One of the most prolific and artistically engaging artists of his generation speaks with ReGen about his latest Ka-Spellian endeavors.

An InterView with Edward Ka-Spel
By Ilker Yücel (Ilker81x)

Edward Ka-Spel has over the course of 40+ years become widely regarded as one of the truly transcendental artists of his generation, so much so that it’s difficult to distill the breadth of his work into any meaningful introduction. Whether as the front man for The Legendary Pink Dots or as a solo artist, his music is often classified as a form of cosmic psychedelia, while at the same time evolving into various permutations of electronic, industrial, jazz, pop, and even classical; at the forefront of this style is his mellifluous and mesmerizing voice – at times raspy and darkly oppressive, other times warm and inviting – and his vibrantly poetic and engaging lyrics. Also notable are his numerous collaborations with the likes of cEvin Key in The Tear Garden, Amanda Palmer, Motion Kapture, Twilight Circus, and more, with 2021 marking the release of his own Prints of Darkness and his appearance on cEvin Key’s Resonance album. ReGen Magazine was thrilled to have had the opportunity to speak with Ka-Spel about his continued artistic pursuits during the global crisis of the last year, touching on his embracement of technology, the need for the live stage, and what further works of sonic splendor he has yet in store.

With the glimmers of hope that the pandemic’s end may soon come to pass, I’d like to start by asking first simply… how are you? In what ways do you feel you were able to maintain your creativity throughout the lockdowns?

Ka-Spel: I suspect I had a mild case of COVID in January as a number of truly strange symptoms hit me at once and stuck around for nearly a month. But I’m feeling way better now. I guess lockdowns are strangely inspirational. The new Dots album couldn’t have been made at a different time; the pandemic literally influenced every song. Oddly, I have tended to write more over the last year, feeling fresh urgency. Maybe it’s because I have no idea when I’ll step on a stage again.

You were recently featured on cEvin Key’s latest solo album, Resonance. Would you tell us about the songwriting process between you and Key? At what point is it decided whether a track will be a Tear Garden song or under a different moniker?  This also applies to your other projects – what determines for you which project a track will be part of?

Ka-Spel: cEvin sent me the instrumentals and asked me if I could write lyrics and add my voice for songs that he wanted for his solo record – great pieces too! Even so, I always knew they were destined for Resonance. With TG, we both write the music and send it through cyberspace.

You’d also released a collaboration with Motion Kapture in late 2019, Alien Subspace. What other collaborations do you currently have in the pipeline that you’d like to share with us?

Ka-Spel: A second with Motion Kapture, an album with LPD’s violin player from the ’80s (Patrick Q.Wright), a project with Sorry For Laughing, which is the baby of Gordon Whitlow (Biota), plus various guest vocal parts for a variety of projects. More to be announced soon as all of these albums are almost complete.

You and The Legendary Pink Dots have taken full advantage of such online platforms as Bandcamp and Spotify to consistently release music – new, as well as reissues/remasters. What are your thoughts on the way modern technology has made it easier to release and discover music?  On the flipside, what do you feel have been the major disadvantages, and how do you feel you’ve overcome them?

Ka-Spel: I consider Spotify to be a necessary evil as it’s pretty much like giving the music away to a huge corporate machine, but Bandcamp has been great for us. I do love the accessibility to new music afforded by these platforms.

I understand you’re planning to release your new album, Prints of Darkness, on CD and vinyl later in the year. As physical media seems to be enjoying a bit of a resurgence with the popularity of vinyl and cassettes, what are your thoughts on this?

Ka-Spel: It will always be popular as it’s tangible… a thing of beauty that can be held in two hands. I wouldn’t want everything to be reduced to a simple folder.

Tell us about the new album, Prints of Darkness. What sorts of themes did you explore in the lyrics, and in what ways do the continue and/or contrast with material you’ve written up to now? Were there any changes in your approach to the recording or production? After making music for so many years, what excites you the most about the creative process?

Ka-Spel: I’m living in the U.K. which is truly an awful nationalistic place right now – ugly politics, crap weather, and always something to fight against. It’s perfect for creative pursuits. Naturally, Prints of Darkness is full of material informed by this environment, but there are love songs too, very much from the heart.

What possibilities do you foresee for live music to survive or evolve in the wake of the current situation? A livestream obviously doesn’t hold the same power as a live show, but as it’s become part of the status quo, what sort of possibilities do you see to use new and online technologies to keep music alive and maintain the excitement of audiences?

Ka-Spel: Haven’t tried an online performance yet. I’m fussy about sound quality. I confess I want to be in the same room as the audience. It’ll happen again, eventually.

Similarly, with the pandemic hopefully nearing the end, we are seeing more tours being planned/announced; how do you feel touring will change – both across the board and for yourself personally?

Ka-Spel: Well, Brexshit has really messed things up for every musician/artist in the U.K. when it comes to touring Europe. I guess the biggest change will be the size of the lies at the borders.

