terça-feira, 23 de abril de 2013

Wrote for Luck with The Phoenix Experiment - An Interview



Psicodelia alucinogena e altamente dancante, isso te lembra algo!?!?!Ah sim, o segundo verão do amor, ou Madchester para os chegados, pegue o 808 State e o Happy Mondays e cruze-os, provavelmente um dos rebentos seria o The Phoenix Experiment, música pra caras como meu camarada Fabio Bridges, e para o TBTCI é claro.

Fica evidente a modernidade no som do Phoenix Experiment, mas o apelo retrô é descaradamente sedutor.

O novo Ep Black Knight Satellite é um convite a pista e a uma noite sem fim, e os caras deixaram gratuito pra facilitar a sua viagem,  e o TBTCI dá mais uma mãozinha e mostra qual é a do Phoenix Movement.

Altamente recomendado.

***** Interview with The Phoenix Experiment *****


Q. When did The Phoenix Experiment start, tell us about the history...
The Phoenix Experiment evolved from our previous band ‘the 66’, in 2011. We quickly released a track called ‘Cut you Down’ via a now defunct label. It did very well and introduced a lot of people to us.
Following the demise of the label, we dismantled the band down to me (Mike) and Craig and became a studio project.

We spent a year or so working on ideas, honing our vision. We’ve now evolved into a full-band again, recruiting our former band-mate Paul Glover on guitar and keys, and Gaz Bennett on drums and percussion.
It’s the best band any of us have ever been involved with, and we’ve been involved in some great things. I wouldn’t even class us as aband; it’s something else, something more to us. We’re a ‘Phoenix Rising from the Ashes’, the ashes of many things.

Q: Who are your influences?
Personally; the light, the dark, life, death, leaving this reality behind, and the good people I surround myself with.

Q. Made a list of 5 albums of all time…
Damn, it always changes, but some albums are always going to feature.
At the moment I’d say:
The Doors – The Doors,
Death in Vegas –Trans-Love-Energies,
Ian Brown – Solarized,
Led Zep 3, and...
Pink Floyd – Dark side of the Moon

Q. How do you fell playing alive?
WE FEEL ALIVE!

Live is where we are naturally at. Between us we’ve done thousands and thousands of gigs, I think this comes across in the live performances as we can pretty much improvise with complete freedom and
take our set in whatever direction we’re feeling at that particular moment.

You’ll never hear the same show twice at a Phoenix Experiment Gig. It’s an adventure for us and an adventure for the audience, a joint creation between both of us.

Q. How do you describe Phoenix Experiment sounds?
I’ve heard all sorts; Industrial Pink Floyd, The Verve, Prog Rock without the pretentiousness. There is a definite sound... initially crafted by myself and Craig. The addition of the full-band just amplified that initial vibe massively and added a whole lot more, than we could ever do alone, into the mix. To us, the sound is the 4 of us in a room and what we collectively create.

We prefer to assimilate various sounds, ideas into our collective. Personally, I use colours and pictures to build an overall vision how a song will sound and make people feel. That’s the important thing.

We’re pretty much the Borg of the Psychedelic World, but with emotions!

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the new ep?
I wrote the initial Living like Dogs on Holiday in 2011, also the same holiday I formed the idea of The Phoenix Experiment. I was sat next to the pool with an Apple Mac, that’s where it came about. Sounds
dark for a holiday creation doesn’t it? Dark shit happens. Chaos was written by all of us in rehearsal and is often a set-opener. I knew I wanted to call the EP Black Knight Satellite, so I then sat down and wrote the title track afterwards. I often work in a non-linear or reverse fashion. Times irrelevant, it all comes together at some point!


The tracks were recorded in various studio set-ups over the past 7months and moulded together by myself using a hammer, some glue and a sonic screwdriver.

The vision was the story of humanity and technology and a tipping point. I used these themes to try and create the image of a clash between the two while producing it. You’ll often hear the electronic elements of the track try to overwhelm the natural, which was part of my thinking – that’s what is happening.

Q. Which new bands do you recommended?
I’m very slow when it comes to new bands, or new anything really. Off the top of my head, bands I would recommend checking out are: Dead Skeletons (most psych music from Iceland). A great band from Scotland
called ‘Helicon’, and a track called Grim Reaper Blues by a band called Entrance. I live in a very secluded small world, but I love the music they spin on DEADTV.

Q: Which bands you love to made a cover version?
Probably something by DJ Shadow or Robert Johnson! Maybe a mash-up.

Q: What´s the plans for future....
We’re in a great position now where we’re self-sufficient. We can write; record and release material all by ourselves. The studio is currently undergoing a major upgrade so that will only improve our releases and make us more efficient.

We do it for the love of doing it; someone else would also have to have that love if they wanted to get nvolved.

What we would like to do is to get our music out to as many people as possible, be it via releases or gigs. Fame or egotistical reasons do not interest us. Our message is strong, and musically, we have something different to offer the psychedelic community. Who wouldn’t want the opportunity to create music full-time? We’ll dowhat we can to make that come true, with minimal selling of the soul to achieve it.

Q: Any parting words?
Grab our EP for free or donate at http://thephoenixexperiment.bandcamp.com spread the good word. Most
of all – have faith in the realness of The Phoenix Experiment and Love One Another. We’ll need it.
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Thanks Mike

https://www.facebook.com/TPEONLINE?fref=ts
http://thephoenixexperiment.bandcamp.com/album/black-knight-satellite-ep-2