|
 A slightly bemused ARIEL PINK reflects on the success of his 2010 record Before Today while chatting to DARRAGH MURRAY about his forthcoming Australian tour as part of the St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival.
The rise of Ariel Pink from relative obscurity as a bedroom-recording artist to something of an indie-pop messiah was one of the more interesting transformations of 2010. His last record, Before Today, represented a new chapter in an already prolific career, embracing his usual oddball mixture of psychedelic pop and ‘70s nostalgia, but in a cleaner and more produced fashion. The gambit paid rich dividends with music critics spruiking Pink’s ingenuity; Pitchfork even naming lead single Round And Round as the best song of last year. While obviously pleased with the acclaim, Pink still retains a sense of humility.
“It obviously makes me very happy, you know? It’s a welcome surprise. I try not to think about what it would be like had that not been the case. I always just expect everything going to not work out, so I’m pretty happy when it does.”
The spotlight has not made Pink reclusive, acknowledging that his current sense of contentment is intrinsically linked to his development as a musician.
“I’m pretty happy right now in my life, you know? My goal with regards to music is to continue doing it, to be able to continue doing it. And that’s kind of difficult enough just given reality. So I’m not complaining about my situation, I’m just trying to not squander an opportunity.” Pink states, “If people want to hear it, I’m pretty happy to do it forever. It keeps me happy, gets me up in the morning, and makes me feel that I’m doing something positive with my life.”
Still, Pink remains conscious of the often precarious balance between recording and performing, revealing that once his current touring commitments are finished, he will welcome a return to the studio.
“I look forward to not touring so much, so we record the next album and then we can tour that. And then just getting in a good rhythm with releases so it’s a little bit less random than it’s been in the past. I’ve been pretty much recording less and less as I’ve been playing live more and more so I would really like to get back into the swing of recording and that will happen with a little kind of balancing of both, I think.”
Despite this, Pink is remains enthusiastic about touring Australia as part of the Laneway Festival, stating emphatically his fondness for fellow Californians, Warpaint. Furthermore, in spite of touring solo in 2006, this will be the first opportunity for Pink’s band, Haunted Graffiti, to visit the country.
“I’m looking forward to it for so many reasons. Primarily to play there with the band – they’ve never been. And just to go back to Australia, I love it there. We’ll be just dodging our micro winter that we have in California.”
ARIEL PINK’S HAUNTED GRAFFITI play at the Brisbane Laneway Festival (Alexandria St) on Friday Feb 4, alongside Bear In Heaven, Warpaint, Menomena and many more. BEFORE TODAY is out via 4AD/Remote Control. See www.myspace.com/arielpink and www.lanewayfestival.com.au for more.
|
| Comments are submitted for possible publication on the condition that they may be edited. Poster's IP addresses are logged. |
|
Be first to comment on this article
