Interview with Jason Crumer

No Rent Records started in 2008, though Jason Crumer - Founder, CEO, Chairman, Investor, Criminal Mastermind - began really taking it seriously about a year ago. Previously used as a vehicle for self-releasing, No Rent began its quick ascent from a a labor of love to a professional, revenue-generating record label. Within the last year, Crumer has been tirelessly curating and producing experimental cassettes while still managing to release music of his own; in just a few months, he will release his 7th full-length LP on Chicago's dirty-lovechild Depravity Label.

Aside from a perceptive ear and a hardened work ethic, Crumer has a leg up on much competition. He's no bullshit: the man believes in both his own art and the art he puts out, and even though it may be delivered with a devil's grin, it'll be delivered on time. He's been involved with more projects and people than I want to name so here's his Discogs Page. He's showing no signs of slowing down, trying to release a tape every week or two on No Rent. If you haven't checked out his label yet, do it now - you can thank me later, you filthy fuck.

Jordan Reyes: Tell me about your earliest memory of experimental music - how did it affect you? Did you immediately know you wanted to do it?

Jason Crumer: My friend Blake played me a Whitehouse 7" - I don't remember which one - and Flux of Pink Indians' "Fucking Cunts Treat Us Like Pricks" while we were on acid in 1994 in St. Louis. I didn't immediately know I wanted to do it, no. It was exclusively a drug-related (lsd) activity.

JR: When did it cross the threshold into non-drug-related life?

JC: Several years after. I had been recording with a friend as Aluminum Noise. We traded tapes with about everybody who was doing noise in the late 90's out of some probably embarrassing ambition to be heard. I never liked anything I got back, always thinking "why would someone make this" until I got some Crawl Unit and realized we had similar intentions. Around that time, I started taking it more seriously.

JR: So Aluminum Noise didn't start as that serious of a project?

JC: Not at all. Aluminum Noise started because Nate's dad got him a 4-track for Christmas.

JR: And you just got roped along for the ride?

JC: I've always recorded music, and Nate and I had been making whatever kind of music together at the time. It slowly became my project. I googled "noise music label" and got SSSM in Japan, sent them a demo, and from there some small demand was created. Nate slowly phased out of the project.

JR: That's a pretty serendipitous way to go about things - I'm glad it worked out! Did you begin to hear more, I guess, "interesting" experimental or noise releases after that?

JC: Yeah I was dating a woman who was originally from Berkeley and she moved back, so I went to visit her. Hung out with Troniks Phil when he still lived there - we had been trading together and he gave me lots of good free noise. It was a fun time.

JR: And you began putting out music under your own name in the mid 2000s? What was that leap like?

JC: Nate lived in the mountains and would come to Greensboro, NC a lot, but he sort of stopped coming. I played in a rock band too and just wanted a non-punk outlet that nobody else had any influence on. So I decided fuck it I'll just record under my own name. It wasn't because I thought I was fancy or anything. I just felt like it was more pretentious to have a band name for a one person project than just use your name.

JR: I kinda agree. I was going to use my name for my power electronics project, even though I use it for a folk project, and my friend told me to make up a name for it. It feels weird that the "title" of your name can't mean more than one kind of thing.

JC: That's one of the worst features of the noise scene. Every single emotion doesn't need some slap dick side project. People don't need to know exactly what they're getting. It's okay to cover a range.

JR: I think you're right about that. Why do you think people do that?

JC: Well, that's complex. I think some of it is that they don't want to disappoint people who would listen to their work. You know, there's that stupid divide. People only listen to one thing. A lot of it involves social scenes. I understand different projects for different people, but come on.

JR: It's more out of condescending to a listener than any sort of creative essence?

JC: Pandering maybe.

JR: Yeah - better word. What sort of equipment do you use for your releases? I assume that your set up has changed quite a bit.

JC: Mostly it's just microphones on instruments or objects and tons of processing and pre-planned layering. I like tape over digital and through-the-air over line-in as a general rule, but I'll use anything at all. Mic placement is a big part of my recorded sound, and natural room reverb, for instance.

JR: Do you use mostly dynamic mics for that?

JC: Shure SM58 and cheap radio shack ones. I do try to record in stereo as often as I can but don't have a stereo pair, so just two crappy mics hard panned.

JR: Gotcha. What about contact mics? In a live setting, perhaps?

JC: Yeah, I use contact mics on most things too.

JR: And so when did you know you wanted to start No Rent Records?

JC: No Rent started in Oakland around the time I was recording Walk With Me.  We had to raise money for a bill and put out a weird limited live tape. I began to pursue it a lot more seriously around the middle of last year.

JR: Was that around the time you rolled out the Noise Hotline? How did you think of the Noise Hotline?

JC: The crew of kids I hung around with in high school all loved They Might Be Giants and I thought their dial-a-song thing was a cool idea, so I stole it. It was from a desire to give people a non-internet way to listen to music. It is a really fun and bizarre way to interact with music, experimental music in particular. It adds a layer of surrealism that I like.

JR: Do you think you approach music from a surrealist lens in general?

JC: I don't know if it's that lofty. I approach it from a communication standpoint, making the audience important to the whole thing. I just do what I have to to get across to the listener. That's the main goal. I try to have parts that make sense coming after the part before them, and don't put much or any emphasis on initial sound quality just that the song gets there.

JR: So does each song have its own purpose?

JC: Yes! I generally record for what could be called album momentum but I do tailor each piece so that it has its own logic and makes sense as a single entity, divorced from full length view.

