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<strong>Sevenstring.org Interview - John Browne of Fellsilent</strong>
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<div id="post_message_89657" align="justify"><!-- google_ad_section_start --><div align="right"><img src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/7487/johnbrowne.jpg" alt="Fellsilent" /><br />
<b>Interview: John Browne</b><br />
<font size="1"><i>Interviewed by: Rick</i></font><br />
</div><br />
<br />
"The six-piece sir up some seriously brutal technical bludgeoning riffs interspersed with stratospheric choruses, an exciting and invigorating soundtrack to break things to" -KERRANG
<img style="padding:20px;" align="left" src="http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/7809/browne5.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">Sevenstring.org:</span> What made you start writing using polyrhythms?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">John Browne:</span> Meshuggah has a big part. I first heard them when i was about 14, with a song called 'Sane'. I didn't really get it at the time, thought it was terrible. Then Nothing came out, thought i'd give them another try and after 2/3 listens through they 'clicked' and that pretty much changed the entire outcome of how i saw a guitar and how to write on it. I started working on a new song writing direction from there. I don't really see any polyrhythms in our music though, it's mostly just accents. Pretty much all of it is in 4/4 minus a few bits which is 7/4 or 3/4 and 9/8 or something.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How did you guys come to use two singers?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> On our recordings we always had lots of overlaying harmonies on the vocals that we could never do live. Joe was brought in with the intention of being able to do them. Joe is also a guitarist, we tried 3 guitars on a tour in 2006 but since haven't really used the 3rd guitar. It's something we also plan to dabble in again at a later date for the more ambient sections of our music.
Most of the stuff on 'the hidden words' was written with only 1 vocalist in mind, the only real song that shows what are intentions are for new stuff vocally is 'Immerse'. On newer material, the vocals will probably end up being a lot more chaotic and will interweave around rhythms with each other.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What do you use live and in the studio?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Live, i got an Ibanez RG2077xl, Engl Invader 100 with a Digitech 2120 in the loop and a Line 6 Pod Xt Pro being used in the same vein as a 2nd amp, mostly for clean sounds DI'ed to the PA. I use a couple of pedals in front, a GE7 as a boost, which works really well for getting rid of that 7 string fartyness, and an NS2. Studio, well for the album, that is entirely line 6 pod xt. When writing/jotting down riffs, I normally use my pod xt for convenience with Superior 2.0 and some other stuff.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What was your best and worst shows?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Best bunch of shows was the Enter Shikari tour we did last year in autumn. Pretty much all the venues were sold out and the sound on stage was ace. Worst show, there's been so many of those...
you can see a lot of the footage from the Shikari tour on our Myspace videos.
<img style="padding:20px;" align="right" src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/5430/browne2.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How often do you practice?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Never! I hardly ever pick up a guitar without the intention of writing, so they only real practice i get is playing a riff i wrote to the metronome in Cubase haha. Which is really good for getting tighter and more solid. All the years of playing to that annoying Cubase click has definitely worked. It's a really good way of looking at where your going wrong too. When in practice with the band, I used to ignore the silly 'little' mistakes that actually make all the difference in making the riff groove, it's also a good way of noticing the slight differences between 2 guitarists. Band wise, we hardly practice either, usually a few days before a tour, although we'll probably be getting more practice in when we start running through the new songs!
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What was the recording like for "The Hidden Words?"
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> It didn't turn out quite as intended. We had a couple of fairly major problems happen during tracking which delayed us a bit, both vocalists developed throat infections at the same time too. In fact, the pre-production of the album turned out a bit better, but other than that i quite like how the production on it turned out.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Why do you use a 7 string?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> For the extra high string. We tuned to Bb on 6's before moving to 7s in 2005 ish. I had an RG7420 back in 2002 but i didn't get on with it. With the extra high string we can go even higher for those clean/droney sections we do. I get on much better with baritone scales too as my hands are quite big. I prefer using slightly lighter strings on the higher register and they are still tight thanks to the 27" scale. Recently I've been dropping tuning to something lower, so i might end up getting an 8 soon.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What's your opinion of touring and the music industry?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Touring is awesome, i love every aspect of it apart from sitting in an uncomfortable seat for hours of driving. The music industry isn't quite so awesome, it's all just too business orientated.
