THE FORUM INTERVIEWS… FRAGILE STATE!
March 30th, 2004 by soyo
Soyo rounded up a bunch of purple people and got them to hurl questions at Fragile State. The duo stood up to the onslaught with wit, warmth and humour – and here is the result.
Soyo: Who are you and what do you do?
Ben: ″We are Fragile State, Neil Cowley and myself, Ben Mynott. We have just released our second album, ‘Voices from the Dust Bowl’, on Bar De Lune.″
Sunflower Kate: How did you get together/ meet / fall in musical love?
Ben: ″I was working for a record company, doing press and marketing, and Neil was a session player and used to come down to the studios a lot. We became good friends and had the idea of working together. We recorded the single ‘Nocturnal Beats’ around 4 years ago, and we received some great press reviews and DJ plays. We were asked to do an album, but we didn’t want to make an album of just house music, we wanted to make an album that fused and brought together all the music we loved and listened to – soul, jazz, classical and soundtrack music. We wanted to make an album of beautiful soundscapes using lots of Fender Rhodes, lots of strings and other interesting instruments that we both love (French Horns, Theramin, Wurlitzer…). ‘The Facts And The Dreams’ was the result, and was named ‘Album Of The Year’ by The Big Chill, Robert Elms (BBC London), and B&S Magazine. ‘Voices From The Dust Bowl’ is our new album, and we are both very proud of it.
Orb: What has been your favourite gig so far? And if you say Eastnor 2003, what’s your second favourite?
Ben: ″It was Eastnor – that was an amazing experience, and an amazing weekend. Otherwise it would be the Spring Chill at Cargo last March, really nice vibe and people. We haven’t done many gigs, which is something we’re working on to change at the moment.″
Soyo: Which do feel happiest with, ‘The Facts And The Dreams’ or ‘Voices From The Dust Bowl’?
Neil: ″I am happier with ‘Voices From The Dust Bowl’. It’s good to do an album which feels like a baring of the soul. The first one was more geared towards a headspace, which suited many people just fine. This one contained many more emotional highs and lows during the making, I think as a result of being so attached to it and so determined to treat it as a catharsis. It’ll be interesting to see if people can get along with some detail and intimacy mixed in with their ‘chill’.″
Sketchy: The Facts and the Dreams saved my life last January, turbulent times, tequila hangover, 5am flight in blizzard, sunrise from above the clouds, soggy eyed hippy. How does it feel to move people?
Neil: ″It’s so lovely to actually hear first hand accounts of people’s experiences with and around the album. For the majority of the time I have no idea of whether our material is sitting well with people, or whether it is making its way to the recesses of people’s CD shelves. The thought of moving people with sound in some emotive way without actually turning up at their house is, I suppose, a very empowering thing. Lucky we have such good manners! To move people must ultimately mean that there is a common thread running between us. That makes me feel that the family that I belong to extends further than these four walls. That certainly gives one a feeling of security. I wonder if your moving experiences tie in with the emotions that are being portrayed or at least reflected upon from our side of the record shop counter?″
Soyo: Do you feel insulted if your music gets classed as ‘Chill Out’?
Ben: ″Not at all. The thing now is that there are so many genres and sub-genres. What do they all mean? At the end of the day, it’s either music that you like or you don’t like. Music that moves you or it doesn’t. Chill Out is a term that many people accept, and I think Chill Out is as much of a way of life as it is musical art form.″
Duck: Do you think Chill Out music sometimes strays into the world of prog rock? If so, is there anything wrong with that?
Neil: ″It depends of course which end of the prog rock spectrum you mean? For my part I would hope that any prog rock leanings from Fragile State would be from the ‘Frank Zappa’ direction rather than ‘Yes’ or their ilk. When I listened to our album back for the first time after making it, I definitely thought that ‘Paper Tiger’ had an element of that, and I thought it was all the better for it. Maybe the ‘classically trained’ have got their hands on the ‘Chill’ genre the way they did on rock. My musical training would put me in that category I’m afraid. But don’t worry. I expect that I will be burnt at the stake in the not too distant future; hailed as the self indulgent destroyer of all that is credible and end up on ‘through the keyhole’ sitting next to Tim Rice.″
Enchanted Gordon: Would you ever consider working with a regular vocalist? Which singers would you dream of getting on a Fragile State album?
