"..dabbles in styles that span (almost) the entire musical globe. Really, most of their sounds clash in their ideals, but somehow he pulls them together and makes it work.."
Mount Pleasant
Aggrandized Vanguard Sonancy
Mount Pleasant Bio:
"Mount Pleasant" is the musical solo project of Jonathan Phillips, although he has used the name to represent his music since he was a child. He had access to a cassette recorder, which he used to layer guitar and his own voice. Such recordings are used as source material and as textures in many of Phillips' songs.
There have been six full-length releases by Phillips as Mount Pleasant: Claw Friends and Horseshoe Lake in 2008, Rio Joy in 2009, The Flood in 2010, and The Cold War and The Aztecs in 2011. The lyrics are often autobiographical in nature, introspective and mixed quietly.
Hello, how are you?
I am okay I guess. Things have been better/worse. Just making my house presentable.
What are you currently listening to?
Currently as in generally; guitar tone on Dire Straits "Sultans Of Swing", Dub jams, and my girlfriend Madeleine has the Madonna Immaculate Compilation on in the car most of the time which is okay by me. But currently, as in specifically, The Knit Separates.
When did you begin writing music?
Writing actual songs when I was about fourteen, mostly onto a cassette and then recording over it by playing it loud in one cassette player with another cassette going. But probably wrote songs when I was younger on the piano, but not memorable songs.
Was there something in particular that prompted you to begin a musical career?
I don't know if I have a musical career, that seems sort of grandiose. I feel it's a career when you are living off it. But probably just narcissism I guess.
What is the theme on "The Aztecs"?
I liked the idea of The Aztecs as an album title, so I just sort of ran with writing and compiling songs that would work on the album and had about forty that fit the theme. Some of the songs have vague lyrical associations, but essentially I really enjoy the whole end of the Aztec civilization; this sort of idealization of apocalypse, and more sort of general interest in Aztec society so I let all of that kind of inform the album, but only in as much as watching television or the earthquake or getting dumped influenced the album as well; it works as a signifier for me personally, as a point in time. Musically I wanted to make more sort of focused songs structurally, and sort of outsider pop gesturing.
Do you have any side projects we should know about?
I have been working with Jon Lemmon on this project called Paradise, which sort of sounds like 1982 Prince. Other than that, have a band on hiatus called Canterbury Rams with Sam Ellis and we were pretty good. But yeah, the earthquake sort of ruined that option and now the drummer is in Italy or something, and Sam is living in a different city from me.
Is there another genre/sound you would like to explore that you haven't?
I really like Sade "Smooth Operator" at the moment, it used to be on all the time growing up and I have developed a kind of fondness for it. I wouldn't mind making a sincere attempt at it, but I think it would sound sort of ironic. But genuinely love it; it's got to a point where I am sincerely listening to "One More Night" by Phil Collins and George Michael records and really appreciating them. This sort of relativist stance with music, where "When The Morning Comes" by Hall and Oates is something real valuable and pure; but I don't know. I feel kind of constrained by lack of desire to really commit to recording precise songs and lack of actual ability to ever really attempt to making anything other than what I have already made.
The best time to listen to Mount Pleasant is?
I used to like walking around Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham on frosty mornings listening to it. It seems real bad to listen to your own music, but that's probably the only time I would listen to it.
You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
That is a pretty bleak concept, probably "Bach Cello Suites".
Are you living your dream?
Sure.
Thanx Jonathan!
Mount Pleasant is always recording and releasing, I suggest you take a moment and get caught up...
Mount Pleasant
Aggrandized Vanguard Sonancy
Mount Pleasant Bio:
"Mount Pleasant" is the musical solo project of Jonathan Phillips, although he has used the name to represent his music since he was a child. He had access to a cassette recorder, which he used to layer guitar and his own voice. Such recordings are used as source material and as textures in many of Phillips' songs.
There have been six full-length releases by Phillips as Mount Pleasant: Claw Friends and Horseshoe Lake in 2008, Rio Joy in 2009, The Flood in 2010, and The Cold War and The Aztecs in 2011. The lyrics are often autobiographical in nature, introspective and mixed quietly.
Hello, how are you?
I am okay I guess. Things have been better/worse. Just making my house presentable.
What are you currently listening to?
Currently as in generally; guitar tone on Dire Straits "Sultans Of Swing", Dub jams, and my girlfriend Madeleine has the Madonna Immaculate Compilation on in the car most of the time which is okay by me. But currently, as in specifically, The Knit Separates.
When did you begin writing music?
Writing actual songs when I was about fourteen, mostly onto a cassette and then recording over it by playing it loud in one cassette player with another cassette going. But probably wrote songs when I was younger on the piano, but not memorable songs.
Was there something in particular that prompted you to begin a musical career?
I don't know if I have a musical career, that seems sort of grandiose. I feel it's a career when you are living off it. But probably just narcissism I guess.
What is the theme on "The Aztecs"?
I liked the idea of The Aztecs as an album title, so I just sort of ran with writing and compiling songs that would work on the album and had about forty that fit the theme. Some of the songs have vague lyrical associations, but essentially I really enjoy the whole end of the Aztec civilization; this sort of idealization of apocalypse, and more sort of general interest in Aztec society so I let all of that kind of inform the album, but only in as much as watching television or the earthquake or getting dumped influenced the album as well; it works as a signifier for me personally, as a point in time. Musically I wanted to make more sort of focused songs structurally, and sort of outsider pop gesturing.
Do you have any side projects we should know about?
I have been working with Jon Lemmon on this project called Paradise, which sort of sounds like 1982 Prince. Other than that, have a band on hiatus called Canterbury Rams with Sam Ellis and we were pretty good. But yeah, the earthquake sort of ruined that option and now the drummer is in Italy or something, and Sam is living in a different city from me.
Is there another genre/sound you would like to explore that you haven't?
I really like Sade "Smooth Operator" at the moment, it used to be on all the time growing up and I have developed a kind of fondness for it. I wouldn't mind making a sincere attempt at it, but I think it would sound sort of ironic. But genuinely love it; it's got to a point where I am sincerely listening to "One More Night" by Phil Collins and George Michael records and really appreciating them. This sort of relativist stance with music, where "When The Morning Comes" by Hall and Oates is something real valuable and pure; but I don't know. I feel kind of constrained by lack of desire to really commit to recording precise songs and lack of actual ability to ever really attempt to making anything other than what I have already made.
The best time to listen to Mount Pleasant is?
I used to like walking around Sutton Coldfield in Birmingham on frosty mornings listening to it. It seems real bad to listen to your own music, but that's probably the only time I would listen to it.
You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
That is a pretty bleak concept, probably "Bach Cello Suites".
Are you living your dream?
Sure.
Thanx Jonathan!
Mount Pleasant is always recording and releasing, I suggest you take a moment and get caught up...
No comments:
Post a Comment