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| Artwork by Lady Viktoria. |
His
alluring new
single ’Days Of’ feat. Patrick Carney (The Black Keys) &
Jason Lytle (Grandaddy)
provides the
emotional centrepiece to the beautiful constellation of new Kramies’
songs on
his
latest, highly-anticipated
EP.
Despite his current plans being big and somewhat secretive, Kramies took delight in answering my questions; please enjoy the candour, humour and cheese-farming fruits of my labour that are found herein…
When you take aim with your peashooter/pellet gun/sniper rifle, you're aiming at who?
Ha! Right off the bat, these are great questions... I would say all the bugs that keep sneaking their way into my home. Where I live right now there seems to be a lot more bugs than I'm use to... I've been mostly a city dweller my who life so there's bugs out here that I never knew existed.
Where do you go when it all gets too much?
The woods, trees, I try surrounding myself with a sort of fairytale nature that helps me release any crowded emotions and noise. Now, I fucking know I just said I dislike bugs, but I'm good as long as there's a normal amount.
Is bedtime more half nine with a half read paper or more half four with fully red eyes?
I love these questions. I'm not sure but I would guess I'm more a half nine with a half read paper? Wait, maybe I’m a half seven with a half eaten cake? Wait wait wait... I'm a half eight with all the lights on because I cant stop watching TV shows about ghosts!
What do you do with any “you” time?
These days meditation and yoga. Years ago it was drugs and booze, but I’m sober now for 16 years.. both worked... sometimes… But now its meditation and yoga.
Who would be your dream collaborator?
Joanna Newsom or Aurora. I think both of these women are amazingly artistic and inspiring; their songs touch depths that are unknown to us.
What's the last gig/concert you went to?
I rarely go to shows or concerts, but a friend of mine Jim Bogios is in The Counting Crows which is a wonder-band from the States... I'm sure you've heard of them. I'm very fortunate to have such cool friends doing amazing things; their show was great to see... As a young kid I use practice singing in my shitty car to their album "August and Everything After".
What's the best / your favourite music video?
Oh wow, this is a rough one... maybe Sprout and the Bean by Joanna Newsom or shit man I don't know... I'm more a "song on a soundtrack from a movie" kind of guy.
I'm so easy visually and musically enchanted that there are so many, for so many reasons. I remember taking acid once and seeing "Mountain Song" by Jane’s Addiction... It floored me; it was the perfect combination of music and filming.
If you were a musical instrument what would you be?
A harpsichord from the 1800's, sitting in an abandoned castle somewhere in Ireland.
What's ‘love at first sight' all about then?
Everything! As an artist it happens to me all the time… not with humans, but with life, art, places… It’s about everything.
Where do you draw your inspiration from?
I tend to have an over productive imagination that at times runs wild into images of dark folklore and eerie scenery; haunted forests, oceans, long storms, old architecture, people… but at times, its also about being in tune with progress and making bots of money and all that shit. Don't let people fool you, inspiration comes from the "push and pull" corners of creating and sometimes you feel it, sometimes you need to pay rent. I’m a life artist I do more then music stuff so I feel very fortunate. My inspiration comes from all sorts of visual things.
Care to share any regrets, missed opportunities or things that might've been?
Well I try to say yes to as much as possible, but I’ve postponed or taken too much on a few times, but I tend to believe that every missed opportunity comes back around, bigger and better.
Were /are you aware of your escalating popularity?
Normally I wouldn't answer this ‘cause it’s bloody dangerous, but I like a bit of danger, so... I'm aware that I keep getting the opportunity to do this year after year; the projects keep getting cooler and the people I get to create and work with keep getting more amazing, but all the rest is just a strange popularity shit business that most likely means nothing.
A lot of what seems great on the outside also comes with an inner struggle for artists, so artists are often clueless to what's happening because we are all in our heads... Unless your an asshole and all you care about is fame and buying shoes or big houses that you can’t fill with furniture or art; none of my friends or people I work with are like that. So… I hope stuff is escalating, I don’t know, I just keep making stuff so I can someday buy some goats to make cheese!