Neil: ″Oh how I love the pressure from all angles to have a vocalist. There’s always someone describing the rich rewards for employing one. The commercial potential, the crossover potential, the artistic potential. It used to lead me to ponder for days on end on changing our musical approach to accommodate one. Then I thought…. No, Bollocks!! It wouldn’t be us then would it?? People will either have to get it or go buy the Sophie Ellis Bextor for their vocal dance crossover fix. Having said all that…..I’ve been in love with Liz Fraser from afar for many a year. Ever since I saw her at one of her soundchecks for a Cocteau Twins TV gig. She was twitching and not blinking like a wood nymph nutter which was enough to win me over… and then she sang, and my heart came bouncing out of my body and flopped onto the stage next to her. It was a horrible sight and took well over half an hour to clear up.″
Orange Andy: What music do you listen to when you are not in ‘fragile state’ mode?
Ben: ″I listen to lots of jazz and dance music. When they’re fused, that’s when I’m really happy. I’m a big fan of Naked Music, Jay’s a friend of mine, and he recently posted me a CDR of his new project with a vocalist called Aya. It’s breathtaking. I also like to listen to music from Marvin Gaye, Dean Martin, Matthew Herbert Big Band and a wonderful band called Hem. I’m also diggin’ the Marc Moulin album at the moment after see it recommended on The Forum.″
Sunflower Kate: Why are Fragile State sponsored? Is there a need for you to be sponsored in order to survive?
Ben: ″It’s all about budgets. We’re on an indie label, as opposed to a major who just throws money at a project, so I wanted to find some nice people who would help us out with recording costs, tour support and marketing. Our label has been as supportive as their budgets allow them to be on the marketing side of things, and us getting sponsored has allowed them to zone in on the areas they wanted to. We’ve found it invaluable to be honest, and the whole sponsorship thing has come a long way after being told ‘not to waste my time with it’. Fred Perry and Creative have been wonderful, as have Carhartt who helped us financially with paying for some of our recording costs on the new album.″
Kris: In a mud wrestling fight between you and Zero 7, who would win? (Kris)
Neil: ″Well I often play football with Sam and Henry and have seen their physical sporting prowess in great detail. Ooph… Sam is a finely tuned footballer with a pounce like a gazelle, whilst Henry joins me in the ‘picked last’ brigade. That leaves Ben as the deciding factor for our team. Unfortunately, despite showing huge sporting promise as a youth, Ben picked up too many injuries and now does Olympic fag smoking. But hey, this is mud wrestling, not Association Football and when it comes to pure grit, determination, resolve, and bare chested killer instinct there are few to match Fragile state in the arena of life…. So Zero 7 probably.″
Nellie: What would be your luxury item at a desert island disco? Like all our contestants you already have a pair of Technics 1200s and a copy of Brewster and Broughton’s ‘Last Night A DJ Saved My Life’.
Neil: ″A cab home. I’m too old for all that.″
Green Ladybird: Were you named after experiencing a really bad hangover?
Ben: ″Fragile State is a name very close to us. I came up with the name Fragile State when we were working on our first album, ‘The Facts And The Dreams’. Neil and I were both suffering from a few health problems, and I turned up at his studio in Putney, London, and Neil said ‘how do you feel?’. I replied ‘fragile’ and then asked Neil how he was. He said ‘I’m in a right state!’. After thinking about that conversation a few weeks later, I thought ‘Fragile State’ would be a good name. It also goes well with our music too. And also appeals to the post-club generation whose musical tastes have changed more to that more sophisticated sound – and Sunday morning listening.″
Soyo: How does it feel to be praised by such a wealth of well known and respected names?
Ben: ″It’s a great compliment to have some of my peers say nice things about our music. We’ve had some great quotes from the likes of LTJ Bukem, Groove Armada, Rob Da Bank, Chris Coco, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Rainer Truby – people I have been writing about for years now. So it’s great. Then there’s people like Robert Elms and Pete Lawrence who Neil and I hold in high regard. It’s always nice to read good things about your music – we both just wish more people would hear about us and buy the record! Our music has always been a word-of-mouth thing, so keep spreading it ;0) ″
Popt Art: What is on your backstage rider?
Neil: ″There is nothing at all interesting about our backstage rider. Not that we ever get the chance to have one. Our live gig experiences always seem to involve drinking the dregs that the last band didn’t want. But we do have one written down somewhere. I would like to see Kingfisher bottled beer or Singha beer added to our rider, a couple of hot cross buns and I would say hoummous, but can you imagine five sweaty musicians dipping their fingers in it and god knows what else. It would have to be first dip or nothing!″
Enchanted Gordon: Who’s your all time favourite heavy metal band?
Neil: ″There’s nothing better than a good headbang when the time is right. I struggle to pick out one all time great and I am always scared of calling something metal when it falls outside the definition. I was quite excited by a ‘White Zombie’ record I heard when they first came to the fore, and Metallica used to do it for me on occasion….. Oh alright, Black Sabbath.″
Soyo: And finally, what’s next for Fragile State?
Neil: ″A look at our marketing budget for promoting Fragile State. Then a look at Zero 7′s… Then suicide.″
