Analog Missionary - a south-eastern band that declares they’re whatever you want them to be. Though, AM isn’t just a whatever-band. They’re ambient, they’re chilling- bound to fill a hole of melancholy with a comfort not found as easily as the sounds that protrude from this band. With a hint of Turkish twang and belly dancing during shows, Anstrom takes you on infinite passages within the swoons and folds of her sensuous voice. Analog Missionary assures much success in the future; they have only begun their descent onto the much needed-AM world. They are currently in the studio, and have already won a best video award, from Lindsey UNA Film Festival, for their video “Lilith”.
You guys sound as if Count Dracula would have your music blaring through his stereo with Sir Alfred Noyes, while he penned The Highwayman. How do you guys stay true to this classic sound, in today's world, where music seems to be losing substance and originality?
Kevin: We've never been a band to court public acceptance or follow popular trends. Our goal is to translate our feelings through our music; if some accept it and enjoy it, that's a great compliment to us, but we do not consciously impose expectations or limitations on our music- we let it tell us what it wants to be.
How would you describe your sound?
Mark: Some have used the terms sultry, ambient, sprawling and atmospheric. We tend to layer textures and hope that our attention to details might reward repeated listening. I'm sure it sounds like something though- there's got to be a good frame of reference. Any band that says 'we sound like nothing you ever heard before' is kidding themselves. Or maybe they just haven't heard that many bands. I guess we sound like Rush meets Tori Amos in the Middle-East, with 4AD's supervision. Or maybe that's some other band I'm thinking of.
Give us some history on Analog Missionary- how did the 4 of you come together to form AM, and how long have you guys been together?
Anstrom: Kevin and Tony have been writing music together for many years. I met them about 7 years ago. I had songs of my own and came from a very different school of thought, musically-speaking. 2 years ago we met Mark, who was an accomplished musician as well.
Do you guys have any bizarre-fan encounter experiences?
Mark: "Cockroach" will be a hard fellow to forget. He entertained us all during the set by writhing around on the floor in front of the stage on his back with his arms and legs twitching in the air. A brave performance, considering he was wearing all white in one of New Orleans' most famously grimy venues.
How did you guys come around to incorporating the Theremin along with your music?
Anstrom: I'm a fan of old Sci-Fi and Horror movies, and had always liked the delicate-yet-spooky sound of this instrument. The Nosferatu soundtrack was a perfect opportunity for us to incorporate its eerie tones.
What's one thing you guys hope to get across to the world through your music?
Anstrom: There is still beauty in the world, despite the aches and woes and broken dreams. Beauty surrounds each of us.
Your live performances must be an exotic experience, how would you describe them to someone that's never seen you guys live?
Mark: They are usually a dark affair; we avoid the spotlight and let the music be the focus. We enjoy a wide cross-section of musical styles, so there will be various kinds of moods throughout the night. Recently we have begun including a set of middle-eastern music to accompany Anstrom's belly dancing. Oh, and Anstrom's kitties may feature prominently at some point in the night. She loves them kitties.
What was it like shooting "Lilith"?
Anstrom: Enjoyable- the crew was a lot of fun! I would love to act again. We were asked to make our song available as a soundtrack to the film company's preexisting story, and it worked out well, though our concept of the song is much different than the film. We look forward to producing the next video ourselves and exploring that part of the creative process.
For a few years now, there's been a bunch of negative hype about the downloading of music in today's manic downloading society; you guys are very generous when it comes to your music, and want as much available to your fans as possible, which includes many available downloads on your sites. Does this have any effect on your record sales?
Tony: It may have some effect on our sales, but we are convinced that if listeners want to hear the ‘true’ songs, the fully realized vision that we had for each piece, they will want the album. We work hard at producing and recording each song. Converting them to mp3's results in a version of the song, a sort of stick-figure of the entity it really is, and we wouldn't be satisfied with that, so hopefully the listeners wants the real version of the song as well.
And last, but not least, what does Analog Missionary mean?
As the old cliché goes, "whatever you want it to mean!" Isn't that annoying?
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