quarta-feira, 25 de novembro de 2015

Convolve & Reflect with Pinnacles - An Interview


Depois do ótimo Automaton do ano passado os estadunidenses do Pinnacles voltam a carga com Convolve & Reflect, que facilmente esta anos luz a frente do primeiro, os caras conseguiram ficar mais densos, climáticos e pesados ao mesmo tempo.

Uma marretada em slow motion bem no centro do tímpano, que vai do barulho incessante até puras calmarias sonoras, uma mescla que brilhante acompanha as nove faixas do álbum

Se por algum motivo o Pinnacles tinha passado despercebido por você, corrija este erro imediatamente, Convolve & Reflect é feito sob medida para ouvir alto, bem alto.

***** Interview with Pinnacles *****


Q. When did Pinnacles start? Tell us about the history...
We formed in the Spring of 2013 in our hometown of Nevada City, CA. Justin (guitar/vocals) had been kicking around musical ideas with both Zach (drums) and I (guitar/vocals) in separate contexts, and eventually brought all three of us together to start working collaboratively. Jesse, a longtime friend of Justin’s, soon joined the band on bass and we immediately started recording in our makeshift studio, which really just consisted of a laptop and a few mics in the attic above my garage.

Q: Who are your influences?
All of us are such music-heads that it is hard to condense our influences down to a digestible list. To name a few albums that have been directly influential to our sound : Siamese Dream by The Smashing Pumpkins, The Shape of Punk to Come by Refused, Lateralus by Tool, Ok Computer/Kid A by Radiohead, Beacons by Cloudkicker, Songs for the Deaf by QOTSA.

Q. How do you feel playing live?
Haha, that depends on which one of us you ask. I think we all really enjoy the intensity and release of live shows. Personally, I live for the live experience. We have a very heavy, visceral live show which makes for a cathartic experience on stage. That said, some of us really struggle with anxiety, self-consciousness, and all the destructive self-deprecation that consumes so many musicians, myself included. This can make getting up on stage a struggle. A lot of our lyrics on this record are about reckoning with this duality, which, when simplified, is the struggle of loving something and yet fearing what that requires of you; wanting to be heard but not wanting attention.


Q. How do you describe Pinnacles' sound?
Perhaps this is a question better answered by you, or someone outside of the band, haha. I don't really know; I always struggle to put labels on it. I think the sound naturally evolved into some tangent of post-rock and progressive rock with obfuscated vocals over the top. It is melodic and rhythmically complex; pretty and heavy. As one friend put it, "beautiful, atmospheric, and lush".

Q: Tell us about the process of recording the songs ?
We made this entire album ourselves, save for the mastering. After finalizing the song structures as a band in the practice room, we recorded scratch tracks to a metronome. Then, each of us went back through one by one and recorded our respective parts. We started the process in January of this year, so it took us about 9 months from start to finish. We don't have a sound-treated space or professional gear, so we ended up borrowing gear from friends and making adjustments on the fly to get the sounds we wanted. For instance, we made a "hi-hat muffler" out of a lampshade we found at a secondhand store because Zach's hi-hat was tracking way too loud. Justin served as our engineer, mixer and producer, and put in the brunt of the work. He and I would often spend 10+ hours a day working on the record, especially when it came to tracking guitars and vocals. But then he would go home and keep working on it, or sneak back to the studio, haha. It was an arduous process, but something about the obsession inherent in locking ourselves in the studio appeals to our introverted natures. As a result, there is a lot of attention to detail and a lot of layers to this album. It's definitely worth listening to on some nice headphones, if you have that luxury.

Q. Which new bands do you recommend?
Pinnacles. But seriously.

Q: Which band would you love to make a cover version of?
We've been working on a cover of 'Kiss from a Rose' by Seal...and the Jurassic Park theme song by John Williams.

Q: What´s are your plans for the future....
We are planning some album release shows in late January throughout Northern California. After that, we are planning a larger California tour in March. And as soon as we finish an album, we are always thinking about the next one...

Q: Any parting words?
There are a-brazilian words in the English dictionary, but I can't seem to think of any poignant enough with which to leave you.
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Thanks

https://www.facebook.com/pinnaclesband
https://pinnacles.bandcamp.com/