Psyburbia - The first trippers on Mars
Author: michelle pirovich
Wednesday, April 9, 2003
Interstellar Mushroom is a wonderful album, especially when wearing headphones. Do you usually have a strong sense of what direction you want your music to take before entering the studio, or do you tend to let things take their own course-
Thanks! 'Interstellar' is actually an EP of unreleased mixes that I couldn't really place in the context of an album, so I'm glad you still find it coherent. I try to have a theme for each release, and the new album is devoted entirely to ideas relating to deep space and UFO's. For the first time I've been busy chucking out tracks I don't like so I've been a bit stricter, and because I'm set up at home if I have an idea then I just work on it.
The album is laced with 'Mushroom Theories' as I like to call them, with particular mention of the fact that Jesus himself is a mushroom. Where did these theories come from-
The 'theories' come from interviews with Australian mushroom enthusiasts on a documentary.
How has Interstellar Mushroom been received so far-
The EP has been well received from what I can tell. It's a bit early yet to get much of an idea from reviews, but so far so good....
You have recently re-signed to Black Hole Recordings, what if any stumbling blocks have you come across when finding a label that suits your music-
Finding the right label is very hard and I went with Black Hole because I know that Jeff who runs it will go with whatever music I want to put out - he respects the judgement of the person making the music which is rare. Most labels will want to change certain tracks, or artwork or whatever, and I just got sick of compromise. It is very difficult to find a label that will give you some latitude. Personally I'd rather be with a label like Black Hole, than a larger label that mucked with my ideas too much.
How have you seen your music evolve since the days of 'They come for the beats-'
Strangely, in some ways I've come back to what I was thinking of with my first release. I've rediscovered dub, and decided to make the next album something I'd really enjoy listening to, rather than trying to have a 'radio' track or a track that can be played by DJ's or whatever. It's easy to kind of get sucked in by the 'passive pressure' of people at labels, or just wanting to have those extra sales or radio play, and ultimately that's a trap. I think I've grown up a bit and can trust my own judgement a bit more now. When I did the first EP I had no pressure or expectations at all, so I just did what I liked.
You're making quite an impression on the overseas market, is it important for you to break into the overseas scene-
I seem to be getting great support from some areas overseas and it's gratifying to know people like what you're doing. On a purely pragmatic level you have to sell CDs overseas because the amount of sales you can achieve locally isn't that great. Also I guess it re affirms that it's not just a hobby! It makes it all worthwhile when you get an email as I did a while back from a guy who DJed a track from the first album at a rave in the snow in Switzerland - makes me think it must be an alright track!
You have a new album on the way, how is it coming along-
The new album is all but done, and stylistically I wanted to do one that was exactly what I'd want to listen to, so I'm very happy with it.
What if anything can you tell me about it-
The new album features some collaboration with people such as the Om Squad, Rip Van Hippy, Scanner, Winduptoys and I am also working on stuff with a former guitarist from Ozzy Osbourne's band. He's a great play Tags