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An Interview with Martin Bowes and Sin D'rella of Attrition
Posted: Saturday, September 20, 2008
By: Ilker Yücel
Editor

One simply has to admire the level of dedication and creativity it must require to maintain a career in music for a quarter of a century. Such is the case with Attrition, one of the most revered names in the dark music scene. Since 1980, Martin Bowes has taken Attrition down a fascinating musical journey, beginning with the band's early post-punk experimentations meshing analog synthesizers with traditional acoustic instrumentation, creating a sound that was at once abstract and classical as it was modern and sometimes downright frightening. Over the course of nearly 20 albums and countless collaborators, not to mention a multitude of compilation and live show appearances with acts as diverse as Portion Control, Chris and Cosey, Clan of Xymox, Black Tape for a Blue Girl, L'ame Immortelle, and the Legendary Pink Dots, Bowes has played the role of conductor for this eccentric musical troupe with incredible fervor. Having established his own Two Gods imprint, the past two years since the band's 25th anniversary have been spent not only continuing Attrition's musical output, but reissuing the group's back catalog, remastered by Bowes and offering fans both old and new the most comprehensive collection of Attrition's music available. 2008 saw the release of All Mine Enemys Whispers: The Story of Mary Ann Cotton, signifying one of Attrition's most unsettling conceptual works yet. Based on a female serial killer in the mid-1800s in England, the album also features one of Attrition's most diverse lineups of collaborators, from Emilie Autumn to Stromkern's Ned Kirby to Unwoman's Erica Mulkey. Bowes and new band member Sin D'rella now offer you, the readers, some insight into Attrition's long and illustrious career, touching on the development of their musical approach over the last two decades, their views on the state of musicianship in today's modern music scene and the labels people apply to music, as well as the strange presences felt during the production of All Mine Enemys Whispers and what the future may hold for the group.

Your most recent album, All Mine Enemys Whispers: The Story of Mary Ann Cotton, is based on a female serial killer, a case in which your ancestor was the arresting officer. Given the familial connection, as well as the killer's sewing box having been passed down the generations to you, how did these factors affect your mindset during the writing and recording of the album versus that of your other recordings? To put it simply, was it creepy?

Bowes: Good question! At first it was a bit. I started experimenting with a lot of low drones, creating unsettling atmospheres, something I needed for the album. And those early sessions were very strange; I kept looking over my shoulder! Sometimes they were very heavy experiences and for a while I put the project on hold as I worked on more 'regular' Attrition music. But I obviously went back. I think my input to the whole album was very conceptual. I created the moods, the cues as titles taken from the story, and then the musicians I invited in added some of the character and populated the landscapes I had painted.

Sin: There are a few creepy stories we could tell you about this album. Maybe one day, we will, but for now, they'll remain ours. Let's just say there was a certain presence felt.

Adding to the long list of musicians you've worked with over the years, your latest album features your own children on vocals. How did your approach to working with Jordan and Naomi differ from when you work with others like Ned Kirby or Erica Mulkey?

Bowes: Well, I usually don't have to promise Ned chocolate! Maybe a beer, but thinking about it, maybe it isn't so different. Actually, my children recorded here in my studio at home, whereas most of the other participants sent me files from their respective countries. With my children, it was fun, though. I did record them a lot on several occasions until I could edit out the parts I wanted. There are recordings of them over at least two years, and as their voices changed over that time, it actually helped create a little crowd atmosphere. I loved including them, but they will never listen to that album. And I can't blame them; I try and introduce them to horror films, but I think it's different when you are actually in it!

On the Action and Reaction release, you collaborated with Seattle's Audio Leter. As postal and Internet-based collaborations are now commonplace, and as you've worked with many different musicians over the years, what are the significant differences between working in person and working virtually? Which do you prefer?

Bowes: Yes, nowadays it is so easy to collaborate with anyone you like, wherever they are. There was definitely something more exciting, more pioneering in trading four-track Portastudio tapes with Audio Leter all those years ago. Hearing those recordings they took from U.S. TV and radio, we were experiencing another culture firsthand. It opened my eyes. Now everything is all around us 24/7, and I don't think we even notice it.

