The Sight Below - No Place For Us (Ghostly)

Entering the domain of ambient techno producers, is a newcomer by the name of The Sight Below. Ghostly didn't think twice (and better for it), and snatched TSB for his first three-track EP, titled No Place For Us. The fact that I'm even taking the time to mention a digital single should tell you how excited I am about the upcoming work from this Seattle based musician [yes, I like to pretend that I'm very busy ;) ]. And before I forget to mention - this is a free release, so go download your copy directly from the label's site. During the first track, No Place For Us, the ambient washed out sweeps yawn and stretch in swells of shoegazer's agonizing obsessiveness over thick guitar and pad layers. The tonality of these resonant chords remind me of Lusine Icl's Language Barrier (Hymen, 2007) and Murcof's Cosmos (Leaf, 2007). Soon enough the kick drum comes in over the lazy vapors of sound. Like the soothing whispers of a river flowing through the dry lands, pumped by a steady heartbeat of the earth. I quote when I can't say it better: "The music of TSB conjures half-remembered dreams and soft-focus sentiments with elegiac beauty; his video art works similarly, blurring snippets of film until they're recognizable only as organic objects: black-and-white amoebas milling about, or a sunset rendered in grayscale." The knowledge that the three pieces were performed live, only excites my neurons further. Really looking forward to The Sight Below's first upcoming full length release on Ghostly, so that I can stop looping only these three tracks! Recommended for the likes of Yagya, Gas, Vladislav Delay and Echospace.

myspace.com/thesightbelow | ghostly.com/artists/the-sight-below
myspace.com/ghostlyinternational | ghostlyinternational.com

Two and a Half Questions with The Sight Below

How did you get into producing this type of music?
I enjoy music that is repetitive in nature, but also contains multiple tonalities, and on further listening keeps captivating your attention. Similar in a way to how "film noir" feels - the more you focus, the more elements you uncover. The ancient Greeks argued whether an occurrence is perceived the same exact way twice. Brian Eno theorized a little about this: "repetition is a form of change," he said. I ascribe to that theory. These days music seems to be me very ephemeral (and interchangeable). My intent is to create something that grabs your attention today, but also still feels interesting tomorrow.

Which comes first in your production, the ambient layers or the deep grooves?
I have a very primitive setup in my studio: a few guitars and 12-bit effect units (old Lexicon reverbs and delays). I play either by barely touching the strings with a pick or with a viola bow and run everything thru a few loop pedals to create a few layers. I record everything live with minimal editing - mostly to fix fadeouts or adjust levels.

Which musicians do you draw your inspiration from?
I listen to a lot of old Creation, Factory, 4AD, Chain Reaction records. Kevin Shields is obviously a huge inspiration - to me it is perfect music.

Tell us more about your visual artwork.
I work inversely, trying to visually recreate the series of emotions that were going thru my head while I created the music. I predominantly use found footage, which I manipulate and rearrange to the point in which the images become subverted and de-contextualized.

How do you think, getting signed to Ghostly, will change your career path as a musician?
I love working with Sam, Jeff and the rest of the crew there. Ghostly reminds me aesthetically of Factory (one of my all time favorite labels). I'm really proud to be part of the Ghostly family.

So when will we see the debut album?
November 10, 2008

myspace.com/thesightbelow | ghostly.com/artists/the-sight-below