JR: So each piece functions as part of the macrocosm and as its own microcosm?

JC: Yes

JR: Is there an arc to your work as a whole?

JC: Absolutely. I do smaller releases occasionally if I have something I like that doesn't make sense in the overall arc but the 6 (going on 7) "real full length albums" make a lot of sense one after the other. I want my discography to be digestible in a linear way.

JR: That's really cool. Do you like the idea of a narrative in art and music?

JC: At first I tried to force narratives on things but over the years I have realized that time creates its own narrative. I do like the idea, but more from a nature of the beast way than an execution way.

JR: I understand that. Do you think that No Rent has an arc? Do you think there's a goal for that?

JC: We will see what No Rent's ultimate arc winds up being. I can say that I do curate my ass off and think hard about demographics, meaning I don't want to be "just another label" or a boys club type thing. No Rent has been a real label for under a year at this point so the arc will be evident later on. I put out music by people I respect and admire. It's a kind of life time achievement award / charity work for the older, more established artists and a first chance for the younger ones.

JR: Very cool. Like I said before we've started, it's already built the reputation of being prolific to me, and it seems like you've got a lot planned for it

JC: Yeah there are tons of releases in the works, one per week at the most and bi-weekly at the least. I charge slightly higher prices because the label has to make money to exist, but also because I give 30% of the pressing to the artists, and it gives me a buffer zone if things don't sell, I don't have to go into desperation mode. It allows me to take chances on things I believe in that maybe nobody has heard of. Everything on No Rent is worthwhile and I've turned down multiple masters from artists who I asked to work with, just to keep the standard as high as I can, while still operating as a functional, semi-functional business.

JR: Wow - that balance of consistency, reputation, and making money has got to be a hard one to maintain, especially when working with people who might be friends

JC: It really isn't. I only ask people who have thick skin who I personally know, there's no artist whose music I'd just put on no rent because of their name. People understand that I may say eh, no, and tend to make better releases. There are five or six artists whose best work appears on no rent. The bigger stuff like that FFH tape that sold super quickly pays for the smaller stuff, and I don't mind things sitting around because when they do sell it feels like a bonus. I'm equally proud of every tape on no rent.

JR: Very cool. Switching gears a little bit, do you read much? Do you have any good book recommendations?

JC: HAHAHA no. I'm an idiot. Last book I read was the Slash autobiography. I'm sorry, a Run-DMC autobiography. I like artists’ biographies because I kind of only care about music, unfortunately.

JR: That's cool! I was just talking to someone about how easy it is to spread yourself thin through having many outlets and interests.

JC: I don't feel spread thin at all. Every time I read a book I get excited about reading because I enjoy it so much but it has never been a go to. Attn: parents, don't use reading as punishment for your children, because they'll wind up like me.

JR: Hahaha wonderful. Last couple of questions. What all is in the future for Jason Crumer and No Rent Records?

JC: There is a Reverse Baptism 7" coming out, and my 7th full length LP "Stare at the Devil" both on Depravity label out of Chicago. In regards to No Rent, next week is Horoscope, then the brilliant ambient work of Radboud Mens, then a messed up tape by Gerritt Wittmer. I’m currently waiting on masters from Valise, Dromez, Gabi Losocny, and Joe Colley as well as a few others, so in some order those will be in the next few updates. I have a lot of longer term projects that I'm afraid to curse by speaking of.

JR: All of those sound really exciting. Finally, what I have to ask every interview, do you have anything else you'd like to say?

JC: No sir. Thank you for the interview, and thanks to anyone whatever enough to read it. norentrecords.com

Interview with Pawns

Photo from Bexcellent Media

Some afternoon a few months back, while I was no doubt lying on my couch and humming “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now,” I received a text from my friend Jeffrey saying that I needed to hear a new deathrock/punk band called Pawns. A quick Google search returned two self-released seven-inch records, each three songs long. The band had recently finished a United States tour, including the stop in Chicago where Jeff saw them: the unfortunate reality of living dangerously close to mile marker zero is that Miami residents often lose out on touring acts, so I frequently have to rely on friends from more tour-friendly cities.

That said, I’m in a bit of a privileged position as I have the luxury of often traveling for both work and play, which was the case in October when I got to bum around New York for a few days: my label had a day-long CMJ showcase at Palisades, all the reason I needed to jet on over. The same night as our showcase, Destruction Unit played at Alphaville with Snakehole and Horoscope. Much to my delight, Pawns were also on the bill.

Pawns are a fucking joy to watch. Gage Allison writhes and wraiths, incanting darkness while bassist Jenna Rose leers into the audience and Noel Mateus snakes sinister guitar lines through Matt Sullivan’s plodding rhythms. Tight but explosive, Pawns draw their power from theatricality as well as auditory prowess, rather than forsaking one for the other. Totally great band - highly recommended!

Jordan Reyes: I love New York - I've never lived there, though I had a short tenure living on an air mattress in the studio at Heaven Street Records, but I enjoy visiting quite a bit. There's so much going on at all times. Is it ever frustrating or difficult to differentiate yourself there? Does that matter to you?

Gage Allison: I wouldn’t consider it frustrating or difficult. That being said, I don’t think any of us go out of the way to really differentiate ourselves. There is a lot going on but one of the redeemable things about all the oversaturation you’re subjected to is that there is a niche for everything.

Noel Mateus: If you have a good scene or friends supporting you, then that's what sets you apart from most of the people playing music in this city, and that can go a long way in making it less frustrating and more enjoyable.

