Russell.M.Harmon is an Englishman in Reykjavik and Icelandic landscape made quite an impact on his music. Previously known as her.eyes.like_static, he relaunched his career under his own name and last year saw a release of his debut EP ‘We Are Failed’ - a beautifully atmospheric, minimal conceptual piece (read our review here). He just re-released it on a limited edition cassette tape via Ohio based label Rano and all 30 copies sold out within a day. The tape came out around the same time as a video for ‘Tragedy Fractures’. Magda Wrzeszcz talked to Russell about the cassette, the video and his immediate plans.
(((o))): To people who never heard of you - how would you describe your music and influences?
RMH: Generally speaking, I would describe my music as electronic but of course that’s a fairly broad term. When people ask what kind of music I compose, I tend to describe it as piano-based electronic music just to give a little more insight. If I were to elaborate slightly, I guess I would also describe it as ambient or minimal, as those terms definitely describe certain aspects of my music. Personally, I really like the way that Gavin Miller of Ghosting Season articulated it for my biography – “Sparse, contemplative piano drifts over a bed of machine music”.
As for my main musical influences - if I had to choose I would say Alva Noto + Ryuichi Sakamoto, Ben Frost, and Ludovico Einaudi. Music composed by these artists really inspires me.
(((o))): Let’s be honest, cassette is not an obvious choice of format nowadays - what made you choose to re-release ‘We Are Failed’ on a tape?
RMH: True, it’s not the most obvious choice these days, especially when it comes to electronic music. I personally just used to associate cassette culture with punk music and genres of a similar nature. It was only recently that I discovered it has been adopted and well received by others, including electronic musicians. For a long time now I have been really interested in the role of the DIY ethic in music creation and distribution; and when it comes to distribution, cassette culture has of course played a significant role. I also feel that the format allows for a high degree of creativity when it comes to aesthetics and personalisation – this is also something that I find very appealing.
Due to this, I had always wanted to release my music on cassette tape but I didn’t feel like the music I was composing suited the format. It wasn’t until I met Rano that I realised there is an active cassette culture in the electronic music scene and a lot of really good artists are putting their music out on tape. I didn’t really have any plans to do a physical release of ‘We Are Failed’, but after exchanging a few messages with Rano and seeing the great stuff they had done, I just asked if they were up for putting it out and the rest is history.
(((o))): How did you select artists to remix your songs for the B-side?
RMH: Minus Gavin Miller, I actually met all of the artists through Rano. They all have a connection to the label in one way or another. It’s like a little online community and I have met some really good people and discovered a lot of really good music through them. Rano recommended collaborating with artists associated with the label and I really liked the idea so I just went from there. Like I said, the odd one out is Gav; we have been friends for a long time and I am a big fan of all the work he puts out through worriedaboutstan and Ghosting Season. He recently started working on a solo project and for me it was a no-brainer, he had to be part of this.
(((o))): How did you find the label that released it - I imagine it took quite a bit of research.
RMH: Fortunately, I have the wonders of social media to thank for that. Basically, Rano tweeted me one day about a remix I did for my friend Adam Chetty. We started exchanging messages and things just went from there really. Initially, I didn’t even realise they were based in Ohio, it just happened by chance.
(((o))): The cassette sold out in a flash, how would you describe the market for that format and do you see it having a rebirth, or is it just a geeky fetish?
RMH: I don’t think the format ever became redundant in certain small, independent circles but at the same time, from what I have observed, it does seem to be having a rebirth on a larger scale. Digital download codes are usually provided with cassette releases so I wouldn’t say that it’s a total rebellion against our digital society or that it will overtake other formats by any means. I believe that it is a longing for the physicality and warmth of analogue, a nostalgia maybe – but personally I think that is just an aspect of a post-digital culture. Whether it will see any longevity though, I am not sure.
(((o))): The release of the tape is accompanied by a video for ‘Tragedy Fractures’ - who’s the director and how did that collaboration happen?
RMH: The director’s name is Gregory Hoepffner. He hails from Paris, France and I learnt of his work through Ghosting Season – he directed the video for ‘Far End of the Graveyard’ a couple of years ago. I was speaking to Gav about wanting to create a video for ‘Tragedy Fractures’ and he recommended Greg and put me in contact with him. I didn’t bring any ideas to the table, I just wanted Greg to visualise his interpretation of the piece and this is what he created. He sent me the script just before he started filming and I was super impressed, and then when I saw the final version it was even better than I could have imagined. He really did an amazing job. I think the visuals and the storyline complement the piece perfectly.
RUSSELL M. HARMON "Tragedy Fractures" from Radius Labs on Vimeo.
(((o))): What are your plans after ‘We Are Failed’? Are we gonna see you perform anywhere near?
RMH: Just to continue doing what I am doing, I guess. Try and move forward and progress, write new material, do more projects and just see what happens really.
I am currently finalising new material for a split EP with Gavin Miller. We are hoping to release it at some point in the very near future so I am excited about that. I am also working on a bunch of new material that will hopefully form a full-length album later this year.
As for performing, I know a few people in the UK who would be able to help me out so it would definitely be great to come over and do some shows. So yes, hopefully you will see me nearby soon.