What’s next for you?

Ka-Spel: New LPD material… very close now.

Edward Ka-Spel
Facebook, Bandcamp
The Legendary Pink Dots
Website, Facebook, Twitter, Bandcamp

Photography provided courtesy of Edward Ka-Spel
Source: Regen Mag

By Loz Etheridge · On July 10, 2017

The end of June saw the release of a classy box set, Silhouettes & Statues, a five-disc compendium of goth music and its origins. A couple of the artists featured – such as the ones who answered a few questions here – would surprise many folks by their inclusion, as you wouldn’t necessarily associate them with the genre. Before you immerse your face in a bowl of flour and pierce both your nipples in protest, however, I should point out that the splendid booklet inside (a regular feature from the ever reliable Cherry Red) gives you all the info you need as to why they did find their way onto such a compilation.

THE LEGENDARY PINK DOTS

If we include your solo career as well as your band’s output, you have released approaching 100 studio albums since you started out! How do you continue to keep things fresh in this respect, and, given the staggeringly prolific nature of your work, how do you avoid repeating yourself?

Edward Ka-Spel: I guess I’m always trying to reach a place that remains perpetually just out of reach… yet I can almost stretch my arms out in the rarefied atmosphere. As long as this situation continues then I just have to keep chasing the dream.

Are you surprised to find yourselves on what is essentially a ‘Goth’ compilation?

We always did well in that particular scene even though we never affiliated ourselves with any movement.  In fact, I cherish the openness and appreciate the sensitivity of the people I encountered who have been rather carelessly branded as Goths as if they were indistinct from one another.

You have one of the most loyal fanbases of any predominantly leftfield band, though 1991’s ‘The Maria Dimension‘ was (almost) a brief flirtation with widespread commercial acceptance. Was there ever a point where you were tempted to write something that you knew would be embraced by a mainstream audience?

If it had happened it would have been a happy accident… but the temptation was never there.

What, apart from your own, is your favourite track on the Silhouettes & Statues compilation, and why?

[Gasp]  I haven’t seen a copy yet as I’m on tour (a project with Amanda Palmer), but do give me time…

DANIELLE DAX

I thought you were ahead of your time in the eighties and made some of my favourite records of that decade, but I never really considered you as “goth”…

Danielle Dax: You know, I have been thinking about this recently. At the time, I would have agreed with you and definitely said “no”, because my music was so different, and the bands I was going to see were friends like Specimen or Alien Sex Fiend. But thinking about it now, some of the clothing would fit, and some of the subject matter of the lyrics might fit too.  To be honest, I’m not well versed with many of those bands (on the compilation) – I’ve really come from a background where I was influenced by things like Throbbing Gristle and film nights at The Scala. Films like Pasolini’s Salo were a huge influence on me.

Wow, that’s a pretty unpleasant film!

It is, but it was massively cut and stupid when it was screened. At that age though, anything that pushed boundaries appealed to me, and I’m still very interested in what isn’t immediately obvious now. Hidden agendas and things like that, although I’m talking about science, not paranoia! When I was very young, I lived with my granny, who was a medium, and she always encouraged me to try to see things in the crystal ball, and just embrace everything. I could never see anything, but I started reading about world religions and about the occult; there was a common thread, and these were all areas that informed the music that I made, though there were elements of humour there too. I hope people could see that.

What struck me was that Pop Eyes sounded nothing like Jesus Egg That Wept, and that, in turn, had little in common with, say, Inky Bloaters. Neither did any of those sound like your former band, The Lemon Kittens. Were you ever concerned that the contrast for your audience might be just a little too great?

Quite honestly, I didn’t really care. I’ve only ever made stuff for myself, otherwise, you’re on a hiding to madness. It’s a dangerous game to find a formula and stick to it, and plus it would be incredibly boring. I feel like an artist in a wider sense of the word and I keep trying to push things – challenge things, nature even – with what I create.

A lot of people will remember you primarily from ‘The Company Of Wolves‘ as the permanently unclothed Wolf Girl, which must have made you feel a bit vulnerable.  How did that come about?

Steve Woolley, at that time, was considering setting up his own label, and he saw some of my photos with all the face paint, so he showed them to (the director) Neil Jordan. He must have seen something in me and I was invited to audition. I didn’t really find it daunting because I’d already done the naked gigs with The Lemon Kittens. It seemed irrelevant that I wasn’t going to be wearing anything, and you forget so quickly anyway. I was taken to beaches as a child, and I used to see these big burly people arrive in these constricting clothes, looking uncomfortable, but as soon as they were freed of those clothes, it was like they became a different person, and were so much more relaxed. I’ve always been comfortable with my own body anyway, so it wasn’t an issue.

You’ve had several careers away from music. Aside from that and the acting, you’ve done many types of design work and art. What do you regard as the most satisfying?

