Twenty years after their debut album “Disconnect” released by the now defunct A Different Drum,…
Twenty years after their debut album “Disconnect”
released by the now defunct A Different Drum, Reagan Jones and Andrew Sega
unleashed their sixth album simply entitled “Six”. It also is the American’s
duo second full length album released by Dependent. Fans and other electro-pop
lovers had to wait for five years to welcome “Six”, which appears to be the
most accomplished work of the band today. “Six” has the magic to now make you
dance and then make you cry. It’s a mix between bombast and refinement with on
top of the production the captivating vocals of Reagan Jones. I got in touch
with both members to get more info about the new Iris opus.
Q: I noticed your new album “Six” has been released
twenty years after the debut full length “Disconnect”. How do you look back at
this debut work and how did you see Iris evolving throughout the years?
Reagan: Our evolution is maybe more about what it
hasn’t been. We don’t divert a great deal from our natural tendencies, so the
evolution has been glued more to the desire to improve what we do, without
heading in directions that don’t make sense for the band. Electronic music can
be very trendy, very seductive as trends change. In a way, it makes me want to
write folks songs or something where there’s a consistent expectation. I’ve
gotten more confident in some ways, while at the same time, maybe more
provincial and closed off as a writer. Chasing trends doesn’t work well for us,
whereas doing what’s natural, that seems the right course. Andrew is always
able to bring newer elements and production values to each album, so he gives
me coverage in that way, but in the end we have this thing we do and just try
to make it better with each album..
Q: You’re not the kind of formation releasing a new
album at regular basis so I can imagine you need these breaks to focus on other
things –and maybe not necessary related to music. Tell us a bit more about
these ‘breaks’ and how do you finally start back writing new music?
Reagan: Up to now, the breaks haven’t been
orchestrated for time away, so much as they’ve been a natural component to the
process. Oftentimes I’d start writing as soon as a new album came out. That was
sometimes the most enjoyable, because you can get back to the creative process,
which is always my favorite part of the process; more so than live shows for
example.
In retrospect, had I forcibly removed myself from
writing each time, maybe a year, I probably would have completed new songs a
lot quicker, since you get that inspiration refresh. It’s amazing how much
easier and inspired things are after a break, but I was addicted to the
creative process and would keep on writing. By the time I started sending ideas
to Andrew, and certainly by the time he was sending ideas back, I would begin
to get fatigued. So we’d end up with multiple parts of tracks which would go
unfinished for a while. We’d end up with all these pieces of ‘what could be’
tracks, then we’d have to find the discipline to really get after it and finish
them into full songs for an album. Strategically, not the best way to go about
it, but I usually work impulsively, according to my emotions, and this is
partly to blame for the duration.
Q: “Six” is the sixth full length album in the band’s
history. Didn’t you feel inspired to find another title or has this “Six” a
particular meaning?
Andrew: Well, it needed to be one word (to keep with
the Iris album naming theme lol). And we tossed around a number of other ideas,
but we kept coming back to “Six” for some reason –it wasn’t laziness, it just
felt right.
Q: What I like in your sound and especially since the
previous album “Radiant”, is a kind of proper sound-DNA! I don’t want to
compare your sound to Mesh, but just as your label mates it’s possible to
immediately recognize the Iris-sound formula. So what makes this sound that
‘particular’ and especially different from other electro-pop bands?
Andrew: I think our sound is a bit unusual in that we
focus more on the ambience, orchestrations, and layering than trying to make
the hardest beats or best synth basslines. I think it’s good to have a
signature sound, even if you didn’t strictly intend it. We didn’t have a master
plan going in, Iris is instead the sum of our personal influences, and the result
of things that unconsciously happen at the studio. Part of it is my approach to
chords and harmonies, but that’s a long answer for another interview. I also
think a big piece is Reagan’s unmistakable vocals –if you were to listen to
just the instrumentals, I’m not sure the signature sound would entirely be
there.
Q: “Six” is probably my favorite Iris-album, but it
for sure is the album reflecting the highest level of maturity and writing
skills. Tell us a bit more the writing and items such as –sound creation,
-arrangements and the production of the vocals?
Andrew: I worked on the record at first in my old
apartment in NYC, and then later I bought a house and put a brand new studio
downstairs. I think this process allowed me to reflect on the sound a bit and
try to get the mixes as tight as I possibly could. We don’t work with outside
producers, so everything on the album comes directly from us, for better or
worse. Reagan submits demos, and I try to give them new life with production
while keeping the spirit of the original.
From a technology perspective, everything is done
digitally except guitars and vocals, and I use a lot of plugins from Native
Instruments, Arturia, and SoundToys. I also sprinkle guitars in where
appropriate, sometimes they’re a bass thickener, other times a more melodic
element.
Q: “Six” is available in different formats and edits.
Do you as artists have a favorite format and what’s your perception of the
music business considering items such as image, social media, streaming?
Andrew: The music business is still alive, somehow. We
have done really well recently with high-end limited editions, such as vinyl,
art books, and similar. Fans want to contribute beyond just purchasing an album
download or CD, and so you need to give them the opportunity to express their
support financially. We’ve never been a very image-focused band, and so
perhaps that makes us the odd ones out in a darker scene where everyone is so
meticulous about their visual presentation. Social media is important, although
what I like most about it is hearing directly from fans –it creates a community
of direct feedback that didn’t exist 10-15 years ago. We’ve met quite a few
people through the band that have become true friends, and that is priceless.
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