Jenna Rose: I have a very different problem. I tend to be a loner so I don’t get out much, which makes it difficult for me to affiliate with any particular scene. I have a practice space and a little recording studio where I spend most of my time. I like to hang out with my cat. When I do make it out I experience a lot of overlap and camaraderie between the separate music communities, even though I don’t quite fit the bill in any given scene.

JR: When I think of Pawns, I can't help but think about the nascent L.A. Deathrock scene, coexisting with the punk scene - it sort of mirrors your punk/hardcore background and overlap. There's a co-mingling, which is somewhat inescapable, but did Pawns come from a desire to break away from old habits, so to speak, or to move them forward?

GA: I’d have to say for me personally it’s about moving forward. I’ve been playing in punk/hardcore bands since I was a little kid and never really branched out from that until now. I definitely consider Pawns to be a punk band, though we obviously take more influence from the darker side of the genre, but there’s no doubt that a lot of the same bands that influenced me then still do today.

JR: What relevance do you think "punk" as an ethos has in the modern era? Are D.I.Y. ideals more important now that the creative playing field is more flat, meaning more people have access to making and distributing art?

GA: To answer that you kind of have to define punk as an ethos before you can really touch on its relevance. These days everyone defines it differently and I guess there isn’t really a right answer. For me, punk is a culture that I have been ingrained in since I was very young and it will always have relevance in my life whether I identify as such or not. In a lot of ways it made me who I am today. That being said I couldn’t express more how important DIY ethics are to the punk scene and if punk culture moves away from that I think it would be safe to say that punk finally is dead (haha).

JR: I got to see you all play with Destruction Unit, Snakehole, and Horoscope in October. It was a great show. I was sort of transfixed by the mask you wore - the one with the three faces. It reminded me of Satan's appearance at the bottom of hell in Dante's Inferno. Who made the mask? What's the significance, if there is one to speak of, in wearing it?

GA: I made the mask a few months ago out of papier-mâché and wire. There were a few influences in coming up with the idea but I think it would be boring to really touch on the significance of it. I’d rather have that be up to interpretation.

JRose: I’m happy to hear it be compared to Satan in Dante’s Inferno. He can’t see shit through it. He thinks it’s funny to smash through me on stage while wearing it.

NM: I love it when he stumbles all over my pedals while wearing it...

JR: Let's talk about performance as an imparting of self. I find myself hearing two schools of thought: that performance is an act, a character or story being told, and I've also heard that it's an exorcism, or expulsion of truth. Is either of those applicable to Pawns?

GA: That’s funny that you mention this because Jenna and I discuss this all the time. I really find myself unaware of my actions on stage. It’s hard to tell if whoever I become when performing is a different person or merely an honest exaggeration of self, but every now and then someone will mention something I did while playing a show and I’ll be like “I did that?”

JRose: For me it is most certainly an exorcism. I remember the first time I read Artaud’s Theatre of Cruelty and how immediately my life changed. He had given me permission to express that which I am unable to say, and furthermore, with purpose. (I’ve been told it is inappropriate to assault others outside of a theatrical context).

JR: Is truth important in music, art, or performance? Can something be genuine and also fiction?

GA: I don’t think there is such thing as “truth” so elaborating on its importance in art is futile. Everything we believe, say, make or do is molded by our surroundings and those surroundings were built on foundations of the same scenario for generations all the way to the beginning of time. When it comes down to it, being genuine in art and music is bullshit.

JRose: Gage has been reading too much Sartre.

JR: So far you all have released two 7"s - one from about a year ago, if I'm not mistaken, and one from a few months ago, which you toured recently. Do you think that the band has changed in the short but not insignificant interim period?

GA: We have definitely grown a lot between our first self-titled 7” and Eternal Return. I think we’re getting more comfortable with the kind of music we are playing and have more of a shared consensus on the direction we want to take the band.

JR: Do you guys have any desire to make or have you started writing/working on a full-length record?

NM: That's the plan as of now. We're taking a break from shows and trying to focus on writing new material that so far we're very excited about. Some of it has been played live, but a lot is still in the works. In a way the direction we're going in takes us back to our roots; to the more punk/anarcho influences that got us playing this kind of music in the first place.

GA: Yeah we’re planning on recording this Winter and will ideally have our first full length out sometime next year (2016).

JR: I'm a fairly big horror junkie - I pretty much only watch horror, sci-fi, and movies from Japan - do you guys have any favorite horror flicks?

GA: I’m a pretty big zombie nerd myself. Dawn of the Dead and Night of the Living Dead are great. Can’t forget about the classics like The Shining and Rosemary’s Baby too. Have you seen any good contemporary horror movies lately? They’re few and far between but I couldn’t recommend House of the Devil and It Follows more.

NM: Hausu was cool.

JR: What about books? Read anything of note lately?

NM: Gabriela, Cravo e Canela by Jorge Amado. I grew up in Brazil and went to school there up until 6th grade, so every once in a while I like to brush up on my Portuguese and read some. Thanks mom for keeping me cultured.

JRose: Camus is my all-time favorite writer. Lately I’ve been reading some Baudelaire and Anthony Burgess’ M/F, if you’re looking for something funny to read…

JR: What all is in the future for Pawns?

GA: Not exactly sure yet. Like we said, we plan on putting out a full length next year that will pull us in a slightly different direction. Very excited to see where that takes us.

NM: We self-released our first two 7"s and that was cool and all, but we’re hoping to release our full length through a label we like. We're all very happy with how we've done so far, thankful for all the support from friends, and excited for what the future holds.

