VEXILLARY

Could you start by giving us a bit of a history on Vexillary and where the name comes from?

I was always intrigued by the mystery behind electronic records and how they were made. When I first started out, it was before youtube, so was hard to get a picture of it. I didn't have much of a musical upbringing, but like all things that I end up doing, it started out with an obsession. Ultimately I took a Midi course in college and made a short tape for that class that has since gone missing. Interestingly many of the elements of my sound were there from day one minus the production technique and the songwriting skills of course

The name just looks cool more than anything. I had a recording alias prior to that which I wasn't very happy with. Few weeks before the release of my fist EP, Taste Masking, I went through a crazy name exploratory phase. Ultimately, studied the dictionary inside and out until Vexillary stood out to me. It looked and sounded witchy and luckily it wasn't taken. It's incredible how all the names are taken one way or another, even the bad ones.

Your sound bears a pretty unique hybrid of sounds. What are perhaps some of the most obvious and least obvious influences on your work?

Influences are tricky and I'm almost always let down when an artist starts unveiling their list of influences. I remember reading a Slipknot interview back in the early 2000s and think one of the guys in the band listed Stevie Wonder as an influence! you can imagine my teenage brain exploding after reading that. The reality is that there are artists that shape our sound, and then there are those that make us wanna get up and make our own music. I think it's important to make a distinction between these two.

In terms of the sound, Coil, Skinny Puppy, and Autechre and all of their related artists where by far the biggest influence. Coil helped me explore my experimental side and in fact my early songs were directly influenced by their otherworldly synth explorations. Kinda put that aside until the last song I finished recently called, The Geneticist, which will be on my upcoming release SurViolence. You can hear their influence on that one for sure. Skinny Puppy and other electro industrial acts really helped shape my beat making process and certainly brought the horror influence. Autechre and other Warp Records stuff really got me into the abstract side of techno and bass with an ambient flavor. I'd have to also list Depeche mode in there in terms of the melodic sensibility and their influence on techno music.

It's easier to make dark music if you strip out the melodies, and there are lots of examples of that out there but much harder to want the listener to come back for more. Definitely picked up my melodic side from Martin Gore's songwriting approach. The song 'The Fatalist' off of my last EP, The Brutalist is directly influenced by them in more than one way.

Going back to the acts that actually got me to wanna try and make my own music, I'd have to give it to The Knife and Foetus. The knife were always on the approachable side and although very powerful it felt like something I could make myself. Jim Thirlwell's use of the studio as an instrument on his work as Foetus and all his other side projects really got my ambitious side tingling. To make a wall of sound style of production as a solo act made it seem like studio possibilities were endless. I had to get in on that.

Are you involved with any side-projects?

There are a few avenues that I explore musically from time to time, but it all gets done under the banner of Vexillary. I don't see a reason to release under a different name if the project takes unexpected turns. There are different sides to me as a person and the project is naturally multi-layered as my musical extension.

That said, there are ways that I think the project can evolve over time that may warrant a fresh new title. Time will tell.

What about other areas like video game soundtracks or films?

I love both of these arenas. Film soundtracks are already a big influence on my sound. Most obviously, Vangelis and Goblin, the italo prog band that did most of Dario Argento's horror soundtracks. I haven't had a chance to venture out yet though. I only recently got involved with making music videos on this record. It's very interesting to see visuals get locked in with my sound to create a new experience.

I think it's a matter of time before I switch the experiment on its head and try to create sounds that support the visuals.

How has the current climate with the Covid-19 and lockdowns shaped you as an artist as well as on a personal level?

As an artist, it's given me a new found focus. It was tough in the beginning of quarantine to stay productive and positive. It seemed selfish to immediately start 'jamming' when the death tolls started mounting in NYC, where I live. After survival mode kicked in and I learned to adapt to the new norm, I was ready to tackle more music.

To put a positive spin on the situation, it's really helped usher in a more fluid method of remote collaboration. Only in 2020 I could see myself collaborating on a music video with a visual artist in Malaysia and getting those images edited in Ukraine while getting my record mastered in Berlin. All in the same week!

On a personal level, it really sucks to be deprived of live music, air travel, and going to movies (and certain other establishments). But then again, the impact on the environment due to those restricted flights is really nice to see.

Speaking also of the pandemic, how do you see things changing in terms of artist promotion? Obviously some have embraced virtual events in such cases as Twitch.

Digital is everything now. And digital content is being consumed at a rapid rate more than ever. It's been important to see that and stay agile in the wake of it. I got to produce cassette tapes for my last record, The Brutlist EP. There was something very romantic about that. I remember telling myself that vinyl will be next. But seeing the ever-growing shift to digital it seems way more appropriate to diverge the attention and the funds to video content instead for example.

I still need to do more in that area though. Seeing legends like Steve Vai start a youtube channel and John Taylor of Duran Duran doing cool videos on social was really inspiring. There are no more excuses for ignoring that stuff anymore. That's why I finally got on instagram, which is a bit of a trip but still imperative to music promotion.

You've got a new release planned for Blaq Records in Germany. What can you tell us about that?

