Sian Alice Group is making a stop at the Coffeehouse tonight at 9 p.m. with Polite Sleeper and Distrails on their across-the-pond tour. I caught up with vocalist Sian Ahern of the group, interrupting a visit with her friend, before the band left to talk about their new album and more.
What was different about your approach to this album as compared to the first?
The difference in approach, I think, was purely just experience. There wasn't a different approach. We did everything really the same way, which is go in, experiment and stick to the same rules. There wasn't a real change of heart or intention. We were all just really excited about the fact that we'd been given the chance to do it all over again. I suppose we were more excited and less scared and we actually knew more about what we were doing. It just became more fun and more and more enjoyable. There weren't any new rules and strong changes or anything.
Do you have a clear idea of what the album will sound like when you finish?
Actually, no. For the two albums so far, no. They're fairly experimental. Although we know, I suppose, what we don't want them to sound like, and that's too formulaic or really sticking to trend or genre. Why give yourself those boundaries? It's not particularly what we're into. The music we listen to is so varied, and we just want to have fun and see what comes out. So no, there aren't really intentions.
A lot of the reviews of your records brand you as shoegaze or post-rock, but you don't fit neatly into those or any other genre. Have you had trouble getting listeners to see beyond those labels?
That has been a struggle. It's not easy when you don't fit into any particular category. It's always going to be lonely. But it's not going to stop us from doing our thing. It has been a bit troublesome, but it's also amusing. You see some really funny labels, like one the other day said analog-synthtronica. It is quite amusing, but it's also quite sad the way people feel like they have to be one thing--one thing or the other. It's not very interesting.
The last track on Troubled, Shaken Etc, "Salt Water," has one of what I found to be the most interesting and surprising moments on the album. How did you create that?
Ben [Crook] just had these crazy guitars. It just turned into this thing. We didn't really have any strong plans for that song. We weren't particularly inspired by anything we'd heard before. It was improvised. That's the most fun we can have in the studio, and that's just improvising. Ben and Rupert [Clervaux] are just really good improvised musicians. They seem to be able to get an amazing sound first take, and I just basically sit there and listen and have input into which layers they track. I loved it. Classic moment for me--layered but unique. Things don't always have to be pretty music, and I don't want people to think we just make pretty music.
What do you hope people take away from your music and show?
I hope that people like the fact that we're trying out a few things and not trying to be one thing. I love meeting people who actually like that and enjoy that--just the fact that they like our experimental approach. Sometimes we have different lineups and every night it could sound different. I think if people want to hear a perfect rendition--they just want to hear songs and they're not interested in the intricacies and the layers--we're not going to be for them.
The video for "Close To the Ground" is beautiful. Can you tell me about what went into making it?
Ben filmed it and organized it and it was his idea, but I can tell you about it. We wanted something--I don't really know what we wanted. But I really do love that video. It only took us a few hours to get all of that footage. Not long at all. It was a really fun day. Just four of us drove out to this crazy landscape and spent a few hours driving and walking around like strange people. It was really good. But Ben's the film guy.
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