The Gong Farmers came about when Mark visited me in Ireland during 2018. For a number of years his Spaceward Records/Publications had published my series of Musical Guides to King Crimson, my contemporary classical music and released albums by Andrew Keeling and Otherworld, but I wasn’t aware of Mark’s own songs. While here, he played me one of these called Ship of Fools which instantly resonated. Besides being excellent, I immediately saw its potential for an entire album. This is how the first Gong Farmers album came about. The name of the band came in a flash, too, when we visited Maynooth Castle. There was a plaque on the wall describing the activities of the medieval gong farmers. We felt this should be the name of the band. In fact, band may not be quite the right term; ‘collective’ is probably better.
Which is your vision about the band?
To make the right music at the right time, whatever that is and however it may come about. The music is the prime concern.
Who are the other members and which was the role of each member?
Ship of Fools had a fairly extensive involvement. For example, Ed Hindmoor, who is currently finding success with New Hype, contributed techno rhythms to an instrumental track, Versifactor; David Jackson, from Van der Graaf Generator, was a major contributor adding saxes, whistles and flute. The list is fairly extensive: two of Mark’s musical friends, Mark Drury and Dawne Ferrett, for example; Fran Ashcroft, with whom I shared a concert billing in 1971, did the mastering.
You have a lot of guest artists working on a second album, “Guano Junction”. How did you collaborate with them?
We were determined not to merely recreate Ship of Fools 2 with the second album, so literally took twelve months to allow songs and pieces to germinate and grow, so to speak. I had several small-scale pieces – sketches and loops – in a folder. Mark sent a small-scale piece called As Sunlight Falls which immediately struck me. He also had a couple of other ‘micro-pieces’. I was writing a Musical Guide to ’80s band Modern Eon at the time and came to know Alex Che and Cliff Hewitt who played for them. I approached them and they responded positively adding to and expanding material. David Jackson again contributed saxes. Dutch percussionist Rene van Commenee also added percussion and Ben Keeling wrote a piece. Two of my former band colleagues from Thruaglas Darkly – Martin Walker (currently with Nth Ascension) and Brian Taylor (This Is Awkward) – also added guitars and textures. Noko from Apollo 440 added viola and a string arrangement to Pip, Squeak and Wifred, a song about Mark’s chance discovery of his father’s war medals. Norwegian violinist Ricardo Odriozola added violin to As Sunlight Falls 2 which Mark gathered together arranging them into a collage-like piece. We invited chance and synchronicity – in the real sense of the terms – to operate, giving every contributor opportunity to enhance the music in whatever way they wanted. Nothing was discounted. It was an authentic group effort. The entire project was achieved at a distance, given the world was down with Covid.
Which was the inspiration for your album “Guano Junction”?
Mark ‘saw’ the title in a flash; both a response to Sue Keeling’s cover painting as well as connecting with The Gong Farmer’s name. But it continued the love and loss theme of Ship of Fools as well as being something of a journey from light to darkness or summer to winter and, thereby, connecting musical opposites.
You follow an acoustic approach for your music, does it reflect to your feeling towards composing the album?
It was simply how it came out. My classical guitar tracks and piano possibly directed the feel of the album but, equally, Mark’s synthesizer pieces such as the Guano Junction pieces and As Sunlight Falls also had their own flavour. Contributors sensitively followed those as beginnings for their own instrumental or vocal additions. It all miraculously fitted together.
Why did you decide to not add vocals for all the tracks of the album?
Because some of the music were pieces rather than songs. Some had Mark’s vocals – such as As Sunlight Falls and Pip, Squeak and Wilfred – while Alex added voice or ‘vocal instrument’ – i.e. the middle section of Pip, Squeak and Wifred – to others.
How did you approach the album from an audio mix point of view?
This was totally in Mark’s, Alex’s and Cliff’s hands. Some tracks were remixed several times till they fitted the central atmosphere of the album. Alex did a pre-mastering but, ultimately, it was mastered by Steve Penn.
How did Covid affect your mode of thought during the composing of the album?
It didn’t except that, as previously mentioned, no-one met at all while the album was recorded except for Mark going to Steve Penn’s for the mastering process.
Do you have any plans for live performances?
At the moment, no. But, if someone said ‘come and play’ then we might consider it.