Photo by Derek Lee LaJoie
Will
your past come back to haunt you or will karma be kind?
I have a pretty crazy fucking past full of crazy up stories so let’s hope so! Or it might already have; either way, I have funny stories of hanging out with mad artists, performing in some strange places, years of cocaine, getting lost on trains for days, seeing ghosts in castles, car wrecks, meth labs, police arrests and nights out with old drunk celebrities etc.… and that’s just one night!
I wouldn't trade these memories for anything in the world, but yeah, that hell might come back and I don’t mind... I'm sure there are photos swimming around out there! But you know, I’m sober now and my life is even better because I can remember things.
Where do you most enjoy playing live?
Ireland, France, Iceland, England... any place that's unique. I'd rather play intimate shows in rare places like manors, old buildings, tattoo parlours, art galleries and book stores, but I'll take anything that seems like a fair exchange of comfort between the audience and myself.
Why? What's your biggest why question that mystifies you most?
Ghosts... and why must autumn disappear?
What influences your sound above all else?
Probably where I live and how much I live. I can’t write without having space and texture in my life. I have a love of experience that really helps me create and feel my own sound.
Where do you sit in the grand scheme of things?
In your last days, the only thing that you will remember is the love you gave and the love you allow yourself to receive; nothing else really matters. Our only job as artists is to create a nostalgic space of love and comfort for humans... Vibrational Waves that help humans feel all aspects of nature... I think that's my job… I think..... fuck it, it’s all different for everyone right?
Why the name (not your christened name of course)?
Oh well now! Kramies is my name; I have all sorts of long names, but I try as best as I can to keep that stuff private. I have been called Kramies for as long as I can remember. Some people doing interviews try to dig up some other names, but that doesn't bother me. Kramies is the only name I respond to, so any other name and I'll just keep walking past you... Unless its "Handsome" I respond to that too!
Who's the most likely to go solo or crazy?
It’s only me, so me!
Any choice epitaphs or famous last words for which you'd like to be quoted?
I'm still here...
Are you all agreed/in control of the formats for your releases?
Yes, I learned a few things the hard way in the long ago past and now I know. There was this one company when I first got sober off of hard drugs back in 2004, I signed all my old shitty music over to them because I thought I had quit this business; now, every fucking time I release something new and it gets attention, theses fuckers re-release the old embarrassing shit and make money off of my name... it fucking sucks, but that's the business... Be careful and don't be scared at the same time.
Wish you were doing anything else with your time other than music?
I would love to live on a cheese farm in England and learn to make cheese and write little books of poems.
Who were your heroes as a teenager?
Number one is Santa Clause. I still have him up there as a hero. I'm working on looking just like him in the near future.
What do you think of the paparazzi?
I don’t have the paparazzi situation, but these days I find all sorts of weird stuff about myself on the internet! I've had my share of odd situations in Europe, which is pretty funny and I enjoy it, but to have people taking your photo all the time would probably fucking kill me; I hate the way I look in photos.
So I would probably lose it, at the same time it might be cool ‘cause it probably means I can afford an old castle in Europe somewhere and I could hide away with my fourteen cats, seven dogs and three goats... like Enya who I really admire.
What music are you listening to of late?
I can’t stop listening to Aurora and Joanna Newsom. Those two are the best. Listen to "81" by Joanna Newsom, it’s incredible... and check out the live performance of Aurora doing "Run Away" at the Nobel Peace Prize, it’s brilliant.
Any message for underachieving or odds-facing musicians out there?
Don't stop creating; be exactly who you are, do exactly what you do and be open to all possibilities.
Any career highs or lows you care to share?
Highs I'd say putting shows aside it’s the people I get to work with. It blows me away every day that I get to make art with other artists who are way bigger names then me… also, it’s all highs, all of it man!