JR: Anything else you'd like to say?

GA: Black lives matter! Free Palestine! Etc

Interview with Sean Bailey of Lakes

Lakes began about a decade ago, and it has gone through quite the metamorphosis since. Early releases saw Sean Bailey utilizing keyboards, tape decks, and drum machines, as his songwriting and equipment became more elaborate and orchestrated. While Sean has played the States a handful of times solo, August 2015 marked the first time that his whole band, himself, Lee Parker, and Justin Fuller, could make the long jump, playing shows both on their own tour and with fellow Melbourne postpunks Total Control in Los Angeles.

Deeply rooted in psychedelia and esotericism,  Lakes’ new album Arms in Twilight is a step further into orchestration and fidelity. The familiar string slashes and plucks are more striking than ever, providing an evocative backdrop to Bailey’s commanding howl as heavy rhythms bounce from tautened floor toms. As with other Lakes releases, Arms in Twilight continues the compelling blend of postpunk and folk, through a lens, darkly, but it’s also more filled out. A track like “Dragon Current” boasts a lithe flute part that quickly becomes sinister before a vocal duel takes center. Not to be overly simple, but there’s just more going on than on other Lakes records, which makes an already rewarding listen that much more satisfying.

Arms in Twilight comes out soon on Thomas Ekelund’s Belaten

Jordan Reyes: Lakes is certainly a postpunk band, but there's a neofolk influence, both in your logo and in your actual music. Do you draw much inspiration from neofolk music and history?

Sean Bailey: Since the very early days of Lakes, I was influenced by Australian and NZ post punk but also by dark and psychedelic folk bands, and psychedelic music in general. Coming from a punk background, I fused the two things and began to get more experimental with lakes. When I first heard bands like Current 93 and Death in June, I could see that they were influenced by the same things as me, so I was attracted to neo-folk because it was exactly what I was interested in. I was completely drawn to it! That was when lakes started to take a different turn. Neo Folk and post industrial music inspired me to take the early experimental sound and approach to a different place, to take my song writing and production more seriously but maintain the essence of lakes, which is also the punk spirit. I wouldn't consider Lakes a neo-folk group, but those groups had a profound effect on me. The lakes logo is part of this growth, but having these visual cues was a point where lakes was strengthened. I needed to have a stronger visual presence to help push the music forward, so it made sense to create the sigils and it worked.

JR: One of the things that has always caught my attention in neofolk is the reverence for Northern Mysteries and Runology. I know Australia is a Far Cry from the Asatru religion or any religion of Pagan origin, but do you have interest or take any influence from these ideologies?

SB: That's a very attractive element to neo-folk. Its magical angle is one of the things that drew me in. I was experiencing an initiation of sorts when neo folk came into my life so its reverence for Germanic Paganism really resonated with me and showed me that it was something I should add to the tools. Australia is far away, but that is no reason to ignore what makes sense.

JR: Is there a defining theme, idea, or ethos in Lakes?

SB: Lakes is a spiritual project that I have nurtured for over a decade. It's very intuitive and that's the way I've always worked with music and also my painting practice. I have my views and experiences and they all go into lakes in some way: love and esoterica have been major themes, but life just gets into the songs and sometimes it only comes to me later what they are about, and that's what I love about working in this way. I think this is what attracts me to neo folk, post industrial etc. - it's the intuitive process, which I can really relate to.

JR: It was cool getting to see Lakes as a three-piece twice in L.A. I picked up a copy of your latest LP Blood of the Grove and have been jamming it. I know Lakes began as and largely continues to be a solo project, but do all three of you guys play on recordings?

SB: It was great to play those shows in L.A.! Total Control are good friends and such a great band. It was amazing to be able to play with them in the U.S and we felt very grateful for the opportunity. I write and perform everything for the studio records. I will get guests in to play on one or two songs, but it's mostly me playing every instrument. I find it easier that way and it's what I'm used to with lakes, I can have complete control over every aspect of recording and song writing and the only person I have to organize is myself and my engineer, Jack Farley. It's weird - I really need that control with lakes but don't need it with our other band Tol, which is a collaborative thing. I then teach the new songs to my band Lee Parker (percussion) and Justin Fuller (Bass), the songs will then evolve a little more and get a new life for the live performances. I really love what the band brings to the live thing: it's more aggressive and heavy when performed live, which is how I want it.

JR: A lot of your records previously came out on your Inverted Crux label. Is the label still active? Are you glad to have less of a hand in the actual vinyl/CD production of a record? 

SB: I started inverted crux in 2005 to document music that I and my mates were making. In 2008 I decided to use the label to only release Lakes recordings. I just got tired of being an organizer of other people and it was really hard to get any distro for what I was doing. I eventually shut the label down in 2010. Once I shut it down I could focus more and leave the releasing of records to people who know what they are doing!

JR: Lakes started back in the mid 2000s if I'm not mistaken - the first LP was almost entirely a solo affair, although a few people guested on it, I think. Obviously, collaboration has had a bit of a place on all Lakes material, even if minimal, but your songwriting has been done individually. A lot has changed since 2005 - how has your songwriting changed?

