superglider tex la homa

TEX LA HOMA interviews >

Tex La Homa interview from moonpalace fanzine

http://www.moonpalacefanzine.com/entrevistatexlahoma.htm

Introduce yourself, who or what is "tex la homa"?
my name is matt shaw. tex la homa is the songs and music that i write. when i play live sometimes there are other people in tex la homa too.
Have you had any earlier music projects or this is your first one? (if not answered before)
this is the first serious project i have done, i have played in lots of different bands before but nothing that has anything to do with tex la homa. since i started tex la homa i have also played in sancho panza, seemonster and factotum on superglider records and produced some bands too.
Has it always been a "solo" project?
yes, although i have worked very closely with certain people. in the very early days i did a lot of recording with rob cieka of the boo radleys. also dave purse from betika, griff from seemonster and most recently my friend hubcap have all played very important roles in the way tex la homa sounds.
What was "the thing" that made you say "well, i must creat a project and star making music"?
i had lots of ideas about songs and melodies and just wanted to pick up an instrument to see if i could recreate the sound i was thinking of. almost all of the songs evolve from that initial idea depending on loads of different things, like what mood i'm in, whats been going on in my life, how much sleep i've had, lots of things. most of the songs are very personal, so i find it a good way of deeling with how i'm feeling.
You release in your own label, why did you decided to create it? Because of the difficulty of finding a label or maybe becuse of having all the process under control?
it just sort of happend really. my friends mal and richard wanted to put out some of the songs they'd heard by tex la homa, they came to all the early shows and liked the music. they asked myself and griff to start a label and tex la homa was the first thing we released. i have and do work with other labels. recently we have released some great new bands on superglider and thats the way it should always be.

What do a band need to release in superglider?
there is no fixed sound as such to superglider, we will put out music by anyone who we think makes great music.
Returning to tex la homa . your sounds mixes perfectly an acoustic side with another more electronic, is this what you were looking for, is the best way to make music by your side? (i tried to mean, you alone)
again it comes back to the music i was hearing in my head, i like acoustic, electronic and loud er guitar music equally. when i write i start off on a guitar, keyboard of with a drum loop of some kind. the electronic side and acoustic side of what i do become very blurred when i'm writting, i'm happy with the way things turn out.
Wich side do you feel closer to you, or in wich one do you feel safer, in the acoustic one or in the electronic one?
both. couldn't pick one over the other.
How are your shows? What will we find in your spanish show?
at the moment our shows are myself playing guitar and singing, and hubcap who plays bass and sings. between us we also use a sampler, effects units and a mini disc player. for the spanish shows we will be playing some songs from the first album, some songs that have been on compilation albums and lots of new songs too. i'm really looking forward to playing in spain!
When i hear your music , names comes to my head, please, tell me what do you think about them, if they fit with your music .. or include more names if you want
Hood: i like everything i've heard by them but only own one album.
American analog set: one of my favourite bands, i first heard them on an american fanzine compilation on masstransfer. they just sound beautiful.
Nick Drake: i like nick drake a lot if i'm in the right mood, again his music is very beautiful, perfect for falling asleep to on a hot day like today. i think it'd create good dreams.
The Notwist: never heard them.
Your first album has had lots of good reviews, how does it feel?
feels good, i tend not to keep as much of an eye on these things these days. when i first started getting reviews i would read them and really take them to heart. now i read them and forget about them. obviously it's easier when people say nice things.
Have you more fans in Japan than in Europe? In your website you have the possibility of a japanese version
japan has been into tex la homa right from the start, i think they were the first country that really understood tex la homa. europe seems to be catching up though, it's just a matter of letting people know i exist and make this music. it all takes so long as there are so many bands and labels in the world right now.
What about plans? Something in mind for next future?
the next album is finished, i'm looking at whos going to be releasing it at the moment. i think it will be more widely available in more countries this time. masayuki miyoshi has been working with me on the artwork. his images are based on the concept of expressing the fragments of peoples lives, he feels that the world is moving at such a fast pace and that we forget each others existence sometimes, and that everyday people in the street all have there own fascinating stories, not because of fame, just because they have. There are no people reflected in masa's photographs but he's trying to catch the existence of these people in his images.
tex la homa have a new track coming out on the next issue of masstransfer in the states and a new track on an anti nazi league cd coming out on repeat records in th uk.
We have also just done our first video directed by kin ho that should be ready anytime now.
Could you recommend us a book, a film and a record?
read anything by douglas coupland, girlfriend in a coma is a great place to start.
watch naked by mike leigh, it must be one of the darkest films ever made, but it is absolutely fantastic.
today you should listen to the covers record by cat power, beautiful, simple, perfect.

