From his work in The Psychedelic Furs guitarist John Ashton has now ventured into a different musical direction. For his latest project, Satellite Paradiso, he has taken to the power of the internet and linked up with direct-to-fan campaign, PledgeMusic to make his new record. He has also linked up with artists like Sara Lee of Gang of Four / B-52's, members of his former band - Psychedelic Furs, Paul Ferguson of Killing Joke, plus former members of Lou Reed and David Bowie's bands, and many more. We spoke to Ashton about the making of his new record, doing a crowd funding campaign and using the latest technology to bring his Satellite Paradiso to life. Take a look at our interview below:
Your latest
record features an all-star line-up of musicians. How did you get everyone
involved?
I started writing this record
20 years ago, not long after moving to Woodstock NY. My neighbor happened to be
Sara Lee, the bass player from Gang Of Four and she was, at that time, playing
with B-52's. Before long, we had become really good friends & have remained
so over the years. BP Hurding was an old friend from my punk days in London,
where he was playing drums in X-Ray Spex. BP was now also living in Woodstock.
We had actually played in a local band together called Pink Thing and we even
got a few shows at CBGB's in the early 90's. Hilly told me he thought our band
was good! But that's another story...
Sara & BP were the first
people I asked to play on this record and it just kind of built from there.
Sara was friends with Gail Ann Dorsey who at that time was playing with Tears
For Fears. Gail would later go on to play with David Bowie with whom she would
duet famously on "Under Pressure", singing Freddie Mercury's parts!
Gail and I also became good friends and eventually, I plucked up the courage to
ask if she would play on the record. Not only did she end up playing on several
tracks, she also sings on "Still".
Shortly after moving to
Woodstock, I also became friends with Jonathan Donahue from Mercury Rev. I
actually played on a track called "Meth Of A Rockette's Kick" from
their album, BOCES. Jonathan has steadfastly encouraged me over the years
to make this album. He adds his signature style of choral, string and brass
loops to the song, "Invisible".
Little by little, I would
either call or run into old friends and casually ask them to play on it. That's
how I came to ask Paul Garisto, Donny Yallech, Mars Williams and Amanda Kramer
(all of whom either played with the Psychedelic Furs at one time or are still
in the current touring lineup).
A couple of years ago, I got
back in touch with Roger Morris (Guitar) and Duncan Kilburn (sax) with whom I
had both played and toured with on the Psychedelic Furs first & second
albums: The Psychedelic Furs & Talk Talk Talk. I had always wanted to make
another record with these guys. So, when the opportunity arose, I jumped on it!
Roger lives in England and Duncan lives in Australia. So, this would not have
happened as easily, if it wasn't for the fact that we can share our song files
over the internet and record our parts anywhere in the world. Jo Quail, a
cellist from London, who has played on several tracks is another example of how
amazing this new technology is and how it has brought us all together.
Fred Schreck, our vocalist was
introduced to me by a mutual friend, Rob Sacher, a New York Club owner (The
Mission & Luna Lounge) who we both knew from our days (and nights) in NYC
back in the 80's & 90's. Fred lives in Nashville and up until relatively
recently, we had not even met face to face. Fred introduced me to Paul Ferguson
from Killing Joke. I had admired Paul's powerful drumming style for years.
Frank Coleman is our "man under the hood" and deals with all the tech
issues to do with our website, PledgeMusic campaign and social media. He also
happens to be a slamming drummer and has played on several tracks. Frank has
also played piano on a few tracks as well. I met him on Facebook, as well as, Jen
Gloeckner who sings backing vocals & plays keyboards & loops on a few
tracks. Jane Scarpantoni, a wonderfully talented cellist who has played with
Lou Reed, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs & countless others, has been a friend for many
years and plays on a couple of songs.
There are several other
musicians who have also played on this project like Alexandra Cutler-Fetkewicz
(violin) who I met whilst working on a Jon Anderson (Yes) album a couple of
years ago. Cheetah Chrome - Dead Boys (guitar) is someone that I have always
admired for his Anti Hero stance and "take no prisoners" guitar
style. Cheetah and I had hung out a lot back in the day and it was great to be
able to finally get him on a song. Mark Volman (Flo & Eddie) - I had always
loved the voices of Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan and it had been many years
since they had sung on the Psychedelic Furs album, Forever Now which was
produced by Todd Rundgren. Prior to that, I was a huge fan of their work on the
T-Rex & Frank Zappa's records. I called up Mark after Fred told me he was
living in Nashville. Mark went around and recorded his parts for "Super
Anti Hero" at Fred's place. Louis Schwadron - Sky White Tiger/Polyphonic
Spree was introduced to me by a mutual writer friend of ours, Ian Hunter. Ian
turned me on to Louis' band Sky White Tiger, who I absolutely love. Louis plays
French horn & Mellotron on a track called "Winter".
So basically that's how it all
came to be.
Is the
all-star line-up now the band you will be taking on the road?