SB: Yes, so much has changed! Lakes started at the very end of 2002 as a solo project. I was sick of being in bands. I was playing in a Melbourne post-punk band called The Vivian Girls from 1999-2001, which ended badly. I didn't really want to deal with being in a band anymore so the idea for lakes began around then and came into fruition about a year later after not doing all that much. It sounds very cliché but I was in my first year at art school when Lakes started. I was studying painting at The Victorian College of the Arts and the first Lakes show was for an Art School event! It was really meant to be a one off performance but I kept it going and it just evolved from there. My main intent at the time was to be as self-sufficient as I could and use minimal instruments. I had a keyboard and a drum machine so I used that. I was a drummer but had always had a hand in arrangements of songs. I knew how I wanted our band to sound and that frustrated people I think. I had never played any other instruments in bands before, though I could play most of them, but I was also a little naive. In the beginning Lakes was informed by early Australian post-punk and was very minimal but not all that interesting! The first record got weirder and I had a few guests and the recording is really raw. It was quite psychedelic but also industrial, a bizarre mix looking back now. I was just throwing experiments out there and seeing what happened. My song writing changed naturally I think. With each new song I wanted to evolve my sound, which was very raw in the beginning. It maintains the same intent and essence but has become more focused on actual song writing rather than experimentation.

JR: What about the equipment you play with? Has that had much of a change?

SB: The equipment I use has changed so much since the beginning. Like I said, earlier I was only using a keyboard and a drum machine. Over time I started to bring in tapes, percussion, and guitar. Since 2008 I began using a guitar to write the songs and playing live became a more complex operation. In a live situation I used cassette tapes and a drum machine to add texture and a beat. I explored this way of playing live for a few years until it became unenjoyable for me and just plain stressful! I wanted people to aid me in a live setting. I learned over the time I was playing solo that I need to be able to adapt to the live situation no matter what equipment issues I may be faced with. Even with the band, we can adapt and still have a strong live performance. The live thing is a really important element, I really want to be a strong live group and that couldn't happen with a solo project so I recruited a full band in 2010.

JR: You guys haven't played the States all that often, have you? How was the recent West Coast tour?

SB: We haven't played in the States much at all. I’ve been the U.S a lot but this was the first time I brought the full band. If it weren't for Beserktown, we wouldn't have even been able to come, so we are very very grateful for that. All the shows we played had their beauty, and as a unit we are good at finding the things that work and focusing on that. It gets hard when shows aren't well attended or when other humans are being hard to deal with, but in the end we put all of our energy into playing the best show we can. Some of the best shows we played weren't necessarily to our audience, which can make for a good energy or make things a little more interesting for us too. 

JR: Blood of the Grove came out in 2013 - are you guys currently recording or writing new music? Any plans for a new LP?

SB: Blood of the Grove seems like so long ago now! I attempt to release at least something once a year. Be that a cassette, 7" or whatever. I did the Carved Remains 7" in 2014 and the Lakes 'Chant from above: Live in Melbourne' in 2015'. During the last two years I've been really focused on my painting practice. I find I need to separate the two disciplines sometimes. In 2013 I decided to dedicate myself and most of my time to painting as I had received a studio residency in Melbourne. It was a really productive time and helped my painting practice a lot, I found a new kind of devotion to it, so it was an important two years, but Lakes had to take a bit of a back seat. I put the brushes down briefly early in 2015 to record the new LP 'Arms in Twilight''. Thomas from Swedish death industrial group Trepaneringsritualen is releasing it on his Label Beläten. Thomas and I have a mutual appreciation of each others’ work and started to write to each other, which is how that came about. I couldn't be happier working with him, and I'm very excited to get this new LP out there.

JR: What all is in the future for Lakes?

SB: I really want to take the full band on a European tour. I've been writing new songs and want to do a 7" sometime next year. I just want to keep it all moving along. I hate being idle.

JR: Anything else you'd like to say?

SB: Thanks for the interview! 

Interview with Brandi & Ian from Rhythm of Cruelty

I think about repetition a lot because I'm a creature of habit. I wake up. Go to work. Come home. Run. Write. Go to bed. I ask myself what does repetition do? Well, it kind of humanizes and it also kind of automatizes. The humanization comes from how I interact with people at the parts of the day where I can interact with people, but this is tricky. If I repeat the same mantras and words to the same people at every interaction, then I am fulfilling an obligation or directive of "talk," meaning it's a mechanical function. But if I introduce new things, organic elements, new ideas to interactions, creating growth, then I am undergoing a humanized interaction. The goal is to stop the body from going on autopilot, losing time, choice, or identity.

What happens to a gear as it's used repeatedly? Indefinitely? It corrodes, like all things do. Eventually it fulfills its functional destiny so much that it cannot fulfill its functional destiny. A gear, with its once great and numerous teeth, becomes a perfect circle, unable to exert friction, unable to wind, unable to sputter - a circle spinning in place with nothing to show for it.

Saturated, Edmonton duo Rhythm of Cruelty's most recent full length on Mass Media Records, is about decay. The first song, not including the introductory instrumental piece, "Day In, Day Out" showcases Brandi Strauss musing on repetition and collapse "No movement/Gathering dust/Day In/Day Out." Her lyrics, on top of pulsating, at times claustrophobic, instrumentals, echo the form. But this isn't a hopeless record, either. On "Full Circle," she sings "Where we were once before/Where we start again/Full Circle/The Stars they have aligned/Wearing a blessing in disguise." It ends with an obscured benediction, even in the face of depersonalization and corrosion.

But for all the bleakness in Saturated, Brandi Strauss and Ian Rowley hold onto hope. The creation of anything is an act of hope, at least a shot fired at the darkness of reality.

JR: How is it playing in a postpunk band with two people?  I know you guys use a drum machine - do you enjoy playing like that or would you rather have a drummer?

