Nacht Zine is a local Melbourne print zine.
1) Briefly what is the crystalline effect?
Peter Crane: Basically it's a musical project involving myself making all the music and working with another musician, Elenor Rayner, doing all the vocals. The music mixes elements of trip hop and lo-fi with sweeping electro synth sounds, all coming from a darkwave/EBM influence though. We're signed to Poland's Black Flames Records, with our debut album coming out this year.
2) Tell us about your upcoming album.
Pete: Well, it's our debut album and it's called "Glass". It will be available as a double-album with remixes on the 2nd disc. Elenor and I have been working on the songs for this album since late 2002 and finished writing for the album early 2004. Since then we've been finishing off the album, getting it mastered and getting the artwork done. The artwork for the album is being done by a guy in Leipzig who goes by the name of userdx, he's done artwork for heaps of the top-name EBM bands like Assemblage 23, Haujobb, Hocico, Icon Of Coil, a lot of the Out Of Line artists, etc. We were really excited when we got this guy onboard to do our album cover and the drafts look gorgeous!
About 12 months ago, when we were still writing the album, we sent out some demos and were lucky enough to be offered a contract by Black Flames Records. So the album will be available through them and distributed internationally. It should be out by October 2004.
3) Why did you decide on having a CD of remixes on your debut?
Pete: It's very rare for bands who are making their debut to release a double-album, in fact most of the time it's impossible to justify it from the label's point of view. So when our label suggested that our debut album be available as a double-CD I jumped at it. It gave us the opportunity to get our friends and local artists to do remixes for us, as well as having some established European artists contributing some remixes.
Also, it's strange...When you make an album you get so sick of it! While creating this album I ate, slept and breathed The Crystalline Effect, you know. I'd go out to clubs and listen to the music and think "hmm, I could use elements of this in The Crystalline Effect". But it's great to listen to remixes of your work. To hear someone else's interpretation of our songs lets me listen more objectively and appreciate it all over again!
And there's been some particularly breathtaking remixes of us that are going on this album. Some really beautiful, emotive work. So it was good to hear that our music seems to have inspired the remix artists to create such gorgeous remixes for us!
We've got 12 remixes going on the release, by artists like Ivory Frequency, Implant, Stark, Tankt, Skoyz and Angel Theory, among others.
4) What attracted you to Black Flames Records?
Pete: Black Flames Records are great. They're signing up some really good, well-known bands to their roster. Like Croc Shop, Fektion Fekler, Skoyz, HIV+, More Machine Than Man, lots of bands that have come from the world's biggest industrial/darkwave record labels (like Metropolis, Trisol, Invisible, etc) are now on Black Flames Records. They also have the resources to promote our music much better than we would be able to ourselves. They're getting professional firms like Hardbeat Propaganda to promote us to the German and European DJ pool.
The idea of having our stuff played in clubs overseas is incredibly exciting!
5) Have there been any seminal influences on you personally and the crystalline effect musically?
Pete: My influence would have been just my lifestyle while making the album. My daily routine would just involve a lot of time with my studio. I was just trying to make good, non-pretentious music, and this is what came out. If I got stumped for ideas I'd go out to some clubs and take some ideas from what I'd hear. Which is why I really appreciate any club that dares not to play nothing but club hits, I like to hear new stuff when I go to clubs!
So that was my personal influence. Musically, I've been into stuff like Portishead, Jeff Beck's later stuff, and some more underground EBM/electro bands like Backlash, Die Form, Suicide Commando, Oneiroid Psychosis, Icon Of Coil, that sort of thing.
6) How did you know elenor was the "one" for the Crystalline effect?
Pete: Well Elenor has been there from the start of this project, when I make music that doesn't involve Elenor I don't call it "The Crystalline Effect". Elenor has done lots of projects in the past and I was aware of her projects before we made contact, so I was really into the idea of making some songs together when we did meet.
So she did the vocals to our first ever song, "Gabriel", out of an instrumental demo I sent to her, and we were both really chuffed with the result and decided to make an album together and turn this into a full-on project.
7) Do you find it limiting or liberating being the sole musical influence on the band?
Pete: That's true only in that I make all the music for this project (with some exceptions). But I really couldn't imagine working with anyone else on making music for this band, especially in that this is my main project at the moment. I think I'm just selfish, musically! I do like collaborating musically with others though, it can make for some great moments when you share a creative moment with someone, but I would find it limiting to always be working with another.
8) On a more technical level can you tell us about the software and hardware you utilise?
Pete: Ah, I love these techy kinds of questions! All the music is recorded and arranged on a PC running Cubase SX. I spend a lot of time in front of Cubase. I've been using it for many years, so I'm at the point where I'm not learning the software anymore and don't have to think about anything technical, I can just get totally creative. I also use Reason 2, hooked up to Cubase via ReWire. As for hardware, I've got a microKORG synth and some other, older synths, and 2 Fender strats.
9) In an age where the internet allows the instantaneous transmission of information including music and the mp3 has gained such prominance why do you think its still important to play live?
Pete: Oh man...Playing live is one of the things I live for! And I get a lot out of seeing other bands live.
It is true that it has become a very club/DJ-oriented scene though, I hear of some people who purposefully stay away from seeing live bands, and just want to go out to hear DJs because they say live bands demand too much attention. I think they're commonly regarded as piking wankers though! <
And if someone thinks staying at home with a pair of headphones on and Soulseek running hot is a better night out than seeing a band, they probably need to up their Zoloft!
10) How can people keep up to date on upcoming gigs and band info (blatant website plug!!!!)
Pete: www.thecrystallineeffect.com should have all the info anyone could want on us! |
|