Regular featuresLife As A Rock Star with Clint Hell

Interviews with Jen

IMIsound the latest news from the

Independent music scene in Italy

Gigs Wanted

Interviews witha’tris frontman Mason TaylorSinger/Songwriter - Ben McMasterPhotographer - Rob WilkinsonArtist - Janine Flynn

Independent and Unsigned music & the Creative Arts

June 2009

Issue 1

Am vullaore dit augueros

Am vullaore dit augueros

Websites for this edition

www.atrishq.com

www.benmacmaster.net

www.imisound.com

www.janineflynn.com

www.lovewhip.net

www.robwilkinson.com

Photography Credits

a’tris by Liz Budd

Ben McMaster by Jodie Lindsey, Stillrock Photography

Lovewhip by Ricardo Villamil

Clint Hell by Nick Cee

Somojo Magazine is here!

An idea that grew from www.somojo.net as we couldn’t fit everything we wanted to do into a ‘radio station’ format.

Somojo Magazine isn’t just about the people who are already creating, but also those who are taking the first steps into taking up one of the creative arts.

Whatever your creative passion and whatever step of the ladder you are on , we hope to give you some inspiration, tips and tricks from the people we interview and feature in the coming months.

If you are a solo artist, in a band, a photographer, film maker, writer or artist and would like to be interviewed or have your work featured in the magazine, we would love to hear from you.

editor@somojomagazine.com

Many more articles and interviews can be found on our website - www.somojomagazine.com

Contents

• a’tris Interview with Mason Taylor

• Ben McMaster

• Interview with photographer Rob Wilkinson

• Interview with artist Janine Flynn

Regular features

• Interviews with Jen - Lovewhip

• Life As A Rock Star

• IMIsound

• Gigs Wanted

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Did you always want to be in a band when you were growing up?

Growing up I greatly enjoyed dabbling in the performing arts. I knew that my strengths laid in writing and performing and I was extremely passionate about music so I chose to focus on improving my craft through attending Berklee College of Music.

I can’t say that I necessarily saw myself in a band at a younger age but I knew that I would be involved in this industry in one manner or another.

What music did you listen to while growing up?

Growing up I mostly listened to classical music while I studied piano under Katherine Scott Gillam. My interest in the music from the Romantic Era led me to New Age and World Music and finally the keys to the rest of the musical universe were handed to me in the form of an Elton John’s Greatest Hits record. Shortly thereafter the cassette tape became a CD and glam rock gave way to grunge. A next-door neighbour of mine introduced me to a new band called Nirvana and later the allure of alternative music led me to R.E.M and Radiohead who, to this day, are two of my greatest influences.

Would you mind introducing yourself and tell-ing us what instruments you play?

My name’s Mason and I do the singing and piano playing in a’tris.

Band discography.

Appeal (2005)

Of the Commons [EP] (2007)

Lensing (2008)

a’tris [EP] (2009)

How long has the current band line up been together?

The current line up was established to tour in support of Lensing shortly after its release in 2008.

How did you get to meet each other?

Mike and I met back in 2003 at Berklee College of Music. At that time, we were both taking a mandatory writing skills course. Our class was fairly advanced so the professor would usually allow a student to share his or her music before beginning his instruction. This opportunity became an outlet for me and Mike took an interest in what I was doing. One day he approached me to discuss collaborating on a project and we agreed to do some sessions for a couple of my tunes. The band we put together for those recordings became a’tris.

While the line up has changed over time. I believe that Mike’s continued involvement with the band as our producer and as my writing partner has allowed us to maintain a degree of continuity between records.

Mason Taylor,lead singer and keyboard player in a’tris, kindly answers some questions for us.

“Terry Gilliam - if you’re reading this, can my people talk to your people? “

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capture thoughts with a tape recorder and then send those recordings out via parcel post. I’m glad that I don’t have to do that for this project

Real time feedback is extremely helpful in crafting a song - or anything else for that matter - so the advent of webcams and in-stant messenger programs have assisted us in that respect as well.

Which software do you use?

Nate and I are GarageBand guys. Travis swears by Logic and Mike and Ben use Digital Performer for music editing. Finale is the one program we can all seem to agree on as each of us uses it for nota-tion. Reason and Waves often find their way into the mix and the list of plug-ins and miscellaneous software that’s used to help us create our songs could probably take up a couple of pages.

Any new recordings planned?

We’re just beginning to record a new batch of songs for what we hope will be our third full-length record.

What/ Who do you listen to when chilling out?

Dr. Phil’s warm and soothing voice.

When is the new album released?

Principal writing for this project began after we got off the Lensing tour. I’m really excited about the new material and hope to share it with you soon. Please visit us at atrishq.com for more details.

Do you find the process of recording enjoyable and does it get easier the more you do?

I feel that the tone of a session is really set by the team with whom we work. I’m honoured to have collaborated with some incredibly talented and genuinely good people who’ve truly been inter-ested in doing what was best for our music. Sometimes doing so makes for a comfortable experience and other times it doesn’t but - at the end of the day - I believe that we always make our best effort to serve the song.

How long have you played your instrument?

I started taking piano lessons at six or seven and have been playing ever since. At the moment I’m travelling and do not have access to a keyboard. Let me tell you, after playing my instrument al-most every day for 19 years, I’ve begun to experience withdrawal-like symptoms from not being able to play a note or two.

What was your first keyboard?

I was given a Sesame Street keyboard at the age of four or so. I’m pretty confident that my obsession with the Oscar the grouch key is what led my parents to book me some lessons.

What is your current equipment?

I travel with a MacBook Pro, MOTU 828, Yamaha P-80 (when possible) and a SHURE Beta-87A and PSM 200

Are you self taught or did you have lessons?

I’ve taught myself enough to botch up the tech-nique that I learned from my lessons.

If you had an unlimited equipment budget what would be on your shopping list?

A 1927 Mason and Hamlin Grand Piano from the original Boston factory and several people stronger than I who could help to transport it to shows.

Do you use the same equipment live as you do when in a studio?

No, the studios don’t like it when you take their gear.

Do you record at a purpose built studio or do you record at home with portable digital equipment or pc/mac with audio software?

We do a little bit of both. Often the guys and I take a Postal Service approach to the creation of our songs in that we venture to the places where it’s more affordable for us to work and then trade ideas in the form of stem files over the internet. I’m very grateful for Apple’s Garageband because I remember very well how I used to have to

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Do you try to capture your ‘live’ sound on re-cordings or do you think that the ‘live’ sound and recorded sound should be different experiences for your fans?

We always endeavour to realise our songs by embracing the medium in which we’re working and feel that it’s best to do what seems most appropriate in the given setting.

Do you have any favourite tracks on your new album?

I’m particularly proud of how “Dark Lotus” turned out. Have you seen the music video we did with Reza Dolatabadi for it? I’m really stoked about how we were further able to expand on the song with that collaboration.

Who are the main song writers for the band?

Mike and I are the chief writers but recently Ben and Nate have made some fantastic contributions. I’m looking forward to seeing how our co-writing evolves over time.

Do you write songs only about personal experences?

I believe that one of a’tris’ songs was about a personal experience but I’ve forgotten which one.

Do you find song writing easy or difficult?

Challenging is the word that comes to mind. Almost all of our songs involve research and it can take a lot of time and energy to figure out how the information we gather fits together cohesively.

Is there anyone whom you would like to col-laborate with on writing songs or performing?

At the moment I’m on a big Metric kick. I think their most recent record, Fantasies, is outstanding and I would very much love to work with Emily Haines. If you’re not familiar with Metric I’d highly recommend checking out what they.re doing at http://ilovemetric.com.

Who are your favourite song writers?

George and Ira Gershwin

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Do you use any websites like ‘Reverbnation’ or ‘Soundclick’?

Absolutely! - We’re always looking for new ways to share our music and connect with people! Most recently we created a profi le on Kerchoonz.com. The folks there are still in beta but their site is already extremely intuitive and I’m really excited about the innovation they’re bringing to their platform. It seems like everyone in the industry is starting a dot com these days so it’s diffi cult for a Start-up to establish footing.

Another company I’d like to see succeed is ArtistData. ArtistData envisions an environment in which musicians can connect with all of their fans across each of their social networks with the push of a single button. I don’t mean to stand on a soap box here but the current operating method being used by most companies in this space is absolute-ly ridiculous. Posting one blog with proper formatting can take me up to three hours on all of our networks because of the vari- ations in the code that I have to input in order to properly present my messages. I understand that these businesses are propped up by the revenue they generate from advertisers but the bottom line is bands are growing tired of running rat race

Do you think such sites are good for independ-ent and unsigned artists?

Certainly but they are not a marketing panacea. Like any other aspect of a campaign artists will only get out what they put in.

What would you call your style of music?

Hopefully profitable

Which countries have you gigged in?

Thus far we’ve focused our touring efforts in States. I would love to expand them to include other countries but the cost associated with putting tours of that magnitude together has prohibited us from moving forward internationally.

Which countries would be at the top of your list to tour?

Well Nate and Ben are from Canada and Israel respectively so we’d all like to travel to their home countries. The UK would definitely be at the top of our list as well because we’ve been receiving some incredible support there from our latest radio campaign. If anyone who’s reading this wants to sponsor a band we’d love to hear from you!

Who would you like to tour with?

At this point I’d love to work with anyone who could help a’tris get guarantees which would al-low us to better afford our groceries.

How do you promote your music and get your music to new fans?

