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WeirdMusic.net EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS

THE LYRE EFFECT

 

 

The Lyre Effect is an experiment bringing poetry and music together through two unique perspectives: Stoo "The Ambient Punk" and Heather "The Raving Lyre." Brought together through the worldwide web and Myspace, Stoo from Very Little Effort and The Raving Lyre began a new wave poetry and down tempo sound in the fall of 2006. St. Paul musician and producer Robert Romani originally recorded some of The Raving Lyre’s poetry. This fell into Stoo’s grasp, a seasoned drummer and music producer. Subsequently, he started developing tracks, later spurring The Lyre Effect when he discovered spoken word from the Lyre’s site. Big fans of each other’s work, Stoo and Heather now collaborate making a new order of sound, and create a poetic and musical energy all their own.
The unsettling mix of ambient electronic rock and bittersweet broken soul poetry piqued the interest of many, and continues to evolve. The duo have had a strong internet following thanks to their 2007 debut Wedding Day and a lot of internet radio and indie film attention. Playlisted on a number of international radio podcasts, our music was featured on Insomnia UK and Last FM. Also, two tracks from Wedding Day (2007) were made into videos. The following are links for the music videos for Imperial Fortress and Addiction:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXtiPGKGFOg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCscWDDGohM

United Kingdom’s Stuart Armitage, and U.S.A.’s Heather Arneson plan to take on the world and introduce people to something other than Top 40-worthy music. With unconventional beats, original words and fusion of ideas, the pair plans to release an album in early 2007.
The Lyre signifies the importance of poetry. It is not only a string instrument used for playing while people recited poems centuries ago; it is the music that brings words to life. The Lyre Effect is the plan to bring poetry and voice back to the masses in an unprecedented way.

LINKS:

http://thelyreeffect.vpweb.com
www.myspace.com/thelyreeffect
www.reverbnation.com/thelyreeffect
http://rockpulse.co.uk/lyreint.html

 

 

WeirdMusic.net - The Lyre Effect EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW:

 

- Do you Like/Write Weird Music ??
Stoo: I like to try and do something different and simple, dunno about werid, but definitely different.

Heather: I love weird music. Actually, the music people think is weird is perfectly normal to me because I think music should sound a little different.

Stoo actually writes all of our music. I write the poetry/lyrics. Although, I do have a few other side projects, one is called Heather Anne, my solo project in which I write all of the music and lyrics, and sing and perform the music. It is pretty low-fi sounding. The other project is Static Falls (another collaboration with a UK artist that I haven't met) and my counterpart there writes and performs all of the music, and I write the lyrics and develop the vocal melody, and sing.

- When and where did your experience in music start?
Stoo: Mum and dad probably, lots of dodgy pop, Rod Stewart, Elton John, Staus Quo, The Police, Then stealing my uncles Motorhead and Clash albums, then growing up in the era of Brit pop and the rise of electronica.

Heather: It started when my mom would dance around with us as kids. She was a big music person, and continues to this day to keep current on music trends. I come from a musical family--both of my grandmas performed music and sang. My grandma Karol played out with her brothers and sisters when she was younger at clubs, where she played the squeezebox, and my grandma Marion was a choir teacher and played the violin professionally at one time.

And most of my dad's 6 brothers write music and perform or have performed in bands.

At age 7, I took piano lessons and that was a great outlet for me, and by age 9 I started writing poetry and lyrics and music.

- What are you currently working on and what are your plans for the rest of the year ?
Stoo: Baby on the way so as much writing as I can while I have the peace. Working towards getting a better mix of the last two albums, dark pianos and strings with some deep dirty electric sounds.

Heather: Besides promoting The Lyre Effect, I organize short film festivals, and am working on completing a book of poetry.

- What do you consider your greatest inspirational sources in music ?
Apart from Heather?
Stoo: Punk, Grunge, Atmopheres… Just simple, easy music to play/ write, that creates a good atmosphere. Think that’s why I enjoy Ambient so much. You can have two sweet pads playing two chords out of phase and panning left to right for 10 mins and it’ll sound awesome.

Heather: Some long lasting inspirations include Gershwin, Mozart, Copland, Elliott Smith, Atmosphere, The Prodigy, Janet Jackson, and Joy Division. I have always thought Modest Mouse's lyrics to be incredible, and Boards of Canada are great at setting a mood. I am currently getting into Dead Can Dance, Bat For Lashes, and The Cinematic Orchestra, among others. I hope to inspire other people someday with my projects.

- Please describe your personal studio for us...
Stoo: Err, a mess that lands anywhere. Dell laptop, M-audio controller keyboard at the mo. Should have the space soon to add more guitar and drums.

Heather: I just record my poetry in my apartment with a Shure SM57 microphone, use garageband software and a preamp which I have tried to fix because it doesn't record as well as I want. It is pretty laid back when I record. I try to keep it quiet, sip on some water, coffee, or wine, burn some incense, do a few takes, email the completed recordings to Stoo, and that is it! Then, he produces the music in his studio and adds me to it.

- What are your favorite readings ?
Stoo: Anything deep and dark. Poe ‘esque stuff that grinds your bones. I used to like hunting down old horror movie narrators and sampling passages, but I got Heather with better words and stories.

Heather: What books I remember enjoying a lot in the past are Prince of Foxes , Truman Capote's short stories, Woody Allen's Getting Even, and Dante's Inferno .

- In your opinion, what role does the third sector, public and non-
profit entities; have for music on the Internet ?
Stoo: EVERYTHING! if it wasn’t for the internet and MYSPACE I wouldn’t have found half a billion cool and crazy acts to listen to, or found Heather and started this band. Without the people who found us we would have awesome art work or half our downloads or reviews.

Heather: I am not sure how to answer this, but I do know that the public is what pays for the music and helps dictate what becomes popular and other entities are responsible for monitoring to make sure business is handled legally, and no one is ripping off anyone. I think in the past, artists were really at the mercy of the music industry and as always their own egos so a lot of business was handled perhaps improperly. The gap is definitely closing between the public and the artist, with the music industry professionals having somewhat less responsibility. Although, with laws being stricter with downloading music, I think the music industry might begin to have more responsibility, but will try to work more with the artist to meet each other halfway.

- Who is Wacky Jacky ?
Stoo: Red hair? Big hands? I’m sure she touched me somewhere inappropriate, like at the zoo or the back of a sweet shop?

Heather: Wacky Jacky is your imaginary friend.

- Porn or Horn ?
Stoo: What about a pornhorn? You could screw it and see what sounds come out? Look good on stage too?!

Heather: Horn is better because it is easier to use while driving

- Should we Fork you twice or it's beter to Funk you once ?
Stoo: Ooooh. Good question. Its all about funkin’ with me.

Heather: Fork twice because it provokes more, and “funk” could mean anything really.

- Are you religious ?
Stoo: Nope. No spiritual journey for me… like I said its all about the funk.

Heather: No, but definitely believe there is a higher power and put faith in it and don't have a problem with people knowing it.

- Anything else ?

Heather: I like the weird questions because it makes me feel like Alice in Wonderland.