"The New Delight of the Experimental Folk"


Interview with Andrew Dost

By Sergio Vilar

I would like them to talk each other a little about the band. Please, count us about your beginnings and of your musical evolution...
Well, we started about 6 years ago. Different members of the group had been in hardcore and punk bands, and they decided that they were done and wanted to try something different, something that would interest them more than those styles of music. So they met and talked things through and became Anathallo. We've had some different members since then, I joined about 4 years ago, our guitar player Danny Bracken joined maybe 2 or 3 years ago, and we now have a new drummer and female vocalist.

Who are the current members of the band?
Matt Joynt:Vocals, Guitar, Percussion, Piano; Andrew Dost: Piano, Flugelhorn, Auxiliary Percussion, Vocals; Bret Wallin: Trombone, Percussion, Vocals; Danny Bracken: Guitar, Percussion, Vocals; Seth Walker: Bass, Vocals;
Jeremiah Johnson: Drums, Vocals and Erica Froman: Vocals, Percussion, Clarinet.

Exactly, how would you describe your musical proposal? What artistic concepts do you look for to transmit through your music?
I think more than anything else, we want to provide interesting, thoughtful pieces of music. The specific transmissions and emotional content vary from song to song, but I think more than anything else, our ultimate goal is to make art that people have to think about, and that is different from what they've heard before. Ideally musicians and composers are inspiring each other and helping each other to grow, and we want to be a part of that process.

The emotions and the feelings play a fundamental part in the music that you interpret, truth?
This is very true. Emotion and feeling are really important to our music. And in all music, I'd guess. The compelling part about music is that you can feel what the artist felt when he wrote it. My favorite music makes me feel like I'd assume the writer felt, like “Only in Dreams” by Weezer or “I Just Wasn't Made for These Times” by The Beach Boys.

Personally I think that “Floating World” is a wonderful disc. Why did you choose that title for the album? What did you want to express with that name?
Thank you so much!  We chose that title because of its association with the folk tale we used for the album. The Floating World is a district in Japan that's been the source of a lot of amazing artwork, and the concept of that wellspring of creativity was really interesting to us.

Could you give us a brief impression about the songs that integrate it? How were you inspired to write them?
We were inspired by a number of things, but mostly the folk tale that the album is based around. We wanted to have a sort of common theme for the whole album to make it into a single unit as opposed to a collection of songs. So melodies resurface, lyrical themes are revisited, etc. Inspiration to write happens in a number of ways.
One of the parts I wrote was inspired by snow falling outside my window in Michigan. It could be a natural phenomenon that inspires us, or another work of art, it really depends on how things move us.

Was something that got me a lot the attention the lyrics...  What type of  situations did they inspire them?
I can't speak for Matt, as he wrote the lyrics, but I think he's inspired a lot by literature and his observations on life.

Which is it, then, the function of the lyrics?
The lyrics in our songs, in my opinion, almost work as canvases on which the listener can interpret them as they will. Matt definitely puts a lot of thought and meaning into them, but as artists we can only go so far until we're just telling people what something is. We want them to interpret and find their own meaning in things, because that happens with art naturally.

How do you compose the songs? Could you be something more envelope the process creative intern of the band?
We all write together. People bring in ideas and then we discuss and rebuild and critique until we have something we're all happy with.
It's a long process but so far it's been an enjoyable one.

That way influences the relationship with the public in your music?
So far, the public has been very receptive to our music.  We've made many new fans and friends along the way so far.  It's always nice to see people we've talked to 3 or 4 times previously. People have been remarkably kind to us.

Does it interest them to experience with new forms and sounds?
Absolutely. It's been so nice to have people grasping onto the weirder things that we do. Listeners are very open-minded, and the modern music industry doesn't give them nearly enough credit.

After "Floating World", which are your plans? Are you already working the new music for the next study album?
We're already writing for the new album, which we'll be recording by the middle of 2007.

Do other projects exist in those that are involved?
Yes. I wrote a musical and I'm working on more, you can hear that at www.myspace.com/andrewpauldost. Other people in the band write, do visual art, etc. We all have other things that we love to do besides Anathallo.

A last question. What activities outside of the music you do develop each one of you?
I love to be outside. I love kayaking, biking, hiking, really anything outdoors. I also like to sew and I watch a lot of movies.
Among the rest of the band, some people like to draw, some play video games or read more often than others, some of us are into Pilates and Yoga, some write, etc.

Well Andrew, it was really a pleasure to dialogue with you. Do you want to add something?
Thank you Sergio,  so much for your questions!
 

            


www.anathallo.com
 

Nucleus interview: 27/11/06