In this interview spotlight, we chat with Spiricom about their influences, the newest project and more.
Full Q&A along with links and a stream of their album, Anthems for the Afterlife, 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 Fairview, PA and have been living in the Cleveland, OH area for the past 15 years. My band mate, Marc Cody, is from North Canton, OH and currently resides in Columbus, OH. We meet up on the weekends to make our brand of shoegaze/post-rock/ghostcore.
What led you down this path of music and what motivates you to stay the course?
I have been involved with many different musical projects over the years. The aesthetic umbrella under which we work in Spiricom is obviously inspired by the heavy duty questions of life and death. Several years ago, I lived in an old Victorian that was extremely haunted — residual haunting, poltergeist activity and moving objects. There were times living there that I questioned my sanity until others experienced the same happenings. My experience living there ignited a desire to know the truth about our existence on this mortal coil. I found these themes a little more interesting to explore than screaming about the government or complaining about failed romances. I’ll leave that to the other bands.
Who or what are your biggest influences when it comes to your creativity?
I always dug innovative bands with a collective recording label. I’m referring to labels like Wax Trax, 4AD, Factory, Creation, Constellation Records and Discord.
Sometimes working within parameters can help you overcome creative blocks. I can find it overwhelming trying to explore every sound my synthesizer, drum or guitar can make. I like limiting myself to certain sounds and aesthetic choices. Marc and I focus on making Spiricom have a SOUND. You can obviously hear influences, but I like to think we have something unique here.
How is your new release different than previous ones? Did you set out to accomplish anything specific?
We set out on this release to push the contortion of our instruments to get otherworldly sounds and textures. We didn’t want to be long-winded with our song craft. I think many artists who fall into the “experimental” category forget about melody and hooks. You can still push the envelope with interesting song arrangements and instrumentation without dissonance and boredom. Just because your project is unlistenable does not give you more street credibility.
Do you face any challenges as an indie musician in a digital age? On the flip side, how has technology helped you (if it has)?
I think the main challenge is getting through all the noise. The internet is overloaded with garbage, and at times that makes it impossible for anyone to take notice. We are a studio-only band, and without touring it’s always going to be difficult to get the music out there. However, we do reach a lot of people in Europe and Asia who seem to get what we are about. It restores our faith in humanity to know that people still find value in album music. If I see one more person listening to music through their cell phone’s speaker, I’m gonna jump! How did we go from hi-fi systems to compressed audio though a 1/4 inch speaker?
How do you feel about streaming services? Any romantic attachments to the physical formats: vinyl, 8-track, cassettes, CDs?
I like to stream 80’s hair metal when I’m swimming in my pool, but other than that I’m not a fan. I don’t need to beat a dead horse about how they don’t adequately compensate artists for their music. My main issue is that it promotes a one-song-and-done listening culture. Marc and I are “album listening” guys. We love how a record can explore different emotions and textures. I don’t think you’ll hear us say, “Hey, put on ‘Raping a Slave’ by Swans, and when you’re done, put on ‘Motherfucker=Redeemer’ by Godspeed.” Not gonna happen. Slow down and take in the album.
I still buy CDs. I don’t trust my hard drive. Yes, I have a 128 gig iPhone that is loaded with music, but I don’t listen to it through the built-in speaker! I think reel-to-reel is coming back. I listened to one a while ago, and it sounded pretty amazing. Maybe it was the dirty tape heads giving it a warm ambience. I’m sure some hipster band will be releasing their material on one soon.
Where can we follow you online and hear more music?
Our music is available on all digital distributers and streaming services. Check out full album streams at https://spiricom.bandcamp.com/.
Our official website is http://www.spiricom.org/.
Anything else before we sign off?
We are excited about people hearing the new record. However, we are most excited about getting back in the studio.
Winter is coming. The Ohio winters are cold and dark, and we are planning to start working on a new album in October.
