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 Jazz pianist SEAN FORAN is back in Brisbane after spending 18 months in the UK and Europe, plying his trade. The MISINTERPROTATO band leader talks to JAKEB SMITH about the group’s love affair with the heavy intertwined European jazz scene, and how our local lads stack up.
To outsiders, jazz can seem a waste at times – consummate players soloing their way through archaic song structures and pedestrian dynamics. Like an old cult, they devote their lives to reproducing formal standards which have been superseded by popular culture. But Misinterprotato don’t play regular jazz. Their chainsaw double bass fuzz, post-rock loud/soft dynamics and soundtrack-worthy atmospherics service songs primarily, not some prevailing notion of the past. The Brisbane trio of pianist Sean Foran, drummer John Parker, as double bassist Pat Marchisella make jazz accessible to coarse ears like mine, while still being every bit as nuanced and complex as the genre is known to be.
JAKEB SMITH: From what I’ve read about your travels it seems like you guys are pretty infatuated with Europe?
SEAN FORAN: Yeah definitely, as far as I’m concerned that is where it’s at. America is great and everything and New York’s awesome, but Europe is the leader – I think – in the contemporary improvised music. A lot of what we’ve done has been influenced by a lot of sounds and musicians coming out of there.
JS: I guess like Europe itself, jazz in Europe would be a lot of complementary scenes all linked together?
SF: Yes, there’s a lot of flow – between countries and musicians – and it’s easy to do things over there. That’s why it’s so great – there’s lots of musicians working everywhere.
JS: How does the Brisbane jazz scene rate, compared to overseas?
SF: It’s pretty good. Last year I was in Leeds, in the UK, for a year and a half, and it was interesting to see a new scene and the stuff coming out here is just as vibrant, and it’s still the same quality and expertise and stuff like that. It’s just over there I find there’s more people – there’s more of a market and an audience base. It’s still the same thing, it’s still musos trying to get a gig, and it’s still tough. It’s reassuring to see that what we’re doing, it’s just as good. It was cool to go over there and say "Look, this is what I do with my group" and people to say "That’s awesome". It’s certainly up to standard.
JS: That’s great news for musicians wanting to travel overseas.
SF: Yeah, if you just keep doing your thing, and if you think it’s good enough, hopefully it will be. People here are making music that is world class. I’ve only just been back for a month, and I just noticed the support here is really good. There’s a lot more respect nationally for Brisbane, and internationally as well.
JS: Do you listen to music after hours of practice each day?
SF: It’s tough. The silence is so nice sometimes, just to have no music, but I think you’ve got to be listening to new things to inspire yourself and to keep updated and trying new things. I think you really have to have this broad listening or at least keep trying to expand your listening, so that you have these varied influences and keep trying different things.
MISINTERPROTATO play their homecoming show at The Globe this Thursday June 4, with Noosphere and Paul Young & The Quadratice Contingence. www.misinterprotato.com
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