Stereoboard Talk To The Calm Blue Sea About The Band's Journey So Far (Interview)
Thursday, 28 July 2011
Written by Patrick Gormley
Following on from their highly successful return to the stage at this years SXSW festival and the re-release of their majestic debut record, The Calm Blue Sea are slowly beginning to establish themselves as a band on the move. After a self imposed hiatus of almost two years, the band wowed both fans and critics alike with their stunning performance on home turf in Austin, Texas. We recently got a chance to speak to guitarist and sometime vocalist Chris Patin about the bands interesting journey so far.
Can you tell us a little bit about how the band came together?
Chris Patin: There was a house in South Austin where several bands rehearsed a few years ago. Some of us from different bands started hanging around that house just making noise and playing loud. We decided to make a band out of it sometime in 2007. We filled out the lineup using old friends and Craigslist.
What music/bands influenced you to begin playing music?
CP: Starting out Pink Floyd, Will Johnson, and some of the instrumental rock bands were influential while we were trying to figure out who we were.
How does the writing process happen? Has this changed at all from when the band started out?
CP: Someone brings in a basic melody or chord progression then we all just play around on it and contribute thoughts and parts until we have a song. It usually takes a while for us to complete a song. The process has evolved a little over time as we've had different members in the band but in the end the most important part of that process is intact, which is all of us contributing and building songs together.
You have decided to reissue the debut album, what are the reasons behind this?
CP: The first time around we released it ourselves after only playing a handful of shows. No one had any idea who we were or what to make of it so that limited the album's reach and it always felt like we'd love to give this record a proper release at some point down the road. We came back together to be active again earlier this year, quickly developed a relationship with our new label, Modern Outsider, and it seemed like the right time to put it out again. Plus we really wanted to release it on vinyl.
Are you guys working on new material?
CP: Yes, we're writing now and we've even starting to debut some new songs live, which feels nice to play new music for the first time in ages. The process of writing is slow but the material is really exciting to all of us. The plan is to release a new record early next year.
Is it difficult to translate the album onto the live stage?
CP: No, what you hear on the recordings was tracked live. We prepare for studio time by working out the songs and our individual parts in detail while playing together in a room, then we go in and track as a band. So it's not much of a transition because they start live then get recorded, not the other way around. As full time members have changed over time we've had to adjust live arrangements slightly, that's been somewhat challenging depending on the song, but overall we've made it work.
Best and worst thing about touring?
CP: Best thing is getting the opportunity to play everyday, meeting new people, and seeing new places. Okay that's 3 things. Worst thing is having to figure out funding and finding ways to take time off without losing our day jobs.
Any plans to tour Europe?
CP: Yes. 2012 hopefully. It's something we've been working hard at for a long time.
You wrote the film score to Seigfried in 2008, how did this come about?
CP: There's an amazing group of movie theaters here in Austin called The Alamo Drafthouse. They screen new films as well as put on a whole range of special events. They approached us about writing a score to a silent film and performing it live with the film. We chose Fritz Lang's Siegfried and performed it in March of 2009 at their downtown Austin theater. We'd put so much work into the score that we decided to record it and release it as well. There's murmuring about a release of the film with the score later this year, which we've never officially put out to date.
What does the future hold for The Calm Blue Sea?
CP: New album early 2012 and touring to follow. Beyond that hopefully we'll be creating music, touring, and doing interesting projects like Siegfried for a long time to come.
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You wrote the film score to Seigfried in 2008, how did this come about?
