetically repurpose. For instance, the cover still of our new record comes from L’Avventura. I stumbled across it on the internet and the vibe I got from it, along with the water imagery capturing an identical and ubiquitous lyrical element I often refer to, was so immediately perfect for these songs. While I enjoyed the film, I found it to be a bit different than what I was expecting. Presented alone, however I still love what the image does.
Additionally, I do have clinical depression, and while I am almost always a happy, goofy individual, things can sometimes be difficult. Once I bounce back from these periods and have time to reflect, I can often lyrically channel those feelings in a healthy way. I’m definitely drawing on my own experiences and filtering them through the aesthetics and influences I hold near and dear, but I also try to keep things just vague enough so other people can relate or maybe project them onto the song to their own cathartic end.
Has there been anyone in particular that has helped get you to where you are today?
Broadly speaking, I’d say a large number of people have, including past and present bandmates, my encouraging parents, and so forth. But to be more specific, in terms of magnitude, Evan Foster’s mentorship from both a musical and production standpoint has been unquantifiably beneficial– without him, this band would be nothing. Similarly, all four members of Agalloch were supportive from the getgo, not least of which Aesop. His guest drumming on the new record put some serious fire underneath the songs, and set a standard for the future.
Portland-based alt/pop My Brothers and I might be busy prepping for the release of their EP material, but the next piece in that EP puzzle belongs to “When You’re Ready”, for which the music video has been taking center stage since its release in late May.
We’re absolutely smitten with this quintet, so we decided to do a quick interview to celebrate all their (amazing!) release news as of late. Check it out below!
___
How did you all meet?
Scott, Erik, and I (David) are really brothers, so we met because we had to. Then Jordan and Scott have been besties since 2nd Grade and Jordan held me when I was a baby. So he is basically our brother.
Your song “When You’re Ready” has a very unique sound, what inspired that?
For the entire EP coming soon, we wanted to write pop music and have it feel like it could be on Top 40 radio, while also staying true to what makes us different. In most of our new songs, we have a mixture of real instruments and samples. We wanted to create a hybrid that competes with a lot of the digitally created pop music you hear, without going full-blown digital. We have a lot of real piano, real guitar, real drums, and real bass, while also throwing in some synths and 808 drum beats. This is especially shown off in When You’re Ready. The vibe may feel familiar, but the execution is what we feel sets it apart. It’s organic pop!
The video for “When You’re Ready” has an interesting story that revolves around a dissatisfied model. How did you come up with the concept for the video?
The “When You’re Ready” music video idea was actually brought to us by the producer of the video. He reached out and pitched his idea and we really liked it right away. We knew we didn’t want the video to just be a direct narrative of the lyrical content and his idea felt like a pretty cool metaphor that makes sense with the lyrics without being a direct representation. We had a blast working on it and are super happy with how it turned out.
Who inspires you as artists?
We are all a bunch of music sponges. We love to listen to music and are constantly listening to the New Music Friday playlist on Spotify. So more recently we have been vibing on that new Shawn Mendes album (no shame). In general we have always been inspired by bands and artists like John Mayer, OneRepublic, Justin Timberlake, Michael Jackson, Coldplay, The Roots, and so many others.
Where to you hope to see yourself musically in the next five years?
I think we would love to be settling into a nice career and a nice rhythm of being full time musicians. This journey has been so much fun and taken a ton of work and will continue to take a ton of work, but I think if we could be releasing a 3rd or 4th album by then and have a solid foundation and fan base, that would be a huge blessing. For us, we just want to change lives. It sounds cliché but we aren’t just doing music because it’s fun. We want to make a difference in people’s lives and touch people’s souls with our music. Make them feel something deeper than just surface level. If we get to a place where we can be playing and releasing music and use our platform to be a light in this world, that would be reaching our ultimate goal.
If you could describe your sound, what would it be?
I think organic pop is probably the best way to describe our sound. We love all types of music. We grew up on jazz and rock and hip hop and blues. We try to just be ourselves when we write and not stray away from that jazzy guitar lick, or that fat hip hop drum beat. We find ways to implement the past in a pop way with real instruments.
What is your favorite part about working together as a band?
Collaborating in everything we do is so much fun. Whether its ideas for live shows, writing songs, or what to do for an Instagram story, we all just love being around each other and goofing off. We try not to take things too seriously and just stay true to who we are. If you ever get a chance to see us live, we think this shines through. We just have a blast and I basically view every transition as a chance to make the crowd laugh or smile… and occasionally cry (in a good way).
___
Keep up with My Brothers & I here, and preorder their EP here.
