1) Who are you, who is in the band, who does what in the studio and on stage?
I’m John, it’s just me on stage and normally me and a mix engineer when in the studio.
2) How would you describe what you do – in a nutshell – to someone who’s never seen you before?
Someone once told me I was making ‘music for hangovers’. I quite liked the sound of that. It sounds like a possible, bad title for a Brian Eno album. That doesn’t really answer the question though.
3) How long have you been writing and performing in this way?
I have been writing and performing solo for a couple years of so.
4) How exactly do you work / write / record?
I go through little phases of writing/producing music using similar sounds/techniques. Once I get bored of that I get some new equipment or find ways of making new sounds. It’s normally always the initial sounds that set the overall mood, or tone, for a track. I also take notes on my phone of conversations I hear, things I read for lyric ideas. I like the idea of taking something from someone else and putting it to music, putting it out of context. I enjoy stuff that is out of context, together.
5) How do you feel your studio/recording style informs the way you perform your music live (or vice versa)? Does it make it easier or harder, better etc…?
I don’t really play any of the songs I’ve released live. I think it’s because I never recorded them with playing live in mind. The songs I play live I wrote for playing live. I see playing live and recording as two separate things so I just do what I feel is right for one or the other. That’s the freedom of making music for me. It’s not an approach that’s popular with managers and the like.
6) What’s been happening lately and what’s new with you?
I’m releasing a bunch of remixes of tracks from my latest EP, Nightwalking. I’ve also got a new track of mine, and a remix for FOUND, coming out on a Neu Reekie! Compilation called #UntitledTwo which comes out on May 14th.
8) If you’ve played Limbo before, what did you like/rate about the experience? If you’ve not played Limbo before, what have you heard about it?
I played some synth with FOUND earlier in the year. The sound on stage was great, which is a rare thing as we have been performing as a noisy 6-piece lately. The crowd seemed really behind it too, which was super.
9) What’s next, coming up after this gig, for you and what are you generally looking forward to right now…?
Right now I’m preparing for a show I have in Stockholm, where I’m doing a sound piece with Scottish artist, Tam Hare. The venue, Fylkingen, has had some pretty legendary avant-garde performers over the years so it’ll test my mettle. The show is at the end of May so once that is done I’ll start working on a new record.
