Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Interviews
Forum Description: Original interviews with Prog artists (which are exclusive to Prog Archives)
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=76859 Printed Date: December 18 2024 at 21:52 Software Version: Web Wiz Forums 11.01 - http://www.webwizforums.com
Topic: ColsterPosted By: toroddfuglesteg
Subject: Colster
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 16:43
Colster is a new project from Cuneo, Italy, the collaboration of multi-instrumentalist Livio Cravero and percussionist/drummer Francesco Previotto. Their impressive debut album has been released on Ma.Ra.Cash Records and features compositions the duo wrote over the past two years. During this time they were traveling in Europe, America, and Asia, engaging another interest in photography that they have integrated into the Colster project. They sought to create instrumental music which would express their life experiences while at the same time be accessible and conducive to mental imagery for the listener. While I have read some reviews which mentioned Pink Floyd and King Crimson in their discussion, in my opinion this is music which sails closer to modern psych/space-tinged jamming with Djam Karet and Ozric Tentacles flavorings. I would say Colster is a bit more accessible than those bands even, creating an almost instantly appreciated rock jam with psychedelic influences but far from anything seriously weird or dissonant. This is a classy and interesting new act which will make some waves, and a second album is already planned.
I got in touch with the band and the band answered my questions.
When,
where and by whom was your band born ? Did any of you, past and
present members, play in any other bands before joining up in your
band ? Why
did you choose that name ?
We
have being playing from 11 years ago and growing up together
musically, after playing in various bands mainly from blues-rock
sound, we have developed over time a strong interest in musical
experimentation, and therefore born in 2007 Colster project as a duo.
The idea was to create new compositions giving free rein to our
creativity without limits. The choice to named the band Colster, word
invented by us, is an expression of our approach to music without
limitations, which gives more importance to creativity and sound. In
fact, we preferred to choose a name not from the precise and definite
meaning, but a word that sounds good to our ears.
For
those of us unknown with your music; how would you describe you
music and which bands would you compare yourself with ?
In
our first album we tried to create an ideal background for listener’s
thoughts to experience different emotions, and at the same time, be
fully involved in our music with complete freedom of interpretation,
trying to give much importance to instrumental music characterized by
frequent scene changes and intensity, just as happens in classical
music. Our inspiration comes mainly from the progressive rock bands
and psychedelia of the seventies, which had been the first to follow
this approach with experimental music, and that unfortunately is no
longer in vogue. In addition, we have always been very influenced by
the blues. Do not feel to list the bands that influenced us in what
we do, because they are many and there is the risk to forget someone
important.
Your
one and only album so far; Colster was released last year. Please
tell us more about this album.
Our
first album is the result of several musical ideas developed over the
years, we had also been inspired by the trips we'd taken in Europe,
Asia and the United States. During these trips we had collected many
ideas and images that we then used for the cover of the album and the
video trailer. We strongly believe in the approach we have
sound-image and personally supervised every aspect of our
compositions sound-image. The album was self produced and recorded
"in house" between 2008 and 2009 and was released in the
spring of 2010 with the help of records Ma.ra.cash who believed in
us, also thanks to them we had the opportunity to play that summer in
important contexts such as the Gong Festival in Parma with famous
progressive names like The Tangent, at the ExProg of Mogliano Veneto
culminated with the participation of Marillion, and at the Alex prog
festival closed by IQ.
You
are currently working on a new album, I have been told. What can we
expect from this album ?
Yes,
we are currently in the process of composition, and we have already
provided many ideas, some of them recorded even before the completion
of the first album. We definitely plan to introduce some changes in
our compositions. For example, many of our ideas have ethnic
influences, and try to increase the use of acoustic instruments. We
also intend to let go more and more without being bound by any genre
in particular. For our second album, the core composition will be
composed of the two of us, but we do not exclude the collaboration of
other musicians, particularly from our bassist and keyboardist who
support us in live.
Besides
of this album; what have you been up to since the release of your
album and what is your latest update ? What is your plans for this
year and beyond ?
After
the official presentation of the album to "IndependenteMente
Musica" in Reggio Emilia, an event dedicated to independent
music in which performed the Moongarden with whom we have had the
pleasure to collaborate with Gong Festival in Parma and the Ex-prog
festival, several reviews very encouraging have been published,
especially yours (which we are very proud!), and we had proposals for
live performances so we concentrate on the preparation for the live
situation so we had to find musicians and perform some rearrangements
of the songs with the goal of making live more interesting. The
musicians that currently support us are also our dear friends,
Andrea Burdese (keyboards) and Andrea Gorga (bass). We also created a
video to be shown during our performances, that follows the style of
the video trailer posted in our record. This year we plan to prepare
our second album and hope to participate again in live events
rewarding as those of last summer.
To
wrap up this interview, is there anything you want to add to this
interview ?
First
of all we want to thank you for asking us to have this interview, and
for publishing a review of our record so beautiful. We also want to
thank all the people that somehow are interested in us. What can we
say, a few time before, we used to link to your site often and
dreamed of one day also be able to see ours, and now it has happened
.. We are very pleased with this first year of Colster and we hope
that this is only the first of a series of interesting albums and
featuring by different personalities.
Thank you to Colster for this interview
Their PA profile is http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=5571" rel="nofollow - and their homepage's http://www.myspace.com/colstermusic" rel="nofollow -
Replies: Posted By: Finnforest
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 16:54
I love their album. I think lots of people here would like it, so give it a chance!