Unexpect Interview is up
Unexpect Interview
ANSWERED BY: CHAOTH
1. Its been a 4 yrs of silence for Unexpect.. What has been going on since working with The End??
Well, actually, it's been 5 years of long, long silence since In a Flesh Aquarium that came out in 2006. Now, that silence was actually very loud for us at times. After releasing the aquarium of flesh we played a bit all over the place. Touring got a slow start and we weren't fully committed to life on the road until 2008 where we were gone for about 6 months off of the year in total. 2008 was a great year for us. Then in the winter of 2008-2009 we wrote FABLES OF THE SLEEPLESS EMPIRE and started the recording in the summer of 09 and then the mighty PROGRESSIVE NATION TOUR with Dream Theater and Opeth that changed our lives forever. We saw things my friend....... we saw things..... things I cannot speak. And well, I can't believe it's been that long. The album was recorded in 2009 but weren't released before 2011. Where did that time go ? Sometimes I feel like I don't even know.
2. If I may asked why are you not working with The End records any more they seemed to push the band in 2006/07 as a priority?
We really appreciate the window that they gave us and the opportunity to enter the USA territory and get us ''in-the-scene'' if you may but we just wanted to do things our way. Not that they wanted to control, not at all but, I guess we figured that we wanted to do everything ourselves so that this way we know exactly what is happening with everything. The idea of going independant has been there for a while and we wanted to take this album ourselves and see what we could accomplish and we've always been kind of control freaks if I may. :) In good ways of course. It just feels good sometimes to be ... it's easy to get lost and not see the point when you have a label and that you never see any cent coming your way besides loans that you repay for years to the label. Money is clearly not the reason we are in this business but it is also important for the health of the band and that is one good aspect of independance. Seeing all the transactions and knowing exactly what is going on is very rewarding.
3, The new album "Fables" seems to experiment more in the avant, prog and post metal genres with caberet and jazz music too. While being more dynamic its seems so much more focused.. How did this album come about?
With IAFA we were more into over-orchestrating everything and, as we never toured extensively before the recording of this album, we were maybe more studio-freaks and never really thought about how we would play that stuff live. But apparently we did..... and did we.... And then some years of experience later and a couple hundred shows later we got better as a band and writting this kind of ''focused'' music, as you say, just came naturally. After going at the very limit of our imagination to create the orchestration of IAFA, it seemed like the craziest thing to do to play some power chords, some choruses and some simple lines. So we added that to the mix and played with it to the best of our capability. I would say it's the best relation between every musicians we've ever had for this record. It's really a whole of 7 musicians (at the time) each giving the perfect element and it all came to life beautifully. Every body was involved and everybody gave it it's colour and that to me is beautiful. If you're interested in the specifics, there is the credits in the booklet that I think are really well done and very representative of each composers and what they brought to the table.
4. Being a fully independent band without label .. What issues do you see in 2011? Do you need a label or just good distro and promotion?
Obviously it's not easy to be all indie. We have the chance to have some support from FACTOR here in Canada for some financial issues and we work with promotional agencies to get the word accross about FABLES.
5. How do you see Social media, webzine and internet radio ? Is this the new underground for 21st century?
Oh absolutely. Paper editions and ''real'' radio stations are still very important even essential but the web is where you always end up in the end. That's where it's all laid out and ready and pretty and thorough. Basically, the radio and the papers and mags will get you on the web in the end so, it's important to have both. I think we got pretty savy with the web aspect of it over the years and we're confident about the job we are doing. Besides, if you can make a video with a cute kitten, you might have way more publicity than you've ever dreamed. Type in: Tiny Hat Audition..... it's worth it.....
6. Are you seeing Digital music as a money making arena or is selling music becoming a passing thing? ( I almost see bands more living on DVD's, Shirts, Touring and Video Games like rock band)..
Digital is a great way to sell music, I just wish it was more commonly used. We are still starting in that Indie project and are no expert to review the world of music sales with an all knowing voice but digital certainly have some great convenience to it. For a band there is no manufacturing fee of course as there is no physical product and it is also very easily available for the fans.
