Le Sacre du Printemps - Asia Argento & Anton Newcombe and interview

 



Your last two albums have been less experimental and more classic BJM in their style and sound? Both are a wonderful mix of experimental sounds and classic BJM old school songwriting?

i believe the second statement is more true actually,i view the sound as a mix of the old and new and some growth in there across the board.the important thing is that for me,i see both of the last albums as vital and very much relevant.i don't want to hang on making live records under a moniker as a means of paying my rent or living off the past,i want to grow and explore and set an example to people that play music that yes,it is possible to do it your own way and keep doing it your own way and that you can,if you work hard live off of it.

 Is this a conscious move, or is it just how the music has evolved?

i'm not sure if this part of the question applies now that i answered the last bit.i believe that i've been incredibly focused in some ways,since the very beginning…well the ways that matter to me anyway.


Your collaboration with Asia Argento  was one of my favourite tracks of last year - were you tempted to put it on to Revelation?

thank you,i love that one…i would have loved to have used it in some way if i thought it worked in the bigger picture with a large group of songs that maybe had a cinematic euro 60s -70s french or even a shoegazey feel.it just didn't work out that way and besides she ended up releasing it on her own label and that's fine.i could still slap it on a 10" or 12" single if i thought of another couple of tracks to go with it.but really,i was listening to it the other day and i am very proud her and it.

You must get offered load of projects - collaborations like the one with Tess Parks along with film music Moon Dogs - how do you choose which ones you get involved with?

different ways really,sometimes people ask me or i ask them…and i am excited about both of the ones you just mentioned…i really want to be productive,but at the same time i only want to work on things i like.i have no stomach for listening to demo tapes so i guess i have to find things in my own way.
 about the movie project: i had spoken over and over about wanting to do a soundtrack,not just having songs pulled off of records and placed in a movie,but working on a project and now a director philip john has asked me to be a part of his project moon dogs.i'm really excited to be working with him and his team very closely in hopes that everyone is happy and that we can all move on to bigger and better projects haha

There seems to be a massive wave of new psych bands many of who cite the BJM as a key influence? Are there any you particularly like, or that you would like to work with?

i'm open minded about working with people,but i'm not going to name names…when we record at our studio or in a studio,the song comes first even if we approach everything the same way it's all about the song ideas and the people.i couldn't tell you who i would like to work with because i don't know how they are as people.

I really enjoyed your webchat with Steve Kilbey of The Church.

thank you i enjoy interviewing people i respect

Do you see him and his band as kindred spirits? Have they influenced you at all?

yes in some way i do see him as a kindred spirit and i respect the fact they keep doing what they do,recording and touring and trying things out.personally i think i am the product of a whole mess of influences and at the same time very few.haha.its this very myopic slice of the cosmos i see a reflection of at times and other times it seems limitless..i wonder if kilbey ever feels that way?haha

I love Revelation. Vad Hands Med Dem sounds like a great side one track one opener -  was it all conceived as an album that primary works on vinyl?

since the mid 90s when i left bump,everything i did was viewed in terms of vinyl along with whatever other medium etc…but most of the time there is some invisible thread seen only by me that connects the way i view the body of work selected.this album is the exception to that.its just a collection of songs or song ideas i had to create in order to go on tour,but during that process i had to struggle with that revelation and ask myself if it was ok to have a random playlist being that many people end up compiling their own on spottily or iTunes or whatever and i came to the conclusion that it is and it was and so here we are.i like the opener too.

 Do you listen to music on records mostly, or digitally?

i listen to vinyl unless i am recording or discovering or sharing online then its youtube.

Your cover of the Cryan Shames Sailing Ships revives an epic and until then long forgotten late 60s psych classic, Are there many other obscure psych tracks you'd like to cover?

there are quite a few unknown or under-known tracks out there but as time goes on and since the advent of digital music it's not the same as even in 2000 or something so i don't see the point.also,i've never been too big on covers,only the few times something lept out at me screaming to be shared…and as a reasonable fit for our group or my limited palate of skills.

What inspires you musically now - is it bands from the 60s or 70s or new bands?

i'm inspired by wanting to make something interesting that i enjoy,the era isn't important.i still want to work harder on the music and words and really do something that stands the test of time.how great would it to be able to wake up one day and write something like "heart full of soul" by the yard birds?i've not done that…and that was a hit…what about the eyes and "when the night falls"? most people don't know that group.i want to write something great and have it out there and known.it doesn't have to be a hit,i just want it to be timeless and to that end i'm going to have to try harder and keep trying until i die because i'm not done.

There is a lot of Europe in your music? Do you feel you have become less American in your outlook?

i always felt like an outsider…i was an outsider there and now i'm an outsider here,

If you look back - which of your albums are you most proud of?

good question…i like the we are the radio ep with sarabeth tuceck,i really hope that gets re-released someday…she got pissed and said it wrecked her career but that doesn't really seem objective at this point.it's interesting to me.other than that i like some of the songs from all eras and don't think in terms of favourites in anything…i am really proud of the remixes i've been doing and the stuff with other people you mentioned earlier in this interview.

thank you for your time.