We finally had an opportunity to interview the utopian group “School of Seven Bells” before their concert in Madrid.
From their last album “Disconnect from Desire”. We asked a couple of questions just to get to know them better and what we might expect from the musical encounter (Heineken’s music selector) that will take place Wednesday 10th November in Sala Sol.
Rocket Magazine: Say 1 word that best describes yourself:
SOSB: Alejandra- volatile / Benjamin- lucky
RM: How do you think your personality complements each other in the development of music?
SOSB: Benjamin- I think each of our personalities compliment each other in that we’re similar enough that we can share a common goal, but are different enough so that when we work together the outcome is pretty unrecognizable to each of us. There’s some overlap, but many more differences in the right places.
RM: Can you tell us how you came up with the name School of Seven Bells?
SOSB: Alley- It was late, I couldn’t sleep, so I ended up half-watching a documentary about shoplifting rings on the east coast of the US. Basically, they traced the origins of these particularly prodigious thieves to the possibility of them having trained at the School of Seven Bells in South America in the eighties. The name of the school comes from the final exam in which 7 items are placed in 7 pockets with 7 bells attached. He or she who successfully removed the items from the target without ringing the bells graduated. I thought it would make a killer name for a band. It’s as simple as that.
RM: Name your favorite movie:
SOSB: Benjamin- Wings of Desire
RM: Name your favorite book:
SOSB: Benjamin- Anything by Borges.
Alley- I second that.
RM: Can you describe the result of your music?
SOSB: Benjamin- To me it sounds like Pop music written by the sub-concious.
RM: What comes first in the process of creating, the lyrics or the music?
SOSB: Alley- Both. It really depends on what is inspiring me at any particular moment. I’m specially drawn to cadence when it comes to lyrics, so writing to a piece of rhythmic music (which happens to be Benjamin’s specialty) is the most productive for me.
RM: Can the music sometimes create lyrics?
SOSB: Alley- Music can definitely push one to be more creative with lyrics, yes. Just reading lyrics over an interesting rhythm can shed light on an entire world of possibilities that you would’ve otherwise missed.
RM: What influences your way of writing songs?
SOSB: Benjamin- Usually physical sensations or mental processes. We take a lot of care to convey really specific emotions and/or sensations, and that definitely influences the way we put songs together.
RM: Any artist you would like to work with?
SOSB: Benjamin- We’d love to work with Brian Eno! Robert Wyatt would be a dream, as well.
RM: When it comes to visual references who do you use as an inspiration for your music videos?
SOSB: Benjamin- We aren’t filmmakers, so It really depends on the director. So far, it has been up to the directors interpretation of our music, which we’ve been happy to go with. In the future I think we’ll be more involved in that aspect of our work.
RM: When’s your next concert?
SOSB: Benjamin- Well, after Madrid, we’ve got a few things happening in New York, LA, and Tokyo through the end of the year. After that, I’m not sure, but there will be a lot of course
RM: What do you think about the Spanish crowd?
SOSB: Benjamin- We absolutely LOVE Spanish audiences. They really listen, and we always feel so much love coming back to us from our fans. We’d love to spend more time in Spain.
RM: Future projects:
SOSB: Benjamin- We’re currently writing another record, and have this weird holiday record we’re putting together as well.
RM: Last words:
SOSB: Benjamin- Thanks for listening!
http://www.myspace.com/schoolofsevenbells
To buy tickets and further information: http://musica.heineken.es
T: Leandro Andrea Huerto Cruz
Corresponsal Madrid Rocket Magazine
