Fierce Mild form compelling songs speaking of all things from the sinister to the absurd. Next month the Melbourne outfit will embark on their 'In Search of Lost Time' tour, launching their full visual live show and supporting ttheir single 'Test You'. Tomatrax caught up with Troy from the band to ask a few questions.
Where did the name Fierce Mild come from?
Not totally sure. It's a common description of the weather in Ireland, though Dylan Moran popularised it somewhat. Being from Melbourne, it sort of fits our weather too.
Over time we've grown into the name. The music is very much about dynamics - intense aggression contrasted with melody and serene ambience...
Your shows add a lot of cinematic visual effects, is it hard to match the visuals to the music?We're lucky enough to have a stellar VJ on tour with us. Her name's Stephanie Peters and she knows our material very intimately. We practice a bit to it and discuss the content which she's chosen to fit. She does all the matching live as well.
Do you ever have an idea for a visual show before you've written the music for it?Quite often we use visual descriptors to inspire the writing process. We improvise and respond to visuals or even still images that we've found. The general consensus in our writing is that we're developing a psychological narrative. Often that means the words or the imagery precedes the existence of a musical motif.
You've said that your music covers all things from the sinister to the absurd, where do you get the inspiration for your music's themes?
I've experienced a lot of dissociative thoughts; things that border on what people may look at as schizophrenic. I believe that's in everyone. I try to tie in the lyrical theme with an area of I'm fascinated with at the time - embodied cognition, duality, quantum physics. The more you stretch your mind with that sort of thing, the more you can accept insanity.
Dear lord yes. That is what 2016 is about for us. We're part way through the process of recording an album at the moment. We want it to be a full listening piece though, not just an LP. That fits more what we do. We're currently working on our concepts and how we're going to tie the whole thing together and release it.
What was the inspiration behind the front cover of your latest single?
We wanted it to be something surreal and have a sense of pulling you inwards, similar to the sense you feel listening to our music. We have also been using the image of a swan which can be seen on the cover of our current single 'Test you'. The concept of a swan itself is an oxymoron much like our bands name, in that it represents the idea of beauty contradicted with the aggressiveness in it's behaviour. The current image is also tied in to reflect the concept and aesthetic of our new music video which will be out later in the year, and will deal with themes of birth and the cycle of life, evolution and philosophy of death.
This tour is about launching our visual live show on more of a national level. We have put together our cinematic backdrop. We hope it gives you nightmares - in the best way possible.
You recently headlined the psych and video art festival Stargazed, how did that go?Definitely one of the highlights of our career. 4 Projectors and 10 TVs flooding the stage with different video art pieces from Melbourne artists and a packed house which always adds some venom to how you perform live.
Do you ever listen to your own music?
There's a lot of critical listening that goes on in the creation process. Then we often listen back to reimagine something in a live context. It's really hard to separate yourself from a mix. Often though, we'll go back and put on a release we haven't listened to in a long time and be like "Yeah, that's actually cool to listen to."
Giving yourself time away from your own material allows you to appreciate it from a punters perspective.
It's a hard question to answer as musicians. There's often the expectation that it's something static, but it's forever changing. We share a lot of music between us. Jake has a strong hip-hop background but shares the classical background of Roland and myself. Daniel loves a lot of post punk and Math Rock (Fugazi, Red Neck Manifesto), Roland's on Uknown Mortal Orchestra and Beach House. Lately, I've been listening to Prefuse 73, Jon Hopkins, Celeste Boursier-Mougenot (a sound artist) and HC-B, who I found on Tomatrax!
HAPPY PRESENTS
FIERCE MILD
'In Search of Lost Time' Tour 2016
Wednesday, 13th January 2016
Rad Bar, Wollongong NSW
Thursday, 14th January 2016
107 Projects, Sydney NSW
Friday, 15th January 2016
The Bearded Lady, Brisbane QLD
Saturday, 16th Janaury 2016
2High Festival, Brisbane QLD
Monday, 18th January 2016
The Pier, Port Macquarie NSW
Wednesday, 20th January 2016
Lass O'Gowrie, Newcastle NSW