Do you enjoy playing live or are you more at home in a studio?
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| Photo by Bill Reynolds |
Your career defining dream moment would/will be what?
I don't know yet, which I think maybe is a good sign.
Know of any upcoming bands that are destined for greatness?
Foxtail Brigade and Ben from Happy to Help.
How important do you feel visuals are in relation to music?
Very very very very important. It creates movement, taps into nostalgia and helps you to remember… very!
What's been the highlight of your year?
There's been a few things, but one of the coolest is I writing the soundtrack for the world’s first French fairytale pop-up book called "Legend Of The Willow". It’s beautiful and as you read it and scan your phone over the pages, it plays my music! It’s sold out a few times already... Fucking magical!
I'm sure you've done a few but which gig has been your best?
The few where I wasn't too terrified of everyone looking at me. The smaller ones are scarier. I love the shows in theatres, so any theatre.
Any forthcoming plans for you?
Big plans… stuff I cant mention... I wish I could... but yes, plans!
Is there more pressure playing live with a band than there is playing solo?
For me, solo-ish or with just one other by my side. I don't really understand music or notes or being in a band. It’s too hard for me to communicate that stuff. I just push out emotion, so it’s easier for me being solo.
Best song, movie OR album ever?
Harry Potter... and the soundtrack.
Where did you sleep last night?
As of right now, I’m in the Blueridge mountains more towards the east coast. I move and change location often, so I never know when or where. My family has a book of addresses written down for me and they just keep crossing them out and adding new ones.
What's your secret vice... what are you a sucker for?
Celtic music, autumn, thunderstorms, pumpkin patches, good carrot cake!
Where's the place to be?
Oh man, so many... I have a fondness for Ireland.
Which instrument does it for you most?
Piano, but I write mostly on guitar.
Are you a good dancer and can you prove it?
No and no way!
What kinds of music (if any) do you dislike the most?
I have the hardest time with jazz & blues; most likely because I'm not musically intelligent and it’s hard for me to understand... ha-ha I'm so sorry to anyone who reads this and thinks I'm nuts, but I can’t understand jazz & blues. Oh, and any super happy music... it falls flat on my heart.
Where will you retire to when you're tired of comeback concerts?
Ireland.
When will the world end?
I think it ends all the time and starts over.
How important are the single / album charts?
Well that all depends. If you’re doing this professionally like myself then I guess it matters a bit, but honestly, all that shit is crazy to pay attention to too much. It’s cool when it happens, but it doesn't make or break your art. If you’re a lifer and a creator, it will have little impact; I have friends who are well known and have no idea about charts or anything of the sorts. Here's a story…
One day I was in the studio with my friend Todd Tobias (produced legendary albums for Guided By Voices and Robert Pollard); I said to him “Hey, did you read the article about yourself in Rolling Stone?” and he just said “no”... he had no idea about it! He's my hero.
Which era would you have been born in ideally?
1970's as an adult or like Charles Dickens time; I would like to be writing the next Christmas Story.
Are exercise and diet important to you?
Yes, very. Like I mentioned before, I was a really bad drug addict... like tons of drugs; now that it hasn't killed me, I try to stay as healthy as possible. Fuck man, I had some demons, but I keep them quiet.
If you could protect and save 1 thing in the world, what would it be?
Animals! All of them; every single furry animal... including unicorns… and trees.
Have you got any famous relatives and if so, who are they?
None really... I know my great great great grandfather only died at 89 years old because he came out of a brothel and got hit by a horse and buggy... is that famous?
Does complaining accomplish anything?
Probably not, but sometimes you just need to complain; things are a bloody mess in this world, so sometimes you just need to complain, right? It’s human-ish.
Which
rules... the digital age or the vinyl/cassette age?
Photo by Bill Reynolds
All
of it. I love all formats
Which rules... the digital age or the vinyl/cassette age?
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| Photo by Bill Reynolds |
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