We really make our best effort to build personal relationships with our fans by always making ourselves accessible. I believe that audiences these days truly want to connect with musicians on a deeper level. For that reason we actively manage about twenty different online social networks and return every message and comment. When we play shows we also always walk off stage after our set to meet and great everyone who came out to support us. I’m very much a face-to-face type guy though so, as much as I enjoy responding to mail, I truly love getting to meet people in person so be sure to check out our tour schedule as it becomes available at www.atrishq.com!

“.......nearly arrested because a bank thought we were intending to rob them“

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Do you get nervous before a gig- how do you calm down?

I can’t say that I really get nervous before a gig. I’m usually just glad to be there. :) Before a show I often step out of the venue to sit in our van for a half an hour or so. During that time I use a warm up routine developed by Jeannie Deva to prepare myself physically and mentally for the gig. I look forward to the day that I might have my own room in which to do this but am grateful for modern technology as my iPod allows me to move this routine to another location if necessary. I can’t imagine carrying a boom box around all the time these days. Can you believe we used to do that?

What are your day job if you have one?

I often go back to repairing watches when the music isn’t paying the bills.

Has your music been used on any film sound-tracks?

One of our songs will shortly be featured in an in-dependent film. I look forward to blogging about that on a’tris HQ in the future!

Is it something you’d like to get involved in if the opportunity came along?

You bet! Terry Gilliam - if you’re reading this can my people talk to your people?

Is there anything you’d like to add?

Mickey Rourke, I’m glad you’re back!

Thanks Mason.

Do you think the internet overall is a good or bad thing for new artists?

It is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. It’s simply another piece to a seemingly amorphous puzzle.

How did you come up with name?

It came in a vision, a man appeared in a flaming pie and said unto us, “from this day on you are a’tris with an a”.

Have you ever entered any ‘battle of the bands’ competitions?

Yes. One of our shows turned into a battle of the bands when a couple members from a hardcore punk act we were billed with in Cincinnati Ohio decided to jump into a mosh pit and start push-ing their fans towards where we were stowing our gear.

Where can you see yourselves in ten years?

I could see myself becoming the head of the Budgeting Directorate of the Ministry of Defense and subsequently assuming the role of Financial Advisor to the Chief of Staff.

What’s your best/worst experience at a gig?

The better stories actually always seem to stem from the efforts we make to get to our shows. Thus far we have been:

-run off an interstate on two occasions,

-nearly arrested because a bank thought we were intending to rob them when we came inside with what I suppose they later realised was a safety deposit box to do our accounting

-nearly arrested for sleeping on what we later learned was government property.

-assisted by the NYPD and a SWAT team in removing gear from our overturned trailer in New York City ...and we’ve now successfully blown all of our van’s tires!

Would you sign with a major record company?

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Do you work with other musicians or are you purely a solo artist?

I work with whoever wants to work with me. I am not against the idea of starting a band.

Who are the musicians in your (live and/or re-cording) band?

I was working with a guitarist for about a year and a half and we parted ways before I started work on “That Was Close EP”. I needed a tighter sound. I worked with a piano player, a cellist, a violinist/viola player and a drummer. My engineer and I played the bass and guitar parts. All vocals are mine.

What made you decide to be a solo artist and not want to be in a band?

As I said, I have no objection to being in a band. I think you need the right people before you go for the right sound. I just haven’t met the right people yet.

Did you always want to be in a band when you were growing up?

I wanted to be everything.

What music did you listen to while growing up?

Whatever my mum liked. It wasn’t until I left high school that I truly developed my own taste. The Beatles were the first band that helped me discover the power of modern music. U2 and Radiohead have sustained that.

How long have you played your instruments?

Five years.

What was your first guitar?

A small acoustic. I remember buying a new one because it was too small for my mutant fingers.

What is your current equipment?

Just myself and an acoustic for gigs. If I have other people playing, I might play a semi-acoustic.

Would you mind introducing yourself and tell-ing us what instruments you play?

My name is Ben McMaster and I am a singer/songwriter/guitarist. I write what I think you could classify as alternative/pop/rock songs. That’s a lot of slashes!

Artist discography.

“That Was Close EP”. Available now on iTunes, Napster and other online retailers, is just now getting radio airplay. My next aim is to have an official launch.

How long have you been a solo artist?

Too long. About 5 years.

An interview with Ben McMaster

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Do you find song writing easy or difficult?

I find it to be the most natural thing in the world. Of all aspects of music, it’s probably the thing I enjoy the most. And my source of inspiration could be anything. These days, I’ve taken to a “let’s see what happens” approach in which a melody will come and that will be one part and then I wait for another part of the song. Lyrical content is usually free-flowing. I don’t apply subject matter to song until after it’s written. Then I may tweak words.

Is there anyone who you would like to collabo-rate with on writing songs or performing?

