WILL ARCHER OF WILMA ARCHER

Hi Will and thanks for taking the time out to speak with us at Musicology. The album is an eclectic array of musical styles, genres, collaborations and conceptualisations. It is a bold journey and one that is executed with meticulous precision. Can you paint the picture for us in how it was that you wanted to the album to take shape, the initial thoughts you had and where it was that you (metaphorically) started to pull off this record?

I spent two years living alone in a shit flat back home in Newcastle. This is where most of the record was made. Having huge amounts of time with no structure allows the mind to wander into both light and dark places. The songs are my hits from those two years spent living and working alone in the dark.

What was some of the challenges you faced in writing / recording the album and conversely what were some of the fun surprises that occurred during this process?

It was made over about five years, totally alone - (other than the guests which came in at the very end) - that came with the same five years of life than anyone else goes through, good or bad. Managing a lack of patience with myself, and accepting when things aren’t good enough; realising that once you get past one year, you may as well take ten years to make a record. Revisiting music that was made years previously and finding it fits the narrative of the record was very satisfying.

Author John Fante had a considerable impact on the album. Can you give us an insight as to what it is about his writing that spoke to you so strongly and how it set in motion a certain direction for A Western Circular?

I was very slowly reading the Bandini Quartet during my time in Newcastle. The chapter’s long tangents with his delusions of grandeur were something I’d always revisit; a lot of the music has a sense of formality and grandeur to it, the private irony being that its one guy in a dank flat making all the noise, much as Bandini worked in a stinking fish can factory.

There is a spirituality that runs deep throughout the record and is this in part something that you wanted to explore and express that was something you could not have done in your life and musical career until now?

Having unlimited time and leisure to think about and write music was something I now realise was taken for granted - despite its utterly bleak moments. A stretch of nothingness seems pretty appealing now, though I'm certain that won’t happen again for a long time.

When attempting to portray a sentiment and spiritual feeling through music, it is no easy feat and given the worldly approach of the album and the potential instrumentation from Eastern and Western disciplines, were there certain instruments and lyrical pairings that best suited what it was that you were conveying throughout the album?

The heavy use of cello was an important decision. Hard to imagine a more westernised instrument - something that costs many thousands of pound or dollars to buy, incredibly difficult to play - needs to be played from about age five to achieve even basic proficiency for most, with the constant nurturing, encouragement and indulgence from caregivers - A Western Circular is a comment on the individualist vs collectivist thought process. The string arrangements on the record to me just sound like one huge indulgence, only worrying about yourself, stacking layer upon layer of your own perceived importance.

MF DOOM is giant within the hip hop scene and a man who has put his hand to many a project. Can you elaborate on how you engaged with him and your working relationship within the track Last Sniff?

I met him in Tesco - we were both reaching for the last beer. We hit it off.

The Boon featuring Samuel T. Herring is another amazing track on the album. The vocal treatment creates wonderful atmospheric touch yet the sheer passion in Samuel’s voice is staggering. In having Samuel work on this, was there a clear direction from yourself as to what you wanted to generate and what we hear on the track or more so a case of giving complete creative license to Samuel and simply capturing the essence of what was recorded?

I wrote an essay explaining what the song meant to me, then sent it to Sam - it was referencing two Simpson’s episodes (Fugu Fish / Bart’s Comet). He understood immediately and sent me back one take he’d recorded in his room. We tried re-doing it at my place but was never quite as good, so used that one bedroom take. It was the first time I’d never touched a vocal.

Having worked with so many varied artists and musicians over the years, has there been any words of wisdom spoken to you that really resonated and in turn altered the way you approach your craft?

An older friend advised me that its more important to create a musical environment around you that will last, something that can be preserved and called upon at any time - which at the time, meant stop reading Gearslutz forums, but has since evolved into something more meaningful.

The bold endeavour that has been A Western Circular must have been a cathartic process whereby the record has been something of a therapeutic experience and an artistic method to tease through some fundamental human emotions. In a live setting how do you approach the dichotomy of introversion in writing about deeply personal matters and the extraversion of performing those pieces on stage?

I do this by having a big band which lessens the focus on me. When I watch a performance I always like to know who actually wrote the music, but it doesn’t mean I want to look at them the whole time.

Finally, what does music give you that nothing else does?

(Making) music gives both the option and reason to be a different person every day, depending on what’s happening around you.