Five Questions and a Song is the weekly column where we delve into the minds of musical talent and ask them to share one of their newest tracks with you.
The former frontman of indie rock band Yuck, Daniel Blumberg, recently released his fifth album Unreal with the new solo project Hebronix. He is also an artist and illustrator who publishes limited edition books of art under his own publishing operation Boiled Egg, which earlier this month issued the wonderfully chaotic drawings of fellow painter Brendan Colvert. We spoke to Daniel about the different worlds of art and sound.
Drawings: Daniel Blumberg
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I live in London and I make music and art. I sometimes make books and sell them at www.boiledegg.org, which I think it’s a really great name for a website because the egg and org work well together. I released my fifth album in July and I think it’s my favourite one so far.
What inspires you as an artist and musician?
Last month I was living and working with Brendan. He lives on an island called Sanday and that was inspiring. We did lots of mono prints and oil paintings together and it was great to be around his work. He makes very large paintings. They are big, big colourful poems.
I have also recently felt very inspired by the Earth album Earth 2.
What feelings can you express through drawing, but not through music and vice versa?
Music is very direct and can be very hard-hitting. At times I find that it can be too literal though, since it’s all delivered in a very short space of time. There's a time limit, while the drawing exists in an endless timeframe. I tend to revisit drawings more happily than some of the music I've made in the past.
Your drawings are almost childlike, but convey emotions and ideas tied to adult life. How come?
Because I navigate through my life and emotions by making art, so what I produce conveys those feelings. In regard to the drawings looking “childlike”, I don't really feel the need to represent things in correct scale or photographically precise. I like drawing or painting because I can create a world where there are no constraints. When you look at it, it takes up your whole vision and it’s the only thing that exists in that moment. So I can make the shapes look however I want them to look, like draw the arms bigger than the body.
By the way, I think most children are amazing at drawing. They seem to have a very natural and unaffected way with form that most people lose when they grow up and become more conscious of themselves. That is a shame.
What can you tell us about this song?
'Viral' features a lovely flamenco vocalist who was appointed through Craigslist. She seemed confused when she arrived at the studio. All my vocals were slightly out of tune to her ears and everything was very un-flamenco, but she did a great job.
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