This is part 4 of a 7-part blog series.
(For part 1, click here)
(For part 2, click here)
(For part 3, click here)
As avid listeners of October Project, we all have our favorite OP songs, sections, rhythms, and phrases. With so many layers to each and every musical moment, who is to say what gives October Project their special vibe? When talking to other OP fans–many being creatives in their own right–I am always pleasantly amused by the different ways we are drawn to the music.
He says, “‘Paths of Desire’ is Julie’s writing at it’s best!”
She says, “Marina sounds strikingly haunting and angelic in ‘Always a Place!’”
They say, “Emil must be a genius, what with that 13/16 outro to ‘Once Blue!”
And I say, “13/16 outro? They must have been to a loft concert.”
But what does the band themselves say? Find out in this section, where Marina, Julie, and Emil peel back the layers of the “Uncovered” EPs. As the record is stripped, “Uncovered” is revealed, with both its beauties and its vulnerabilities laid bare.
–J.W. Harvey
Interview with Marina Belica, Julie Flanders, and Emil Adler
(Continued from part 3)
J.W.: Between harmonies, lyrics, and instrumentation, October Project’s music always has several layers. Is that another goal of Uncovered, to let people experience different layers of these songs?
Marina: We feel that the approach we took with Uncovered affords people an intimate way to become familiar with the new songs. I know that if I had heard Peter Gabriel doing a piano vocal of something that I had only ever heard in its most produced fashion, I would be mesmerized! Later this year, when the songs appear in their finished form, we hope people will feel as if their baby has grown up and graduated from college.
Emil: The interesting thing about your example about Peter Gabriel is that it goes in that direction.
Marina: Right, you hear the music fully rendered first, and then you hear it stripped down.
If you are craving more uncovered October Project songs, “More Uncovered” is available now at http://www.OctoberProjectMusic.com!
Emil: And when it’s just Peter Gabriel singing with piano, it feels magical. What we are doing with Uncovered is going in the other direction; stripped down first, and there’s a bit of a risk to that.
J.W.:I find it fascinating that it’s going this way first. People really identify with the simplicity, but they do expect the fully produced version. What is the danger of publicly releasing what are, really, just demos?
Julie: Well, without the Internet, this never would have happened. With the Internet, we don’t have to be concerned with commerce as definitional to what we decide to do or not. This is something we can do for our fans, and a record label can’t say no…yet.
Marina: It’s for fun. For pleasure, for process. It’s all that.
Julie: And maybe it will support our album to come, and maybe it will be something that a group of people who we feel very connected with…our listeners, our fans, our audience…will have…
Marina: A document…
Julie:…like a snapshot, to invite and engage them.
Are YOU the type of person that appreciates process, simplicity, and lyrics? If yes, then “Uncovered” is for YOU!
Emil: There will probably be people who won’t listen to this at all. They won’t warm up to it because it’s just piano and vocal, and they’ll get bored. They’ll get the next thing that comes out. And if all we put out was what we considered our sound of the moment other people might dismiss it simply because they don’t like our sound. So, in a way, having both of these versions creates the possibility of more ways to offer a song to an audience.
Marina: Addressing different ears, different preferences.
Emil: There will be people who like this stripped down thing because that’s real music to them. And there are other people who say this is terrible, who say, “When I put on a record, I want to hear…
Julie: …the bass line.” And this is not for those people. But it’s great for the lyric-lovers.
Emil: Right.
To be continued. Follow the October Process blog for the remaining segments of this 7-part interview series!
Learn more about Uncovered and More Uncovered: OP Merchandise Store
OP on FaceBook: facebook.com/octoberproject
OP on Twitter: twitter.com/october_project
J.W. Harvey on Twitter: twitter.com/xjwharvey
Contact J.W. Harvey: James@OctoberProjectMusic.com
J.W. Harvey
October Process 
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