There is obviously a difference working in person with someone in the studio. If I have someone here, I can directly influence what is being recorded or even just offer suggestions. It is really valuable to work like that. But I started out as a visual artist, so I am used to working on my own as a composer, and I really do prefer the time alone deliberating on the composition, the edits, the tones; that is very important to me. I can feel it in myself if something is working, and ultimately I prefer to make that final decision alone. But I think in the end, I really need the option of both ways of working. They are both very important approaches to composition.

You've also spent the past several months reissuing your back catalog. Listening back to your body of work, what are your thoughts on your development over the years? How well does the older material hold up today in your estimation?

Bowes: I've been spending so much time with this reissue series, but I really wanted to do it. To finally master some of the early releases myself and to update the artwork, put in those extra tracks, add some extra rare and live releases, and maybe it's the last time these recordings will be issued like this on CD, so it seems important. It has been a bit weird for me. I rarely listen to old Attrition albums, with the exception of possible tracks we are going to perform live, so there were songs I had not heard for so long! And I was a little scared to listen to them. But I was generally pleased. Oh yes, of course I could think of a million things I could have done better, certainly in terms of technically, now I have had so much experience. But on the whole, I think they stand up really well. I am pretty proud of doing all those albums and I think as we were doing something that few were doing in the '80s, the music does still stand up pretty well all these years later, although perhaps that is for others to judge.

Having been making music for 25 years in Attrition, what do you see as the most significant development in the music industry in that time, and how has it had an effect on how you make music in Attrition?

Bowes: Bloody hell, it's nearly 28 years now! And without a doubt, the most significant development in the music industry in all these years has been technology. And with that, I mean recording technology - the rise of the personal computer, and its enabling cheap recording facilities for everyone. No longer do we have to sit around waiting for record companies to fund our art. And the other advance is the Internet, of course. It may have been exciting trading tapes in the mail and calling promoters from public phone boxes at two dollars a minute in the '80s, but it was very, very difficult to get things done, especially as most bands have no money. And now things have changed. Don't get me wrong, it is still not easy, and you still have to work as hard as hell to get what you want out of this. But it is possible; it is a lot more possible, and there is a lot of crap out there to distract you on your way and to sort through until you find what you are looking for - the downside of the Internet. But it is ultimately enabling.

So how does it affect me? Well, I can do more music whenever I want to with whoever I want to, irrespective of location, and achieve sounds I could only dream of years ago. And then I can go out and promote it with or without a record company. I can book my own tours. You know, I can't do everything. I have not enough time. It is good to work with other people on this, but I can be so much more in control, and that is important.

When you began making music, your music seemed to run the fine line between being classified as 'goth' and 'industrial.' As both of those styles have undergone many changes over the years, and have even merged in many cases, what relevance do you think the terms possess today, not just in regards to your music, but to music in general?

Bowes: Well actually, when we started, we were very much seen as part of the post-punk scene here in England, and gradually got into the early industrial sound. It was never 'goth.'' Goth music in the early '80s was very traditional Sisters of Mercy stuff. It was only in the '90s after goth and industrial had started to merge that we were picked up by that scene, to our surprise at the time! Although, I guess it was obvious, really. Yes, the styles have undergone changes, or rather, the way the words are used has changed; industrial has gone from experimental to dance and goth. Well, I guess that has expanded into a wider range of dark music forms. I always hate terms in music. They are restrictive, they close doors, but then they can also be pointers, cues to something out there that you may have missed. So I know they will always be there. I guess we all have names. Personally it makes no difference to the music I do.

Sin: Don't you think it's about time that both musicians and indeed fans stopped pigeonholing music? Music is supposed to be felt, not labeled. Sure, whatever you end up creating may or may not appeal to certain people, but really, it should just be about whether you like it or not. Simple really. If that's me being naïve, then so be it. I'm quite happy being that, if it means I remain open.

One of the most recent re-releases from the back catalog was Etude, which featured your earlier works performed by a chamber orchestra. As so much modern music (not just in the goth/electro/industrial scene) is based on technology, be it by way of laptop DJs, loops, digital production, etc., what are your thoughts on the state of actual musicianship today?