<img style="padding:20px;" align="left" src="http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/8802/browne3.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How did the Sumerian deal come about?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> We sent them our album after we released it here and they dug it and it went from there. Sumerian has awesome bands on it and we're happy to be part of their family.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Do you ever banter with the crowd live? If so, any memorable banters?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Nah man hardly ever, I'm normally in my own zone.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> When will the Immerse video be released?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Not sure yet dude, hopefully soon, there still some footage to shoot. It shouldn't be too long now though!
<img style="padding:20px;" align="right" src="http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/9915/browne4.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Who were your earliest musical influences?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> When i started out on guitar i was a massive Richie Sambora fan, he was always massively under rated. I moved onto stuff like dream theater, Yngwie, Shawn Lane, EVH, Jason Becker and all of those guys. I had a phase of that for a few years. Then onto what i am now, Meshuggah, Ion dissonance, Dillinger Escape Plan, Misery Signals etc. Although i find myself not really listening to much metal anymore. I recently discovered a band called "This will destroy you" who have had my attention alot lately.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How is your hair so big and fluffy?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Magic! Tada! Aussie works its miracles.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Any hilarious tour stories?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Nah man, we're a boring bunch of cunts! If you watch silent files on our myspace videos, you'll be able to have a dose of our humour.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What are Fell Silent's future plans?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Writing, touring, new album at some point, Just see what happens. We're pretty slow song writers, but it's getting there! Hopefully be able to get to the U.S. soon too! We're also working on a very special cover song. Watch the myspace soon!
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What would you rather have: two good looking girls at once or the 11-out-of-10 stunner?
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Definitely the two good looking girls.
<div align="center"><br />
<span style="colorrange;font-weight:bold;">For more information on Fellsilent:</span><br />
<span style="color:white;font-weight:bold;"><a href="http://www.myspace.com/fellsilent" target="_BLANK">Fellsilent on Myspace</a></span><br />
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<img class="inlineimg" src="http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/images/icons/icon2.gif" alt="Arrow" border="0" />
<strong>Sevenstring.org Interview - John Browne of Fellsilent</strong>
</div>
<hr size="1" style="color:#000000" />
<div id="post_message_89657" align="justify"><!-- google_ad_section_start --><div align="right"><img src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/7487/johnbrowne.jpg" alt="Fellsilent" /><br />
<b>Interview: John Browne</b><br />
<font size="1"><i>Interviewed by: Rick</i></font><br />
</div><br />
<br />
"The six-piece sir up some seriously brutal technical bludgeoning riffs interspersed with stratospheric choruses, an exciting and invigorating soundtrack to break things to" -KERRANG
<img style="padding:20px;" align="left" src="http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/7809/browne5.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">Sevenstring.org:</span> What made you start writing using polyrhythms?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">John Browne:</span> Meshuggah has a big part. I first heard them when i was about 14, with a song called 'Sane'. I didn't really get it at the time, thought it was terrible. Then Nothing came out, thought i'd give them another try and after 2/3 listens through they 'clicked' and that pretty much changed the entire outcome of how i saw a guitar and how to write on it. I started working on a new song writing direction from there. I don't really see any polyrhythms in our music though, it's mostly just accents. Pretty much all of it is in 4/4 minus a few bits which is 7/4 or 3/4 and 9/8 or something.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How did you guys come to use two singers?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> On our recordings we always had lots of overlaying harmonies on the vocals that we could never do live. Joe was brought in with the intention of being able to do them. Joe is also a guitarist, we tried 3 guitars on a tour in 2006 but since haven't really used the 3rd guitar. It's something we also plan to dabble in again at a later date for the more ambient sections of our music.Most of the stuff on 'the hidden words' was written with only 1 vocalist in mind, the only real song that shows what are intentions are for new stuff vocally is 'Immerse'. On newer material, the vocals will probably end up being a lot more chaotic and will interweave around rhythms with each other.
