QUESTION 1: please give us a brief history of i AM esper since you began in 2009 – how many albums, split releases you've had; what labels you've been involved with; how many gigs you've played etc.
* i AM esper began summer 2009. I was in process of forming a drone metal band and did some ambient work on the side for fun. The project fizzled out quickly and i AM esper became my main project. It started with me living in an attic and i used whatever i could find in the attic and whatever instruments I owned at the time. Then around fall 2009 i picked up an electric baritone guitar and started using that plus effects pedals to create soundscapes.
As for releases i think i have now 25 full lengths and 26 eps. I'm not sure the number of splits and collabs but it's quite a bit. I have been involved with many labels: Frozen Tendril Records, Pestis Crafts, Fall Into Void, Mandarangan, Vomit Bucket, Cvlminis, Kadaath, Dark Meadow Recordings (rip), No Sleep Till Megiddo Records, Depressive Illusions, Parkbench Records, Tapemancy (rip), Puzzle Records, Le Crepuscule du Soir Prod. and a bunch more.
I have played live only 2 times in my home town at 2 shows i set up at my own house, this will most likely never happen again.
QUESTION 2: what is the origin of the name i AM esper?
* the name i AM esper comes from 3 things. i am error something from zelda 2, and "esper" as character from a movie i saw. and AM is capitalized only because the idea of the project was created early in the morning. the i is not capitalized because it's not about me; it's about the music.
QUESTION 3: how would you describe your music?
* minimalistic, drone ambient with various influences and nature themes.
QUESTION 4: what do you think your music conveys?
* I hope it conveys my message of animal rights and nature preservation which is my main concepts. But also the music itself is just meant to lure the listener into a trance so they can drift off to their own special mental picture.
QUESTION 5: who are your major influences?
* In the beginning my biggest influences were sound artists like Loren Chasse and free-folk /drone projects like Thuja. Then it evolved into a more drone metal influenced project influenced by Earth. Since 2012 i really have been inspired by a lot of classical minimalist music, like Erik Satie. But i would have to give credit to Stars of the Lid for being my biggest influence, as well as Explosions in the Sky (you can hear tinges of the influence at times, i think).
QUESTION 6: which musicians have you learned from?
* Honestly i learned really just from listening to music i like and just soaking it in. But face to face no one has really helped me along the way.
QUESTION 7: what is your creative process?
* I think of a theme, design the cover art and try to think of it as a sound track to the theme. The same way you would think of a sound track to a movie. I never make the music first i create the concept and then try to pull it together from that.
QUESTION 8: what inspires you to make music?
* Making music, especially drone and ambient is almost like a personal therapy. Its spiritualistic ritual for me, that allows me to remove any bad vibes i'm feeling it's very similar to meditating for me.
QUESTION 9: how has your music evolved?
* Its always been drone based ambient music but it has soaked in many influences within the style and is always evolving and shaping. It's experimental music and each release i make is a new experiment. I don't think there is a 'this one doesn't work' 'this one does' mind set because i'm doing what the goal in mind is, experimenting.
QUESTION 10: what do you feel throughout the creative process?
* Relaxed, calm, i try to put my self in another place, a tropical dream world without other people or technology. just peaceful and tranquil.
QUESTION 11: you often use a ukulele, why did you choose that instrument over guitar? What other instruments do you use regularly?
* I used to be a guitar based drone project for years. I have been a ukulele player and been obsessed with it for over a decade. I got bored with guitar and its sound, and wanted to use the uke because i feel i'm a much better player and with its image of being a 'novelty' or not a serious instrument i wanted to stretch the boundaries and show the ukulele can be used as a tool just as the guitar can. I'm considering using other instruments in the future. I was going to end the project recently but decided not to, i will say the project will be changing into a more dark ambient very very minimalistic direction using other processed folk instruments, this will not begin until this summer.
QUESTION 12: Forward Momentum is your latest release, where did the idea for that come from?
* It's just about going forward in my life, a change of career moving forward from the past.
QUESTION 13: what gave you the idea to write Forward Momentum (and other songs) in 4 parts?
* I always usually do the theme in parts, rather than one long boring track. My tracks are long enough i think it would be ear torture to make it any longer.
QUESTION 14: what kind of music do you listen to?
* I'm mostly a listener of ambient music but very minimalistic. I also enjoy some post-rock, classic and some folk music. I like some metal ...but not too much of it these days.
QUESTION 15: what is next for i AM esper? (go into as much detail as you’d like).
* Basically changing the medium. i will be working with folk instruments, more found sounds (like i did when i started),doing things in a more industrial dark ambient style, any source of melody will be gone it will be very minimalistic soundscapes for low level listening in the background. The Forward Momentum is my last album which features any kind of melody.
