Wednesday, October 24th, 2007 Sananda Maitreya’s Press Office Milano
by Brooke Palmer (photos courtesy of Sananda Maitreya)
Sananda Maitreya
Since 5th grade, I have been profoundly moved by the music and lyrical poeticism of Sananda Maitreya (formerly Terence Trent D’arby). Thus, having the opportunity to interview him has been one of my life’s highlights so far. The year 1987 brought his debut album, Introducingthe Hardline According to Terence Trent D’arby, into my life (and, of course, the lives of countless others.) I remember being struck by the power of his soul-vibrating vocals and the beauty of his instrumentation and lyrics. “Wishing Well” and “Sign Your Name,” two very popular songs from the album, could be heard at roller rinks, malls, and radio stations everywhere. I spent hours playing the casette over and over, singing along with it and forcing everyone I knew to listen. When Neither Fish Nor Flesh was released in 1989, I was estatic to hear that he’d taken the soul and funk of the first album and melded it with more complex and eccentric rhythms and sounds. In my mind, the album was an experimental masterpiece. To the conventional public, however, the strange and unique sound was too unpredictable, too abstract, to receive the level of attention given to his first album. My love for Terence Trent D’arby’s artistry was merely whetted while the masses were predictably less receptive, although “This Side of Love” was given some radio play. The release of Symphony or Damn in 1993 and Vibrator in 1995 significantly enhanced my life and caused my soul to sprout goose-bumps of ecstacy. And yet, finding others who shared my obsession became more difficult. In a selfish way, I enjoyed the personal connection I had with this music that remained untarnished by the aftertaste of public consumption. And the obscurity of his popularity often inspired a desire to find a “soul-mate” who cherished his gift as much as I did. But I also believed that the world would be a better place if it embraced his music. Then in 2001, Terence Trent D’arby died and gave birth to Sananda Maitreya, a free artist living in Europe and controlling his musical destiny in the absense of corporate chains. He started his own label, Sananda Rccords, and legally changed his name. When Wildcard was released that year, the songs pulled me from a depression of boredom, reminding my heart that the fulfillment of simple pleasure was still readily available. Maitreya now lives in Italy with his wife Francesca Margherita Francone, where he continues to create music.
In preparation for this interview (and by natural selection), I’ve immersed myself in both volumes of Angels and Vampires, as well as his five-song Chapter 1 EP, Nigor Mortis (all three available for downloading at his website, along with some free selections), and, again, my spirit has been lifted. The pursuit and acquisition of this interview was a gift to myself, but I’m hoping that his words will intrigue and inspire others to open their ears and minds to a musical experience that brings endless joy to my life. PS: Sananda Maitreya played all of the instruments on Angels and Vampires.
Interview via Email:
1: My 1st reaction to Angels and Vampires: The album (both volumes) seems more scaled back, instrumentally, than previous albums. It has a very organic, earthy sound and feel. Symphony or Damn and Neither Fish nor Flesh are layered with lots of different sounds. This extreme layering doesn’t seem present in Angels and Vampires. Was that an intentional decision?
Yes, it was. Since I was handling all of the instruments, it felt more natural to let those instruments speak more. Also, free of record company pressure, I could present the sound that the songs wanted, and not the sound that the ‘market’ was expecting. These are simpler days for me, and the music would have to project that. Our sound is our fingerprint, a portrait of where we are at any given moment. Those days were shrouded in veils and whips, so the music layers gave a clue to the need I felt to protect myself, and what I could of my integrity. Feeling no such need today, it all breathes easier, and dances a little friskier.
2: I also hear some classic rock and blues sound interspersed. Were particular bands inspirational to you in the writing of these two volumes?
I have long viewed the Rolling Stones, the way they saw Chuck Berry. They took from the river of the blues, and filtered through their sensibility, forged a new and exciting sound. Likewise in essence, I was birthed by the Beatles, and find them, like Stevie Wonder, and Sly Stone, a constant source of inspiration. I was also a fan of Nirvana, and Jimi Hendrix. There are many others, including Prince, Sam Cooke, Sinatra and Bob Dylan. One way or another, if your music is honest, it will reflect the masters who have excited your sensibilities, and guided you on.
3: The mood of Angels and Vampires is very pleasant, reflective, and peaceful as well as mystical and magical. Were you feeling particularly optimistic and happy when you wrote this album? Do you currently feel optimistic about the world?
As it was a project that had been incubating within me as I fought it out with the ‘majors’, as soon as the coast was clear, and I was free, it all but poured out of me. I was at times overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the work, yet excited and nourished by it at the same time. Many ‘incidents’ were thrown at me during it’s making, but I knew that that was only a sign that I was on the right track, which many other kind souls have since verified.
4: Boolay, Boolay is a happy, uplifting song. I like when you laugh toward the end of the song. Was that a spontaneous laugh that occurred from the joy of recording the song or was it a composed laugh?
Composed laughs are very expensive, and difficult to collect royalties on, therefore our union forbids it. I belong to the ‘Spontaneous Laugh Society’, and we also frown upon such things.
It is important to know when to let a song be just about a good feeling, expressed and nothing more.
5: Psychotherapy: “I was the mystery killer; I was the mercury filler; I layed down and wished I was dead; I woke up and found out that I was…….All in all I took the credit, and now I’d rather soon forget it.” Can you speak a little to the lyrics in this song and the sentiments behind them?
