Where can we find you right now and what are you up to?
Southwest Dorset, UK. I am literally in the process of editing drums that I tracked earlier today for a project I am doing with a friend of mine.
Tell us a bit about your influences.
Drums. Drums. Rhythm. Polyrhythm. Polymeters. Groove. Music was always a big part of family life growing up, my mum loved Elvis & my dad was a big skiffle fan, so every road trip we had there was always something playing in the car, my dad seemed particularly tuned into drums & rhythm so I guess I picked it up subconsciously, I spent hours listening to music & watching my dad tap his fingers along to it on the steering wheel. The 1st seminal moment I vividly remember was in early 1980 returning home from a Cub Scout meeting, walking into our living room with Top of the Pops on the TV. Adam & the Ants were performing ‘Dog Eat Dog’. I remember thinking “THAT’S music as well ?!?!!” AATA had 2 drummers so I guess my path was chosen from that point I cut my teeth in the late 80’s listening mostly to New York hardcore (Youth of Today, Gorilla Biscuits, Judge) then into the 90’s Emo scene (not the modern version of ‘emo-rock’ that came along 15 years later) I always subliminally gravitated towards ‘progressive’ music without realizing what that was, I knew what I liked that was all. This led me to listen to bands such as NomeansNo, TOOL, Rodan, Pixies, 1.6 Band, Hoover etc early on, Alex Rudinger, Tomas Haake, Aric Improta, Danny Carey, Vin Novara were all heavy influences
How did you start?
Late 70’s to mid 90’s I used to skate (skateboard). One day in ‘87 sat around at a skate session we decided to form a band, and I picked drums I immediately booked some drums lessons on Saturday mornings at Carlsboro. Six weeks later we had our 1st jam. It was terrible. I’d only had a few lessons, no-one else had but we had a self belief which lasted for 10 days I tried various bands with friends from goth, indie & shoegaze, mostly depressing & uninteresting I then hooked up with a local pair of brothers to form a Straight Edge Hardcore band which seemed to fit me quite well. Recorded two records, that lasted a few years, formed an emo band that I sang in, recorded some records, formed a post-hardcore band back on the drums & recorded an LP then diverted off into different projects
What obstacles does an emerging artist have to face in our time?
Saturation. Right swipe, or left swipe I’m never sure Any media today is throwaway thanks to the advent of the smartphone. Don’t like something? Swipe for you new thing, instant gratification I used to produce a zine & run a record distro, the ‘scene’ kept in touch through mail-order & mailing lists, we did the same as the kids do today, put on gigs, released records, ran distros, organize events, there was a network, things just took one week instead of 1 second Today it’s so much easier to self produce & it’s ten times easier for your music to be ignored. So many bands are relying on their ‘post’ to ‘go viral’. If a really good band doesn’t have a certain amount of followers then a promoter won’t even listen to them & they are dismissed It’s easier to get your music distributed to the ‘world’ but maybe more difficult for people to listen, unless they’re told to by a Spotify bot
What worked for you marketing-wise? What advice or tips would you give to new artists?
Dripfeed. People, the mobile phone swipe generation seem to have a tiny tiny attention window that you have to grab. Tease. Say ‘coming soon’. Ten-second bursts Spending two years recording an LP then releasing it all at once doesn’t seem to be the way today unless you’re already established & have loyal fans Twelve singles or to or three EP’s seem to be better than a twelve-song LP if you’re chasing numbers, purely from a sales perspective.
What are your goals? Where do you see yourself in five years?
I’m hoping we can complete a tour with my band Empire of One to promote our new EP ‘”This Music’s Not For You “ next year as we will also release a new record at the same time Personally I would like to be able to earn a living from session work, I have invested in a home recording setup & would love to be able to do more remote recordings, that is definitely the way forward.
Tell us about your latest or upcoming release.
Empire Of One “This Music’s Not For You”. Blurring the line between hardcore & metal. Self recorded, self-produced & released.
@empireofonemusic