THE CONJURER'S TRICK

I am now chatting with Mr. Rhys Fulber of Conjure One-

Hello Rhys, thanks for granting me an interview. (the smell of bacon & eggs permeates the air.)

How did you approach your second Conjure One effort? Did you set out to capture a distinctly different feeling with Extraordinary Ways?

RF: "I didn't want to repeat the first album, so yes. It was also made entirely in LA instead of Europe, the UK and Canada, so that gave it a different vibe as well. It's more of an urban themed record I guess you could say."

MF: How did you and Poe (aka Jane) begin working together?

RF: "I met her working on the first record. I had a instrumental track a friend suggested I get a vocal on. Her A&R man at Atlantic Records had contacted me about doing a remix of the Poe song "Wild" so I had her CD on the coffee table at the studio, and thought, "what about her?". The A&R man set it up, and the song became Center Of The Sun."

MF: Are they any other artists you wish to collaborate with?

RF: "I don't really think about it too much, especially now that Conjure One has developed its own identity. I just sort of let things happen."

MF: How do you store your compact discs? Do you keep them in their proper jewel casings?

RF: "In big storage bins, and I do more so now that everything lives in my powerbook."

MF: Do you ever have nightmares about a "Fahrenheit 451" scenario, in which all musical recordings are destroyed and outlawed?

RF: "Hmmm, Never really thought about that! I left high school pretty early to play with synthesizers so I missed that book."

MF: If asked would you be a judge on "American Idol?"

RF: "No. I've only seen that program a couple times and I found the experience a bit sad."

MF: What was the last CD you purchased?

RF: "Killing Joke's "Hosannas from the Basement Of Hell."

MF: Your music is very good at evoking great flowing imagery in the listener's mind. Have you ever been approached about scoring a film?

RF: "Yes. A demo of the first album had me picked up by a composer management group in LA a while back. I did a bit of work in the field, nothing major, but I wasn't ready to commit myself to what would be needed to get somewhere in that area. I had a lot going on as a record producer and that was more the direction I chose. It's something I would like to come back to later."

MF: Who do you think has one of the best voices in the world of music today?

RF: "Today? Imogen Heap is quite good and I like James Walsh of Starsailor.

MF: Are Canadians rather fearful of Texans? I ask because upon a visit to Toronto, people's response to me upon hearing I was from Texas was always followed by some sort of statement regarding guns or President Bush.

RF: "Well ignorant people are pretty much anywhere you go. I guess they don't know about all the Canadians playing minor pro hockey in Texas. I think Texas has more minor pro teams than any other state."

MF: Do you think the U.S. should eradicate the giant 'immigration wall' that is being tossed around at the moment?

RF: "It seems pretty totalitarian to me, but if it really makes people feel better then go for it. Though it's been proven before that walls don't solve problems. If anything I think people in America should be encouraged to travel more. My wife is American and her immigration to Canada has been a huge hassle, so I wouldn't say Canada has soft immigration policies, like they make out on CNN. I've in lived both countries and always had a harder time going north."

MF: On the track Endless Dream, Jane is heard whispering softly "so quiet now we are the...same" is that what she is actually saying?

RF: "Yes it is."

MF: Will Kirsty Hawkshaw be featured on the next Delerium release?

RF: Yes, again."


Thank you so much. Do you have any last words?

We are putting together some more live shows on the east coast for this Summer and I'm going to start a new album soon.

bye-bye.

copyright 2006 Michael Floyd
go and purchase a stellar Conjure One recording

LISTEN TO YOUR MUSE

Summoning of the Muse - A tribute to Dead Can Dance is a Projekt records release. The star tracks on this recording are Mirabilis's take on DCD's The Writing on my Father's Hand. A surprisingly, dare I say, better version, the sounds of the delicate synth chords is quite evocative as well as the vocals. There is Chandeen's past cover of In Power We Entrust the Love Advocated, Stoa's Cantara and Dark Sanctuary's exceptionally well-produced Summoning of the Muse. But the finest track on this disc would have to be Musica Eternal from the duo called Autumn's Grey Solace. Their rendition of this 26 year old song is chillingly original and outstanding.