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Along the way, we have grown tired of the word ômelancholyö.
Admittedly, a good amount of the songs that Carla and I have been
involved in over the years, can wear that word like a suit that fits.
But that doesnÆt change the fact, that to us, the word seems a bit
exhausted. I think that those that have focused on it as the main
characteristic of our music have missed many of the other things that
are going on. Of course it is probably our damn fault. We performed
and wrote the songs, butà
This new album ôFly High Brave Dreamersö makes attempts to avoid the
above-mentioned word. Sure it sticks its toes into some murky, dark
waters, but in one way or another I believe all of the songs are about
hope. Not some Hollywood, ôin the end everything is beautiful ô style
of hope, but more the ôI did my best today, and I havenÆt stopped
dreamingö style of hope. You turn away from the explosion, you wipe
your brow, you pickup the pieces of what remains, and you start
building again. That might not sound like hope to you, but I think if
we are honest, it is the only real hope that exists.
We made this album primarily in August of 2006. I had written 16 songs
and Carla chose the 10 that she thought held together best. She went
for the most ôupliftingö ones. The song that became the title track of
the album had a normal construction, with a verse and chorus, and she
wisely suggested that we cut away the verse and merely repeat the
chorus over and over. It made it into a mantra that brought the
central theme of the album together.
The recording sessions were divided into two halves. We began the
album in my small studio in Ljubljana, building the tracks up from
nostalgic beats and stray sounds and simple acoustic guitar and
electric piano motifs. We were going for something intimate, and even
claustrophobic, where the sounds and the words combined to make short
dreams that floated inside the ear.
The other half of the recordings were done almost entirely live and
completely unrehearsed. We assembled a sympathetic group of musicians
and beforehand gave them no demo recordings or hints about what the
songs would sound like. We taught them the songs on the spot, told
everyone that they had to ôplay for keepsö (you could not ôfixö your
mistakes), and proceeded to record the songs in a couple of takes.
Throughout the session I remember looking at everyone playing together
(we were all in the same room, except for the drummer who we could see
through a large window) and thinking, ôwhat we are playing right now
IS the record.ö It was a deep exciting feeling .In this age of cut and
paste and performance manipulation it is also a very rare feeling.
The band for these five ôliveö songs was: Al Deloner (Midnight Choir)
on piano and harmonica, Jason Victor (Steve Wynn, Willard Grant
Conspiracy) on electric guitar, and the rhythm section that played on
my ôBlack Fieldö album, Sergei Randzelovic (drums) and Jani Hace
(bass).
And why is the eleventh song a Young Marble Giants cover? When The
Walkabouts started one of the bands that bonded us together, was the
Young Marble Giants (others: the Go-betweens and Love). All four of us
played their one and only album, Colossal Youth, incessantly.
AllisonÆs whispered voice and the minimalist arrangements were
completely unique at the time. They forged a music so uncompromisingly
simple and reactive (70Æs beatbox, voice, spare bass and guitar
figures) one could call somehow call it --in spite of its quietness -
-punk rock.
The lessons we took from YMG showed up in many Walkabouts songs over
the years, and on the Chris & Carla ôSwinger 500ö album the 70Æs drum
machine we used on the title track was a clear and conscious homage to
the band. We have continued this homage on ôFly High Brave Dreamersö
by using an old East German drum machine on the album opener ôAt The
TwilightÆs last Gleamingö and of course by covering their wonderful
song ôSalad Days.ö
ôSalad Daysö was the first song that we recorded with the crew we
assembled in Ljubljana. I showed the band the chords (there are three)
and played a few bars to set the rhythm, and then we quickly started
recording it. I signaled the ending of the song, and after the last
piano note decayed, the drummer asked if that was the full arrangement
.I said that that it was. We listened back to what we had done, and we
all agreed that another take of the song would be a waste of time. It
was a very Young Marble Giants decision. Keep things direct. Simplify
the process. If it feels right as it is, add nothing else.
Simplicity is a damn hard thing to aspire to. The human impulse is to
complicate everything: our personal lives, our creative endeavors, and
our vain attempts at success, whatever. It is a precious moment when
you do the job right, and you just walk onà
FLY HIGH BRAVE DREAMERS
- Chris Eckman, November 2006 Ljubljana
http://www.flyhighbravedreamers.net
SDcans: Front/Back/CD
Tracks:
01. At The Twilight's Last Gleaming
02. Things We Should Have Known
03. Ice Station Zebra
04. Taking Leave Of Our Senses
05. Long Slow River
06. Love Sleeps Late
07. Rising Backwards
08. Raise Them Hands
09. Whatever It Takes
10. Fly High Brave Dreamers
11. Salad Days
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1way - AMOK - BOS - cnmc - FuFFENS - FWYH - HiT2000 - iPC - JUST
MGC - pyt - radial - RNS - RTB - ss - UBE - UKi - ViC
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