Interview: Here We Go Magic step in the right direction

Sure, it is a step in the right direction but you know, it's always changing.

The first album was just you and a four track and had an almost field recording quality to it. Obviously you had the help of the band this time around but did you go into a studio or have more equipment at your disposal too? 

Yeah, we had quite a bit more gear but we still were very adamant about recording to tape and keeping things direct and simple.

Similarly, did signing to Secretly Canadian make much of a difference? Did it allow you more time to record or offer more resources to do so? 

Yeah, we rented a house by a river in upstate New York and watched the seasons change from summer to fall.

It seems Here We Go Magic became a five-piece by necessity in order to play your debut live. Was it an obvious decision then to record the new album as a band? 

Yeah, it felt like the next frontier for me. It felt so good to play with this group that it wasn't even an option to not record the next record with them and the next......

Were the band simply doing as they were told and playing what you'd written or did they have a big impact in how the songs took shape? 

They had there own voice in terms of the arrangements, it really wouldn't feel good any other way.

You toured a hell of a lot right up to the recording period, was it a relief to finally get into the studio to record and how much of the album been written/arranged before you went in? 

‘Surprise’ and ‘Collector’ were the only two songs that we had already been playing, the rest were written on the spot.

Some of the bouncier moments on - 'Collector', 'Old World United', 'Vegetable or Native' - are a lot of fun to listen to. Were they as much fun to make? 

Not quite sure how much fun you had while listening so it’s hard to say but they were fun yeah, if it's not a joyless process then it's worthless.

They're also balanced out by the quieter, dreamier tracks like 'Bottom Feeder', 'Land Of Feeling' and 'F.F.A.P.'. Was that an important balance for you to find for the record as a whole? 

Yeah, you know, life has its peaks and valleys. I feel like it would be a disservice to reality to only have one tone for a whole record. Speaking for myself that is.

People seemed to put you in the 'psych-folk' box with the first record whereas this album seems to have more psych than folk. Were you listening to any particular albums or artists when this album came to be? 

Can, Neu, Kraftwerk, R. Stevie Moore, early Wailers

You're playing Glastonbury next month and are off on your first Australian tour. Do you already feel there is a little bit of momentum behind the album even though the release is still a week away?

Well, I'm a little late to this interview and now the record is out but in hindsight yeah there was a feeling in the air, albeit subtle.

We see you're also playing some US tour dates with Beach Fossils whose new record is another one of our favourites of the year so far. Are you fans? Any other exciting bands from Brooklyn - or indeed elsewhere - that you could recommend us? 

Yeah, they're are nuts good, Glass Ghost too.

And finally, is the plan for the rest of the year just tour, tour, tour?

Tour tour tour tour!