What, famous people? Sure. Bono, Neil Finn, Bob Dylan, David Bowie, Thom Yorke. Ever heard of a band called Augie March? The best band in Australia. I’d love to write lyrics with their lead singer, Glenn Richards.

Who are your favourite song writers?

I think I just mentioned them. I’m quite impressed with a couple of other modern artists, such as Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Muse, The Killers, The Panics, Hoosiers, Coldplay, Feist.

How do you promote your music and get your music to new fans?

Any means possible. Gigs are not a very financially viable option for me at the moment. I have been doing internet promotion for a long time, as well as simply meeting new people and putting them onto my music. I’m good at that.

Do you use any websites like ‘Reverbnation’ or ‘Soundclick’?

I’m with both of those, but I don’t use them often.

There are a couple of others like them that I have found useful: Number One Music, Worldsings, iSound, Amie Street. Even standard ones like MySpace, Facebook and YouTube. Especially YouTube.

Do you think the internet overall is a good or bad thing for new artists?

Overall, good. I think internet radio is probably the best of it.

Are you self taught or did you have lessons?

Both.

If you had an unlimited equipment budget what would be on your shopping list?

That would unleash a power too great and terrible to imagine.

Do you use the same equipment live as you do when in a studio?

I use whatever I can get my hands on. In any situ-ation.

Do you record at a purpose built studio or do you record at home with portable digital equipment or pc/mac with audio software?

I record outside home.

Any new recordings planned?

Planned, no. In my head, yes.

Do you try to capture your ‘live’ sound on re-cordings or do you think that the ‘live’ sound and recorded sound should be different experiences for your fans?

I think it’s a balance. When playing things live, there needs to be less analysis of the music, more about the experience, I think.

Do you have any favourite tracks on your

album?

I still like “That Was Close” as a slow-building rock song, but “Lies In Wait” has a kind of centre of gravity to it.

Do you write songs/tracks only about personal experiences?

No.

Which countries would be at the top of your list to tour?

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Is there anything you’d like to add?

I would just like to add that I am very grateful for this opportunity to be interviewed and I look for-ward to sharing it with fans of my music very soon. God bless and peace out!

Cheers,

Ben

Do you think such sites are good for independ-ent and unsigned artists?

They can be. It depends on what the artist does with them. The problem, I find, is that consumers are so quick to change social networking sites that the artist becomes confused and has to start over again, which can cost time and money. The best thing for an unsigned act is to become signed.

Would you sign with a major record company?

If the deal’s right, yes.

What would you call your style of music?

As mentioned before, Alternative/Pop/Rock.

How do you relax?

I don’t.

What’s your best/worst experience at a gig?

One venue in Footscray, Melbourne, called “The Nic” had me on. I had a band, but it was not a very focussed band. And the venue operators were horrible to us. That was the worst it got. But at the same gig, just when it looked like nobody would show, about thirty of my friends turned up. That was a good thing.

Do you get nervous before a gig- how do you calm down?

I don’t get nervous any more. I make sure I’m in a constructive state of mind. It’s not as hard as you think. I think it’s like anything; practice makes perfect.

What is your day job if you have one?

Various.

Would you like to be a full time working musi-cian or are you happy with things as they are?

I would like to be a full-time working musician.

Has your music been used on any film soundtracks?

Not yet, no, but that could be a possibility.

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GIG MEMORIES

the global gigand event archive

all genres • setlistsphotos • discussions

videos • reviews

a free resource for all bands, artists and fans

www.gigmemories.com

There have been so many incarnations since then. We’ve put out four albums, each one metamor-phosing our dance music ethic further. We started out more traditional, ended up more futuristic and electro, always with strong dance and pop ele-ments.

Jen: Do any of you have a musical background?

Erin : I grew up in a musical household. My dad is a blues musician (guitarist/singer), and I grew up having house parties in our home, going to folk festivals, and generally being surrounded by music. But started playing classical flute (had to be different!). Eventually, discovering that it was in my genes, I switched to guitar. First acoustic (I play acoustic blues too, like my dad), and then picked up an electric for the first time to start this band.

Jim Countryman grew up with less of a musical background, although he sought out music and was an avid listener throughout his teenage years and beyond. He has one of those encyclopedic minds for popular music -- everything from rock to metal to pop. He went to way more big concerts than me. He had a failed attempt to play drums in elementary school, but lost interest after his mom wouldn’t buy him anything more than a drum practice pad. He picked up bass in college, and fell in love. He was in several bands in his early 20’s, including a great 90’s Boston band called Usalos. We both have always had a strong DIY aesthetic, and neither of us attended music school.

We’ve had many other musicians in our band over the years. Many of them have been music students at Berklee or New England Conservatory. We’ve had horn players, percussionists, keyboard players, and even some African musicians (talking drum, dun-dun drums), guitarists, and many many drum-mers. Currently we’re a 3-piece (looking for a key-boardist if you know one!) so the other member is drummer Ryan Dryburgh. He’s just graduated from Berklee, and has been playing drums for years.