Tex La Homa interview from disorder >

Using samplers and various electronic bits and pieces to create warm, organic soundscapes isn't the easiest of tasks but with Tex La Homa, part time producer Matt has suceeded. Little subtleties such as the faint aeroplane samples in "Here With You" a song about escape and entrapment, hint towards the group having invested enough thought and musical depth to ensure a wide and varied fan base when the Tex La Homa debut is released later this year.

"I really like the idea of all those textures and layers and sometimes it's not until you've heard the song quite a few times that you pick up on some of it - lots of little melodies and things. I've got loads of stuff that i'd love to try which i can't do with the set-up i'm using at the moment but at the same time i acn still get quite lush productions to come out anyway. I really like the honesty of that; sometimes you'll hear something that'll be slightly off but i prefer that to making something that's so polished that you can't hear any human involvement."
Such an approach has provided the group with a uniquely raw feel that'll hopefully discourage the lazier journalists out there from labelling Tex La Homa "the British Moby".

I think people don't work very hard these days to find new things - or even old things - that they might be into unless they're told to be into them. I don't believe that we'd have got across to as many people as we have if we didn't have the internet site there. You now get whole communities of people who feel the same way all over the world and it's great 'cos it misses out on all those corporate record labels."
Matt's project has already pleased the ears of independent Japanese label Painted Sky Discs (home to Red House Painters) who've picked up the group and are set to release Tex La Homa's debut album later in the year. The only problem seems to be that with over 70 songs recorded and ready to go, there may have to be a bit of "cutting down".

"I used to play drums and various instruments in bands but this is the first time i've sat down and recorded my own stuff. It all started flowing out; there's just loads of it. Whatever labels become interested in Tex La Homa are gonna have to sift through shit loads of songs, " he laughs.

Well, while some poor Japanese label exec faces that mammoth task, Matt will be playing gigs with the Tex La Homa live band, dates for which will be posted on the group's website (www.superglider.com) along with downloadable mp3s and other info. At the risk of sounding like a bad telecommunications advert - come on people, get connected.

Text:Tom Barry.

Tex La Homa interview from www.soitditenpassant.com >

CLASSICAL QUESTIONS >

*Where does the name of the band come from?
The name tex la homa come's from a story in the book "Generation x" by Douglas Coupland. I think it's a great story, i liked the name, all i did was split it up into three parts.

**Your two former EP's were a relative success, what are your expectations for your first LP?
I hope that the release of the album will get the music noticed by more people, single's and ep's have such a short life in terms of the press and radio attention they receive and i think albums are taken much more seriously by people. Hopefully the album represents the different sounds and type's of music that i make a little better than an ep can do in only four or five tracks.

***You've toured w/ Bright eyes and Her Space Holiday. Can you tell us more about this experience?
Bright Eyes and Her Space Holiday are two of my favourie bands so you can imagine how happy i was that our first ever live show was supporting both of these bands in London at the water rats theatre. This was the first time i had ever played guitar or sung on stage so i was really nervous but the gig went well and then i got to watch the other bands. I'd seen Her Space Holiday and Bright Eyes before but they were both particularly good on this night, really nice warm hearted people too.

****You sell a tee-shirt printed "Postrockhero"; How would define the term "Post Rock"; Do you think you're a post rock performer?
I'm not entirely sure what post rock really means, there are so many bands that get called that and they all sound very different. Maybe it's just an attitude of playing with a little more thought, care and attention to sound rather than just rocking out for the sake of it. Experimentation and pushing things forward, and not just relying on old tired formulas that might work but become so boring so quickly. As far as the Postrockhero shirt goes, that started out as a phrase we joked about that ended up getting put on a t-shirt. I don't consider myself to be a post rock performer but maybe i am.

*****"Dazzle w/ transcience" was released in Japan a few month ago. Did it work well? