The main ingredient of this groovy potion being the drum backbeat , it was time for this blog to have a very interesting and lengthy chat with MAX MAIRE, drummer extraordinaire and brain behind the DUSTBURDS.
1) Max, for the viewers of this blog who don't know you, What would you tell about The Dustburds to introduce yourselves? How did you meet and decided to start a band together? Who is playing what instrument in the band? About the band's name is this a nod to Johnny Hallyday's backing band in the 60's, the Blackburds?
The Dustburds is a kind of “retroshake” group, gathering a multiplicity of influences paying tribute to 60’s pop, lounge, soul, rhythm and blues but also garage, psychedelic, cinematographic, international scene and euro library 70. The group was born under my initiative (Max/drummer) but the story is a bit special because creating a band playing live was not my prime intention with The Dustburds. In 2014 just after moving near Geneva I started to compose. At first I moved to this region with my girlfriend at the time to start a new job. But it appears that I was bored to death at work and my ex and I were constantly arguing. So every evening I was sitting in front of my computer, with my Midi keyboard piano composing music to clear my mind. In this new life I had the feeling I was a bird fallen from the nest. But in parallel of the exhausting side of this new environment, I had the chance to meet new people, make new friends. I was going out more, seeing more concerts, buying more records, and increasing my musical knowledge. All the ingredients were here to turn my energy into something new and meaningful, without knowing that it would give birth to The Dustburds! It has been long, and sometimes painful, but all this time was necessary: it enabled to found the band which is composed today of five musicians:
Johanna Serville - Vocals, Guitars - (Jesus Is My Girlfriend, Le Bruit )
Ritchie Buzz - Guitars - ( The Last Brigade, les sheriff, Les Milliardaires )
Julien « Purple » Leroy - Hammond , Farfisa ( 65 mines street, ex two tone club )
Benjamin Cahen - Bass -
And me, Max Maire - Drums - ( Demon Vendetta, Mighty Bombs, The Last Brigade )
Regarding the name of the band, you got that right! Absolutely! It is a big reference to Johnny Hallyday backing band during his « Noir c’est noir » period! Actually I discover it , thanks to the song “Absolument Hyde Park” from Mickey and Tommy ,that just blew me away!
2) About the recently released debut full length record, what can you tell about the recording process? Was this a live in the studio recording or a track by track recording with lots of overdubs?
It’s a mix of two methods and I think that this is what gives the record its interesting colour. I first recorded my drum bits at a friend’ studio near the Luxembourg border. For me it was important to have a strong drums part, which would bring some concrete substance to my fellow musicians. Once the drum kit has been recorded, I sent it to Benjamin (bass). He immediately liked it and he recorded his parts live. The voices, horn section, percussions, samples were added after in overdubs. Benjamin and myself initially made the mixing, and then we gave it to Vincent Hänggi in Geneva. Finally, Christian Hierro mastered it in Lyon (Back to mono records)
3) What are your favorite topics to write about or the topics that come easily when you write a
Oh there are so many! The Dustburbs is double-sided: vocal pieces and instrumental pieces.I listen to a lot of music from rock, funk, and acid jazz to old-school rap music. I learned how to refine my inspirations and to conduct my compositions, while imagining each time an environment that could illustrate the scene of a film. I like the sound, the atmospheres, and the groove of the pop songs of Ennio Morricone but also the orchestrations of Michel Legrand, the arrangements of Paul Piot with his full orchestra or the sound madness of Peter Thomas Orchestra… As the average French guy, I am also a huge fan of Louis of Funès. The music of Michel Magne in Fantomas or of Raymond Lefèvre in ’Les gendarmes’ had an enormous influence on me. I like the music that makes me laugh and dance.
4) Some people might compare you to the Frank Popp Ensemble and his famous hit "Hip Teens (don't wear blue jeans)", same groove, same 60's sound and visuals. Do you agree with that comparison or do you consider there is way more than that.
Well, obviously Frank Popp Ensemble is very cool, this is an interesting comparisons, I actually have some of their albums. For instance I like very much their piece « Touch and Go » but I wouldn’t say that they are a major influence to me.There is an electro touch in their production that is something I don’t feel very close to.
I remain the main composer and also the producer but of course each member of the group brings his own ideas. I would like to say that Benjamin has a special place in the band because he is the person who gave me the necessary trust to create this album. We also complete each other very well regarding the way we work and the fact that he is a multi-instrument musician has made things a lot easier! I am a drummer so when I speak about music I do it as a drummer does it, and I play the piano as a drummer. Benjamin has been able to understand my language and to push things to the next level. But I think I have a good ear and a few ideas, that ‘s already quite an achievement!
6) To what kind of music did you listen to as a teenager and does it still influence your today work? What was your favorite band as a teenager? Name 3 bands that you consider still have a influence on your own work today.
I have always been listening to a lot of music and I am part of these people who always need to come back to the soundtracks that impressed them during their teenage years. But if I had to mention one artist who stood out during my childhood, it would be Nino Ferrer: ‘Mon copain Bismark », « le Roi d’Angleterre » or « je vends des robes », « oh eh hein bon » are songs I still enjoy listening to.
And of course Ennio Morricone; my parents had a lot of old records of this great man like « once upon a time in the west” and ”The good, the bad and the ugly ” and ” the mission”. The album jackets fascinated me. And in the middle of all this I listened to a lot of rock fusion music: urban dance squad (Persona Non Grata) , Beastie Boys ( Paul’s boutique) The James Taylor quartet had also an important part of my small teenager bedroom (In the Hand of the Inevitable fascinated me , I just love the sound of this record )
7) Do you have a video on youtube featuring a track from the latest release?
8 What can concert goers expect at a gig of The Dustburds ? Are you playing any famous cover songs?
It is colourful! In terms of sound of course but also regarding the visual support , very close to the artwork cover (made by yeaaah! Studio, Paris) https://www.yeaaah-studio.com/ First I like the idea of using vocal samples that I take from movies or vintage series. The idea is to use them to bring the public into our own atmosphere. Then our set varies a lot; we switch from instrumental pieces to vocal pieces. We obviously play most of the song of our album but we also play other pieces such as a cover of Springsteen’s « Fire », taken from Robert Gordon and Link Wray. We also play a few cover songs like « hey Sah lo Ney » from Mickey lee Lane or Ennio Morricone’s « the alibi ». If you had one thing to remember about us : We want to make people dance until they collapse of joy !
9) What are the plans for 2018 as far as the The Dustburds are concerned? Are you gonna hit
There are quite a lot of things to set up within the band by the end of this year. Individually we are all very busy; as far as I'm concerned, I play in three other bands ( Demon Vendetta, The Last Brigade and Mighty Bombs) and geographically we are very spread therefore this project needs a lot of organisations. However we never miss a chance to hit the road and promote our music to anyone interested in. This summer we will be playing in festivals like Festilac in Estavayer Le Lac (Switzerland) on 14th July and also at the Transes Cevenoles at Sumenes in the south of France on 22nd July ( Gard). We are currently organising a French tour, which is planned for September, I am also working on new songs and instrumental tracks for our next studio session with the band, and we are finalising our new video clip.
10) Anything you would like to say to the viewers of this blog?
First thank you for reading this interview to the end! If you are interested by the Dustburbs or want to know more about us please click the links below:
www.thedustburds.com
https://thedustburds.bandcamp.com/releases
https://www.facebook.com/thedustburds/
https://www.instagram.com/thedustburds/
contact@thedustburds.com
last but not least , big thanks to the labels that released our vinyl debut full length
It’s a great pleasure to collaborate with them
That’s for sure, for me, Without labels and friends: no album!
Please take a look at:
http://www.casualrecords.com
http://gpsprod.bigcartel.com
https://dangerhouse.fr/skylab.php
1 comment:
Cool! They sound like Peter Zaremba's Love Delegation...
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