North of Tomorrow Interview
Q: Can you talk about your musical background?
A: The three of us have been creating music together for a very long time, and have played in just about every venue you could imagine, in front of both very appreciative and boisterous fans; and also “can’t you play something we can dance to?” Luckily, we have had many more encores requests than thrown beer bottles. Individually, all three of us started playing in bands in middle school, and have never stopped. Stephen started with his father’s trumpet before moving to drums. Brian also started on the drums before figuring out that chicks like the guitar player the best, as well as using the piano lessons that his mother said “someday you will be glad I made you do it.” Gary played bass and proved that chicks also liked the bass guitarist the best. We share a desire to create original music, wherever that takes us, and chase that thrill and satisfaction of hearing something back through the speakers, smiling and saying “turn that up.”
Q: Was there a difference between the creative approach between Something Unexpected and Clear As Can be?
A: No. All the band’s music has been created in the same way. Brian is the main songwriter for the band. He will create a demo and present a basic song structure and lyric idea to Gary and Stephen, usually after sitting on it for several months. Then the work of fitting it all together begins, which can either go smoothly or contentiously based on individual opinions of what “fits” and what doesn’t. All our albums have had a fair mix of each. But even once the actual song construction is finished, the process of mixing, editing, and overall production seemed to take a lot longer with “Clear as Can Be.” That longer process can be attributed to the fact that the more experience and knowledge we gain about the production process, the more variables we realize there are to consider. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.
Q: What are some of the themes on Clear As Can Be?
The musical themes of the album are consistent with the first two albums, namely fitting together numerous music layers across numerous genres. Never staying in once place for too long.
As far as lyrics, Brian goes through the world happy, positive, optimistic, and naturally curious about the numerous interplays constantly at work in the world. But a closer look at the lyrics for “Clear as Can Be” finds an album full of songs of heartbreak, delusion, regret, and cynicism. The explanation of the sharp contrasts between his life and the subject matter of the songs is that drama is just more complex, with a lot more layers, and is a lot more interesting to write about.
For instance, the opening song, “Late Again,” is about a dysfunctional relationship, where nothing is right or comes about at the right time. Sometimes, it is just the accumulation of small things that doom a relationship, rather than one event. “The Pretenders Ball” chronicles a very well attended event at which the annual bestowed titles of Mr. Delusion and Ms. Delusion have way too many qualified candidates. “It’s Always Something” considers the day-to-day events of wild pigs in the basement, lost babies, houses on fire – peace and quiet is always just over the hill. The theme of “Little Things” is love lost and missed in Beaumont, CA because of the lure of fame, fortune, and all things shiny being so close in LA. How many people travelled that 90 minutes along I-10 to chase something, only to realize at some point that their “something” was back in Beaumont? A slightly different story is written in “With Love, Marie” where love is here, until it isn’t, departing in the same mysterious and unknowable way that it arrived. Musically, more is better, complicated signatures is better, fused styles is interesting, and clean spacious sonics a must.
Q: How do you approach writing lyrics?
A: Lyrics are a real struggle. On a rare occasion, the lyrics and music all arrive out of the universe at the same time. But typically, Brian keeps a list of song titles, then matches the music with the title, and constructs the story behind it. That construction often takes quite some time. Currently, Brian has song ideas that are several years old, just waiting on lyric and vocal inspiration. Creativity is a mysterious thing, and we can’t explain it.
Q: What are your live shows like?
A: Unfortunately, the way the band is currently constructed, putting on a live show isn’t practical. We focus on recording, and collaborate with a great many different musicians, who are scattered all over the world. For instance, our regular drummer and keyboardist both live in Italy. Since the release of the first album “&,” we haven’t had everyone in the same place at the same time. So we would need to find available performing side musicians, as we just don’t have that many hands…or feet…to do it all by ourselves. In addition, we would need to recruit a new sound and light crew, as there is a real question whether our former road and light crew can physically still carry and set up all the equipment. (grin).
Q: What else should we know about the band?
A: We already have the tracks for our fourth album mostly completed, and we are writing songs for a fifth album. Also this inventory of songs doesn’t include all the songs sitting on the shelf, waiting for the universe to provide the inspiration to finish them. So you are going to hear about us for a while longer.
