Up Up And Away In My Beautiful Rapoon!

Robin Storey (Rapoon - :zoviet*france:)

In what way are you your parents' child?

To be honest, I hope not much of my father has been passed on - a certain grumpiness that surfaces now and again is attributable to paternal genes. I would like to think I take after my mother more than my dad, though neither showed any interest in any creative arts. Well, my mother used to love gardening and growing plants, so do I.

What aspects of structure does your music share with your upbringing?

I grew up in the country, in the days when it was safe to wander off by yourself and just come home when you were hungry. I was taught self-discipline, if that's not a contradiction in terms, and to respect other people. I sought solitude and preferred to be outside, walking and looking and daydreaming. I hated phony conventions where enforced merriment was the order of (the) day. I loved junior school, where learning was an enriching experience, and hated grammar school, with it pious traditions and stifling of any original thought.

I think all these things influence the structure of my music, especially the wandering and daydreaming bit.

Are structure and control mutually inclusive?

Yeah, I suppose so - some structuring evolves naturally, subconsciously even, but I think you still need to make decisions as well. All the good abstract painters didn't just diddle about, throwing paint onto canvas without making any judgments; all the crap ones just threw paint onto canvas.

Does structure become an aspect of the aesthetic itself when composing?

I think it can be appreciated intellectually, but if it is JUST structure, I think its merit is diminished. I hate purely intellectual art and music. It's wank.

Is it possible to create a work of art existing independently of the aesthetic?

I'm not sure what you mean, but maybe I would say in answer that primitive art didn't have an intellectual aesthetic, and yet no one's come anywhere near producing anything as powerful and beautiful as ancient indigenous art.

What does the term power electronics mean to you?

I don't know - I've never heard the term before - is it where you put the plug in?

Insofar as your music goes, why do you do what you do?

Analysis is death - mostly, I do it because I would be climbing the walls with frustration if I wasn't - also, I love doing it - there are times when I get despondent and frustrated with the results, but mostly, I'm having a good time. I never know what's coming next, and it's exciting, for me, to find out.

Is chance as important as knowledge, in experimental music?

Yes, it is - some of the best ideas come about by pure chance. You need to be open to chance and recognise it, but chance on its own will only produce garbage.

Is it important, at times, not to know what you're doing, in experimental music?

I think it's important to not be sure of where you are going, and allow yourself the freedom to let go of any constraints and let intuition take over during the initial recordings. Also, I think you shouldn't be afraid to try things, especially new things - new instruments - new equipment. I was never interested in learning how to play any instrument, in the traditional orthodox sense; instead, I have discovered how to play things by letting the instrument speak for itself. I only gave in once when I was persuaded to buy a How to Play... book, when I bought my first set of tablas. I persevered for about a month and then chucked the book away, and went back to what I had always done - closed my eyes and just played them - it may not be in the traditional way, but I don't care, it feels much more natural this way.

What is your ancestry?

Thieves, thugs and plunderers - one ancestor was a Viking chieftan, who conquered parts of Northern England and declared himself King of Cumbria. Storey is a fairly common name in the borderlands between Scotland (and Britain). Future generations carried on the tradition of being malcontents and rebellious, causing havoc and mischief for centuries.

Was your heritage crucial in bringing you to where you are now with your music?

Not really, except in a geographical sense. I'm glad they decided to plunder and pillage in a very beautiful and dramatic area of England, and my descendants decided to kick around in the same place because it was so nice. The area has certainly had a major influence on my music - all those big open spaces, the sea, mountains, moorlands - hardly any people - bliss.

Does your way of thinking about your music affect your life in general?

Well, only inasmuch as I'm pretty much distracted and thinking about things most of the time, so, I'm sometimes a pain in the ass during conversations, which are suddenly one-sided.

Should art be consumptive?

I'm not sure what you mean - is it that your art should be everything in your life, to the exclusion of everything else? If that's the question, then - personally, I don't think so, not anymore - my relationship with my little boy has been more rewarding than anything I've managed to achieve musically or in painting.

Are people who answer questions with yes or no stupid, or just plain lazy?

Maybe neither, maybe (they're) just in a hurry.

Does experimental music imply a separation of art and artist?

Yes, from the neck down.

How has your music separated you from living life?

Sometimes, when I've spent all day trying to get a track mixed just right, and then it's time to go pick Jacob up from school, and I realise it's been a beautiful sunny day while I've been inside twiddling knobs, I think: You idiot.

Does your music have an ending point?

No, I keep going back and pillaging little bits and making something entirely new out of them.

Do you see your work continued after you have assumed room temperature?

The room I work in gets pretty cold in winter - it resumes once I've had a cup of coffee and got warmed up downstairs by the fire.

Who do you see today carrying the tradition of experimental music into tomorrow?

My little lad Jacob - I played with him recently - gave him a keyboard and a microphone and showed him how to change settings - he was brilliant, much better than me. So, that's it, he's not getting his hands on them again.

Has the memory of your first kiss found its way into your work?

Not consciously - it was a pretty furtive affair, behind a bike-shed at junior school if I remember correctly - I don't think her mum was best pleased.

interview by David Cotner

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