Speaking Suns
Yellow Springs, Ohio’s own Speaking Suns are readying their new album Range for release September 29 through Anyway Records & offer up the world premiere of the Khalil Nasar & Alex Rolland video for “Out of Range”. With a unique take on the American pop landscape of sounds & sensations, the long awaited follow-up to their 2014 debut Vanishing Country showcases a band seasoned from expansive tours of the Midwest where they offer up a unique guitar twang that exhales alongside brass inflected expressions that mix modes of the modern with a curious creative current that is all their own. Like the following visuals you are about to enjoy, Speaking Suns shine forth a sacred sort of sound that stems from the ultra violent ray beams that break through the foliage of tree trunks, branches & leaves that frame heady experiences of natural born epiphanies that spill from a solar sanctioned source of seemingly limitless inspiration.
The visual companion for Speaking Suns’ beautiful psych-swaying ballad “Out of Range” find the group’s existential lyrics being brought to real waking & wandering life. The lyrical life affirming & inquiring thought lines of just dust, when we begin, oh what comes after, oh what does it matter, life goes on all around you are enacted through a nature hike turned vision quest. Join Jacob Diebold, David Byrne, Dylan Sage, Jay Teilhet & Jonathan Jacky for a journey for meaning that measures the rudimentary & rustic basic elements against the pretensions & ephemera found throughout the material world. Tapping into a mystic nature that George Harrison might cast a blessing or two upon, Speaking Suns let their little lights shine in the great vast Midwest wilderness. Partaking in natural herbs & rituals of the forest, thoughts sail like the ascending smoke from their campfire that sends out signals toward the mysteries of the towering skies. “Out of Range” finds the band fine-turning their own focuses on those lost frontiers of places & landscapes now gone/redeveloped & the like that are echoed in the thoughtfu lines of; is this country living? see the land it’s giving all its got and now it’s gone… The notion of life carrying on all around with the shifts & changes offers up a reluctant acceptances of everything that cannot be reversed to what it was while paying testimony to those forgotten former landscapes of recollections & faded histories. Join us after the following video debut for a candid interview conversation with Speaking Suns:
Describe for us what things are like over in Yellow Springs, Ohio & what inspires you all about your local digs?
Yellow Springs is a small town out in the middle of nowhere. We’re the blue blip in a sea of red. Pretty much everyone knows the place because of Antioch College and Dave Chappelle—although Yellow Springs has had a long history of being the home to many other well-known artists, writers, and activists. I think the history of artistic expression within the community is definitely inspiring. That, and all of surrounding woods and nature are inspiring too—they help cultivate that history.
From 2014’s Vanishing Country to the new album Range—can you all tell us how your own perspectives of creative ranges & ambitions have grown over time?
I think Vanishing Country was one approach to making a record, and there were a lot of differences when it came to the creative process with Range. We really took our time with Range—which we didn’t necessarily do with VC. We tracked it all ourselves instead of going into a studio—which gave us a lot of freedom. Also, the time between VC and Range was a period of transition for us. We had a significant line up change and with that the vibe and the sound changed too. As far as the current line up goes, we all grew up playing music together in various other bands, graduated from high school together, so there definitely is a closeness that is conducive to making music whenever and more naturally. Range was a pretty laid back, natural recording process.
Give us the story about inspirations from the touring roads & more that informed the new album Range.
There are a lot of similar themes and motifs going on in Range that can be found in VC. I think in many ways Range is a more expansive, more precise version of VC. It’s pretty straight forward in a lot of ways too. These are songs that are about what we experience touring around and hanging out in Yellow Springs. We’ve had the opportunity to travel and see all the different environments—the beautiful nature and also the decay of it. We’ve also had the opportunity to get a glimpse into doing the whole band thing—all the weird things that happen and all the amazing people we meet.
Tell us too about the sorts of pop audio alchemy approaches that were involved with this record.
We approached this record in a very relaxed way. We tracked whenever we had time in the living room of our friends house where we also hold rehearsals. We also snuck into the sound booths at Wright State university, a college that both David and I attended, and tracked most of the drums in the middle of the night. The booth wasn’t exactly made for recording music, but we were able to use a lot of high end mics because of it. It was less like recording an album and more just documenting the songs that we’ve been toying with for almost 2 years. It was very satisfying to us personally. We had fun with it.
Any tour tales of interest that made an impression on you all?
We’ve had the opportunity to go to a lot of places the past couple years in our beat up Ford E250—Colorado, Texas, New York, and all the areas in between. It really opens your eyes to the absurdities of tour and travel. One of the most absurd times probably took place in Brooklyn on Broadway when our vans driveshaft completely snapped in half. It was Saturday and we had to be in Philly that night. With no mechanic in the area able to find a part for our van until Monday, we used Jay’s 100 free AAA miles to tow our van to the venue in Philly called The Fire Note—where we would live in the upstairs green room for the next three days. We ended up having to smuggle Dylan and Jonathan in the broken down van in the dead heat of summer because we knew the tow truck wouldn’t be big enough. After two hours to Philly they got out of the van dripping in sweat and we ended up having to stay in a pretty run down room with only one couch above the venue for a couple days. Sounds awful, but it was a blast. The people we met were amazing and went through great lengths to help us. Which is the beauty of touring in my opinion.
What have been some of the tour van tunes favorites?
We’re always trying to listen to new music, especially when we’re on the road. It’s ever changing and it always varies in style. Connan Mockasin’s Soft Hair, Anderson Paak’s Malibu, anything by Kendrick. War On Drugs is always decent highway music.
Artists that you all are enthralled about right now?
All of the artists mentioned above. We all have a deep love for Ariel Pink. Also Aldious Harding, Weyes Blood and Nai Palm (Haiatus Koyote) are all artists we just adore. A lot of bands we play with too like Divino Nino (Chicago) and Swarming Branch (Columbus).
2018 prayers, hopes & wishes?
To become more sufficient, healthier, and productive. We hope we can play more and create more, and also take part more in the vast abyss of modern music.
Speaking Suns’ new album Range will be available September 29 via Anyway Records.
Catch Speaking Suns via the following tour dates:
September
30 Dayton, OH – Range Release Show at Pretty House
October
14 Yellow Springs, OH – Peachs
15 Louisville, KY – Cure Lounge
17 Memphis, TN – Hi Tone
18 Fayetteville, AR – Backspace
20 Austin TX – Dozen Street
22 Houston, TX – Notsuoh
23 New Orléans, LA – Circle Bar
24 Birmingham, AL – The Nick
26 Athens, GA – Caledonia Lounge
27 Nashville, TN – 5 Spot