Jen: Let’s start by telling us your name and your significance in your group.

Erin : Erin Harpe, a.k.a. Empress Erin - I’m the band’s lead singer, guitarist and electronics pro-grammer, adding electronics and samples to our show. Also I’m in charge of getting the crowd riled up!

Jen: Where are you from?

Erin : The band is based out of Jamaica Plain (JP), the coolest neighborhood in Boston, where we practice and record in our basement studio.

Jim’s originally from Kingston, NY and I’m from the Washington, DC area (as is our drummer).

Jen: How did Lovewhip come about?

Erin : It was dreamed up by me and Jim in Jim’s bedroom in JP in 1998. His band Usalos had just broken up, and I’d never been in a band before. We were listening to a lot of ecclectic music from Captain Beefheart, Johnny Cash, Otis Redding, ska, to some African music I’d brought back from my semester abroad in Kenya in college. We shared a love of African music and loved listening to the Africa Kabisa radio show on local college radio. The initial idea was to take our ecclectic influences (African soukous and highlife especially) and form a new kind of dance music. We called it Booty Pop, which morphed into Electro Booty Pop. Kind of like what the Talking Heads, the Police, and the English Beat did (to name a few). We got a practice space and started inviting musicians down to jam until we found a group.

Interviews with Jen

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Lovewhipelectro booty pop!

www.lovewhip.net

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Jen: What’s your favorite song to perform live?

Erin : From our last album, Virtual Booty Machine has always been a really fun song to play live. We often use a strobe light for that one, and wear goggles/sunglasses! From the new album, I think it’s a toss up between Wrecking Machine and Let Go. Gets the crowd going!!!

Jen: How many videos have been made from your music, are there any plans to make more?

Erin : We’ve made two official videos, although the first, Bouncehall, was made by students at BFVF film/video school in Boston and is more fun-ny than professional. The second video we made is Gimme That, which was made with our friends at Mystic Mirada. We do have plans to make more videos. We’re planning on making some for our new album. Stay tuned!

Jen : What kind of process goes into making videos?

Erin : For the Bouncehall video, it was all writ-ten and filmed by the students. We asked some fans to come down and be extras. It was a hoot. It was shown on the big screen at a local theatre for a Boston Music Video showcase. For Gimme That, our friend Carlos Villamil wrote a storyline -- storyboarded it out. There were two full days of shooting by Alex Gomez of Mystic Mirada. We all worked together on costumes, location (getting permission for free use of several spaces around JP). It stars myself and Jim, (and our friend

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Sean Slaughter as the stand-in for our drummer - who had just quit) as well as our dancers -- the Whipettes. They did all their own choreography. Jim plays a “bad guy” who steals my bike while I am busking on the street for money. But it has a happy ending! We have a handful of extras that we plucked off the street. They were awesome! There was a lot of footage, so Carlos and Alex slaved over it for a couple of months. They had something like 5 or 6 hours of video to whittle down to around 3 minutes. It turned out great! Many thanks to Mystic Mirada!

Jen : Since your music is fun, popish and elec-tronic about what age do you attract the most?

Erin : Well you might think that we’d attract a crowd in their early 20’s to 30’s. But I really think it is more about mindset than age. We attract fun people who want something different, fun and happy. People who like to dance. We have yet to find an age group that doesn’t like us. From chil-dren to grandparents. Really! For this reason we’ve played a lot of municipal events and festivals, ski resorts, and even weddings. Hey if anyone out there is getting married, look us up!

Jen: What’s your favorite song to perform live?

Erin : From our last album, Virtual Booty Machine has always been a really fun song to play live. We often use a strobe light for that one, and wear goggles/sunglasses! From the new album, I think it’s a toss up between Wrecking Machine and Let Go. Gets the crowd going!!!

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Jen: What would you like to tell your fans & new found fans?

Erin : We are here to make you happy! If you come out to a show, you’re going to have a great time and dance all night! Our new album is the best thing we’ve done yet, the perfect summertime album full of summertime jamz.We’re going to have a very interesting release, where anything you buy from us at our shows or on our site (www.lovewhip.net) -- t-shirts, sexy thongs, hoodies... you’ll get the music free with purchase.

We’re also going to have CD’s available, for those of you “old school” music consumers! We appreciate all the support we’ve gotten through the years. Thanks party people!!!! Please write to us and let us know where to play in your area!

Jen: Thanks so much for the opportunity to interview you. Have a great day!

Erin Thanks so much Jen. You have a great day to!

Jen: Do you all listen to other types of music besides the type you make and perform?

Erin : Blues, hip-hop, African music, reggae, just about anything but jambands and mind music. We really like body and soul music.

