Prepare for Indiescoveries and Blue Grazer Records to Take you on a journey into
the world of one of the greatest musicians of all time: Plains Desperate Symphony.
See even deeper into the world of PDS! International Indie Spotlight: Plains Desperate Symphony – Blue Grazer Records
Ghost: Can you tell us about your journey into music? How did you get started, and what inspired you to become an indie artist?
PDS: Music has always been a big part of my life. One of my earliest memories was from when I was very young, walking home from school and hearing The Beatles playing loud enough that I could hear it from the sidewalk. I hoped that the music was coming from my house, and it was. In elementary school I sang in the choir. When I was in junior high I was in the school band where I played trumpet. I’ve also taken piano, guitar and drums lessons. I also took a course on music production. Music is and always has been center in my life.
Ghost: Nice! What is the story behind your artist's name? Does it hold a special meaning for you?
PDS: In high school I started a duo with my best friend called Sonic Fluid. While brainstorming ideas for that band I made a list of ideas and Plains Desperate Symphony was one of those. I always liked that name, and shortly after starting Sonic Fluid I wanted a name for my solo material, and I went back to that list for inspiration. It doesn’t have any special meaning, but I can’t imagine calling myself anything else. Ghost: How would you describe your music style? What genres or artists have influenced your sound? PDS: I have always struggled with what to call the music that I make. Currently I am calling it Cinematic Electronic music, but I’ve had it described as “Folk Industrial.” I am influenced by many different genres and artists. Some artists are: Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy, DJ Shadow, The Chemical Brothers, Orbital, The Crystal Method, Vangelis, Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode, KMFDM, Histheory, Ghost of Rucker and Lost Cause Industry.
Ghost: I am honored to be in that list my friend! I am influenced by you as well as some of the other musicians you mentioned. Can you share the creative process behind your latest album/single? How do you usually go about writing and producing your songs?
PDS: The album that I am currently wrapping up, Full Lucid, is a little different than anything else that I have written. It is a concept album about a dream that I had a couple of years ago that was incredibly vivid and a little disturbing. I wrote the dream down as soon as I woke up, and then rewrote it a few times into a story in 6 parts. This story was original meant to be a part of my last album, Philip K Dick, but I wrote the songs first and recorded the story after, and it just didn’t fit. But I loved the story, and I knew that I wanted to do something with it. In January, I decided to build an album around the story and wrote 6 ambient pieces to fit the story, and then wrapped each of those chapters in instrumental songs that would fit the mood of the chapters they were slotted between. The final result is an album I am beyond proud of. I think it’s my best and most complete piece of work in my entire life.
Ghost: Full Lucid sounds like it is absolutely amazing. What challenges have you faced as an indie artist? How have you overcome them?
PDS: The biggest challenges I have faced are internal ones. I have struggled and continue to struggle with feelings of inadequacy, that I am a fraud, that my music isn’t good enough and that no one cares about what I do. One thing that has helped is finding a community of artists, many of whom are feeling the same things I do and finding support and acceptance by supporting and accepting them. Groups like Band Together, Indiescoveries and Dukester Entertainment Family are incredible supports of independent music, and I don’t think I would have had the courage to release my latest album without their support.
Ghost: Can you share with us who inspired your passion for music while growing up?
PDS: My family would be number one as far as sources of my passion for music. Both my parents listened to music a lot when I was growing up, and my brother was a couple years older than me, so he knew all the cool bands and introduced me to so many of my favorites when I was young. I also had a number of teachers, either at school, in private lessons, or that were bandmates of mine whose love of music was positively infectious.
Ghost: What message do you aim to convey through your music? Is there a particular theme or emotion you aim to evoke in your listeners?
PDS: I don’t know if there’s a single message or theme that runs throughout all of my music, but some of the emotions that I seem to return to a lot are regret, sadness, anger and despair. I always hope to provoke some kind of emotional response in the listener.
We would like to thank Justin of Plains Desperate Symphony!
We are profoundly grateful for the opportunity to interview you. Your willingness to share your experiences and insights has provided us with a unique perspective that we are eager to share with our audience. Your passion for music and your dedication to your craft are truly inspiring. We appreciate the time you took out of your busy schedule to speak with us. Thank you once again for your generosity and openness. We look forward to all of future collaborations!
See even deeper into the world of PDS! International Indie Spotlight: Plains Desperate Symphony – Blue Grazer Records
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