First and foremost, who are we speaking to and what is your role in Caligula’s Horse?
Hey. Jim here, lead vocalist.
You guys will be tearing down the stage at Ding Dong Lounge next week as part of your extensive Turntail Tour. What do you expect the atmosphere of the set will be like?
Melbourne is always crazy. It’s like our second home. We’ve picked out a setlist of our favourites, and we’re sharing a stage with Chaos Divine and your very own homegrown Melburnians Enlight, so this show is going to be packed out and physical.
Your 2015 release Bloom has been described as “the perfect mission statement for an act blurring the line between power and reflection.” Why is it so important to fuse these two elements in order to craft innovative prog rock?
For a couple of reasons – for starters, modern prog music, especially prog metal, seems to be fairly bogged down in not only the same sort of sound production-wise, but even the same sort of songwriting, which to me isn’t what progressive music is about at all. So when we were writing Bloom we wanted something with not only light and shade, but a whole spectrum of colour, a total journey from beginning to end. Even more simply, this is just who we are, really. We’re all about that blending of emotional honesty and storytelling, so the mood of the music is really a reflection of who we are and what we have to say.
Heaps of modern musicians are trying their hand at melding together genres to create a sound that is unique and fresh. Would you agree that we’re living in a transformative time for music, and, is this approach the only way for contemporary artists to stand out these days?
I think this is something that’s been happening for a long time. There have always been artists pushing boundaries, blending styles, and creating new directions, but we’re fortunate enough to be living in a time when the world has developed a taste for that music [and] sounds from left of centre. Heaps of people out there are going to the effort of seeking out new sounds, seeking out new and developing artists and doing their best to support them, for which we’re hugely grateful. Of course, that’s a double-edged sword. You have to stand out to be heard above the crowd, but the number of people looking means more and more original voices are being heard, so I think it’s a great time for new and innovative music right now.
You guys have shared the stage with some killer outfits of the metal and rock’n’roll world, namely, Opeth, Tesseract, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Twelve Foot Ninja. Have you learnt any invaluable lessons from these music greats?
Totally, you always walk away with something. Whether you’re just starting out and playing alongside your mates bands, or lucky enough to share a stage with your musical heroes, you always learn something about stagecraft or performance by watching these other artists do their thing. We’ve had such a great couple of years for that, so many opportunities to play with incredible bands. I know I’ve learned a lot, a lot of things I can apply to my own performance or my approach to make me a better vocalist.
What’s in the cards for you guys in the coming year? Can fans expect some new material, and if so, can you give us a little teaser about what it might sound like?
We’re definitely keeping busy in 2016 – while this will likely be our last tour for the year, we’ve got our work cut out for us and there’s already some new ideas we’re throwing around that I’m really excited about. All I can say for now is that whatever’s coming, it’ll be big.
BY KATE EARDLEY