Are you sure that you are not a ‘screener’ for the CIA?
Having accepted the poison apple that I was given, and at the behest of others having eaten it, I realized that I was as well complicit in my own death, as an ego, as a soul. It was the grace of my spirit, which raised me to another life, otherwise I would just be walking around with someone else’s mind, and no real clue to who I am. Having blamed myself for a spell, I realized that I was far too young to know, and that is how life teaches, through experience. The life that was dreamt up, then so attacked, took quite a while to come to terms with, and ‘forget’. (If you are CIA, can I get one of those cool badges?)
6: “Daddy can I have a war, because I speak for the lord; we must remember to preach except turn the other cheek.” Can you please elaborate a little on this stanza?
You know us, we get preachy about democracy, our version of which seems to be but a codeword to “Go and get that oil”. We lost tremendous traction and viability as a nation behind the transparency of bringing freedom and democracy to a place that in effect we never intended as anything but a trading post for our national interest, which in essence means shareholders and investors, and its strategic importance to maintaining control, with Saudi Arabia, of as much of the region as possible. But we are too stupid to know these things so we are lied to as policy.
7: Right Brain Says: I love this song! Can you please discuss the psychology behind this song? (some lyrics: Golden Child remember, it’s all in your head; right brain says remember what your Papa said):
More often than not, in the quest for our manhood, and what it means to us, we fight with our archetypal fathers, whether living or dead, or whether or not we even knew them. Psychologically therefore, we battle with our fathers, until the obstacles that they propose, are free of our curiosity. This is why it was said by the ancients, that in order to become a man, a man must first kill his father. It is a form of psychological rebirth. This does not portend that a man cannot be in good relations with a father he still has, it simply means that the dynamic has shifted, and the relationship reflects that.
8: Tell me a little about Nigor Mortis. How many chapters are in the works for Nigor Mortis?
We anticipate that the total work be about half of ‘A&V’. Yetwhat we anticipate, and what in fact may transpire, is a part of the magic of the whole experience. We have a lot of songs that we are excited to share, and excitement always produces more. Since we are not being filtered through committees anymore, the flow of inspiration has no political enemies to deter its fulfillment. After the spirit of ‘Nigor Mortis’ is spent, it will be the first to let me know, and then, with God’s grace, on to a new title, and more chapters!
9: A wife knows: Is this song inspired by your current wife (you are married, correct?)? How does marriage affect your experience with music?
My current, first and only wife. Her name is Francesca, and as simply as I can put it, the best friend I’ve ever had. I do not believe in metaphorical Angels only, I know that they take human lives as well.
10: You sing so often about romantic love in all of your albums. Do you fall in love easily? Do you stay in love easily?
I am blessed and cursed with the soul of a romantic. I am allowed to fall in love as often as nature needs me to stay inspired, as long as I respect the meditation of my marriage. A married man naturally draws more attentions of love, because he is being loved, and thereby, generating more. I love the ladies. I just now love my marriage, and my sanity more. Who I fall in love with, even if just by glance, I stay in love with, forever.
11: How have your fans affected your music and your life in general?
An ‘audience’ can be felt, as an energy field, and tapped into at times for support. I have been much moved by them. I am especially excited about the whole new Mp3 generation, and their reaction to my sounds.
12: What is your spiritual mission as of right now?
My ‘spiritual’ mission right now is to make over a million euro a year in income, buy a villa on a tropical island, pay off and takeover the government there, and have my face placed on all of the money. Other than that, to rock your ass, and fill your heart with flames!
13: When will you come to the U.S. to perform for us?
(BTW, Military recruiters don’t even ask these many questions!)
Why is it so one way? When will you guys in the U.S. come to Italy and perform for me? Right now, you are just breathing a little harder. I will come, when you are really, really wet.
14: When I write music, I sometimes use other musicians’ styles or the structures of certain songs as guides for inspiration or for trying something new. Do you follow any specific musical models when writing songs/a new album?
After all of my years spent studying, and absorbing various music and musicians, of all stripes and bends, you become a goulash after awhile, and God knows where it really comes from. We drink from an ongoing river, and add but our own sensibility, and if we are lucky, a publicist.
And Finally…….
15: Here are some of my all-time favorite lyrics from your albums:
“I wanna be careful not to lose by laughter what I gained by tears.”
“I’d like to play her like a grand piano, a clarinet, a minuet, a lyric soprano.”
“When in doubt, just live the questions, and someday you will grow into the answer.”
“Laughter is a rainbow from the heart.”
What musical lyrics by others have resonated with you endlessly?
I wish to clarify that the ‘When in doubt, just live the answer’ line is not mine, but belongs to the master poet, Rainer Maria Rilke.
I am greatly moved by many others who strip their minds to write lyrics/poems. My early models as wordsmiths in music were Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Lennon/McCartney, Smokey Robinson, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Becker and Fagan of Steely Dan, and I also dug the imagination of Van Dyke Parks. I was as well a fan of Elvis Costello’s music and words. No one had Maestro Dylan’s combination of imagination, daring, and authority. It can also be said that we haven’t yet seen anything close to Hank Williams since, who was a true poet, as was our American Dionysus, Jim Morrison.