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What do you use live and in the studio?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Live, i got an Ibanez RG2077xl, Engl Invader 100 with a Digitech 2120 in the loop and a Line 6 Pod Xt Pro being used in the same vein as a 2nd amp, mostly for clean sounds DI'ed to the PA. I use a couple of pedals in front, a GE7 as a boost, which works really well for getting rid of that 7 string fartyness, and an NS2. Studio, well for the album, that is entirely line 6 pod xt. When writing/jotting down riffs, I normally use my pod xt for convenience with Superior 2.0 and some other stuff.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What was your best and worst shows?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Best bunch of shows was the Enter Shikari tour we did last year in autumn. Pretty much all the venues were sold out and the sound on stage was ace. Worst show, there's been so many of those...you can see a lot of the footage from the Shikari tour on our Myspace videos.
<img style="padding:20px;" align="right" src="http://img37.imageshack.us/img37/5430/browne2.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How often do you practice?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Never! I hardly ever pick up a guitar without the intention of writing, so they only real practice i get is playing a riff i wrote to the metronome in Cubase haha. Which is really good for getting tighter and more solid. All the years of playing to that annoying Cubase click has definitely worked. It's a really good way of looking at where your going wrong too. When in practice with the band, I used to ignore the silly 'little' mistakes that actually make all the difference in making the riff groove, it's also a good way of noticing the slight differences between 2 guitarists. Band wise, we hardly practice either, usually a few days before a tour, although we'll probably be getting more practice in when we start running through the new songs!<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What was the recording like for "The Hidden Words?"
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> It didn't turn out quite as intended. We had a couple of fairly major problems happen during tracking which delayed us a bit, both vocalists developed throat infections at the same time too. In fact, the pre-production of the album turned out a bit better, but other than that i quite like how the production on it turned out.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Why do you use a 7 string?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> For the extra high string. We tuned to Bb on 6's before moving to 7s in 2005 ish. I had an RG7420 back in 2002 but i didn't get on with it. With the extra high string we can go even higher for those clean/droney sections we do. I get on much better with baritone scales too as my hands are quite big. I prefer using slightly lighter strings on the higher register and they are still tight thanks to the 27" scale. Recently I've been dropping tuning to something lower, so i might end up getting an 8 soon.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What's your opinion of touring and the music industry?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Touring is awesome, i love every aspect of it apart from sitting in an uncomfortable seat for hours of driving. The music industry isn't quite so awesome, it's all just too business orientated.<img style="padding:20px;" align="left" src="http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/8802/browne3.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How did the Sumerian deal come about?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> We sent them our album after we released it here and they dug it and it went from there. Sumerian has awesome bands on it and we're happy to be part of their family.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Do you ever banter with the crowd live? If so, any memorable banters?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Nah man hardly ever, I'm normally in my own zone.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> When will the Immerse video be released?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Not sure yet dude, hopefully soon, there still some footage to shoot. It shouldn't be too long now though!<img style="padding:20px;" align="right" src="http://img36.imageshack.us/img36/9915/browne4.jpg" alt="Tymon (left) and Paul (right)" /><br />
<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Who were your earliest musical influences?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> When i started out on guitar i was a massive Richie Sambora fan, he was always massively under rated. I moved onto stuff like dream theater, Yngwie, Shawn Lane, EVH, Jason Becker and all of those guys. I had a phase of that for a few years. Then onto what i am now, Meshuggah, Ion dissonance, Dillinger Escape Plan, Misery Signals etc. Although i find myself not really listening to much metal anymore. I recently discovered a band called "This will destroy you" who have had my attention alot lately.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> How is your hair so big and fluffy?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Magic! Tada! Aussie works its miracles.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> Any hilarious tour stories?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Nah man, we're a boring bunch of cunts! If you watch silent files on our myspace videos, you'll be able to have a dose of our humour.<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What are Fell Silent's future plans?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Writing, touring, new album at some point, Just see what happens. We're pretty slow song writers, but it's getting there! Hopefully be able to get to the U.S. soon too! We're also working on a very special cover song. Watch the myspace soon!<span style="color:red;font-weight:bold;">SS:</span> What would you rather have: two good looking girls at once or the 11-out-of-10 stunner?
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">JB:</span> Definitely the two good looking girls.<div align="center"><br />
<span style="color
range;font-weight:bold;">For more information on Fellsilent:</span><br /><span style="color:white;font-weight:bold;"><a href="http://www.myspace.com/fellsilent" target="_BLANK">Fellsilent on Myspace</a></span><br />
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