IR : It's amazing. We've been partners for almost 7 years, and Rhythm of Cruelty has become this creative extension of our relationship. Although we've talked about collaborating with other people, live or recorded, Rhythm of Cruelty is very much the two of us. We knew very early on that the element of mechanical rhythm was something we wanted. I don't see us getting a drummer, maybe more drum machines. But we don't rule out the possibility of alternate sources of percussion.

BS: I enjoy the simplicity of there only being the two of us in this band and the fact that we use a drum machine rather than a drummer. Over the past few years Ian has become quite creative with the drum patterns. The drum machine has become my favourite aspect of R.O.C. Actually when we had started out Ian was on drums and it wasn't until we borrowed our friend Dave's Oberheim and Ian had picked up his guitar; it was then that we really found the sound we were looking for. We have discussed having a guest drummer for a show or two to play alongside the drum machine, though we've yet to follow through with that idea…in due time.  

JR: How do you guys write your lyrics? Do you write them all or does Ian have a hand in that too? 

IR : Brandi writes all of the lyrics and will show them to me. Sometimes I'll help in the arrangement of the words, but they're very much Brandi.

JR: Do you find yourself writing about things grounded in reality, like events that happen to you or maybe being influenced by a book you read, or do you make up scenarios, moods, and ideas? 

BS: For the most part, my prose are written from my visual view point - my perceptions of reality.  I try to write regularly, often I write of personal experiences, relationships, or my understandings in life. Sometimes I find influence in other areas such as dreams, books I've read, or something someone says. For example last year in spring I was in New York on my way to a show with a friend, when he stated that we were all "chasing daylight," regarding the "party life style." At this time in my life I was struggling, dealing with some heavy things, finding comfort in excessive "partying". Those few words that evening left an impression on me, I came home from that trip and wrote, "In The Daylight."

JR: Saturated is your first record on Mass Media, right? How was it switching from Crude City? Any notable differences?

BS: Yes it is. Both labels were supportive and extremely easy to work with.

IR : Crude City is ran by our good friend Dave. He wanted to highlight some of the newer Edmonton bands coming out. He was and is a huge help in pushing us, helping us book shows on tour, and just generally being supportive of us. Mass Media has been amazing as well. They've been putting out so many great releases lately and we were quite honored when they showed interest in releasing our music.

JR: You guys made a music video for "Dysphoria" on your last record - are you planning on doing any music videos for the new one?

IR:  We've talked about it with our friend Parker, who did the "Dysphoria" video, but nothing planned yet. It's possible that we may do some videos for the newer stuff we're going to record.

BS: Eventually we'd like to. At the moment though I believe recording our new songs takes precedence over making another music video. 

JR: You guys did a massive North American tour a few months ago, covering both the United States and Canada. Is there much of a difference between playing a Canadian show versus a show in the U.S.?

IR : Not really. There's an amazing and interconnected community all throughout North America, and internationally as well. We feel just as welcomed in places like St. Louis, Austin, Tacoma, etc. as we do in Canadian cities and we've created really rewarding friendships throughout our travels.

JR: Can you tell me a little bit about your experience playing music in Edmonton, Alberta? When you think about your local independent music, are there any defining bands or venues there for you? Any artists that someone reading this might be interested in?

IR : Edmonton has a really interesting and diverse music community. Some of my personal favorites are Strangled and The Strap (both of which Brandi plays bass in!), No Problem, Zebra Pulse, The Olm, Beauty Rest, Languid, Borys, and the almighty Energetic Action. I have also recently started a label with my friend Parker called Pseudo Laboratories. Look for plenty of releases by Edmonton artists (including Rhythm of Cruelty) as well as others abroad.

BS: Edmonton has a lot of creativity and everyone is really supportive. Unfortunately a number of venues have been closing down this past year - my favorite Wunderbar came close to its end as well. Luckily Wunderbar is a special venue for Edmonton and the community came together to raise thousands of dollars to make sure that didn't happen. As for bands, Ian has an electronic project with his friend Parker, called Private Investigators who are great! I also enjoy anything Robert Burkosky does, Energetic Action, Christ Appearing As Sun, Beauty Rest, Love Electric to name a few. Zebra Pulse, Pigeon Breeders, The Olm, Borys and Segue are fantastic as well, all worth checking out! 

JR: Do you guys read much? Anything of note lately?

IR : I've been getting more and more into science fiction lately, and just recently finished Roadside Picnic by the Strugatsky brothers. Fantastic book. Currently reading The Wild Boys by William S. Burroughs, and so far it's not my favorite of his, but he's always interesting to say the least.

BS: I try to make time to read, though I don't do it as often as I'd like. At the moment I'm reading Tape Delay by Charles Neal, which is interesting thus far. Earlier this year I read a lot of 'self help' books, one, The Miracle of Mindfulness written by Thich Nhat Hanh I found really insightful as simple as it is. It's just helped me to become more focused, which is what I needed at the time. 

JR: What all is in the future for Brandi Strauss, Ian Rowley, and Rhythm of Cruelty?

IR : Well it's almost fall, and when the weather starts getting colder, we buckle down and start writing and recording new material. In the new year expect another record, tour (Europe?), and other sorts of weird ephemera from the two of us. 

BS: Personally, I hope to focus my energies on creating and exploring more, wether it be personally, musically or artistically. As for Rhythm of Cruelty, we will continue to pursue and explore our sound. We plan to record again this fall and then in the spring, when the ice has melted we hope to tour again. 

JR: Anything else you'd like to say

BS: Acknowledge the beauty of things, take energetic action, avoid distractions and stay focused.