Q: Can you talk about your musical background?
A: The three of us have been creating music together for a very long time, and have played in just about every venue you could imagine, in front of both very appreciative and boisterous fans; and also “can’t you play something we can dance to?” Luckily, we have had many more encores requests than thrown beer bottles. Individually, all three of us started playing in bands in middle school, and have never stopped. Stephen started with his father’s trumpet before moving to drums. Brian also started on the drums before figuring out that chicks like the guitar player the best, as well as using the piano lessons that his mother said “someday you will be glad I made you do it.” Gary played bass and proved that chicks also liked the bass guitarist the best. We share a desire to create original music, wherever that takes us, and chase that thrill and satisfaction of hearing something back through the speakers, smiling and saying “turn that up.”
Q: Was there a difference between the creative approach between Something Unexpected and Clear As Can be?
A: No. All the band’s music has been created in the same way. Brian is the main songwriter for the band. He will create a demo and present a basic song structure and lyric idea to Gary and Stephen, usually after sitting on it for several months. Then the work of fitting it all together begins, which can either go smoothly or contentiously based on individual opinions of what “fits” and what doesn’t. All our albums have had a fair mix of each. But even once the actual song construction is finished, the process of mixing, editing, and overall production seemed to take a lot longer with “Clear as Can Be.” That longer process can be attributed to the fact that the more experience and knowledge we gain about the production process, the more variables we realize there are to consider. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss.
Q: What are some of the themes on Clear As Can Be?
The musical themes of the album are consistent with the first two albums, namely fitting together numerous music layers across numerous genres. Never staying in once place for too long.
As far as lyrics, Brian goes through the world happy, positive, optimistic, and naturally curious about the numerous interplays constantly at work in the world. But a closer look at the lyrics for “Clear as Can Be” finds an album full of songs of heartbreak, delusion, regret, and cynicism. The explanation of the sharp contrasts between his life and the subject matter of the songs is that drama is just more complex, with a lot more layers, and is a lot more interesting to write about.
For instance, the opening song, “Late Again,” is about a dysfunctional relationship, where nothing is right or comes about at the right time. Sometimes, it is just the accumulation of small things that doom a relationship, rather than one event. “The Pretenders Ball” chronicles a very well attended event at which the annual bestowed titles of Mr. Delusion and Ms. Delusion have way too many qualified candidates. “It’s Always Something” considers the day-to-day events of wild pigs in the basement, lost babies, houses on fire – peace and quiet is always just over the hill. The theme of “Little Things” is love lost and missed in Beaumont, CA because of the lure of fame, fortune, and all things shiny being so close in LA. How many people travelled that 90 minutes along I-10 to chase something, only to realize at some point that their “something” was back in Beaumont? A slightly different story is written in “With Love, Marie” where love is here, until it isn’t, departing in the same mysterious and unknowable way that it arrived. Musically, more is better, complicated signatures is better, fused styles is interesting, and clean spacious sonics a must.
Q: How do you approach writing lyrics?
A: Lyrics are a real struggle. On a rare occasion, the lyrics and music all arrive out of the universe at the same time. But typically, Brian keeps a list of song titles, then matches the music with the title, and constructs the story behind it. That construction often takes quite some time. Currently, Brian has song ideas that are several years old, just waiting on lyric and vocal inspiration. Creativity is a mysterious thing, and we can’t explain it.
Q: What are your live shows like?
A: Unfortunately, the way the band is currently constructed, putting on a live show isn’t practical. We focus on recording, and collaborate with a great many different musicians, who are scattered all over the world. For instance, our regular drummer and keyboardist both live in Italy. Since the release of the first album “&,” we haven’t had everyone in the same place at the same time. So we would need to find available performing side musicians, as we just don’t have that many hands…or feet…to do it all by ourselves. In addition, we would need to recruit a new sound and light crew, as there is a real question whether our former road and light crew can physically still carry and set up all the equipment. (grin).
Q: What else should we know about the band?
A: We already have the tracks for our fourth album mostly completed, and we are writing songs for a fifth album. Also this inventory of songs doesn’t include all the songs sitting on the shelf, waiting for the universe to provide the inspiration to finish them. So you are going to hear about us for a while longer.