Jen: What are your ambitions or dreams for Lovewhip?

Erin : Our humblest of dreams has always been to be able to eek out a living solely from music. We’re not there yet, and in this economy it’s a lot to ask. But we’re willing to sacrifice... we work very hard at it. Our plans include playing many more festivals throughout the country, Europe and beyond, and promoting our upcoming album (our best yet!) “Love Electric” internationally. We’ll see where that takes us! Love Electric comes out this July. Go to our website www.lovewhip.net to sign up for our mailing list to find out more.

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Life as a Rock StarTales from the real world with Bodies frontman

Clint Hellwww.somojo.net/bodies

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As soon as we got on the net, on all the new communities that popped up (and still are), I noticed some-thing really quickly – something that amazed me: People seemed to think we were rock stars! Now THAT, I can tell you, was something new to me.

How I noticed this was through various comments, all going something like “Wow! Thanx for replying, but is it really you?” or “”Geez, that’s the first time I got a personal reply from a rock star! Thank you”. And to me, I was still just a regular bloke. I still had the same full time job, took the kids to day-care and school and had my music as a hobby, still only rehearsing once a week and gigging about once a month/every second month.Same as always. And no tours whatsoever, just playing around our hometown Stockholm in Sweden. So let’s face it: We really had no plans to go anywhere but couldn’t give up on our music. So we kept going ‘cos it’s just so much fun. And settled our dreams a long time ago to be happy doing just what we are doing. In my mind there’s definitely no “rock star-ism” there. But people on the net obviously seemed to think otherwise.

Perhaps it’s a question of definition. I mean, exactly WHEN does a person become a rock star? Has it got something to do with a person’s attitude? Or that he or she is in a band? Or is it when that person can actually make that passion for music a living? Or is it simply distance?

I don’t have a clear answer to that question but I know for sure that there is NO-ONE close to me that sees me, or any of the members in my band, as a rock star. Then again, does family and friends of Chris Cornell or James Hetfield or PJ Harvey see them as rock stars? I’m not sure, but I don’t think so. I think it would be kind of a weird relation if you saw your brother, sister, mother, father or lover as a rock star. Perhaps a certain amount of distance is needed to see someone as that. Or else they transform into people, just like you and me.

A bloke I know said he follows me on twitter. And he also follows Chris Cornell. He said it was basically like reading about the same person. Difference being I have a quite different full time job than Chris does. And – at times – I’m really happy with what I do. What if my passion for music became a full time job?

Rock on,

How long have you been involved in the photo-graphic industry?

I’ve been a full time Professional Photographer for 18 years but grew up in a house full of photog-raphy. My dad was president of the Royal photo-graphic Society in the mid seventies.

What is your background/training?

Self taught

Have you won any awards?

Main award was as a finalist in the Sony World Photographic Awards 2008

Have you held any exhibitions?

A couple with my ‘Sea & Symmetry’ series (Apple Gallery)

Who have you photographed/worked for? ( famous people/clients etc)

Loads … Coca Cola, Budweiser, Visa, Virgin, Boots … Gordon Ramsay, Brian Blessed, Joanna Lumley and Princess Anne!

Is the ‘Fine Art Print’ and exhibition route, something you’d like to get involved with/do more of in the future?

Yes.

What types of photography do you do? (Adver-tising, Commercial, Portraits, Stock, Weddings, etc)

Mainly advertising and editorial, people based, plus stock photography.

Which of these if you could, would you spend 100% of your time working on?

Beauty and portraits.

Is there a type/style of photography that you haven’t yet tried that interests you?

Nope … think I have photographed most things in most styles (not always well !).

What is the worst experience you’ve had on a professional shoot?

Grumpy clients with egos who don’t want to be photographed.

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Photography by Rob Wilkinson

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What is the best experience you’ve had on a professional shoot?

Lots … being stuck in Barbados for three extra days because of no flights out.

What is the hardest part of being a professional photography in today’s business climate?

Getting clients … then getting them to pay up.

Do you work with digital, film or both?

Digital these days.

Has the availability of digital cameras and im-aging software had an effect on your day to day business?

I now spend hours in front of the computer but I suppose that is better than spending all those hours in a small fume filled dark room!

Do you feel that the internet and online photo-graphic agencies are good for the photographic industry and photographers?

So far I don’t think they have made much differ-ence (not for me anyway). Have you seen a change in the stock photogra-

phy industry in the last few years?

Yes, prices and quality has dropped .. plus too many amateurs flooding the market with bad cheap images.

Do you think things are going to continue in a downward direction for stock photography?

Yes .. sadly.

Who do you think is responsible for the current situation? The end user wanting lower prices, the image sellers trying to undercut the com-petition or photographers for allowing it to happen?

A bit of both but photographers should be more responsible and realise that without them there are no images.

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Do you think that most photographers are as knowledgeable as they could be about

copyright law and image licensing?