In my mind Touring is the best publicity (if it's well done of course) because everything else comes with it. If you tour, you WILL sell shirts and CDs and get the word out and get some traffic on the web and the wheel will spin. And I must admit Rock Band is definetely on our to do list. More to come.
7. Is there a running theme on the adventurous new album " Fables"?
There is not overall theme I must say. The album was not meant to be a concept album that was supposed to be taken as a whole. I love that it became that as it all took life in this package and became FABLES OF THE SLEEPLESS EMPIRE. That title is actually more of a unifying force bringing all the songs together like a story book than a concept. Topics are as varied as the crowd in a Mike Patton concert... From social criticism to extraterrestrial philosophy to zombie love and much more... enjoy.
8. Will Unexpect be touring the USA at all I saw you yrs back with Gathering and Novembers Doom . You were very ahead of your time soundwise then. Your very powerful live to stay the least...
I personally wish more than anything that we sail the great interstates again and I'm sure it will happen in 2012. Nothing booked officially but, YES, I can assure you we'll be back. Hopefully we'll still be ahead of our time when we get there.... we don't like to get lost in the crowd and to be unnoticed.
9.Will there be a live DVD or Studio one? You music would make great soundtrack to film, theater or even circus...
All projects for now. Working on a video as well. I would love to have our music in a movie... if you see Guillermo del Toro around... give him my card...
10. I know you have had some lineup changes . Has this effected the sound of the band at all or just expanded it?
Borboen is very present on that record and he really is bringing a lot in terms of sound and orchestration. Very easy to work with him and I love what he brings to the table. It only expanded the sound possibilities. We lost Exod at the end of 2009 but he was there the whole time of the composing and recording of FOTSE and brought so much to the final result to. The opening track Unsolved of a Distorted Guest was actually his composition that we all orchestrated as a band. Lovely. Lovely.
11. If you were asked as a band what would you say Unexpect sounds like and why?
The troubled mind of ED-209. Because I love kung-fu.
12. What is the one thing you would tell new bands or bands trying to do it without labels in 2011? Any strong words of advice?
Drink rum.
13. The mix of Male and Female vocals , strings, synths with a more prog metal band element is very expressive . Who are your influences. I hear bands like Arcturus, Bogus Blimp, Devin Townsend and Within Temptation to name a few (are these some at all?)
Well, for one, we are not trying to emulate a band or a style that is prog or that is .... we are only combining all the music we listen to in a pot and make it Unexpect. For example, if you listen to strait up metal AND classical music, you're gonna end up playing melodic metal even if you never listened to a melodic metal band in your life. It's just the logic result of the equation. Now it's the same thing for us. We are not trying to sound like anything specific... we are not even trying to write prog music.. it's just what comes from our personnal influences through our voices. I do know Arcturus was a very early influence of the band more around the end of the 90's I guess. Never heard of Bogus Blimp.
Basically, everybody in the band would have a different answer for the music they love and the colours that they want to bring to the band. My personnal favorite would be Radiohead, Dillinger Escape Plan, Daughters (RIP), Venetian Snares, early Mars Volta, EfterKlang, and so much more I can't even think of it... and you can hear it in the music at times. A bit like trying to find the pieces of a pop tarts in a puddle of puke... oh... oh...that's a piece.... oh, I think that's one.... tha....... that's a brocolli but.... ohhhh here's another one...
14.THe Cover are for " Fables" is unique to say the least ? were did it come from and how does it play into the songs on the album?
The artwork is from spanish artist Mario Sanchez. We struggled a bit to find something that would fit the music and that would define this effort but I think that it does just that. I love the simplicity and purity of it and the fact that it is everything but metal.
15. Your website is brilliant and its so nice to see a band that cares to have a proper one and not just live off Facebook or Myspace..
Darth Vader.
16. Thank you for your time any closing thoughts here
Alex Collier will be vindicated.
Thank you again
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