* i AM esper began summer 2009. I was in process of forming a drone metal band and did some ambient work on the side for fun. The project fizzled out quickly and i AM esper became my main project. It started with me living in an attic and i used whatever i could find in the attic and whatever instruments I owned at the time. Then around fall 2009 i picked up an electric baritone guitar and started using that plus effects pedals to create soundscapes.
As for releases i think i have now 25 full lengths and 26 eps. I'm not sure the number of splits and collabs but it's quite a bit. I have been involved with many labels: Frozen Tendril Records, Pestis Crafts, Fall Into Void, Mandarangan, Vomit Bucket, Cvlminis, Kadaath, Dark Meadow Recordings (rip), No Sleep Till Megiddo Records, Depressive Illusions, Parkbench Records, Tapemancy (rip), Puzzle Records, Le Crepuscule du Soir Prod. and a bunch more.
I have played live only 2 times in my home town at 2 shows i set up at my own house, this will most likely never happen again.
QUESTION 2: what is the origin of the name i AM esper?
* the name i AM esper comes from 3 things. i am error something from zelda 2, and "esper" as character from a movie i saw. and AM is capitalized only because the idea of the project was created early in the morning. the i is not capitalized because it's not about me; it's about the music.
QUESTION 3: how would you describe your music?
* minimalistic, drone ambient with various influences and nature themes.
QUESTION 4: what do you think your music conveys?
* I hope it conveys my message of animal rights and nature preservation which is my main concepts. But also the music itself is just meant to lure the listener into a trance so they can drift off to their own special mental picture.
QUESTION 5: who are your major influences?
* In the beginning my biggest influences were sound artists like Loren Chasse and free-folk /drone projects like Thuja. Then it evolved into a more drone metal influenced project influenced by Earth. Since 2012 i really have been inspired by a lot of classical minimalist music, like Erik Satie. But i would have to give credit to Stars of the Lid for being my biggest influence, as well as Explosions in the Sky (you can hear tinges of the influence at times, i think).
QUESTION 6: which musicians have you learned from?
* Honestly i learned really just from listening to music i like and just soaking it in. But face to face no one has really helped me along the way.
QUESTION 7: what is your creative process?
* I think of a theme, design the cover art and try to think of it as a sound track to the theme. The same way you would think of a sound track to a movie. I never make the music first i create the concept and then try to pull it together from that.
QUESTION 8: what inspires you to make music?
* Making music, especially drone and ambient is almost like a personal therapy. Its spiritualistic ritual for me, that allows me to remove any bad vibes i'm feeling it's very similar to meditating for me.
QUESTION 9: how has your music evolved?
* Its always been drone based ambient music but it has soaked in many influences within the style and is always evolving and shaping. It's experimental music and each release i make is a new experiment. I don't think there is a 'this one doesn't work' 'this one does' mind set because i'm doing what the goal in mind is, experimenting.
QUESTION 10: what do you feel throughout the creative process?
* Relaxed, calm, i try to put my self in another place, a tropical dream world without other people or technology. just peaceful and tranquil.
QUESTION 11: you often use a ukulele, why did you choose that instrument over guitar? What other instruments do you use regularly?
* I used to be a guitar based drone project for years. I have been a ukulele player and been obsessed with it for over a decade. I got bored with guitar and its sound, and wanted to use the uke because i feel i'm a much better player and with its image of being a 'novelty' or not a serious instrument i wanted to stretch the boundaries and show the ukulele can be used as a tool just as the guitar can. I'm considering using other instruments in the future. I was going to end the project recently but decided not to, i will say the project will be changing into a more dark ambient very very minimalistic direction using other processed folk instruments, this will not begin until this summer.
QUESTION 12: Forward Momentum is your latest release, where did the idea for that come from?
* It's just about going forward in my life, a change of career moving forward from the past.
QUESTION 13: what gave you the idea to write Forward Momentum (and other songs) in 4 parts?
* I always usually do the theme in parts, rather than one long boring track. My tracks are long enough i think it would be ear torture to make it any longer.
QUESTION 14: what kind of music do you listen to?
* I'm mostly a listener of ambient music but very minimalistic. I also enjoy some post-rock, classic and some folk music. I like some metal ...but not too much of it these days.
QUESTION 15: what is next for i AM esper? (go into as much detail as you’d like).
* Basically changing the medium. i will be working with folk instruments, more found sounds (like i did when i started),doing things in a more industrial dark ambient style, any source of melody will be gone it will be very minimalistic soundscapes for low level listening in the background. The Forward Momentum is my last album which features any kind of melody.
Source - Funereal Drone