E-MUTE Q&A

Your name: 
Theo, Mr Mute or E-MUTE.

Where are you from? 
London, UK.

Name of band:
E-MUTE.

Who else is in your band?
Tolis (guitar), Damien (bass), Ellen (bass), Darren (drums), Niol (drums)
Note: This does not mean that we have two basses and 2 drum kits at gigs...!

How would you describe yourselves?
E-MUTE is alternative rock with electronic sounds. Franz Ferdinand meets Muse Depeche Mode and Foo Fighters.

Who are your main influences musically?
So many influences it is very difficult to say really! The aforementioned bands plus The White Stripes, Kasabian and classic bands such as Queen, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Pink Floyd and many more!!!!

What do you hope to achieve in music?
Be able to live from writing my own music. It will only give me peace of mind and enable me to focus more and become a better songwriter.

What has been the highlight of your career so far, and why?
Except playing some very cool gigs and some great recording sessions, the highlight was quitting professional drumming. By giving up drumming I managed to focus 100% on E-MUTE.

And what’s the moment you want to forget?
Some friends of mine have created this ensemble called Artefacts. All professional classical musicians gather to perform Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Iannis Xenakis etc. Whenever the set up requires a drummer (drum kit) they invite me to join them. So the first time they asked me to perform with them we prepared and performed ‘’In C’’ by Terry Riley.
‘’In C consists of 53 short, numbered musical phrases, lasting from half a beat to 32 beats; each phrase may be repeated an arbitrary number of times. Each musician has control over which phrase he or she plays: players are encouraged to play the phrases starting at different times, even if they are playing the same phrase. The performance directions state that the musical ensemble should try to stay within two to three phrases of each other. The phrases must be played in order, although some may be skipped. As detailed in some editions of the score, it is customary for one musician ("traditionally... a beautiful girl," Riley notes in the score)[2] to play the note C in repeated eighth notes, typically on a piano or pitched-percussion instrument (e.g. marimba). This functions as a metronome and is referred to as "The Pulse".
In C has no set duration; performances can last as little as fifteen minutes or as long as several hours, although Riley indicates "performances normally average between 45 minutes and an hour and a half."
The number of performers may also vary between any two performances. The original recording of the piece was created by 11 musicians (although, through overdubbing, several dozen instruments were utilized), while a performance in 2006 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall featured 124 musicians.
The piece begins on a C major chord (patterns one through seven) with a strong emphasis on the mediant E and the entrance of the note F which begins a series of slow progressions to other chords suggesting a few subtle and ambiguous changes of key, the last pattern being an alteration between B♭ and G. Though the polyphonic interplay of the various patterns against each other and themselves at different rhythmic displacements is of primary interest, the piece may be considered heterophonic. ‘’ 1 So as you can imagine it was great fun. We were about 20 musicians on stage performing this mad piece of music. Except myself and an electric bass player all other musicians were classically trained so it was a great experience.
Now the moment that I do want to forget happened after we finished performing. Straight after we finished playing ‘In C’, two other members of Artefacts would perform a piece for two pianos. So we had to clear the stage in the dark, and bring in the two upright pianos. While clearing the stage I had to take a huge gong backstage, trying to be extremely careful and quiet, I tripped over a cable. Not only I fell but the gong landed on the floor making an incredible noise (sorry cannot resist, need to add this link here)
Very embarrassing....! Apparently I will be performing with Artefacts at the amazing ancient Herodion theater in Athens in the near future. I hope that I will not screw up this time that’s quite a big gig...!

If you could choose just one of your songs to represent your music, what would it be and why?
It’s difficult to say... All of my songs are really a reflection of my thoughts. It is me trying to make sense of the world so it is a very difficult question. But in terms of who I am and what I do I would say ‘Flying’.
‘Flying’ is the story of myself trying to resist socialisation:

‘’Tried so hard to educate myself to feel accomplished,
Time to get married buy a house in the suburbs,
Get a car have some kids and loads of gadgets,
Oh my God is this the life I always dreamed of?

40.000 times I remember I've been told,
Society demands a man of virtue,
Its time to separate the facts from the myth now,
Oh my God is this the life I always dreamed of?

Only thing I can recall since I was a young boy,
All the do's and don'ts that they always dictated
Forging such a young mind to absolution,
Oh my God is this the life I always dreamed of,
Oh my God is this the time I gotta move on?

Chorus:

Flying above the ground, leaves undefined what you see below

30 years are falling down the drain,
Or is it just a chance to uncover the truth now,
Fortify my thoughts with the power of self faith,

Fighting isn't always made with guns,
Attitude the keyword that I have to remember
Face my fears destroy the mask they want me to put on,
Oh my God is this the time I gotta move on?

Flying above the ground, leaves undefined what you see below’’

This is it! The story of my life in 3:05’

Where can we listen to it?
http://www.emute-music.com/




Where can we find out more about your music?
Facebook Twitter Soundcloud Google+ Pinterest ReverbNation

Anything else you’d like to say about your band that I forgot to ask?
Just that it is so great to know that so many people are digging what we do. It took a great amount of courage to go on stage and sing my own songs, even to ask these amazing musicians to become part of E-MUTE. To stand up, drop the sticks and grab a microphone was a life changing decision. Didn’t think about it so much it just happened but having all this great feedback it is just mindblowing and inspiring.
E-MUTE is growing and growing and it is a great feeling. I have made so many new friends all over the world since E-MUTE started and I want to say a BIG and MASSIVE thankyou to everyone who is following and supporting the band! :-)