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31 aug 2008, 09:00
So... um... WHY?
Yeah good question...
BIRCHVILLE CAT MOTEL started recording just over 10 years ago in the hope of creating a music that broke a few barriers... even if only 'personal' barriers... and even if only a few people got to hear it. As it turned out I broke quite a bit of stuff and a lot of people got to hear it.
I made a lot of records. As a pre-schooler playing pots and pans in my grandparents lounge I remember thinking thats what I really wanted to do with my life... to make records. I feel like the whole thing was a gigantic success... and by the word 'success' I mean I personally feel that I achieved a great deal more than i ever set out to do. I made music that I was proud of, meet people who I came to love, and as a bonus a bunch of people bought my records and gave me the money to see the world... thats a big deal when you live as far away as I do.
Well. I could be happy with that. I could keep doing this forever (and I kinda hoped I would). That would be nice. OR I could put myself in a creatively vulnerable position and challenge myself in the hope that my best records and shows are still ahead of me.
But in order to do this I feel like the whole beast needs to change. Does the world need ANOTHER bcm record? No. I dont think it does. And if i made one it now runs the risk of being lost in the swamp of my own recorded output. So it is time to lay down the comforts and blessings of the name BIRCHVILLE CAT MOTEL.
All hail OUR LOVE WILL DESTROY THE WORLD! I have made records before... I have no desire to simply make more. I want the records I make to be worth something to any audience that seeks them out. Here are some things Ive been thinking...
1) DEATH TO DIGITAL.
C'mon... wake up! MP3s SUCK and you know it! Digital downloads as a music medium mean nothing to me or anybody I know. They are a waste of music. They lack context, artwork, object-worship... they are merely another file in your over-crowded, 'cant remember if I listened to that' iTunes folder. I say BULLSHIT. CDs are OK but its getting pretty depressing to find that my albums are being uploaded the day after release and people seem to have adopted the attitude they should TAKE without giving BACK simply because they can.
I feel sorry for these people who are so willing to shortchange themselves of the full tactile experience of the music. Music is about so much MORE than music. The cover is important. So is the smell. And the feel. The mythology. The personal connection. Im sorry... you just cant fall in love with a file like I fell in love with records as a teenager. I dont care what you say, you cant. Please... throw your headphones away.
All Our Love Will Destroy The World releases will be analog. Vinyl and cassette (or anything else you can think up!) only. Im not naive enough to think this will stop people downloading my music (and if you really want to that much then thats cool) but I feel like its a step toward creating more rewarding musical experience for those who would seek it out.
Obviously this seems like a pretty stupid rule. Ever tried to do a month long tour with a backpack full of vinyl? It no pretty sight. Perhaps some kind of digital presence is nessesary. Should this be the case I will release those CDs myself so that as many of the rewards of that effort will come back to me as possible.
2) NARRATIVE STRUCTURES IN NOISE.
Im becoming increasing frustrated with the limited possibilities of narrative within my sound. I have created some beautiful music that really 'goes somewhere' but Im beginning to wonder why going somewhere is a good thing. I live in the Hutt Valley... I can assure you, Im going nowhere. Haha. I've become more interested in composing sound ACROSS the time line rather than ALONG it. Each moment is deeper. You get the chance to immerse yourself in a SINGULAR musical experience that only makes significant changes as you listen deeper. in one sense this makes the music 'dronier' or 'less interesting', on the other hand the music has become denser and 'noisier' as each moment contains the full story rather than just a sentence. Im finding it more interesting.
3) MULTIPLE FIDELITIES
I have no real interest in 'lo-fi' or 'hi-fi' distinctions but I do like the combinations and possible permutations of a recorded sound environment provided by mixing up fidelities. Shiny electronic hi-end co-existing with stretched, muddy dictaphone tape recordings... seems to float my boat. As such, TAPES have become an important means of generating the kind of sounds I want to hear... and i mean the sound of the actually recording medium itself rather than the instrument it contains. This opens some interesting avenues for collaboration and i would very much like to use the recorded sound of other performers on a much more regular basis.
4) METAL
Just fucking stop with the metalshit already. No, you cant hear Sunn O))) in my sound... thats just lazy. Why do you think there exists a band called BLACK BONED ANGEL? Although there are some notable exceptions ('Sublime Prince of The Royal Secret', 'Tonal Fire Antichrist'... etc) the metal influence was about ENERGY not emulating a generic guitar tone. To be embarrassingly honest you are closer to the truth if you say you can hear Judas Priest in the sound. I LOVE METAL but Im not a metal band. Im not doom. Just fucking stop OK?
5) PERSONAL CHANGES
I guess this last year has been pretty tough on me. Without going into great detail on the internet of all places, my family has taken on a different shape and structure this year and to say 'my heart is broken' doesnt really even come close to what I carry around with me everyday. I need change. I need to change the way I work and how much I work, I need to change my attitude towards playing music, money, touring, running a label... its time for some honesty. Birchville Cat Motel just had to go.
So what do you think?
I feel good about this change. Its positive and healthy for me personally and for the music. I haven't sold out my ideas. The music hasn't gone all soft like many bands tend to do when they've been around for a while... if anything its gotten more brutal. I just want to make beautiful things and i think the most beautiful things are still unmade and they need a new attitude to make them.
CAMPBELL
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