Here at Mesmerized, we take pride in navigating leftfield territories, and discovering abstract and cathartic pieces that help listeners think outside of the box. Cracks In The Real is one such creative, a talented musician and producer boasting a strong experimental flair. Organising digital tones, analogue noises and found sound in coherent and compelling compositions, the American sonic explorer delivers intense and gritty walls of textures laced with industrial and rebellious distortions, plus spoken word fragments.
‘Burn’ is the strongest evidence of that: one of Cracks In The Real’s latest offerings, the piece is an overhauled rendition of ‘Burn’ by British new wave phenomenon The Cure. While the track takes the original version in a completely new direction, it maintains the same melancholic and eerie energy, making it even more prominent and striking.
Intrigued by the project, we caught up with Cracks In The Real to find out more about his artistry and future goals… Interview below!
Hey Cracks In The Real, how is it going? there’s a whole lot of mystery around your project, a formula that works well for the abstract, leftfield and experimental creativity emerging from it. How would you describe yourself, other than a ‘musician’? What are you looking for in music-making and art?
Oh man, I could write a book on this question. I suppose I look for authenticity – for an artist or a group who has a singular voice.
We are pretty fond of your catalogue so far. You have the ability to organize textures and noises in a coherent way, expanding fragments of sonic matter into limitless soundscapes. Have you set yourself any rules regarding production/compositional methods?
Usually, I don’t plug anything into my laptop. Everything is samples and synths, I want to be able to make something that could be reproduced for free.
Speaking about production, here’s a question for the nerds out there – what’s your setup like? Do you work inside the box (on a DAW) or with analogue machinery? Are there any synths or drum machines that inspire you? Finally, do you make use of field recordings?
I work in a DAW, though I have worked in analogue in the past. And yes there’s found sound all over these records.
You have recently released a striking and quirky rendition of ‘Burn’, a track originally released by The Cure. Can you guide us through the creative process behind it, from choosing it to the final release? What does the song mean to you?
The original is a perfect song. So when I decided to cover it it was about looking for things that they didn’t do, because it wouldn’t have fit what they were after and then mold my version around that. Specifically, I wanted to give it more of a narrative structure.
Talking about The Cure – Is the British band part of your musical background? We are curious about your overall taste and musical evolution. How did you get to the likes of Aphex Twin and Autechre?
They are all British, aren’t they? I don’t know why, I’ve never been to England even but most of the artists I listen to are from there.
You are American, yet many of your influences are British… is there any modern-day American icon who you are a fan of?
I’m pretty impressed with Taylor Swift, which is an odd answer. I’m not her demographic, but for what she does she’s the best she could be at it.
Artistically speaking, what challenges have the last two years presented you with?
My engineer had a baby, so I have a whole album that needs to be mixed and mastered that was recorded in 2020.
What are the next steps for your project? Anything exciting on the horizon?
I want to get that album out. I’m also working on some new material. You can probably expect to see some singles between now and then.