Interview with Matt Boettke of Scant

Photo by Nikki Sneakers

Much of noise gets its strength from tension and release: a lower frequency plays predecessor to a shriek of feedback or an interval of silence is bookshelved by harsh walls. To an extent, this is also what happens in a pop song's verse and chorus, and is largely what Krautrock was rebelling against in the 60s. When Holger Czukay of Can told drummer Jaki Liebezeit to play simply and repetitively, he wasn't asking for Jaki to be boring; rather, he composed songs of pure tension, where release was an option rather than a precedent. Matt Boettke's solo project Scant has a similar ethos - Scant isn't necessarily static, but it does draw power from consistency - tones and textures change at their own pace, not at a listener's beckoning.

Matt has put out tapes on Rainbow Bridge, Chondritic Sound, and Monorail Trespassing. He also ran Candle Haus in Fairfax with several other artists. He has played in both solo and group capacities on the East Coast, and recently released his first tape as Roy Wren with Rachel Nicole Foley on Beyond the Ruins. He is currently residing in Philadelphia, after spending an extended period in Virginia. He has more than a few releases coming up, but he's a much better spokesperson for his music than myself.

Jordan Reyes: Let's begin with the ideas of control and improvisation in your work as Scant. Are these two things mutually exclusive in your work? How much planning goes into a live Scant set? Do you know exactly how your set will sound before you play?

Matt Boettke: There is some improvisation in Scant sets, which I think is inherent to the style of noise music, but primarily all sets are completely pre-planned and as of late are completely sample based so there is an exactness to what I do live. I have started trying to replicate pieces from releases, and similarly record replicable pieces, live- my favorite set I’ve been doing live has been a re-working of my 2014 cassette, “In Simulating Drowning”.

JR: Do you think having "control" is important in noise?

MB: I think it can be- for what I do it’s important after all. However I have definitely seen some completely unrestrained performers who have left me wanting nothing, so it really is a case-by-case scenario to me. Acts like Twilight Memories of the Three Suns (one of the first real noise groups I was familiar with because they were local to me) is a complete free-for all, arguably, and their style of soundcraft has certainly resulted in countless amazing sets I’ve been privy to. Other times, in extremely technical performers like Jon Borges and Shannon Kennedy with Pedestrian Deposit, control is everything, and every time they come around on their (as of late) annual tour it has been the show of the year- never disappointing and always improving. Always getting more precise, always more impressive and a true testament to giving attention to detail.

JR: What do you think makes a noise or experimental piece compelling, either in regards to your own work or others'?

MB: For me, if you can really “lose yourself” in a piece, that is what makes it compelling to me. If you can have the tape or record on and lose track of time and temporarily be alleviated of your existence, that is the effect I am looking for in both what I create and what I seek out to listen to in the genre. Anything that almost becomes a sensory-depravation experience is what I consider “good noise”, and that can really be achieved in an endless number of ways.

JR: Like most solo projects, I'm sure that making music or performing as Scant can be an intimate endeavor. Is there a spiritual aspect to it for you?

MB: The spiritual element that I’d say exists with Scant is that I am probably in my most spiritually in-tune moments when I record the material for the project. Obviously it is hard to be in a state of meditation or dissociation when playing a live show, but in recording those are the states I tend to be in. I use recording as Scant as a chance to try and get to the most detached I can be, to really try and be “on the outside looking in” for lack of a better way to phrase it. My intent with the project is to create highly dissociative sound pieces that result in the listener feeling the same detachment through listening that I do while creating.

JR: You began Scant four or five years ago, if I'm not mistaken. Has your creative process in Scant changed at all during this time? How?

MB: I’d say it’s pretty much stayed the same the whole time. It’s always me in my room with a computer full of field recordings, some kind of synth, some pedals, and used to be a tape deck but lately it’s been a sampler. I always record and practice in my bedroom either with headphones or just out of my computer speakers. I always jokingly say if it sounds good on shitty speakers it’ll sound great on good ones, so that’s why I do this- truth is I just don’t have anything else to monitor with. I’ve had access to various better practice spaces several times and it’s just never been the same as playing alone in my room. It’s the place you go to detach, so it’s only natural that’s where I like this process to go down.

JR: You've also been involved with several noise "groups," such as Widow's Bath, Inferior Passions, and Roy Wen. Do you feel as though you have to "compromise" when recording or making music in a group setting? Is that a "bad thing"?

MB: In no way do I feel like making music with another is a compromise, and if I thought something was a “bad thing” I surely would not be involved in it, simply put. I feel like I certainly need to change my approach when making noise with others,and that the same sort of dedications to tone and microtextural changes cannot be what I bring to the table in a group setting. Since these things are so specific to a solo performance, if I were to try and bring those to the forefront I would just be drowning out my collaborators. Instead, each project of collaboration I am involved in takes its own specific approach, often time explicitly discussed at great length before a recording or practice session has even taken place. Once we both find common ground and a place to meet on the same page, playing with others can become as natural as playing by myself.

JR: You have a couple tapes coming out soon - one with Shredded Nerve and one as Roy Wren. Tell me a little bit about those two tapes. How did you guys meet and decide to work together? When will they come out? I know Shredded Nerve is from Cincinatti - did that make things difficult?

