First off, just want to thank you for participating in this edition of Infidel Interviews. Could you start off by giving a little information about yourselves to the audience? Whatever you feel comfortable with, but name, age, and where you live would be pretty standard? Also what instruments you play / role you have in the band would also be good.
Thank you so much for taking the time to check out our work. We also really appreciate this chance to talk to you about our music. We are a two piece studio band based in Toronto, Canada. Our first album is under way and should be released by the end of 2016. With just the two of us, writing and recording has been really productive. Hard to say what the live set up will be… can’t wait for it though.
How long have you guys been recording for together as a troupe? Did you all know each other from before, meet each other in your local scene, or did you use online methods to connect?
We met and started a band together ten-ish years ago named Junction Box. It was great for a few years and when it ended, the last thing we wanted was to go on line and audition for bands. We started making stuff up in the afternoon about a year ago and quickly realized the two of us have great writing chemistry.
What would you say are your biggest influences when it comes to art and music? Are there any bands that you would say struck you with the chord that inspired you to peruse your current path of musical aspirations?
I think it’s fair to say we have a passionate love for all music. We have favourites, but feel that our music isn’t driven solely by what we like to listen to. We try to be creative and hope our sound is original enough to be considered unique. The foundation of what we do is rooted in our influences but they certainly don’t drive our process.
What would you say would be you short term, and long term, goals for the band? Obviously you have many, but outline or describe some of the one's most important or crucial to you right now as a band?
We really love what we are doing and want to share our music with everyone. We want to get to a point where we feel our music is connecting with people. We will complete three more songs and decide which ones will make the cut for our first album. We love playing live and can’t wait to see how the songs will sound in a band context.
Since you are are a musical collective, I wanna ask, how do you all manage to get together musically, and then continue to stay together on the same page? Has it been a journey of compromise or do you find that you work together fluidly? Would you say there has been any major obstacles working together?
We are insanely lucky. That is really the only way we can put it. Anyone who has ever worked with a group of musicians certainly knows how fragile a situation that can be. We work together very fluidly with a completely open discussion at all times as to what we want to do and then let it to go and see what happens. It’s a situation we had always hoped to be in. No drama.
Would you say that your choice to pursue music has changed your life since you started? Would you say that creativity has evolved you spiritually, emotionally, or logically?
We equate the choice to pursue music with becoming devoutly religious. So if music is our religion, creativity through music has made the world a much more comfortable place.How bout giving one strange or interesting insight about each member of the band to our audience?
Alexander Scott (1920–1989) was the Scottish poet, playwright and scholar born in Aberdeen. He wrote poetry in both Scots and Scottish English and well as plays, literary reviews and critical studies of literature. He was latterly a tutor and reader of Scottish literature at the University of Glasgow, where he was instrumental in the struggle to create the first Department of Scottish Literature to exist in Scotland, established in the academic year 1971-72.
He is not in the band.
We are not named after him.
Have you had any particular moment(s) that you would like to share, that you would consider to be a crowning achievement in your musical career so far, or moments that you would say truly continue to inspire you to pursue your artistic path?
Our greatest achievement is that we are still passionate about making music. We work, make money, we drive cars… music is what we live for. Every song we write inspires us to work hard and get our music out there!
Are you musically self taught? Or have you had mentors along the way to help you develop?
We are a mixture of a little bit of everything. Some formal lessons but mostly years of spending time with other players and people who are really passionate about music.
Promotion can be one of the most difficult things in the music industry. Do you have an agent that helps book shows and manage your online presence, or have you decided to trek it out without and mantle the reigns of the social media apparatus yourself? Is it difficult engaging the online world consistently and originally, or do you find it easy?
We certainly have no formal representation and are really focused on having the songs behind us first. We have kept things to a few very manageable social media outlets, primarily Soundcloud. We want to build interest in our music and will include social media as a vehicle to do so. We are just starting out and we don’t want to push things too hard before finishing a record.
In an industry that is driven by sales, and consumerism, what are your thoughts on digital downloads (legal and illegal)? Do you feel that streaming and digital download stores aid the accessibility of music? How bout music piracy? It obviously hurts sales in some regards, but it also boosts the access and distribution of the release which could lead to potential fans who do come to shows, buy physical copies of music, and get merchandise? Do you feel there would be enough turn around in that sort of system or are you firmly against file sharing?
Full disclosure. All of our music is available for free download. If someone will spend their valuable time listening to us the debt is paid in full. If you ask us if we are against the giant blood sucking corporations whose only goal is to maximize shareholder profits by any means possible then no, we have no issue with industry paradigms.
When it comes to your live show, how would you describe yourself thematically and visually? Are you an energy and audience driven band in the live atmosphere? Or would you consider yourself to be more thematic or presentation oriented?
Tough question. Alexander Scott hasn’t done any shows yet. Our plan is to use the album to orchestrate a live performance and find great musicians who share our vision. We would like to think that we will be an energy and audience driven band.
If you could play any anywhere, with anyone, in the world, dead or alive, who and where would it be?
We are extremely happy working here in the modern context and making music in the way we are now. Productive partnerships are hard to find and we are making music that we both really love. There has never been a better opportunity to have your music heard, while working on your own terms. There is a lot of freedom in making music today.
Thank you so much for participating in this episode of Infidel Interview. Any parting words for your fans, or my audience?
Always govern yourself accordingly.
Oh yeah, and watch for the album!
We are Alexander Scott.