Monday, April 14, 2008

Not Unlike The Rolling Stones - An Interview with Mental Powers

Mental Powers are an experimental rock band from Perth, Western Australia. They have been around for a while; to be honest I don’t know how long. They consist of five Caucasian males, in this way they are not dissimilar to The Rolling Stones. Every time I’ve seen them they have a slightly changed sound, for my tastes, they have been getting better each time, for others, they have become less appealing. This is the nature of change. As a deer runs wildly for its life through the dark, gnarled woods of Olde England, some hounds will keenly follow the scent and some will be thrown off the trail. Such is the nature of the metamorphosing popular artist. Does this mean that eventually the hounds of fame (love) will destroy Mental Powers? Time alone will tell.

As for some musical reference points for readers to cushion their impressions upon, I would say that the Mental Powers sound is that of a disorientated journey through a night-time desert landscape. At times there is beauty, at times confusion, sometimes there may be regret, possibly boredom. Palpitating, tribal rhythms and bass frequencies guide the journey as dewdrops of calm guitar collect on the weary traveller’s brow, and echo-laden vocals are heard from a distant dune. Occasionally a saxophone will emerge. At least that’s what it sounded like the last time I saw them. Recent recordings have unearthed a more jarring, post-punk side to the quintet. In quizzical terrain such as this, perhaps it is better for the band to speak for themselves, and to this end I have relayed the following questions to the singer/saxophonist of Mental Powers, Deni.


Echo-box verbiliser/sax blower, Deni of Mental Powers.
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So, you wanted to be interviewed…and so it will be. Why did/do you want to be interviewed? This is not an attack or provocation of any sorts, I’m just wondering, what kind of stuff do you want to communicate to the readers in this interview and what is your motivation for this communication?

Not sure, should we need a reason for an interview?

How/when did Mental Powers come to be? What’s the current line-up of Mental Powers, and who does what?

Honestly, I don’t think Mental Powers have come to be yet. As you mentioned earlier, we are five which make for one. Just like the Rolling Stones ha ha, if that’s the case I’m Mick Jagger. Members play various instrumentation, who/what/how a sound is made is quite irrelevant. It’s an alto saxophone by the way, but I think it’s great you thought otherwise, it’s a real testament to my playing.

What was your initial motivation in forming a musical group, and have these motivations changed with time? Did you ever have any concrete aims like ‘let’s play some gigs’, ‘let’s put out a record’, ‘let’s impress some art school chicks’ when you started, and if so, would you actually admit to them? Was there anything that directly inspired your formation?

We all kinda just happened upon music, with exception to the final piece of Mental Powers. We don’t have an overall goal/agenda for the band. We’re operating at our own pace, I mean, we’ve been doing this for a while now (a while) and we play our 10th gig this month at a party that no one is allowed to come to at the request of the host. We’re not in a hurry to make it BIG or get a big support, tour or WAMi so on and so forth.

I can say whole heartedly it’s not about chicks! We’ve lost more chances through this endeavour than without, and it’s strained and broken up friendships, divided opinion; it’s more of a compulsion at this point than a need to be recognised. In fact, I’m constantly making the joke that when a certain part of the band gets a lady friend, we’ll go straight and start playing pop or become a boy band or something.

We have a working ethos to squeeze as much out of whatever it is we’re doing, for me I’m trying to get the most out of limited resource/knowledge/musicianship. Whether we’re achieving anything is not for us to decide anyway, but we won’t stop no matter what. This music comes as an extension of our lives. Make you’re arse stand put and think and your mind dance, that sort of thing. Sure we would admit to these accusations, we’ve got nothing to hide.

How would you describe the sound of Mental Powers, to someone of merely average popular/obscure music culture knowledge? I seem to have made a fairly strong point that your style is constantly changing in my introductory paragraphs, am I full of sh** or is this the case? Did you know what you want to sound like when you started or were/are you guys flailing around in the dark like drunk, horny teenagers?

Ah, well we have a few modes. You could say we’re polar opposites in a bunch of ways. Umm it’s kinda like, music in opposition, an automaton, like some kind of fucked up machine operating in spite of itself. It’s not fixed but in constant flux. What we put in isn’t exactly what we get out. In a way, we’re like the child of the great transformers. Like we began using conventional rock instruments, now it really don’t matter as long it makes a desired sound.

Each part of this band is inspired by different shit, stuff that others in the group can’t stand, and they bring a completely different style of playing. We don’t speak the same language most of the time.

Most of us have a visual arts background; we draw inspiration from all over, art, film, shit jobs, comics, nature and culture. You never know what you’ll get when we play that’s the guarantee.

Is the band a democracy or dictatorship? Realistically, do you think the best art is made by collaborative groups of like-minded people or through the singular visions of obsessed, isolated minds?

It’s the UN. However we have 5 singular visions, and we are all obsessed, isolated minds.

You’ve put on a few gigs/parties in the Perth ‘scene’, and from all accounts they were quite successful i.e. a good time. What was your experience of being the organiser/promoter as such as opposed to an attendee/performer, and will you put more on in the future? If not, why not? Do you think that the ‘DIY’ concept is strong in Perth or is there room for more?

The great thing about putting on things instead of not, is you get a chance to see bands play together that ordinarily wouldn’t, back to back in your living room. It’s like a dream. After the first couple a few parameters began to immerge. Like we wanted to be inclusive, we didn’t really give a fuck who you were and what ‘scene’ you belonged to. If you wanted to party, and you were doing something interesting, then you were good enough for us, we also were looking for new blood/talent and giving bands a chance to play who were emerging. I guess we were providing an alternative to Perth pub culture, when it works well some bands prefer it.

