backinhumanform is Joe Clarke. Originally from Ireland but now based in London, backinhumanform’s debut album dropped in 2019. It was produced by Dean Glover at VIBE Studios in Manchester. All tracks written by Joe Clarke.
In this interview spotlight, I chat with backinhumanform about the latest music, challenges, technology and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
Where are you from and what style of music do you create? (In your own words, not necessarily in marketing terms or by popular genre classifications.)
I’m from Ireland but live in London, U.K. I thought of it as indie rock but some of the feedback – a significant part – thought it was folk. I didn’t think of it as folk because it’s an electric sound, folk to my mind is acoustic, Bert Jansch and so on. A lot of the stuff I’ve written is in 6/8, which is probably why it is identified as folk though. It wasn’t a conscious thing though. Although all of the songs started out life on an acoustic guitar, so maybe that was a factor too.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to keep going?
It was probably a lot to do with my favourite bands – James, John Cale, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Mazzy Star. A desire to write leads me on.
How is this new release different than previous ones? Were you trying to accomplish anything specific?
I took more control over the creation of the songs in the studio, whereas on previous releases I left a lot more to the producer (I wasn’t experienced enough then)
Name one or two challenges you face as an indie musician in this oversaturated, digital music age? How has technology helped you (since we know it does help)?
Promotion. It’s endless. Technology has helped us promote, though, without needing to be signed. But how do you make yourself stand out? Prior to the last 10-15 years you had to catch the notice of a record label. Now you can promote yourself, which is great, but it’s hard to know what is working and what is not. That said, I might have a better answer to that question in a years time.
What was the last song you listened to?
Hafsol by Sigur Ros
Which do you prefer? Vinyl? CDs? MP3s?
CDs. I was brought up with CDs. Vinyl is too bulky and MP3s are too….non-physical. I don’t appreciate them in the same way I appreciate a CD.
How about this one…. Do you prefer Spotify? Apple Music? Bandcamp? Or something else? Why?
Spotify, because that’s what I’m doing the bulk of my promotion on.
Where is the best place to connect with you online and discover more music?
YouTube for free listening and Spotify for streaming.
Why is half-light the only acoustic track on the album?
We tried to “electrify” it, but it was obvious that it wasn’t working. The earlier mixes had a lot more percussion. I stripped that right back so that the vocals were to the fore, and brought that sparse feel into the second half of the song, with the strings. A couple of reviewers referred to it as “eerie”, which was exactly the effect that I was looking for. A bit like Alice by Cocteau Twins.
There’s something odd about Old Man but I can’t quite put my finger on it…
In the verse, there are five beats in every third bar. In the chorus, it’s standard 4/4, so it sounds faster, although it isn’t.
