Darren Hayes in the studio with fresh new talent and a time machine making an epic double record.
In a famous London studio where gold and platinum discs of some of the biggest English records in pop history adorn the walls, Darren Hayes is holed up with new producer Justin Shave and a relic from the past: A Fairlight CMI Synthesizer.
For those unfamiliar with the instrument, in the early 80’s this prototype sampler was the backbone of cutting edge electronic records by artists such as Peter Gabriel, Nick Rhodes, Jean-Michel Jarre and Kate Bush, to name but a few.
And this instrument has become the centerpiece of Hayes’ new sound.
For the next 3 months, Darren and producer Justin Shave have set up base in a North London studio. Here they will work through the lengthy list of potential songs up for selection for the final cut. Vintage synths, ancient relics and brand new home made contraptions litter the floor.
Shave was a wild card choice for the position of producer on Hayes’ first record since his split with Sony. He first got Darren’s attention via his work with his London based dance outfit Etherfox who are signed to Shapeshifter’s label Nocturnal. Introductions led to a brief stint together on stage during Hayes’ triumphant sold out U.K tour this year. When the tour reached Sydney Australia’s famous Opera House, the camaraderie led to an invitation to work together in the studio. But, if Hayes is honest, something other than Shave’s electronic pedigree caught his attention.
“He made his own electronic instrument and I’d never seen anything like it before in my life,” Hayes explains.
“ I saw him building it like some mad scientist back stage at the Apollo in London. We were five minutes away from going on stage and he was knee deep in circuit boards and volume knobs. Very surreal!”
Hayes admits he didn’t understand how the machine worked – but it sounded incredible.
“This guy had built his own instrument with a soldering iron and his bare hands. I knew he was the one!”
The record began pre production in the U.S in July with veteran Hayes collaborator Robert Conley (2004’s The Tension and the Spark). Having written what he describes as ‘shed loads’ of material, Hayes came back to the U.K armed with a bunch of tracks.
The Phoenix Arizona sessions with Conley produced what Hayes is describing as a major portion of a conceptual section of the record - a song suite that will feature on one side of the double record.
“It’s still pop music, it’s still melodic but it’s epic, cinematic and experimental” Hayes explains.
“ I had so much bottled up – so much I wanted to say – that I didn’t so much want to make a double record as had to. It just became a necessity”. He continues, “ Some of my favorite records were double records. Prince’s’ Sign o the Times’ and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Tusk’. Both titles came at pivotal times in the careers of those artists. And they happen to be my favorite things they ever did. The ‘double record’ has a reputation for being terribly ambitious and fraught with disaster. But every so often there’s a brilliant one. Sounds cocky but that was a challenge I wanted. I needed to take on something of this scale.”
Ambitious? Yes. Crazy? Maybe.
But don’t call it a concept record.
“It is conceptual in parts,” Hayes explains, “but that’s really only in comparison with today’s mp3 buying fast food consumer mentality. Sometimes albums are just a collection of unrelated songs. This is not the case with me. It’s a very thorough undertaking of an idea, both musically and thematically. Stretching it out over a longer set gives me the freedom to really explore a lot of territory.”
Recording will take place until mid December with final mixing from January 2007 with Mark ‘Spike’ Stent. The record is due for release later the same year on an as yet unspecified new label.
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