Written by: Jen Dan
The 1960s and 1970s-influenced, yet modern psych-rock four-piece PLUM have roots in the Denver, Colorado music scene, but the band members will be transplanting to L.A. in early 2016 to soak up some different vibes for their upcoming material. Their tantalizingly trippy and rousingly rocky debut EP, Light Years, Dark Years, is out now. Find out more about PLUM, its creative process, and what’s on the musical horizon below:
Stereo Embers Magazine: Hi guys! It’s so cool to connect with you about your new EP, Light Years, Dark Years, and your mesmerizing and energetic psych-rock sound. Where are you at this moment and what are the vibes like?
PLUM: We are just outside of L.A. at Jake’s parents house about ready to explore Venice Beach. We flew in from Denver last night and it’s rained the whole time so it’s pretty foggy/misty. Looking forward to the California sunshine to come out later today.
SEM: Who is in the band and what instruments do you play?
PLUM: Ty Baron (Keys/Guitar), Dane Mark (Drums), Jake Supple (Bass/Vocals), and Kyle Emerson Miller (Guitar/Vocals).
SEM: Your tunes radiate a deeply vintage psychedelic sound due to the thick and squelchy guitar lines, organ note runs, heavy drum beats, and slightly fuzzed vocals, and the sometimes trippy touch to the sonics and vocals. The 1960’s music scene with The Doors and Jimi Hendrix was well before your time. Do you feel like you were born in the wrong era?
PLUM: As romantic as certain eras sound to us in retrospect, I think we’re all happy to be alive and making music in 2015. All of the perennial rock bands from the ’60s and ’70s have been big influences on us, but we’ve also been influenced by a lot of bands that came out of the ’80s, ’90s, and today. We definitely don’t neglect a lot of the music that happened post-’60s.
SEM: Since you didn’t come of age in the 60s, where does your love for the psych-rock genre come from?
PLUM: Our parents/older siblings were a big part of kick-starting our interest in rock n roll. Tracing the influences of our favorite bands has been another great way to discover new music as well, whether that be finding the Velvet Underground via The Strokes or Howlin’ Wolf via Led Zeppelin. Once you stop compartmentalizing music by decade or era in your mind, you really start to realize that it’s a continuum. A lot of people will write off entire decades of music based on things like aesthetics or other extra-musical factors; which is a real shame because there’s so much great music from every decade that ends up just getting written off without a fair chance.
SEM: While I’m digging the retro vibe and influences displayed on Light Years, Dark Years, like you said, you also have more modern inspirations. Who are they?
PLUM: We really like mixing the old with the new and a great way to do this is through production. A lot of modern production you hear on pop records today we dabbled with on our most recent record. We only use modern production techniques if it helps get our vision of the song across better. Some songs benefit from a modern twist and other times it can ruin what the song is getting at. As far as specific examples of our modern influences, I would mention Boogarins as a good band to check out.
SEM: Light Years, Dark Years is self-produced. Can you go into the creative process that shaped the EP?
PLUM: There are 3 songwriters in the band and we all have different processes. Sometimes the song will be completely demoed by one person before the band works on it and other times it will just be one part that we all work on and arrange together. Our next group of songs that we’re working on has been very collaborative which has made for a very cohesive sound, and we’re really excited about that.
SEM: While I like each aspect of your sound, what I enjoy the most are the squelchy guitar sections and the sweet vocal harmonies. How do you get that psychedelic guitar tone? Why did you decide to incorporate vocal harmonizing into your music?
PLUM: The guitar tones are something we pay a lot of attention to. We try out different guitar and amplifier combinations to get the right sound, as well as finding the right microphone and preamp/compressor combos. The vocal harmonies come from growing up on The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Simon & Garfunkel, CSNY, etc. Even though we like to use effects to enhance our sound sonically, we feel that there is something inherently infectious about human voices singing together.
SEM: What is the music scene like in Denver? Do you have roots in that city and its environs or is a change of scenery to L.A., Austin, or NYC in the cards for you?
PLUM: The music scene in Denver is very tight-knit. We’re close friends with a lot of the bands we play with and everyone tries to help each other out the best they can. We plan to expand our horizons and move to L.A. in early 2016. We’re really excited for the change of scenery and the opportunity to meet new people, so if you’re reading this and you’re out in California give us a shout!
SEM: What is the meaning behind your band name? For some reason I’m taking it to mean “choice” or “the best”, as in “He had a plum role in that film and became a star.” Am I hitting the target or am I way off the mark?
PLUM: We were struggling to come up with a name so we decided to take a trip together. We turned off all the lights and covered every crack in the room until we couldn’t tell if our eyes were opened or closed. We played our demos and it just seemed obvious.
SEM: What is the atmosphere of your live performances like? You played at the Denver Psych Fest. How was that experience?
PLUM: For being connected to the ‘Psych-rock movement’ we’ve still tried to keep the live performances pretty stripped-down visually. We don’t have any sort of projections or a light show currently. We’re not opposed to doing that someday, but similarly to how we want to use modern effects as something to enhance our music and not something to hide behind, we also want the visual elements to enhance how the music comes across rather than be intrusive. Psych Fest was a real blast and we’d love to do it again.
SEM: Are you gearing up to release another EP in the near future, or perhaps a full-length is in the works?
PLUM: We’re set to record the next group of songs in early 2016. Come February we are renting a cabin for the month in New Mexico to polish off and record the new material. We are doing things a bit differently this time by recording all analog. The naivety aspect has always been a good thing for us because it lends us the ability to be creative in a different way. We’re not ready to disclose the length of it yet but we’re very excited for everyone to hear these new songs.
SEM: Any chance of a video release for a song off the EP? One with trippy visuals would be awesome!
PLUM: We should have a video coming out here in the coming weeks. It’s sort of like a combination of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, but with better production and acting.
SEM: An old-school 60s-70s flair also infuses your sartorial style. Where do you acquire your vintage threads? Any favorite pieces at the moment? I’m digging the fringe jacket on your EP cover.
PLUM: Thanks! We really like Buffalo Exchange and Boss Vintage in Denver. The cultural awakening of the 60s and 70s allowed for some pretty explorative fashion trends, which is cool to dip into every once in a while. We’ve been in a competition of sorts with who has the coolest jacket; we are all the self-proclaimed winners though.
Connect with PLUM:
www.plumofficial.com
www.facebook.com/plumofficial
www.twitter.com/plum_official
Instagram: @plumofficial
