Lorna Irvine speaks with 'a rare talent with a bright future'.
Composer/writer/musician Harry Perry is something of a global citizen and currently based in Uppsala ,Sweden (he recently relocated from London). He produces music under the name of rryrry (lower case intended), which crosses so many genres it is hard to keep up. Championed by 6Music and across independent music magazines and websites, Harry's restless nature makes him one of the most captivating new musicians out there. A rare talent with a bright future, Perry is also very outspoken and passionate about the visual and intellectual side of making music. I caught up with him to hear more about the creative process, soundtracks, how to retain the punk spirit, and much more.
Your work spans so many genres, from electro to folk to classical. What is most creatively satisfying for you?
An interesting question. Honestly, I find each piece I write equally satisfying, though I think the genres shift around a bit because at any given time I'm probably trying to satisfy a different part of me. A bit like the way you listen to different types of music; a different genre for a different mood. Classical music is really satisfying in its complexity and I love the interpretation performers bring to a notated score. Then again, I get an equal primal thrill from thrashing my bass over a loud drum kit, or having a pogo to an electro-remix. It really depends on context. I suppose the real satisfaction comes from writing and recording: the genre is secondary.
There is also a strong cinematic element to what you do. I was wondering what films most inspire you?
The Labyrinth soundtrack was the first album I ever bought, and Bowie became my totem not long after, so that had a fairly profound effect. There's also an incredibly soundtrack by Jean-Michel Bernard for The Science of Sleep that really grabbed me; it's an incredible mix of whimsy, rock and classical. Other than that I'm probably most influenced by soundtracks cobbled together from different sources. Wes Anderson's films are flawless in this respect, The Darjeeling Limited soundtrack brought out colours in The Kinks that I'd never heard before. As for the cinematic element, I think that probably comes more from my classical background and composers like Copland and Vaughan Williams. Really powerful visual stuff without imagery. Though that said, a fair majority of trained composers go into film composition now so there probably is a lot of subconscious influence in there somewhere.
Who do you feel a kinship with, in terms of music? Who are you listening to at the moment?
It's hard to answer that without sounding pompous, but I learned most of my songwriting and eclectic philosophy from listening to David Bowie and Faith No More. They tend to loom over my work (or at least I like to think they do) so I obviously resonate the strongest with them. But every now and then I'll find a musician or group who just writes music purely for the sake of it with no pretensions; they are the ones I feel the most kinship. These artists always write the most interesting music because they change the rules instinctively and aren't dumbstruck by history or desperate to break the form into some futurist shambles in the name of the 'Avant-garde'. Plus they tend to have the most fun. Case in point, my current obsession: Cardiacs. Someone mentioned how I sounded similar to them so I went and had a little nose in their back catalogue; they haven't been off my iPod since. They were one of those bands who influenced everyone you love (in my case, Mike Patton) but never quite made it into the higher levels. The spirit of punk runs through their psychedelic fairground pop'n'roll. The spirit of punk is all that matters; don't care what anyone thinks of you, just do it for yourself.
Who would be a dream collaboration for you?
Trent Reznor. As much as I would love to work with Bowie I have to be realistic and it's likely never to happen (I firmly believe in being able to achieve my dreams). Trent Reznor, to me, is my generation's Bowie. An idiotically talented, varied and creative mind that's completely open to genres beyond his safe zone. I think we could come up with some incredibly interesting music that would veer between classical art music to full on electro-dance. At the very least I'd love to get to the stage where I could humbly approach him to produce a single for me. That would be pretty phenomenal.
Finally, what is next for you?
Endless writing, gigging, collaborating and the like. I realised that being a solo artist requires you to keep your fingers in all the pies so I have a weekly music blog (www.theappraisaluk.wordpress.com) that I'll be writing, hopefully getting my musical views across (it's very important to have views...). I'm also probably going to get a youtube podcast up and running if I can find the energy. Though most importantly; I'll be working on a follow up to 'I Want & the Me culture' along with a couple of really exciting collaborative projects. My sister wants me to write her some more classical songs so I should probably find time to do that. Busy, busy times. It's how I like it.
rryrry - Horror Express [Official Video]: http://youtu.be/vAJUWFWM0dM
Twitter: @rryrry
For more information and to hear rryrry, go to: http;//rryrry.bandcamp.com/
RSS