A conversation with Clayton Segelov of Nobody Knew They Were Robots and The Brain Recording Studios.
Between all the gigging, recording, live mixing and lecturing, it seems you quite literally “live and breathe music”, if you’ll excuse the cliché. The fact that almost every avenue of your life is spent honing your craft must be an overwhelming prospect at times. Do you ever think “Fuck this; I’m gonna go bake a cake instead”?
Haha. Man, music is definitely my life. I can’t live without it. As corny as it sounds, I don't do it because it's my job or for the money, I do it because I have to. I do like cake, but I would much rather spend a few hours getting a great drum sound in the studio, or smashing up my guitars onstage with my band than baking.
Will your debut album see a physical release, or will it be an exclusively digital affair? Have you been approached by any labels in regards to its distribution?
We have talked to a few people about releasing our music, and we're not sure which road we're gonna take with it. We'll have a physical release for sure though.
Your last MySpace update seems to suggest there was point in which the band was inactive. If I’m correct in this assumption, what was the catalyst behind the hiatus?
Our MySpace? Yeah, should probably shut that down.
We did have a hiatus. It was because our original guitarist, Ryan Neal, left the band. It took a while to find a replacement. Ryan is an amazing guitar player and he set the bar incredibly high. We're lucky to have found Michael Taverner to replace him. Mike is also an exceptional player and now the bar has been raised again. Just when Mike had settled in, our drummer Mark Davies left the group. He has since been replaced by Max Marquis. Both Ryan and Mark left the band on good terms and will forever remain my brothers, they were both awesome enough to train up the new guys, making the transition as smooth as humanly possible.
Has the band’s line-up experienced many changes since its formation?
Yeah, quite a few. As the music evolved, life got in the way or some members became less interested. This music is an acquired taste. Not everyone wants to play like we do. This band is not an easy band to be in. Thankfully Mike, Amy and Max make a killer line-up, and in my opinion, are the definitive NKTWR.
Given the complexity of your compositions, does handling vocal and guitar duties in a live setting ever prove too difficult?
Sometimes I miss a vocal cue or leave out a part, and we've done the odd instrumental set. But generally it’s not the complexity that does it, but the thrashing around on stage that means I’m just too far away from the microphone to do anything about it.
Your onstage banter between songs is hilarious. Have there been any instances in which humourless patrons have taken offence and complained to management?
Haha, cheers mate. Never by management, but I have been threatened with broken pool cues, chairs, smashed schooner glasses and outright beatings by guys whose girlfriends I have hit on/stolen from the stage. It’s all good fun though, and thus far, I haven't sustained any permanent physical injuries.
With both yourself and fellow member, guitarist Michael Taverner, in the employ of The Brain Recording Studios, you’re no doubt exposed to a wide variety of musical styles on a quotidian basis. Beyond the apparent homage your bands name pays to their similarly-titled song, does the material you write with Nobody Knew They Were Robots have much of a Mr Bungle influence, particularly where genre-hopping is concerned?
No, not really. I’d say we're more influenced by Dillinger, Botch, Converge and The Blood Brothers. Noisy, tech hardcore stuff is where we draw our inspiration from.
For better or worse, throughout their career, Five Star Prison Cell’s output drew myriad comparisons to The Dillinger Escape Plan’s collaboration with Mike Patton. If “Seeing Rats, Hearing Pianos” is anything to go by, “Irony is a Dead Scene” has obviously played an important part in the shaping of your sound, too. What do you feel sets you apart from the wave of imitators the aforementioned EP spawned?
That EP is awesome for sure. Five Star were awesome too, we played with them a lot. I kind of think that we have been moving away from the sound of "Seeing Rats, Hearing Pianos", or maybe we have taken the bits that we like about that track and expanded on them. I dunno. There will always be bands that are inspired by other bands. It’s Converge this week, isn't it?
How has working “behind the scenes” for a living affected Nobody Knew They Were Robots’ own tracking sessions? Will the mixing and mastering of the album also be undertaken by your fine selves?
It just makes it slow. It can be hard to find the time amongst the hundreds of audio-related jobs that Mike and I do. But we're getting there. Amy is actually tracking bass as I type this. The album will be completely produced by myself. I will probably handle the mixing; however, mastering will be taken care of by our good friend Alan Douches at West West Side Music. He handles 90% of the records that get made at The Brain Recording Studios.
As a habitué of The Sandringham Hotel, how did you react when news of the venue being placed in receivership broke? What sort of impact do you predict this development will have on the local scene? When you consider the cost effectiveness of hiring DJs or hosting karaoke nights, isn’t it only logical to conclude that the death of live music is inevitable?
I’m gonna miss the place for sure. It’s a shame, and you’re right, we’ve played there a lot and have a deep love for the place and its history. But there are new venues, and we need a shake up here in Sydney. Things get stale, you know? But most importantly, we need venues and promoters that understand that charging bands to play is not okay. I believe that venues who have allocated space to live music should commit and work hard to make the space work for them. They need top-notch booking agents, ones who put bills together that attract a crowd. Sure, it’s gonna piss people off when they can’t get a gig. But that's one of the problems. If you throw a random bill together with bands that don't pull people, why would you expect anyone to turn up?
If you put together quality bills, provide a quality space, with quality staff, including sound, lighting, bar and security, then you're providing a valuable service and people will want to be in your venue.
Have crap bands, angry bouncers, sound guys that are straight out of audio school, no-one manning the lights, rude bar staff that pour shitty drinks, then you’re gonna have an empty venue.
I’m not saying that the Sando is necessarily the venue I’m describing, but a lot of venues in Sydney that had the problems that I have described are closed or closing, and The Oxford Arts Factory is open, and looking healthy. It’s just a shame they don't do mathcore nights :)
Shot over a three-year period, Michael Dafferner of Car Bomb’s documentary [Why_You_Do_This] is a rather telling exposé on the pitfalls of touring. Amongst other things, the film highlights the band’s struggle to recoup the financial losses incurred as a result of low turnouts and dodgy venue-operators. Do you always break even at the end of a tour? Have you ever been ripped-off by a club-owner or promoter? Why do you do what you do?
We don't often break even at the end of a tour, no, but as I said before, we don't do this for money; we do it because we have to. It’s what we are here to do. It’s what we do best. There is no option.
We've never been ripped off by a promoter.
Despite calling Australia home, bands such as Brazen Bull, Serious Beak, and Entrails Eradicated have received recognition and praise in online publications all around the world. What do you think the future holds for Australian metal? Is “technicality” likely to become just another gimmick?
I don't think technicality is a gimmick. But I do understand that there is a limited audience for this kind of music. I believe there is an audience for it, it’s just spread out. You’re probably not gonna get them all in one place at one time. If you want that kind of response to your art, you need to cater for the masses. Sneaky Sound System would be a better bet. Aussie metal bands will always do it tough. But that’s why we get bands that are as good as Five Star, Brazen Bull, etc... Because you have to be awesome to stand out and get noticed by the few fans of extreme music that we have here.
Getting overseas is probably the best bet you'd have at being recognised by a wide audience.
The final NKTWR shows for 2012:
27th October, The Annandale Hotel, "Progfest" w/ Ne Obliviscarus
9th November, The Lansdowne Hotel, w/ Serious Beak
15th December, The Town Hall Hotel, w/ Broozer
