Friday, May 13, 2011

Interview: Solar Bears




Irish pioneers John Kowalski and Rian Trench have a revolutionist agenda in their Solar Bears project: Take the complexities of human emotion and drama, and translate them into a subtler medium; change the purpose and meaning of electronic music into something that isn't removed from the human experience; and draw us closer to a concept of electronic music that focuses on artistic value rather than just beats. Their debut album She Was Coloured In is the result of this agenda, and it reflects an intellectual competency the likes of which we  unfortunately are not regularly exposed to within the wider genre. 

We took the liberty of asking a few questions to delve deeper into the collective mind of the duo:

IMT: You guys have spoken about the director Tarkovsky in other interviews, and we were wondering about the relationship of your music to film. What is it about Tarkovsky that you like? Do you think the visual influences the sonic for your music, and do you mean for your production to seem cinematic?

SB: He was a visionary. Metaphysics is something that fascinates me greatly. His imagery is still unparalleled to this day. All his films are timeless. They are transformative in that they shape your opinions, viewpoints and dreams.

IMT: You’re cited having Aphex Twin as a relevant figure for you guys personally. Has James’ music influenced your music in any way? Is there any tradition you’d like to be seen as coming out of?

SB: I am against tradition for the most part, same goes for convention. We try to go against type as much as possible. Drukqs by Aphex is one of our favourite records. It has a freeform approach that is really appealing to us because of its scope.

IMT: You’ve mentioned you’re interested in philosophy—who are you thinking of, what philosophers do you love? You guys seem to have an almost Hegelian interest in dialectics, creating the synthesis through the album itself, which is always juxtaposing one musical palate against an entirely different one…

SB: Deepak Chopra, Alan Watts, Descartes, Nietzsche, Sartre and Socrates. Contrast is very important from digital and analogue to synthesis and acoustics. We listen to music from all decades and ages. 

IMT: Is cross-genre music important to you—some of the songs (especially those with guitar) seem to have been composed on a Desmoiselles D’Avignon logic, all styles all together at once?

SB: How we compose is dependent on mood and spontaniety. Allowing things to happen and not ruling anything out lends itself to a sprawling record. Some of my favourite albums have the same current/spirit like Screamadelica and Contino Sessions. 

IMT: It seems, artistically, that the focus on spontaneity in your work is really similar, in some ways, to Dada and Surrealist principals—how does the dictates of the unconscious influence your work?

SB: An artist is a channel. Bob Moog described it well when he explained he is simply open to inspiration, it is in the ether/atmosphere. Having no style is just as effective as having a defined sound.

IMT: What artist deserves buzz? Who you think we should feature?

SB: Right now I am really impressed with two producers in particular. Young Montana? is one and Moths is another. They are both quite young but they are creating waves already.

IMT: Is there anything about Ireland, or the music scene in Ireland, that you feel contributes significantly to the UK music scene at-large? What are your feelings about the traditions that are being started here in the States within the scope of electronic music?

SB: The music scene in Ireland is stronger than ever. There are many up and coming acts that are getting attention abroard. Sites and publications are paying more attention to what is happening here more and more. I was speaking to Rian about this yesterday. We felt that the American electronic scene has almost overtaken the European one.  

IMT: Lone produced a fantastic remix of your ‘Twin Stars,’ one of our personal favorites of the remixes of your tracks, as well as Keep Shelly in Athen’s remix of ‘Cubs”. Will we see any future collaborations with either of these artists? Do you have any upcoming remixes we should know about?

SB: There should be a new remix online soon but I am not at liberty to say who is behind it at the moment. Stay tuned.

Below is the aforementioned remix, followed by Lone's remix of "Twin Stars," off Solar Bears' Inner Sunshine EP:

Dream Valley (Young Montana? Rework) by Solar Bears

Solar Bears - Twin Stars (Lone Remix) by subraw
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