{"id":20290,"date":"2023-06-16T17:48:54","date_gmt":"2023-06-16T17:48:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skylight.gr\/?p=20290"},"modified":"2023-06-16T17:50:05","modified_gmt":"2023-06-16T17:50:05","slug":"gentle-giant-discussing-the-interview-album-re-issue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/skylight.gr\/index.php\/2023\/06\/16\/gentle-giant-discussing-the-interview-album-re-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"Gentle Giant – Discussing The Interview Album Re-issue"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Interview with John Weathers<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. How did the concept of satirizing the music industry and the band’s relationship with the rock press come about for the album “Interview”?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think the whole thing was triggered by the rise in popularity of the band. It got to a point where when we would get to cities where the band was attracting lots of interest the area record company salesman would have arranged numerous press, radio and in-store interviews, these normally took place during the afternoon of the concert and quite often we had to split up into two groups to cover them all. Press interviews were normally done at the hotel so there would be a queue of local newspaper and magazine writers all waiting for an interview. I suppose it was inevitable really but most of the time they asked exactly the same set of questions and although we understood that this was absolutely necessary for promotional purposes we still found it very tedious, so much so that it became a real chore, we\u2019d rather have been hanging out by the swimming pool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. What inspired Gentle Giant to continue the stylistic direction of their previous album, “Free Hand,” in “Interview”?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the success of the \u201cFree Hand\u201d album and tour it seemed that the musical approach that the band were taking at that time seemed to be the right formula so naturally Ray, Kerry and Derek saw no reason to fundamentally change it. Though I think that Kerry\u2019s piece \u201cDesign\u201d was a real step into the unknown and very brave, in my opinion it\u2019s one of his best works, I mean you can\u2019t call it a song can you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Can you discuss the significance of having ‘Sounds’ writer Phil Sutcliffe participate as the ‘interviewer’ on the album? How did that collaboration come to be?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Phil was a great champion of the band\u2019s music right from the early days at a time when most English music journalists were being quite critical of the experimental nature of us, we were even called a bunch of musical renegades at one point. So naturally when we decided to devote an album as a tongue in cheek critique of the industry he was the obvious choice and readily agreed to take part.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4.How did the band’s non-stop touring and lack of reflection time after the success of “Free Hand” influence the direction and attitude of “Interview”?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think that I\u2019ve answered that above. \u201cInterview\u201d was a natural continuation of what we were doing and the fact that it was conceived in such a short period of time shows that the writers felt comfortable to be writing material in the same vein as the previous album, but I think there are lots of subtle changes in the direction that are not that apparent and that it\u2019s more of a progression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5.Could you tell us about the decision to record the album in Advision Studios and the significance of having both stereo and quadraphonic sound mixes for “Interview”?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Advision had become like home to us and the studio was technically one of the best in the country. The studio management made sure that every new recording innovation was installed as soon as it became available. Some memorable ones were tape machine remote control and varispeed, ADT and Compumix where one track of the tape recorded all the information regarding the master mix so that any changes could be made very easily. At the time we were recording \u201cInterview\u201d the very latest innovation was quadraphonic and it was only natural that we would take full advantage of it although there were only a handful of people in the country that had the equipment to be able to play it, but we thought we\u2019d do it anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. In what ways does the album poke fun at the state of the music industry? How does it dissect the relationship between a group and the rock press?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s really only the opening track that pokes fun at the music press in that the lyrics answer the most common questions posed and poses some of the most common questions asked. As far as dissecting the relationship I don\u2019t believe that it attempts to do that, it\u2019s not meant to be that serious, just a bit of fun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Can you elaborate on the eclectic and versatile nature of the album, highlighting specific tracks that showcase Gentle Giant’s range?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think that this album is particularly diverse in that it contains a very different mix of styles from straight rock to reggae to smooth jazz with a sprinkling of experimental classical thrown in for good measure. Both \u201cInterview\u201d and \u201cAnother Show\u201d I would class as straight rock, \u201cGive it Back\u201d obviously is reggae influenced, \u201cEmpty City\u201d has for me a smooth kind of jazzy feel and \u201cDesign\u201d is as I have said earlier is in my opinion a modern classical composition. In addition to that you get \u201cI Lost my Head\u201d which morphs from baroque to heavy rock. I think we covered quite a lot of genres altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8. How did Steven Wilson’s involvement in remixing “Interview” come about? What aspects of his work make the album sound fresh and relevant today?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steven has already remixed all the previous albums where the master tapes are still available and the transformation has been remarkable. He has always been very true to the original concept and just used his immense musical talent and the modern technology available to enhance what already existed, he has great \u201cears\u201d and what is more important a love of the music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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