With its eclectic instrumentation and contemplative and earthly lyrics, London-based Fanfarlo is currently touring in support of its dynamic third full-length album, Let’s Go Extinct. The five-piece indie band features the mandolin, trumpet, glockenspiel, saxophone, clarinet as well as a healthy dose of ’80s-infused space-synth and on record
Lead singer and multi-instrumentalist Simon Balthazar shared his thoughts with Jonk Music on the band’s new sound, the process of recording, and his views on Creationism, nature, and the future. Fanfarlo will be performing at High Noon Saloon tomorrow evening.
Your new album, Let’s Go Extinct, seems to be very aware of your inner workings as humans, talking about cells and molecules and our place in the world and the future. Can you describe the inspiration behind the album?
“The approach is a bit like science fiction in that we present a different spin on things that are around us all the time and present them in an exciting, colourful way. I’m fascinated by different ways of looking at the nature the mind, the body, the evolution and future of life… There’s no reason you can’t put philosophy and science in pop music, right?”
What are the most memorable moments from writing or recording the album?
“We did a lot of the recording in a house that had been sitting empty for 20 years but where we built a temporary studio and just lived together for a couple of weeks, cooking, getting drunk and recording, day and night. Many delirious late night sessions.”
I’ve read that you think that Creationism is misguided and that you see some value in Christianity. What are your religious or spiritual beliefs? Did they influence the album?
“Ah yes, someone was asking in an interview specifically what I think about creationism. I mean, I personally don’t put much stock in organized religion, whatever it might be. I don’t think locking yourself into a belief system and into dogma is healthy. But, sure, I’m interested in what I see as the imagery and metaphors within Christian ideas.The problem with creationism is that it’s a very flat, literal, and quasi-scientific take on something that is more interesting taken as metaphor and poetry.
“It’s hard to sum up my own beliefs, but I do believe everyone needs to come at peace with their own understanding of reality and that there are no absolutes. I also think that the self is a very unfortunate side effect of consciousness.”
In addition to the horns that the band has traditionally integrated into the music, you added more electronic/synth sounds. What was the decision behind doing that? What kind of sound were you going for?
“Our music has always incorporated a dialogue between electronic and acoustic elements, but at the heart of it is songwriting and stories and ideas expressed through lyrics. We’ve started including more electronic elements over time for sure, but that’s an intuitive, playful process of evolution and not really a ‘decision.’ You constantly pick up new influences as you go along and they end up in what you create.”
The lyrics of the new album talk a lot about possible futures. What does your ideal world look like?
“With the risk of sounding like a hippie: the world could do with people thinking more about each other and less about themselves. One of the more out-there scenarios on the record is humans mutating into a double person, regaining our lost half. Lonesome no more!”
Your music has seemed to become more introspective compared to your earlier material. How do you think the band has changed since the beginning?
“We’ve matured as people and as musicians, and I think we draw on a much broader range of influences. I’m not sure if I feel we’ve become more introspective, though; I think we very much deal with the outside world rather than the minutiae of our personal lives. I guess it comes from a very particular point of view, though.”
What aspect of the album are you most proud of?
“Mainly that it feels like a very a honest record that expresses our ideas. But also they way we made it happen — we wrote it quickly, and we did so much ourselves in terms of recording and releasing it.”