Whatever I’m doing at the time! At the moment I’ve just done an installation of a sculptural work, called Hymn To Pan. You can see that on YouTube.

Your career highlight? Must be that chat show with Steve Davis, surely?

[laughs] My grandfather was particularly pleased that I was on a show with Steve Davis. He was fantastic though! I was so shocked; he was such a nice guy, and he’s a huge music fan too, which really surprised me at the time. He phoned up once and spoke to my grandfather, so that really made his day.

Anything you’d like to do that you haven’t yet?

[thoughtful pause] I’d like to go up in a rocket. My father was a Spitfire pilot, and ever since I’ve been obsessed with old documentaries about their use in World War II, and space as well. The moon landings have always fascinated me. If you look at the moon maps on National Geographic, psychologically they’re so odd and interesting. When I was younger all the other girls wanted to be air stewardesses. And I just wanted to go to the moon!

Still no lack of ambition from Ms Dax then, clearly! And with that, my wife called me downstairs for tea, at which Danielle laughed and said it was one of the worst reasons anyone has ended a telephone call with her. Oops. No offence intended! Willing to have a chat any time, Danielle, let’s stay in touch, eh?

Silhouettes And Statues is out now on Cherry Red.

source: godisinthetvzine.co.uk

from: stormlodgememoirs.wordpress.com

Source: http://bit.ly/2dSaSMF

The Legendary Pink Dots are still DIY after all these years.

Although they didn’t share much sonically with the original generation of punk rockers when they started out in 1980, Anglo-Dutch experimental psychedelic band The Legendary Pink Dots embraced the same do-it-yourself aesthetic, issuing their first release, Only Dreaming (Mirrordot, 1981) on cassette in an edition of 10 with handmade covers. “We’ve come full-circle,” founder and singer/keyboardist Edward Ka-Spel tells City Weekly in a telephone interview. “We’ve basically gone back to doing everything ourselves. You can record everything at home now and get high-quality results.”

The band’s history predates the near-obsolete CD format, and now record labels are fading as well. It’s easier than ever to go DIY, and the era of home recording and digital distribution is good for someone of Ka-Spel’s musical impulses. Between The Legendary Pink Dots, solo projects and his Tear Garden project with cEvin Key of Skinny Puppy, plus a few others, Ka-Spel has amassed close to 200 releases. They cover a wide sonic territory, from ambient to industrial to noise, but the description that most seems to stick is psychedelic. “Psychedelic is closest to my heart; the first music I really liked when I was young,” he says. “Basically, the music is always about color—always about going a little bit further, taking dangerous steps into a strange, twisted universe.”

There’s a sense of hubris that’s perhaps necessary to be this prolific, he says: “You intend it to be the greatest statement you’ve ever made, on every single album.” Fittingly, he says the best place to start a journey into the band’s music is their latest, Pages of Aquarius (Metropolis, 2016). The set veers from the near-punk snarl of “Mirror, Mirror” to the jaggedly rhythmic “The Greatest Story Ever Told” to tunes that epitomize their more familiar meditative, sometimes somniloquent, splendor. Another point of entry into their formidable discography is probably their best-known release, Crushed Velvet Apocalypse (Wax Trax!, 1990).

The double-meaning of Crushed is telling; the title is a good description of the LPDs’ music—lush, luxurious and sensual, yet also dark and sinister, with a sense of mysticism that is foreboding more than comforting. In addition to this duality, part of the fun of The Legendary Pink Dots is looking closer. Listeners sometimes miss the subtle, dark humor on first listens—and it’s certainly there on Pages: “Mirror, mirror on the wall/ I really wish I had the balls/ to look you in the eye.” By way of explanation, Ka-Spel says, “If you’re British, you need to have a sense of humor—especially in these times.”

Pages was recorded over the course of two years, and you can appreciate the painstaking attention to detail. “There was a real drive to make something very vibrant, very colorful and explosive. It’s also very melodic, and sad in parts,” Ka-Spel says. “Explosive” isn’t a descriptor commonly applied to the band, but their new phase, in their fourth decade, is a dynamic, energetic one. They might have more in common with the punks than it first appeared.

“Our performance at the moment is a little bit on the extreme side,” he explains, saying the band threw out their old setlist of familiar greatest hits in order to embrace the newer material in live performance. “It’s not the easiest ride, but it certainly is an interesting one. It’s quite challenging, but it’s good to be tested.”

Speaking of putting things to the test, the group achieved some notoriety on Bandcamp.com, the site that enables artists to distribute their own music. Ka-Spel bundled his entire 199-title discography for $933.38—a 25 percent discount, averaging $4.69 per release. He says it was Bandcamp’s idea, and they thought, “Why not? We never really imagined someone would take us up on it, but they did.” It was only one person, but going from selling 10 copies of one release to one copy of nearly 200 different albums? That’s progress.

By Brian Staker @stakerized
source: www.cityweekly.net