I WOULD DIE FOR YOU
Coco Zoabi runs a blog called Coco’s OCD, her posts are often full of premieres and artists you wouldn’t find anywhere else. She’s originally from Nazareth, studied Psychology & Film in Jerusalem, and now resides in Brooklyn, NY. Below is an interview about a new track by Pendu NYC and International Tapes contributor Luke Carrell -creating music under the moniker SIMIAN GIBBONS.
Purple Pain Killer
SIMIAN GIBBONS AKA Luke Carrell is providing a relief to a wide scope of pains with his treatment/handling of Prince & The Revolution’s ‘I Would Die 4 U’ 1984 track, paradoxically called SIMIAN GIBBONS PRPL PAIN, though as is it with potent drugs, it’s not withstanding the side effects, such as the withdrawal symptom, as in, actually feeling sick when it’s un-played. Simian Gibbons has transformed the up tempo original 80’s dance track, into a lo-fi 80’s inspired electro dirty-fied conquering modernized hymn.
Purple Pain
SG: The track is the result of watching Purple Rain a few days before getting sick and taking Dayquil doses measured out roughly in a shot glass.
Backdrop
SG: The song probably sprang from an obsession with screw that AIDS-3D rekindled almost two years ago, growing up around Texas rap, hearing my friend Ben Aqua DJ the Backstreet Boys at half speed one too many times at art galleries and parties.
Methodology
SG: I lowered the track’s speed and pitch by a little more than 20% and fed the result through a bank of effects: phaser, multi-band, _____________ ,(c’mon, you didn’t think I’m actually gonna post the whole recipe, the rest of this is my current “best kept secret”, Coco) until I had something that was really harsh. Then I took the effected version and mixed it with the unaffected version of the slowed track. Not too shockingly, the unaffected version sounded like a twisted take on more traditional R&B. Each change on its own wasn’t horribly significant, but cumulatively they tug the sound in a more caustic direction, hence the “pain.” Was also in a fair amount of physical pain at the time, so that definitely shaped how I built the whole process. I’m still tweaking the basic method I developed that night.
Prince- Related
SG: Prince has made some of the most perfect pop music ever, so I approached this with the attitude that improving the music wasn’t going to happen; only changing it was possible. The process puts the music in a novel grey area that leaves it up to the listener to figure out whether it’s sexy or scary or what have you. Prince is amazing at creating that sort of ambiguity on his own. The process adds layers of cellophane over what’s already there.
By: Lara Shahd Zoabi (Coco)
SIMIAN GIBBONS: I Would Die 4 u (SIMIAN GIBBONS PRPL PAIN)