Yes, It's called SurViolence, and we're gearing up for a release soon.

Conceptually the record adopts the theme of the unease that we experience in our modern society. How decisions are made on our behalf that we never really get to know if they are for our own good or not. Hence the title, SurViolence, the vulgarity of surveilance culture and its political roots. It's really a concept record at its core, more specifically about an event that causes an uproar (the inspiration behind the lead track, Maritime Panic), the destruction it leads to (Annihilation), the start of a new synthetic world (Forged skies) and the rise of a new leader (The Geneticist). Looking back at all of this it's hard to tell the fiction apart from the reality that we live in today. It's tough to go full-blown conceptual on a 4 track EP but think I've managed it.

Musically, it builds on the industrial foundation of my latest work, The Brutalist and CrossFire EP. It's a more brave take on those classic sounds but each song gets a unique flavor and a more modern take. Vocals are out with the exception of 'The Geneticist' due to all the melodic layers and the fluid structure of the songs. It's probably more on the experimental side while being, dare I say, more 'familiar' sounding at the same time. There's lots of variety on the record but it somehow finds a unique balance and stays focused throughout. Very proud of this one to be honest, and can't wait to share it with the universe.

Are your songs based around personal experiences, abstract concepts or external observations?

I tend to oscillate between all of these depending on the record or the song. On the CrossFire EP, it was more personal, and I had a lot to say which is why there are more vocals and words on that record than most of my work. The last EP, The Brutalist was way more abstract. Taking the architecture movement of the same title as inspiration and really trying to find the musical equivalent of it. With my upcoming release, SurViolence. I'm reflecting my external observations. It's all about the world outside and the society.

I'll likely go back to a more personal spot on the next one.

Your Bandcamp page states that in fact, you are a chemist. How does being a chemist apply to your approach to being an artist?

Indeed, by education and my former trade. I majored in chemistry as an undergrad and did work in the chemical sciences and more specifically the perfume industry soon after. My work in the lab was all about finding the balance between unrelated ingredients and chemical compounds to create new olfactory experiences. There is a lot of magic to it if I were to take my scientific hat off. Music production is similar in more than one way or at least in the way that I approach it.

Unrelated musical notes, odd chords and structures can be blended together with surprising results. Using sounds and musical styles as ingredients, production to me is a total science experiment. It's important however not to be too formulaic. Think my entire musical journey is driven by the quest to find my own formula for a new style of electronic music built on my influences.

To get more granular, the layering of sounds especially at the mixing stage is practically identical to how perfumes are structured. In fact, fragrance ingredients are actually referred to as 'notes' to further draw this comparison. Bass notes or bottom notes as they are called are often the foundation of the fragrance structure, not unlike the rhythm section of the song with bass and drums. Then the mid notes are added and topped off by the top notes. You can think of the top notes as the high frequency sounds like lead part and vocals of the songs. Too heavy on either of these layers and both your musical mix or your scent are in trouble. Again, it's all about finding the balance between the ingredients.

Other than the new release, what do you have planned for the foreseeable months?

Venturing into the video world bigtime. Would love my music video for the song 'Maritime Panic' to get ready by the EP's release date. It's a collaboration with visual artist and motion graphics expert Luqman Ashaari. Pretty technical stuff for my first dive into the video world. I'm also taking on the producer and a co-director role which is new to me so I'm very involved with the creation of it. You can expect some lovecraftian horror elements mixed with some body horror vibes. It's the second video I tried to make this year, the first being regrettably dismantled after the storyboard process for various reasons. Very thrilled to actually get this one produced.

A second video might also be in the works depending on the timing of everything. So stay tuned. I'm also already finishing up new music for the record after so it's going to be an exciting and busy couple of months ahead.

Let's talk about remixes for the moment. Put yourself in the position of the remixer and the artist. What defines a good remix from both perspectives?

A remix should feel and sound like a track that was made if the 2 artists were actually collaborating together. I've been lucky enough to have been remixed by Berlin Dj/producers Signal Deluxe who are also the founders of Blaq Records, the label that releases my music. And in both of their remixes for me it sounds like we actually made a song together and has both of our imprints all over it. I also really dig when the remixer takes the song to a whole new place. Mokujin's remix for my song Refuela was an example where the remixer totally adopts the original track as their own. He's a master at UK Garage and footwork and all of that and that's what he did on that track.

I have yet to do a remix for another artist myself so it'll be interesting to see where I'd take someone else's song.

What would you like the legacy of Vexillary to be? What should someone know if they find your music 100 years in the future?

It's really hard to picture people's take on music years ahead. Right now music generally has a short shelf life given the rapid digital consumption we discussed earlier. Of course it would be ambitious to want to be remembered for the work and all of that is great. But at the moment I'm not looking too far ahead. I'm releasing my fifth EP soon and it feels like the first one all over. Lots of firsts this time around with the videos and other stuff. Think if there's a takeaway from 2020 it would be to really embrace living in the moment. History can decide the rest.

Thinking more broadly though, after all is said and done, in the temple of horror and dark music, I'd love to get my own shrine. Guess I have my work cut out for me.

Thanks for yr. time.

19/01/2024