The Centeno’s are more than just a family from New Jersey. Together, they are rock band The RocknRoll HiFives. Before fatherhood, Joe Centeno spent his days as a touring musician. Now he is joined by his daughter Eilee Centeno, his son, and his wife, and their latest single “Hold On” is pretty impressive.
The rock track starts out with sultry female vocals and sounds of very evident guitar, bass and drums. “Blonde hair, red dress- she got you drooling, you’re such a mess,” the song starts off. “Hold on, I’ve got something to say to you,” beats the chorus. Lyrically, “Hold On” is creative and sassy as it tells the tale of a female vixen who literally has a “hold” on you. “I need another minute with you,” the song muses. Their debut LP will be out June 29th via Little Dickman Records.
As openers for Animal Years, they single-handedly managed to grab the attention of the entire audience at Brooklyn’s Music Hall of Williamsburg. Not only are they talented musicians, but they’re hilarious, as well. Based on their experiences working on Wall Street, Mobile Steam Unit has crafted lyrics that hit home for anyone who’s worked in business. For those in New York City, this was an extremely relatable topic that resonated with crowd, who immediately broke into cheers when frontman Sam Huntington asked if anyone in attendance had ever worked on Wall Street.
Solemnly filing out in requisite business attire, the band began their set. Interestingly, Mobile Steam Unit has the uncanny ability to deftly span genres; they can do anything from rock to country to soul and beyond. With lyrical topics ranging from everything such as texting, Microsoft Office, and commuting, to name a few, they document the daily minutia of American life while keeping the crowd in hysterics. And during the last song of the set, Mobile Steam Unit surprised the audience by bringing out yoga dancers who tried, as best they could, to keep straight faces while striking poses throughout the song. It was an epic finish to their performance, rivaling that of Animal Years. Mobile Steam Unit is undoubtedly a tough act to follow.
Work takes up a good portion of our lives. By giving focus to this specific, and usually lamented, chore, Mobile Steam Unit has set themselves apart from other bands. By examining the workday through the lens of humor, Mobile Steam Unit is able to give rise to daily frustrations while enjoyably expelling them at the same time.
Released on the heels of NYC rock n’ roll outfit Jeremy & the Harlequins last hit track that debut last November is their new single, “California Rock,” that hit the market recently and has already started to work its way up the charts. With the hopes and dreams of keeping good rock n’ roll alive, this group has worked tirelessly to preserve everything that fans love about this iconic genre. “It’s ‘CaliforniaRock‘ from a New York state of mind,” explains vocalist Jeremy Fury. “The song is about my favorite time capsule, Los Angeles. Contrary to New York where a bank or cupcake shop will have replaced a mom and pop shop by the time you finish listening to this track, one thing I’ve come to love about LA is its Groundhog’s Day-like permanence. Prior to moving to New York, I lived in Echo Park and then Downtown LA for almost three years. This tune is reflective tale.”
With this new single released, the band has also stated that they have hopes of releasing even more music for their fans later in in the spring. With all of their skill in fast paced, electric soundscapes and beautifully crafted lyrical masterpieces, there is no doubt that there is no place to go but up for this up and coming rock n’ roll band.
For more information on Jeremy & the Harlequins, be sure to follow the band on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
As he revs up to release his new track “Passenger’s Side” this Friday, Ontario-based folk rock talent John Muirhead seems to be absolutely glowing with excitement. His music – which has an almost Broadway musical feel to it with the way he emphasizes every syllable and makes sure his audience is crystal clear on his meaning – is absolutely captivating, the new track setting the tone for what’s to come later this year. Check out our quick hit interview below, and be sure to peep the new song on Friday!
Your new single “Passenger’s Side” is amazing. How has your music evolved since releasing your first EP Yesterday’s Smile?
Thanks so much!
I’m still very proud of Yesterday’s Smile, but with it being my first EP, the whole record was a learning process. I learned a lot about how to be comfortable in the studio and how to create interesting arrangements that serve the song. The songs themselves were written between the ages of 16 and 19, so looking back as a more mature songwriter there are definitely some things that I would change if I were to do it all over again.
With “Passenger’s Side” and the rest of Foundational (The new EP, released in June 2018) I’ve taken the experience from Yesterday’s Smile and applied it. I feel that my voice has matured, my confidence has grown, and the songs are more representative of myself.
What message would you like your fans to get from “Passenger’s Side”? (Out April 6th)
The song is about defying the feeling that maybe our best days are behind us, and the appeal and romanticism of leaving it all behind. With this song I hope that listeners know that they’re not alone in that feeling.
I also hope the song can be the soundtrack to late night drives and lazy Sunday mornings.
How have you grown as an artist since you first began making music?