No most don’t seem to have a clue.

Why do you think so many photographers are happy to sell their work for such small amounts of money available from ‘microstock’ agencies?

They are just happy that someone will publish their image …

Doesn’t that just make it harder to get a realistic licensing fee at other agencies?

Yes.

How do you promote your work?

Online portfolio, direct mail but still most work comes in by word of mouth.

Lots of people recommend social networks for promoting small businesses. Is it something you have considered?

Yes … tried it, didn’t like it … takes up too much time and I would rather have a life and be out

taking photos.

Who is your favourite photographer?

Javier Vallhonrat.

Do you use a mac or pc?

Mac

Do you think it is important to choose one over the other in terms of producing the final re-sults?

No … just that mac looks good if clients see you working.

What is your favourite piece of photographic kit you currently own?

My Fisheye lens

Given an unlimited budget, what would be on your photographic equipment shopping list?

Nikon D3X … for me it is not really about the equipment but the image.

What do you think the future holds for profes-sional photographers?

A bit bleak for some but some will survive (me!).

Anything else you’d like to ad?

Thank you for doing this interview with me.

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with a humble pencil.

Do you work from life, from photographs or from imagination?

I use a digital camera as a sketchbook, trying the composition out from slightly different angles to find what strikes me as the strongest for the effect that’s attracted me to the subject, which is frequently some light effect that my lack of skill as a photographer spectacularly fails to capture adequately. Though having said that, the overall composition has to be strong too, not necessarily conventional, some potential material is discarded because the composition is too weak.

Who is your favourite artist?

How long have you got? I have favourites for particular aspects.

What do you think is the most important influence in your art?

The two major influences in my works are the wa-tercolours of John Middleton that demonstrate to me the ideas of tonality that Whistler spoke of.

Where do you do your work?

My studio is a Durox building block, a large sheet of 5-ply board and a cushion to sit on in a semi lo-tus position – works for me. Add elbow room plus 2 adjustable strip lamps for night working. Music and coffee are optional extras.

What is more important to you; content or technique?

Probably content on balance.

Norfolk artist Janine Flynn creating fine art Sunbeams by Janine Flynn

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How important is the subject matter to your artwork?

I won’t begin a piece unless there is some element of the composition that I feel is worth devoting my attention to it. The images I’ve chosen to draw have often appealed for the exciting challenge, for instance the Port Isaac drawing appealed as much for the challenge of capturing the qualities of the cliff and it was that mysterious, misty atmosphere in the Gull Rock drawing. The only type of rock I usually see has Greatt Yarmouth written down the middle – so the Cornish rocks were a welcome change. But the real subject in my drawings is the fleeting effects of natural light and the actions of seeing and looking. Water holds a particular fascination as a compositional element because of the reflec-tive quality that bounces the light around, that’s what I was trying to capture in Venice Rio and in Lady Pamela.

What is your favourite period in art history?

Now, because we have a wealth of heritage to draw on.

Which is more important to you, the subject of your painting, or the way it is executed?

I’d say they were interdependent because I don’t start until I’m happy that the subject has potential to stand as a finished piece. Once the decision is made though, it becomes a process of translating what the eye sees into a series of marks on the pa-per that supports the way I want it to look as best I can, while retaining the resemblance to forms in the real world. An analogy can be made to speech in that language without modulation of tone and pitch sounds flat and monotonous so that a vari-ety and range of marks adds the pitch and tone to a drawing surface. I’m learning new variations and combinations all the time.

Closely related to technique are the series of conscious adjustments made to tones and balance during the technical part. My inadequacies as a photographer actually become a benefit in that when I view the shots on screen, it’s that process of criticism pointing out this is the ‘thing’ I want to show, that needs bringing up, that needs push-ing back. Most of the finished idea is complete before printing out the reference material so that the technical part of putting marks on paper can become quite tedious in practice.

Once the drawing is begun with this ‘plan’ waiting to come into the world, it then becomes a process of translation. The qualities of the marks become a separate compositional element. For instance passages in Lost and Found and in Venice Rio with strong shadows falling over the textures, I wanted to separate the two elements, which I did simply by drawing in the tones of the underlying textures and placing the shadow over these by using a different type of mark but still maintaining the underlying forms. I feel this gives the shadows an almost tangible form and physical presence that I like – it also keeps the surface interesting.

Do you work certain hours each day or only when you are inspired to work?

Unfortunately, there is more to doing this than just drawing! Increasingly, it’s becoming something that gets done when the other stuff is out of the way – not quite what I anticipated.

Port Isaac by Janine Flynn

Gull Rock by Janine Flynn

Venice Rio by Janine Flynn

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What is the role of art in society and do you think that role is changing with the advances of technology?