MB: The tape you are referring to as being released “with Shredded Nerve” is the collaborative project of Justin Lakes (who does Shredded Nerve) and myself, Inferior Passions. Our debut cassette of material will be released through Chondritic Sound, the primary home to both me and Lakes’s solo material as Scant and Shredded Nerve respectively. I met Justin sometime early into the time I was doing Scant, during my first tours out to the Midwest where he lived in Cincinnati and booked shows in that area which includes Dayton as well. From the moment we met we knew we’d be great friends, and for years I have been seeing Justin on our own tours either when I went to Ohio or he came to Virginia, as well as making the yearly trip to his Summer Scum festival historically happening every year in Buffalo, NY, where he briefly resided as well. We also have gone on several tours together, including flying out to the west coast together earlier this year for our first time playing shows out there. Whenever we are in the same place, we found time to either discuss or practice a collaboration, and a few times over the years we have performed collaborative sets live. We have long discussed doing a tape, but with Justin recently relocating to New York City and being so close to each other we decided to start a project since we could actively practice and play shows with more frequency. The first offering from the project is “Any Day”, 32 minutes of material so empty and lifeless that we deemed it to have been able to represent ‘Any Day’ of our lives, nothing special to it other than the fact it is a day the two of us are playing music together, which could be anytime, anywhere. Roy Wren is another project I am part of, with Rachel Nicole Foley who used to collaborate with me in Sex Complex as well when we both lived in the Washington, D.C. area. When she moved to Richmond, VA from Charlotte, NC in early 2014, we began living and playing music together on a regular basis, and eventually formed the project Roy Wren to record and perform what we had been working on almost daily out of our chaotic Richmond spot dubbed “The Leigh Hole” by friends who visited the apartment. Our first cassette was recently released on Beyond The Ruins, the philly imprint of power electronics artist Pleasure Island, who I’ve worked with as Scant extensively in the past as well. We are currently working on a second tape to be released as part of the reboot of Jason Crumer’s No Rent label. Rachel and I live together currently in Philadelphia, and practice and record in our home studio, the Heaven’s Gate warehouse which is often home to select DIY noise shows and shared by the other residents of the house.

JR: You've been involved with the DIY/noise/experimental scene for a while, from running Candle Haus to your many recording projects. What do you think people involved with noise/experimental music need to keep in mind in order to keep it moving forward?

MB: To keep this short, what’s best to keep in mind is yourself. Worry about your project, worry about yourself. Don’t spend time shit-talking or drama-mongering with the concerns of other projects in the scene- it’s just not a big enough scene for it to not end up sounding like a high school cafeteria when things get to that point. Worry about being good, book shows with like-minded artists, show mutual support and most importantly- be good. Noise is in in a fledgling state, the most important thing you can do as an artist is make sure your material is good… fuck it- great. That will help build the scene, not determining some arbitrary hierarchy based on juvenile bullshit.

JR: What all is in the future for Matt Boettke and Scant?

MB: I have a handful of releases forthcoming- another cassette due out on Chondritic Sound as Scant, solo material released under my own name by Ascetic House which differs in intention from the Scant project, and ultimately a debut full-length due out on Chondritic Sound as well, most likely released sometime early 2016. Greh at Chondritic Sound has been incredibly supportive of my work since we’ve become acquainted, so I really am focusing on working with him for future Scant releases, especially this full-length which will be the first definitive statement from the project since it’s inception in 2011. There have been a lot of short releases leading up to this, and I think it is time to fully realize the ideas I’ve been working with the past few years in album form for the first time.

JR: Anything else you'd like to say?

MB: I’d like to point out that the biggest influence on me over the years has been my friends, the people I know and the people who are working towards the same things I am with their respective projects. Over the years I have had the pleasure of living in artist households that without a doubt helped shape my identity as an artist, and there is nothing more encouraging than living with other artists and discussing ongoing projects and goals together on a daily basis. Starting with the Candle Haus I had this type of close working relationship with Jacob Knibb, who co-curates Select DC with Josh Levi as well as performing as Rosemary Arp and DJ’n as Kanon. At the house also resided Craig Hodgkins, who performers solo noise as Cincinnatus C but primarily focuses on his screamo band Annakarina, based in Pittsburgh, PA. Also living at the Candle Haus were visual artists Sam Walker, Alexa-Smith Francis, and Peter Lawrence, whose energy certainly contributed to the vibe I cultivated from living at that spot. As with any show house so many incredible artists came through and performed in our basement as well, people I’ve met through that time have come to be some of my best friends and biggest influences as well. After taking a break from this lifestyle to live with my partner at the time, I lived with Iona (Crack Bytch) and Rachel Nicole Foley at the aforementioned Leigh Hole- another spot whose shared environment helped shape my work, and then moved to the prolific Baltimore warehouse spot SDF America, which was populated by a multitude over the years far too long to list here, but I’d like to give a special acknowledgement to that whole crew for sure, especially Eric Trude (Stress Orphan) who I’ve known and worked with since before the Candle Haus days. Currently I am living at Heaven’s Gate in Philadelphia, and I am living with Rachel Nicole Foley (my partner in Roy Wren) as well as two of my best friends, Rachel Slurr and Chris QC, who record and perform as Stroker (Slurr) and Gene Pick (QC). Living with them recreates what I had at the Candle Haus, with fellow artists working in the warehouse and discussing their work on a daily basis, and there is nothing that helps strengthen me as an artist more than that. I want to acknowledge them as well as everyone I’ve met along the past few years for helping me realize myself as the artist I am today, wouldn’t be who I was without my crew, and I love you all.

MB: **Even though I never lived with them, a special acknowledgement to Gary Stevens and the Auxiliary/RVA Noise krew as well, stay strong and keep doing it up for the best spot in the city.