New Suspyre interview

[GreggSuspyre]

I did an interview for "The Metal Minute"

Check it out here

 

[Cello]

Short interview, but very nice

Will be interesting to hear you use that Oud and hear the saxophone used as an integral part of the music as well

 

[voodoo]

Yeah, short, but a good read.

I like the fact that the first musician/artist you mention wanting to share a stage with is not only dead, but such a vastly different type of artist. I remember you mentioning Stravinsky before and why you thought he was so important to modern music. So, the obvious question now is, what type of music would you 2 create if you were able to collaborate????




Also, in the long run Suspyre may not ever reach Dream Theater levels of noteriety, at least from a general metal/prog standpoint, and I find that very unfortunate. I think there are too many factors working against bands like Suspyre these days that make it very difficult to make ones mark. For example, the internet and all the ways a person can find new music makes it too easy to find a new band, then another, and another, and never really get attached to only one. Oh, sure, it also helps greatly because you do get heard by people in every country but the intimacy and the connection a listener gets when discovering a new band is gone, and it's just too easy to move on to the next best thing. At least in my opinion.

But I think Suspyre will definitely be recognized by those who have a better musical understanding than a casual observer (not including myself - I'm a musical idiot ) as one that took risks, pushed boundaries and experimented, and never sounded as if just going through the motions.

 

[GreggSuspyre]

Yeah, short, but a good read.

I like the fact that the first musician/artist you mention wanting to share a stage with is not only dead, but such a vastly different type of artist. I remember you mentioning Stravinsky before and why you thought he was so important to modern music. So, the obvious question now is, what type of music would you 2 create if you were able to collaborate????

My obsession with Stravinsky (and all modern classical music, really) happened around my sophomore year in college when I was getting more involved in theory and more bored with "traditional classical greats." I took a class during my second semester (and again my senior year, haha) called "Techniques of the Avant-Garde," where we studied some of my current favorites, but also listened to a lot of music that was too weird even for me.

If you look at it differently, Stravinsky's music isn't as vastly different from Suspyre's as you may think. Obviously, he didn't write for electric guitars and drums, so remove that from the equation and just look at the melodic and harmonic structure and chord voicings. I thought about recording The Sacrificial Dance (from The Rite of Spring) on guitars and drums; I guarantee people will think it's Meshuggah or some other "tech-metal" band. ...there are way too many to go through to pick the best, though.

His music (mostly the early ballets, but I love pretty music everything he has created) had one of the more significant influences on my composition. The music I write for Suspyre is a fusion of what I love about rock and jazz with a contemporary rendition of modern classical music (Stravinsky, Varèse, Mussorgsky, Messiaen, Schoenberg, Bartok, Ravel, Debussy...and so on). I write lots of orchestral music, but having it performed is extremely difficult, so the instrumentation of Suspyre is a more practical outlet to get my music heard.

I truly believe if he were around today, he would be writing the heaviest metal around.

 

[ken from canada]

I also enjoyed reading the interview as one of my questions was answered; and that was "Do you write certain parts with the specific band member in mind or do you write something and hope that they make it the way you had in mind?"

Lineup changes are frustrating, especially for a composer, because I'm used to writing for that one person's style

So, have you re-written anything with say, Gabe in mind?
Oh, and the love of more modern classical music does not surprise me in the least. And you should do some 'covers' of various writers.

 

[GreggSuspyre]

I also enjoyed reading the interview as one of my questions was answered; and that was "Do you write certain parts with the specific band member in mind or do you write something and hope that they make it the way you had in mind?"
So, have you re-written anything with say, Gabe in mind?
Oh, and the love of more modern classical music does not surprise me in the least. And you should do some 'covers' of various writers.

Historically, I have a habit of writing what I want to hear rather than what is playable. Since Suspyre's music is meant to be played (believe me, I've written lots of unplayable music because it didn't need to be performed), I have to think about everyone's styles. The old drummer Sam was a double-bass guy, hence the overuse of that technique on the first two albums. Gabe is a more subtle player; his fills have nuances that bring forth more dynamics to our music. But when playing the heavier stuff, he's more into playing really hard and in the pocket rather than being busy.

As for guitars, the parts I wrote for Andrew are similar to Rich's, and he had no problem taking over his parts upon departure. I've always been the one to play the clean parts (maybe Rich played one or two clean tracks on previous releases) and anything with huge, awkward stretches. The beginning of "The Spirit," for instance, is a small-handed guy's nightmare, as is a lot of the stuff on the new album. Andrew handles the more "rockin" and shreddy parts, as did Rich. Rich never liked playing down-tuned or 7-string, so up until this album, I did most of those parts as well...luckily Andrew is comfortable on a 7-string so he's taken over most of those parts.

There are some classical quotes on our albums, but no whole pieces arranged for us...yet.

 

[ken from canada]

Thanks for answering.
I am aware of the various "classical quotes" on the records, and the "...yet" part makes me smile.