Art can be a very effective vehicle to communicate concepts that are difficult to express in language. It is true that a picture can be worth a thousand words. I think that the greatest and unrivalled strength in pictorial art is still the ability for that ‘stand and stare’ moment that captures something of the sublime, the glory or the awe of the sheer wonder of our world and communicates that wordlessly in a moment – I don’t think technology can change that, although I think it is vulnerable to exploitation and manipulation.

Do you prefer a perfect smooth technique or a more energetic expressive technique and why?

I would say that I combine both – but others may hold a different view about that

What is your favourite painting/piece of art and why?

The greatest piece of art I’ve ever stood in front of was Ecce Homo by Titian, owned by the Dublin Gallery. I don’t know why – I was looking at the painting, the way he had painted it and I was overwhelmed by tears that I had to turn away to control them.

What technique do you use?

I use cross hatching predominantly to build up ar-eas of tonality that don’t necessarily correspond to the physical structures of the subject. I start at the top left hand corner and work my way towards the bottom right hand corner. I rarely lay down a base drawing - Lady Pamela was an exception because of the strong perspective of the boat shed but that was no more than guidelines. Watching a drawing develop is similar to a clean stripe across a mirror thick with dust that reveals the image beneath.

My preference is for very sharp pencil points, I sometimes use the side of the point for a few effects. The bulk of the picture will use HB or B; F is perfect for some water effects and 3H is very useful for the finest detail. The stronger darks are probably a 2B if they are detailed, progressively softer leads for less detail. Each large drawing will take at least one pencil of each grade, apart from the 3H, which seems to be almost immortal - I’ve been using that one since Dayboats.

I do use putty rubbers to lift out secondary high-lights, again using a variety of marks and some-times to ‘blot’ an area for an undertone (sorry, I know exactly what this looks like but I can’t describe it). The main highlight is the paper and everything is relative to the surface; keeping that surface brings a sparkle to the whole image. I never smudge or blend as this obliterates the surface, losing the sparkle and I never scratch out highlights, though I will use a sharp 3H point to lightly indent the surface before cross hatching over it.

Have you held any exhibitions?

I’ve shown with the Norfolk Contemporary Art So-ciety and will be submitting to the annual Society Graphic Fine Art show in October.

Do you use any online services like ‘imagekind’, ‘redbubble’ or ‘cafepress’?

I looked into using Redbubble; the deciding factor against it for me was the lack of quality control of the prints but there were other issues I felt were inappropriate for my requirements.

What advice would you give to anyone who wanted to take up painting or drawing?

Don’t burn any bridges; give it a go – think of it like singing or dancing, everyone enjoys them without thinking they need to be Pavarotti or Nureyev; buy and experiment with the best qual-ity paper and pigments you can afford – these are a delight to use and will support your efforts; cheaper materials will make you work harder to achieve the same results. I don’t use brushes often but I still buy the best quality I can afford – go to a decent art shop with staff that know their prod-ucts and ask their advice. I recommend Hahnemu-elhe paper, specifically their Britannia in the heavi-est weight for what I do but see what suits the way you want to work.

What are your favourite materials to work with?

Hahnemuele Britannia rag paper, pencils

Is there anything else you would like to add?

No – my head hurts

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www.imisound.com

ALBUM REVIEW

ALBUM: “Silver”

BAND: “3x0”

LABEL: “Daybox Records”

http://imisound.ning.com/profile/3x0

Imagine you have a little time on your hands to get out of the daily routine, a little time to dedicate to yourself, to your body and soul, to search for some inner acceptance that you can’t quite put your finger on. So you sit down on a lawn, lean back against a tree, and express your feelings.

This is Silver. An album recorded over the course of three years in which three years of moments and moods are put to music with a Radiohead breeze tussling the hair, the aroma of a Waters bass, a light touch of synth and an aura of acoustic guitar. And although you may find numerous echoes in the style, in the arrangements and in the compositions, don’t expect to find before you a pompous masterpiece. This is not a masterpiece; it has no intention of being one. The objective is far more minimalistically basic and communicative. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to follow the Album with the booklet in hand, allowing yourself to be guided by the lyrics – written in Italian but translated into English for the British singer John Snell – and also by the images, to be interpreted little by little with each listen. Nothing too refined, the only objective being peace of mind, somewhere between simplicity and the acceptance of those sensations that flow through us every day, influenced by everything that happens around us.

This is the first full-length album produced by 3×0 (pronounced tray-pair-zair-oh) a group from Salerno determined to give a more British sound to their music. The album is defined by the group themselves in the booklet as “a container for three years of life”.

Various situations and sensations, “but only one vast and deep love for the music of the heart”. It is not an album that needs to be understood: let it flow over you, and if it fits, you’ll have no problem accepting it as your mantle of notes.

- Italian review by Francesco Salvatorelli

- Translation into English by Tony Lawson

imisoundmusic from the heart of the mediterranean

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