voices #52
◦ “voices” is the place where we ask, artists reply and you read.
here we got:
thëm
answering some questions. We have already observed his experimental / ambient / post-rock work here.
[1. IDEA]
■ The A. O.: The track from “El Dolor La Norma” that we prefer is “S’Agabbadòra (Mazzolu)”. Can you tell us how it came to light?
► thëm: The concept of ‘El Dolor La Norma’ arose after suffering from a serious and rare illness, which fortunately is now in the past. It left me with several bad and somewhat traumatic experiences on a personal level. After a while, they were still very present in my daily life, dark and sad memories. I thought it might be therapeutic/healing to use these feelings to do something beautiful and enriching for myself. And then I expanded the concept of the album to explain stories that, at first glance, seem cruel but turn out to be healing or kind. While searching for information about this concept in other cultures, I came across S’Agabbadòra, a woman who was responsible for providing a quick death to terminally ill patients so that they would not suffer. I thought she was a clear example of the concept of the album, as she may seem like a macabre, cruel character, but she was actually a person who was called upon by the relatives of the terminally ill to end their suffering. Meanwhile, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, a figure associated with kindness, had her “hospitals of suffering”/’houses of death’, where, through the privacy of medicine and the pain suffered by the sick until their agonising death, she promised them paradise (the more you suffer, the greater the reward). Agabbadòra bad and Mother Teresa good… isn’t that curious?
The song attempts to set to music the scene of how I imagine it would be before, during and after S’Agabbadòra’s work with a patient.
[2. CREATION]
■ The A. O.: How do you usually approach composition? Do you start with a concept, a sound, a state of mind or what else? How do you generally proceed from the initial seed to the complete work?
► thëm: Normally, when I start composing, my mood dictates what I write, what I feel at that moment. I’m a lively and happy person, but what comes out when I make music is dark, nostalgic, sad and beautiful at the same time… in a natural way, the sounds I look for and like fit in with those feelings. When I write songs, what I do is try to explain a story or an image with those sounds, something like making a soundtrack for the scene I have in my head.
[3. FEEDBACK]
■ The A. O.: What do you hope listeners feel or experience when engaging with your music?
► thëm: Really, the only thing I hope is that while you’re listening to something I’ve done, you forget about all the crap you’ve got going on and just relax. Have a good time… that’s all.
[4. IDENTITY]
■ The A. O.: In a world saturated with digital music content, how do you try to keep your sound distinct and personally meaningful?
► thëm: There is a lot of music on offer and I think that’s great. Anyone with a computer can do amazing things and that’s fantastic. Given that huge range, it’s very difficult to reach people, especially with our music, which, in a way, demands time from the listener (which is very scarce in our society). All I can do is be honest with myself and my music and enjoy making it… and if it happens to reach people and they like it, then that’s incredible!
[5. INFLUENCES]
■ The A. O.: Mention 3 albums that you consider relevant to your musical path and why.
► thëm: This is a very difficult question… I can think of 100 essential albums :D, but I’ll try to be as honest as possible.
○ Diabologum – #3: At the Benicasim festival in 1997, my friend Raül and I went to a stage to see this French band. I had never heard them before, but Raül had heard of them. Well, I spent the whole concert with my mouth open… I was really impressed. They played the song ‘La mama et la putain’ and my mind was blown. When the concert ended, we went to the record market to buy the album they were presenting. At that point, I couldn’t wait for the festival to end so I could listen to the album. To this day, this album is a timeless work of art. It made me obsessed with samplers.
○ Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Slow Riot for New Zerø Kanada: This album contains the song that still moves me after listening to it hundreds of times (I’m not exaggerating). You could say that BBFF3 is ‘my song’ and GY!BE is ‘my band’. There’s nothing about these people that I don’t like… I think everything they do is brilliant.
○ The Haxan Cloak – Excavation: I discovered this beast at the Sonar festival (I don’t remember the year). Without knowing him, I found myself at his concert and I was in awe the whole time, connecting very strongly with his work. I closed my eyes and began to enjoy the music like I had never done before… it was strange and revealing. Afterwards, I looked for his music and fell in love with this album.
Then there are many bands that are pillars for me: Sonic Youth, My Bloody Valentine, Sunn O))), Bauhaus, Napalm Death… but if you’ll allow me, I’d like to do justice and mention another group. It’s not an album, it’s a concert. When I was 13 or 14, a concert was organised in my town (Premià de Mar) featuring bands from the town and surrounding areas. That’s where I saw God’s Phone, a band that changed my life. I liked music as a listener (at that time I was really into dark music, trash, grindcore…) but when I saw them live, something clicked in my head and I wanted to enjoy myself on stage like them, I wanted to make music. I bought a guitar, learned to play it (Raül, the guitarist from God’s Phone, gave me my first lesson) and from that moment on, music has been a fundamental part of my life.
[6. REGARDS]
■ The A. O.: Leave us with a quote you love.
► thëm: To conclude, I would like to thank you for the work you do at The Abstract Observer. I have discovered so many amazing artists and bands. I hope you enjoyed the interview, and I apologise if my answers were a bit long (I had to make the most of it… since it’s the first time I’ve ever been interviewed 😀 ). Here’s a phrase I like: “I’m not saying it, it’s just the way it is.”.