MS: You’re welcome! Yes we do have a new album out, it is called Capricorn. It’s our first full length with Adrian and it tells the story of a space pilot on a strange planet.
AV: Thanks for having us. It was recorded with our longtime engineer Kevin Sparks III. It’s my first full length working with Mike and we pulled out all the stops. Even though it’s all instrumental music, the record progresses in a cinematic nature and it’s most effective, we think, when enjoyed from beginning to finish. There’s an entire back ground story that progresses with the album - sort of like an Odysseus style space epic. It traces the adventures of a wayward frontier explorer who crashes on a foreign, western planet and gets into a bit of trouble. Grandiose stuff haha.
Musically there’s a lot of thematic development, sound effects and lush instrumentation. We wanted to try and recreate the environments of the story while further developing our own sound. This led to moving beyond our standard gear and Mike really got creative, utilizing sounds ranging from tape delay to trumpet. At the same time, for the big moments on the record, we wanted to do what we do best so to speak. So some of our more graceful and interesting melodies and rhythmic ideas were captured as well.
2. MC: Where was it recorded? Is all the material new?
AV: It was recorded here in Austin at Kevin’s studio and mastered at Chicago Mastering Service. A few of the compositional elements and ideas were part of our previous repertoire. Very recognizable, sort of all encompassing themes that we rearranged and might pop up again in the future. Little things that tie together the whole idea in a way. Some people have referred to this technique as conceptual continuity. We went in with about 80% of the record ready. So we definitely took some liberties in the studio and we wound up laying down some weird things that we hadn’t expected, which was fun. Again, it’s a very cinematic record.
MS: Kevin and I we used to be in a band a few years ago. It’s all new material except for one song that has been in the set for a couple of years
3. MC: What is the biggest difference between your last release and the new one?
MS: The biggest difference between this release and the following release is that this is a full length instead of a single. We also tried a lot of new things and got some pretty cool sounds in the end
AV: Prior to Capricorn, I had only recorded two singles with the band. So it was a big jump going into such an ambitious full length. All of the pieces of Capricorn relate to one another. And while in live performances we’ll play certain sections from the title track, which takes up a whole side on the record, Broken Arrow (previous release) really shines as its own musical statement. We often use it to conclude performances for that reason.
4. MC: Are you signed to a label? , If so which one and how did they help or support the process?
AV: We’ve been independent thus far and we released Capricorn ourselves, as we have all of our recordings. However as of the date of this writing we are working with a label for our next release due out next year. While we can’t say much right now, the excitement to partner with likeminded people is palpable.
5. MC: What has been going on with the band between albums? Did you tour?
MS: Adrian and I both have full time jobs and other bands. However do make time to work on new material and tour.
6. MC: Do you have any new members?
MS: Adrian isn’t the original drummer but he has been in the band for a couple of years.
AV: Not yet, hah! I'm the "green guy". It’s just easiest with two of us. Practically it keeps the hotels cheap and the bar tabs low. Although we’re pushing it with the sonic pallet as is. It might be nice having an auxiliary instrumentalist on some tours in the future - horns, pedal steel, that sort of thing. Time will tell.
7. MC: Who produced the new album and how did they effect the album?
MS: I produce our albums. I like to take my time to thoroughly listen to the mixes and fine tune them. Also Kevin is very talented and has a very good ear so it makes the whole process fairly painless.
AV: Yeah, Mike is talented at knowing how to tackle ideas in real time in the studio. All things considered, the recording time was relatively short and we were eager to track so in we went. We would like to work with a producer in the future. Markus Reuter comes to mind, Steve Albini would be a dream. But we were fortunate in mostly knowing what the arrangement was going in.
8. MC: Some like to record naked or in the dark with candles , Did you have any strange studio practices?
AV: We love you Kev but get you're damn AC working, hah! We’re pretty non-mystical like that. Get in there and get to work. I’m sure some strange habits will manifest themselves eventually.
9. MC: Of course tell us where to pick up your album and how to learn more about you.
MS: You can get our album off of our bandcamp which is: cortege.bandcamp.com.
AV: That page is where to find all of our releases and merchandise. The usual social media channels and Spotify are all available and of course, little chats such as this.
10.What is your plans now that the new album is out?
AV: We’re planning our 2020 schedule and making time to hit some new markets we’ve neglected thus far. We’ll also try to land a few festival dates and we’ll be touring in support of that new aforementioned record label relationship. Write more, play more. Mike’s getting married in February! Thanks for taking the time to speak with us!
MS: We’re also finishing up another recording project and we’re going to start working on a late spring tour.
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