Although there is a very tight
core which comprises essentially of myself, Fred and Frank, I'm not exactly
sure who is going to be available and when. It's logistically a a bit of a
nightmare! However, the great thing is that because Satellite Paradiso is more
of a collective than a band per se, it's going to be interesting. You're never
going to know who may show up and where!
The album is
called “Satellite Paradiso,” what inspired the name and what does it mean?
The Satellite represents
freedom from earthly ties, both physically and metaphorically. I grew up during
the space race. I watched Neil Armstrong take his first steps on the moon.
Floating high above the earth looking down gives us what is known as the
"Overview Affect". There is an amazing short film that describes this
much better than I can. You can see it here: http://vimeo.com/55073825
Paradiso is taken from Dante's
Divine Comedy. It represents a vision of Heaven. I have found myself floating
above what I feel is a false reality for most of my life. I struggle (as I
think most people do) to make sense of the world that we live in. Quite
honestly, I find it impossible. The name is meant to be open to interpretation
and can be anything you want it to be. It can be a spaceman surfing a huge
wave. Two images that are not meant to go together but somehow do. Art,
science, nature, they are all inextricably linked. I'm searching for that
thread…
This record
was mainly fan funded through PledgeMusic, what made you come up with the idea
to do it this way?
Crowd sourcing or funding is
the wave of the future and I'm all for that. PledgeMusic makes it easy to set
up your project and they have been extremely helpful. They have insight
into a very fickle marketplace. It's a great fit. I started out playing in a
rock band. We had a manager, an agent, a record company and a PR machine.
Things are a little different today. As a musician, I have to wear a lot of
different hats and sometimes they don't really fit so well. PledgeMusic has
helped smooth out a lot of otherwise rough edges.
Were you
afraid to do it fan funded? The dilemma many face today is not getting the fund
goal, was that a factor for you at any time?
Well, yes, one always has
doubts but, I feel fairly confident that PledgeMusic has my back. The don't
allow you to set ridiculous goals that you have no chance of attaining. They
are a well run organization that knows how to deal with and understands the needs
of musicians as well as, the market that we must inevitably enter to be
successful.
You are also
donating some of the proceeds, if the goal goes through, to MusicCares. How
important is this charity to you and what they do?
Like a lot of musicians, I
have suffered the slings and arrows of addiction brought on by depression,
alcohol and substance abuse. It's a part of lifes rich tapestry and it affects
everybody. Not just the addict but also their friends, families and co workers.
Through a friend, MusicCares afforded me the care I needed to get back on
track. They saved my life. For that, I will always be grateful!
Who was the
one person you wanted on this record that you couldn’t get?
To be honest with you,
everyone I asked to be a part of this project said yes. I am very lucky to be
in such good company.
What did you
do differently musically on “Satellite Paradiso?”
I took my time to get the
songs right. There's no filler on this record. Without sounding like a
megalomaniac, I've pored and pondered over these songs for quite some time but
essentially, I knew they were keepers when I wrote them because as I said, I
made sure that the songs themselves were pretty much together before handing
them off to anyone to play on. Even a song like Touch The Sky which was in a
much more stripped down version before the sax, cellos and vocals, drums &
bass were added is still the same song, it just has more instrumentation on it
now and obviously sounds a lot better for it. The arrangement, loops, chord
structure and guitars are still there from the very day I wrote it.
You are an
artist that started his career when everything was analogue, now, it is all
digital. Which do you prefer? What does the new technology mean to a musician
who learned his craft the old way?
That's a good question. I must
admit, I do miss the old days. The studio always was, and still is, a
sacred place for me, full of weird and wonderful equipment and some very weird
and wonderful people too. I learned my craft in an analog studio and I believe
I am a much better, more rounded musician/producer/engineer because of it. I
learned that a studio can be any place that works for you, so the
transition into becoming a studio owner myself was easier because of my background.
Technology today allows us to send song files to anywhere in the world in
minutes and it's certainly helped this project. I guess I'm in the right place
at the right time…again!
From your time in
Psychedelic Furs to today, what is your fondest memory of your career?
There are a lot of memories
that come flooding back at different times but, John Cale getting on stage with
with his viola at The Ritz in NYC and jamming on "India" has to be up
there! Hanging out with Andy Warhol at The Factory was pretty amazing too! But,
one of my most memorable moments may be from the Sweetwater Festival held in
New Zealand in 1983. It was getting dark and as I looked out all I could see
was a sea of people swaying to the music. We were playing to over 200,000 people
that night and it seemed as if the whole country had turned out to watch us.
What can fans expect
from you once the record is done?
I'd like to take this show on
the road and play some interesting venues that are not necessarily associated
with your typical rock venue. That's not to say that I wouldn't want to play in
a more conventional setting but because I believe that Satellite Paradiso has
made a very special album, I would like to get out there and play some very
special places.
What was this
experience making this record like for you?
It's been amazing watching it
all come together. It's a little bit like a storm brewing in the distance.
First you feel a slight breeze as a few leaves rustle and then a few rumblings
in the distance. Little by little, it builds until suddenly it's upon you and
you'd better be ready because it's just the beginning and there's no turning
back!
***Photo by Tom Newton****