Bowes: I think that 'musicianship' is as good or as bad as it has always been. I am not a musician myself. After all these years, I cannot play any traditional instrument. OK, I play electronics, but I am a composer or artist before a musician. I believe you use the tools you need to capture the something that you are attempting to express, to convey, and that is the same in any art form. If I feel emotion from music, I really do not care how it was made. Warhol used screen prints. Michelangelo had students helping paint for him. It really doesn't matter. It is the vision that matters, and the delivery, not the method.

Sin: Agreed!

You also teach music at City College in Coventry. In relation to the previous question, as someone who is helping to shape the minds and skills of the new generation, what have you noticed about today's younger burgeoning musicians and their attitudes towards making music compared to when you were in their position?

Bowes: I think that generally they are exposed to so much more music than I ever was when I was a teenager, and a lot of them will take that on board - not all, but a lot. I guess I am meeting the more dedicated musicians, as they made the effort to come to college, but I am impressed by that. They are just beginning their musical journey, so maybe their ideas are not well formed yet, but that is fine. Sometimes I notice a lot of genres and not enough kicking those walls down going on, and not enough political awareness these days. But some will have, some will, I do my bit to encourage them!

Recently, you invited Sin D'rella to join Attrition on a permanent basis. As the two of you have performed live several times in the UK, what can you tell us about how she came to join the group and how her performance and her contributions have been of benefit to your methods of making Attrition's music? When can we expect to hear the fruits of this collaboration?

Bowes: I was looking for a new female vocalist to work with, and my good friend Justin at Cold Spring recommended Sin. She worked on the live set and it worked so well, but I was also impressed with her own work with her fledgling project Imprint. So we started writing together as Attrition, and it went so well from day one. And after 20 years of steering this ship, I was knocked out by that. So I asked her to join permanently, which she did, and I have also started to contribute synthesizer to Imprint. You will hear the first new Attrition music with Sin as part of the upcoming Attrition and Imprint collaborative CD we have started working on, a collaboration that will showcase Imprint and some things somewhere in between. We are also planning a lot of live performances with both bands.

Sin: Whatever we come up with should be pretty interesting. We're both pretty stubborn. I can see much wine being consumed.

Coming back to All Mine Enemys Whispers, you were recently in talks with Dark Rose Films to produce a short film inspired by the album. What is the current status of this project and how pleased are you with its development?

Bowes: Yes, they are a local company based in Coventry. They contacted me through MySpace and we met up. I love their work. In fact, we are going to provide the score for their current project, a dark comedy, and then work will begin on the short film to All Mine Enemys Whispers in the new year! So it's early days. We are also talking with some filmmakers in Hollywood about a feature film version of the story, and we were interviewed recently about the album and my family connection to Mary Ann Cotton for an upcoming UK TV documentary on the woman, due to be aired here in October. It will be featuring the music from the album, as well.

Having been making music for so many years and exploring the different styles and atmospheres as you have, how difficult is it for you to maintain your pace and your inspiration? Do you ever worry that you've already 'done it all,' and if so, how do you deal with these concerns?

Bowes: I do sometimes wonder where I will go next. You know, sometimes I am working on a piece and I think, 'Where is this going? Am I just re-treading old ground?'' And I really can't do that. Yes, there are themes that are revisited, but that is okay when you have a different angle on it, but not if it is the same old thing. That kills music for me, when I hear the same thing over and over again, so I am conscious of that and I would stop now if that were the case. But I have explored a range of styles and techniques of sound and I will always look at new ways and work with new people. I think that is also important. You can learn a lot from working with someone else. Maybe they play violin and I will never play that, but it is the way they work that can teach me something. I have already learned a lot from working with Sin, and I'm sure she has from me. So yes, I do sometimes worry, but hell, I have only just scratched the surface of what I want to do.

From the standpoint of your years of experience and as a teacher, where do you feel music - not just your music in Attrition, but music in general - has yet to go aesthetically, emotionally, spiritually, and/or intellectually?

Bowes: I believe that ultimately music is a very personal expression of the human condition. In some ways it can go nowhere. I doubt there will be a new way of working with sound that will change the way we communicate. Sure, there may be advances in technology that may allow us to introduce new elements to our work, but I really think that the soul, if you like, can be found in music despite any of the technical qualities. And I believe that the only advances will be personal ones; people reaching inside and putting their heart out there for us all to see. And maybe we all need to dig a little deeper so we can share a little piece of God.

Sin: I'm biting my lip to stop myself ranting about God.