The Romantic, Perfectionist Rave Music Of Overmono
Joy and fear, desire and fear, euphoria and fear. the promise of delusion and the fear that all is not well find their way into the complex emotional cocktail that the song reveals. But above all, freedom is the common thread that runs through his work. The freedom to dance and have fun, to feel comfortable and not be judged, to let go of your ego and inhibitions and connect with the dancers. When you hear a song like "Gunk" you feel as free as those dobermans.
"I think we always try to make things as simple as possible without overcomplicating ideas," says Ed Russell, one half of Overmono with his brother Tom. "I think we've always been drawn to music that seems pretty simple, and we've always been allowed to introduce too many little ideas into the music that don't add much."
Then there's the freedom from the genre frenzy that often defines British dance music; the brothers have written songs inspired by British garage, others by jungle, etc., but all have a certain signature, a certain rawness and a certain sincerity in their production. . love her style. the way that goes straight to your heart. It's remarkable how much emotional weight the brothers can wring out of two quivering, shimmering tones, filtering and transforming them as they move up and down the scale under the duo's distorted R&B signature.
However, getting to those moments takes a lot of trial and error.
"'Gunk' is a perfect example of how frustrating it can be to make music sometimes," says Tom. “You have a central idea that emerges quite quickly, and we both know when there's a central idea that we think is worth pursuing. But it can take years and years to get it to sound the way we want it to. So we have a really central idea or title structure, and we'll spend hours, days, weeks, sometimes months working on it to refine it, to refine it. and make it sound the way we want it to sound.
There is plenty of equipment in two studios in Bristol and Devon. They describe their setup as "chaos and a lot of equipment." Every time they finish a project, they reconfigure the entire system, rearranging their vast collection of synthesizers, drums, and other instruments to bring out new ideas. It's the opposite of his songwriting, which emphasizes simplicity and directness.
"We always know exactly what we want the album to sound like, and sometimes it takes a long time to get there, but we always know when we get there," says Ed. “It's been a really long time. A chaotic process of taking a raw idea and turning it into something that feels finished but doesn't lose its original rawness.
After creative frustration, the brothers decided to found Overmono. Both had success as solo artists on the London club scene, but neither felt happy. Ed especially liked his work at Tessela; His song "Hackney Parrot" became an underground hit and earned him a spot as a beat-house producer. "It became a thorn in my side because I got to the point where I had to use the 'Think' break on every record," he says, referring to the famous drum sample. “Tom [as Truss] had similar experience with heavier techno stuff and we both felt we wanted to go further creatively. And then we thought , well, maybe we should try something else . »
Both left London for a sabbatical in the countryside to clear their heads. “It was fun. When we started the project, we didn't start the project , "We thought, 'Let's write music together,' more than a vacation," says Ed. - And then we listened again to the music we wrote. in three days and we thought. "Oh, that sounds a lot more coherent than I thought."
These sessions gave birth to the band, and they named it after their hometown of Overmonow in Wales. The project grew to the point where it overshadowed their solo career, and after the release of their debut album Good Lies in May, they return to Miami with a polished show. Last year's Dobermans will also be back. They appear in most of their promotional illustrations and on the covers of their XL Recordings albums and EPs, and have become iconic for the band.
Perhaps a little worryingly for them, they also took the controlled chaos of their studio with them when they traveled. Ed says they've brought more equipment than ever so they can master the tracks live and allow room for changes on tour.
"It's growing and we're adding more and more," he says.
The Monkey : Friday, September 15th at 11:00 PM at The Ground, 34 NE 11th St., Miami. thegroundmiami.com. Tickets are $37.47 through dice.fm.