We couldn’t afford to pay anyone, or to charge anyone, but it wasn’t about that obviously. I used to say “it’s in the spirit of a good time, and time is precious, if you wanna share that, that’s payment enough.” And let’s be honest, we weren’t the first ones to do it (have parties or bands play at parties), the idea was to serve as a catalyst for others to have parties, more bands, new bands, things constantly happening in Perth etc.

Successful...yeah you know, we didn’t start this for any sort of credit, and we don’t want any. We’re turned on when someone else hosts a party, it’s good to see it happening, and it’d be great to see more people get involved on some level, but it’s hard with the rental situation as it is. I did say my 21st birthday party was the last one, but you gotta learn to never say never.

We see DIY as a platform for people trying to push what they do, not be motivated by any form of success or money, but strive for something special and you can tell when a bands going for it, just doing it. It’s not a pose, that’s the problem with this town. For us it’s all about integrity, you know, not being affected by opinion and just being honest with everyone. There are a couple of bands/promoters/labels that are doing it in town, and good on them, but it would be great if there was more.

What do you think of the Perth music ‘scene’? Is it the fertile, creative lovefest that organisations such as WAM would have you believe or a motley sea of mediocrity, dotted with small islands of original thought and action? Somewhere in-between? Do you guys have any personal favourites/rivals/nemesis/blood brothers?

The second one, but if everything was great, someone out there would be making something awful I’m quite sure.

Let me see favourite bands, right I’ll work alphabetically, Astral Travel are OK, they haven’t played for half a year or so, we play with them soon, I dunno what we’ll get, which is an exciting prospect. Bamodi are killer, they don’t play too much these days, but we gig with them this month, that’s a weird band man, people I’ve spoken to say all kinds of wild crap about what they sound like. Early emo was the funniest of these. Who is next, once 2, now 3, Cease it be, they’re always looking for a good time and have put on a few good shows.

Extortion is the only HC band worth watching in my opinion. Soul of Condemned Ape, I’m their biggest fan, it still breaks my heart, RIP you lousy quitters he-he. Whalehammer, which is a stranger choice than you’d think, because I don’t like the idea of side projects or improvisation, but what can I say, when you have an ability to arouse contempt in your fellow man, pure magick, and hey, especially the night of the one finger salute, you know what I mean.

Err what’s next hmm rivals, none that I know of. I don’t think we play enough or occupy the same space as anyone, I could be wrong.

Oh my favourite (not really), nemesis, the list is long but distinguished ha ha! For starters, liars, promise makers, profiteers, noise laptop wankers, pretenders, game players and corrosive losers who think they’re on the edge when they would have to be about as wild an accountant during tax time, those perpetrators know who they are, karma is coming to get ya, if it hasn’t already.

Blood brothers eh, you know what dude, most people wouldn’t share a drink with us, let alone our blood.

I know that you are a visual artist of some repute. Once I encountered a fairly bizarre photograph of you as a middle aged 1970’s suburban mother at a photo-portraiture competition at a gallery in Northbridge. You didn’t win the fairly substantial prize. What’s your background in the non-musical arts and are there any other renaissance men in the band? In the music-making world, do you think there a downside to the kind of post-modern, analytical/reinterpretive, diseased thought processes promoted/inherent in the ‘real art’ world?

Yeah four of us met at art school. I hate saying that though. Coldplay and Franz Ferdinand say that, on the up side so did Devo, Black Dice, Lightning Bolt, Talking Heads etc.

Strange question, basically so much of art is about context, and as a maker you have to be aware or self reflexive as to where you fit historically, but also within industry, your community and globally. Just like in the Terminator movies, Skynet becomes aware, it’s important to understand what you are and where you come from, but you gotta be careful because you may run risk of becoming strategic, revivalist, reactionary or contrived.

It’s not so clinical. We question not really looking to find any answers, but I hate it when I go to a gig and someone tells me a band is great because it sounds just like someone else.
I mean is it not a bad thing to sound like Sonic Youth or any other band for that matter?

You went to art school. That must have been a riot! Did they serve acid stew in the cafeteria? What was your ultimate ‘art school’ moment?

Art school is a lot more conservative than you’d think. I would have to say leaving art school.

You introduced me to the sweet song ‘Diamonds, Fur Coats, Champagne’ by Suicide. Do you think the Mental Powers stage act could benefit from some metal chain swinging Alan Vega-esque antagonism or are you just gonna keep it ‘chill’?

Umm, I don’t think we’re a confrontational band in that way. If we annoy people it’s because we’re sticking to our guns. We’ve come to a realisation that not everybody is gonna like what you do, but that shouldn’t make you stop. Life’s not meant to be an easy ride. Alan Vega even said he didn’t wanna be an escape from the horrors of the real world. Suicide is a reminder of that real world. That’s the problem with this current wave of electro pop twaddle, there’s no sleaze.

You are stuck on desert island with a totally avant photographer/conceptual artist babe, who has the keys to a pumpin’ jetboat, bought with the mad cash she acquired selling her formerly squalid, unheated Lower East Side New York loft to a lovely couple with a bright future in investment banking. What top five photographers/conceptual artists would you namedrop in order to hitch a ride back to civilisation? What would you blast on the jetboat boombox as you thunder back to civilisation?

No comment.

Finally, do you have any upcoming releases/gigs you would like to mention?

There is that party, but no one is allowed to come.
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