Future Of Forestry | “…Hopelessly In Love With Sound”
hen I stumbled across Future Of Forestry’s page I felt like I was very behind in the times. As I watched a live performance of Eric Owyoung and his live band made up of two others practicing for their July tour I was astonished by the looping and overall instrumentation. I knew then that we needed to do a piece on them before any more time got away from us. From what I had heard of Eric he sounded like a very passionate and thoughtful person. This rang true in our interview with him. Whether you have been listening to FOF for a time now or if this is the first you have heard of him, you will want to read through this interview. Passion, emotion, this is why we love music.
Eric, thanks for taking the time to do this interview with us! What is the meaning behind your name? It is taken from a C.S. Lewis poem correct?
Eric Owyoung: Yes, the name, Future of Forestry came from the C.S. Lewis book of poems. One of them is called “The Future of Forestry.” In the beginning, it was just a cool sounding name. But as time went on I started taking a better look at what he was trying to say. It is a poem set in the future when all of the trees are cut down by the Industrial Revolution. The poem expresses the confusion of future generations that have no clue what a tree is anymore. Although on the surface the poem is about the lack of a forest, on a deeper level it is about our lives and the risk of being stripped of all things good, natural and spiritual. The theme seems to be even more relevant today than it was when CS Lewis wrote the poem.
Wow that is really cool. So how did FOF get its start and what do you hope to see come from it?
EO: I started a band called Something Like Silas almost 10 years ago. Eventually, the band changed and evolved into Future of Forestry. I hope to continue seeing the band as an outlet for experimentation and creativity. What has always been unique about the band is the changing lineup of players who are a part of each tour and the different instrumentation each tour brings. I have a great and long list of musicians that I have gotten to play with over the years, and each one of them brings a different change and uniqueness to each stage and each album. I hope to always remain known for being inventive in instrumentation and moving in emotion.
I was fascinated by your latest live video which showed your looping technique. Walk us through how the composition and production of your music works and how that does or doesn’t differ from your live show?
EO: In creating a song, I try not to think about how it will actually be played live. I write most of my material in ProTools which is my main recording software. The advantage of using a computer in composition is that you can always manipulate, move, change and transform things on the fly. As I am creating, I am constantly trying new things and adding tracks. In the process, I am always cutting things up and moving them around until they fit together. It is kind of like building a Legos set but not necessarily knowing what the final product will be.
When it comes to performing live, it is a big game and challenge to try and figure out how to actually pull off. I find it almost impossible to be able to re-create the song in a live setting. It is more a matter of deciding which parts are the most important and deciding which player can run from one instrument to the other on stage during the song. The end result is a choreographed dance where all the players are running around each other playing different instruments.
You touched on this for a second, but is there a certain group of instruments that you try to stick to when writing or does it vary more by song or album?
EO: It totally varies per song. Sometimes it is guitar while other times it is piano. Occasionally, just hearing the drone of the harmonium is inspiring. I can also be very inspired by a guitar effect or a strange keyboard sound. Even a beat without any pitches can inspire a song.
Talk to us a bit about the concept behind your trilogy of Travel EPs and more specifically the material that your latest release, Travel III, touches on?
EO: “Traveler’s Song” was the song that inspired the whole series. “If you travel here, you will feel it all, the brightest and darkest.” My life over the past year or so has been more transient than I wish to admit. Through the process, I have realized that most of us exist in moving from one transient phase to another. The song is about how life is quite a journey, experiencing the highs and lows of everything. After the writing of the song, the trilogy was born, and I began to look at all of the different ways in which we travel; through air, through the sea and through land.
Since concluding the Travel EP’s with Travel III are there any ideas brewing about where you want to take your music now?
EO: It is always a bit difficult to predict where the music is going to go next. Usually, when I plan it out, it ends up changing. However, I do know that in completing the third EP, I felt I was able to explore and experiment with a lot of freedom. There are a lot of complex ideas there in a mishmash of sounds. I am wondering if the next album will be somewhat more pure and simple… maybe more focused on pure melodies. Who knows?
You just got done with a July tour, when is the next time we can catch you in concert?
EO: I will be in the studio working on the next Christmas album. I will also be producing and mixing some other artists over the next few months. The next tour will be in December, our fourth annual Christmas tour.
Finally, and because I can see how you pour every bit of yourself into your music, tell us what music means to you personally?
EO: I have a love hate relationship with music. The process of it often kills me both physically and emotionally. I slave over music, I stress over music and I pull my hair out over music. Yet, when it is all over, whether it is a tour or an album, I find myself wanting more. I am hopelessly in love with sound. Sometimes, I wish it was kinder to me, but being in love with something so unpredictable and so wild as music has its effects. I spend 99% of my time giving to it. But when that 1% comes back to me with an inspiring moment of beauty and passion, it is all worth it. It meets me in somewhere nothing else can.
Thank you again for talking with us! Be sure to check Eric out at http://futureofforestry.com/ or http://www.myspace.com/futureofforestry
