1.What has your journey been with music and also with the release of these 7 albums to date?
From an early age, I have been imagining and realizing musical ideas.
I started playing piano at around four, by ear, then picked up drums,guitar,
and anything I could get my hands on. To this day when I see most objects I hit em,drop em, throw em, and try to see what sounds they make.
This might have something to do with why I don’t get many repeat invitations to formal dinner parties. In the studio, Usually I play most , if not all of the instruments on the recordings I make, preferring performances to programming onto machines. My sons are starting to take over and have begun kicking me off of various instruments.
I prefer analog recording, and all albums to date were recorded analog.
I don’t dislike digital at all, and I am delving into it as well, the concept of using tape as a canvas to paint on, deeply resonates with me.
I engaged in the usual paths musicians attempt and found The further I got away from forming bands and playing clubs, the stronger, more original, and more varied my musical ideas became.
So I started releasing music independently and took my first album to local media, it was shocking, the smaller Boston music papers went out of their way to trash my music, because it was Very,Very, different, from the Boston scene,
one magazine even went on to say, “He’s obviously not one of us”.
I pressed on and went to larger media outlets, there was a writer at the Boston Herald who was a professional musician, had a degree from the Manhattan school of music, and had real reverence for the art form.
To my surprise I got a call from him and, he invited me to lunch.
He admitted that at first he did not realize I was a local artist, because the music was unlike any of what was going on around Boston. He was knocked out by the recording and did a huge feature in the Boston Herald, putting me on par with The Beatles during their prime. This certainly helped get things rolling.
2.Any thoughts about where music and the music business are going?
Music for the first time in history is free from the constraints, of business people. This can only be positive for the art form, as some business people have taken it upon themselves to be virulent enemies of culture.
The business model all along of record companies has been and remains larceny. All of the retail situations, that are abusive to artists will resolve in short order because now many artists own their master recordings, and can walk away from these crappy deals.
I give iTunes credit, in that they cut everyone the same deal, as a result, that’s where I purchase music and if anyone is interested in my music that’s where I encourage people to go.
3.How have you musically evolved over time?
Well first my tail fell off, and for reasons that remain unclear, many of us began walking upright. While walking I stumbled on a piano near a ship wreck,
there were drums,guitars,and electronic things that made space ship noises. All the people on this particular ship were inexplicably walking away.
These disheveled zombie-like survivors kept saying “we just want to disco, baby”. As they trailed off into the distance, it seemed safe to assume they were willfully eschewing various cultural notions.
Left with these things, in time, a type of sound emerged.
4. What, if any,artists other than musicians have influenced you?
An Enormous array of inspired, comedians, Poets, Painters, Anthropologists, Architects, and Astronomers,all come to mind. From The Marx Brothers to Rimbaud and to Van Gogh: I view all of them as intertwined.
5. You have rather prolifically released four albums covering a wide range of music in the last three years. Do you ever get writers block?
I typically don’t, and look at all parts of the creative process as necessary. Down time is important, when in this reflective mode all kinds of new ideas begin. Given how broad a range of ideas I am willing to draw from it continually makes it possible to connect concepts and have ideas ricochet off one another.
It’s very exciting to not know where any of this is going. I view creativity as infinite.
6.You just released a Music Video for the song “She Was Never Really There” How was the video process, different or similar to making an album?
I sat down with co-director Jeff Haynes and we came up with a concept,
and set up a series of ideas in a space, and a game plan as to how we would execute theses images. The organization was treated very similarly to a recording session, because that’s what I know.
Everyone ,particularly the actresses involved where impressed with how quickly everything went. It was great fun and has been well received so far.
MTV just picked up the video.
7.What can the erstwhile music fan expect upon purchasing one of your albums?
Fortunately, I have consistently received high praise for the albums in many countries through out the world. The feedback, typically talks about the artistry,imagination and musicality of my recordings.
I get compared to the Beatles often,they were a huge influence in many ways.
Though, It is not all song oriented , there are experimental recordings through out the catalog. There is a great deal of ground covered.
I attempt to make musical worlds where one can explore and get lost in.
8.How does one find out about and continue to follow,all things Arthur?
The web site is probably best – www.arthurnasson.com – Facebook, smoke signals, or Tea leaves.
9.How have people been finding out about you?
Traditional and non Traditional ways. People at various media outlets have been very good to me. MTV,NPR,Good Morning America’s Web Site featured me. Major Newspapers,Magazines.In The US, and abroad, National Radio play, word of mouth, alien abductions, knitting circles.
10.What does 2013 hold?
I am getting ready to make another video. My latest “West Cambridge Cowboys” is still going strong, so more work on promoting that, as there are lot’s of things in discussion, we will see what shakes out.
Arthur Nasson Interview
Arthur Nasson Interview
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