I think I’m just more sure of myself as a musician. I’ve sharpened up my guitar playing, singing, and performance through the constant repetition of touring and playing live, and my songwriting is getting closer and closer to the level I want it to be. My artistic vision is much clearer now, and I know what I want to accomplish in music.
What is your favorite thing about making music?
My favourite moment in the process of making music is seeing and hearing people sing along to songs that I wrote. I make music in hopes that my songs can effect others the way my favourite songs have effected me, and seeing people sing along is a reminder that maybe I’m on the right track.
In a much broader sense, my favourite thing about music is the fact that it’s a universal language. Regardless of language or culture we can all connect to music, and it plays such an integral role in all of our lives. I’ve made so many meaningful connections to people through music that I may not have had if I didn’t play, and I think that’s amazing.
What inspired you to begin making music?
Like a lot of musicians my age, Guitar Hero actually played a big role in inspiring me to pick up a real guitar. It introduced me to so much great music and it felt really cool to hold a guitar in my hands. When I picked up a real guitar it felt amazing to actually play the songs from the game and from there it didn’t take long to start writing.
What musicians would you say inspire you as an artist?
There are too many! I would have to say Frank Turner would be one of my biggest influences, he bridged the gap between my indie/punk rock upbringing and my current appreciation for folk music. Seeing the intensity of his work ethic and reading about his crazy tour stories really made me want to push myself to the limit as a musician. Recently I’ve been really inspired by Brian Fallon, Jason Isbell, Phoebe Bridgers, and a whole bunch more.
Following the release of your new EP this spring will there be a tour in the future?
Yes! I will be heading out to Eastern Canada in June, touring as part of VIA Rail’s Artist on Board program. I’ll be announcing all of the dates shortly, make sure to follow me on social media to stay up to date!
On Friday, March 16th, we met up with the incredibly talented Whitney Fenimore (That’s right – the one from The Voice.) to talk all things SXSW in the middle of 6th St. at SXSW. Her bubbly personality overtook the interview, and we fast found ourselves yearning to be her best friend.
But alas, not all pipe dreams come true. One thing is for sure… she is one to really look out for. We feel some big things coming.
Datarock‘s latest album, Face the Brutality, dropped March 9th through YAP records. DATAROCK is an 80’s recreating synth-rock band hailing from Norway, a place known more for its black metal. The band says the album’s title comes from a phrase they had heard prior and that, “coming from a city of black metal, and with a background in punk and trash metal, we found the title so utterly wrong for DATAROCK.”
Face the Brutality‘s first track, “BMX”, kicks off in good ol 80’s drum machine style. Joined in by an arpeggiated synth line that takes you back in time. I dropped a line to the band and asked,” why re-create that period of time?” Fredrik responded, “Probably just the fact that I grew up back then and have fond memories connected to those kinds sounds.” Seems, he isn’t alone. It’s becoming a trend and everyone is jumping on the bandwagon with aqua net and 80’s fever. There are contemporary sounds in this 80’s mix alongside some spunky lead guitar riffs, old school wah-wah, and some great group back up singers. Fredrik’s voice can range in the stylings of Beck, Sting, and even Sisters of Mercy as you get into the albums 4th track “Laugh in the Face of Darkness”, with its seductive sound. DATAROCK is a surefire for 80’s party like entertainment, not only through audio alone. Their stage show is top notch and made famous by wearing red tracksuits, in which you can purchase through their website. More than just a synth-driven pop band with punk influence the lyrics throughout have a poetic depth that can be thought pondering. When asked what track he was most stoked about Fredrik stated, “Today my favorite is the one named after a soap opera featured in Twin Peaks’s first season – Invitation to Love; a track that reinvents the ballad as a dance floor genre … and puts the reverb back on Kjetil Møster’s saxophone.” The track begins with drum and bass that is smoother than a baby’s butt. Mysterious like a hitman, and as sleek as a leatherette in an 80’s Porsche. The album ends on a punk-ish note with “Darkness at the Edge of the Pit.”
Overall the album hosts a series of hidden gems when it comes to musical diversity. DATAROCK have revamped the 80’s genre and polished it to perfection. When asked about the international reception Fredrik comments,”Over the years it’s been great! Like how we been able to play a thousand clubs and festivals in 36 counties on 5 continents – and how we ended up as 36 on NME’s list of albums of the year, or how Rolling Stone Magazine made Computer Vamp Love 88th beat of the yeast, etc. So far the best international response on the new album has been 5/5 in Music News and 4/5 in Classic Pop.”
In closing, what have we learned, Norway, more than just black metal, they’ve got DATAROCK. Go purchase your copy of Face the Brutality (or a tracksuit) from the bands’ website.
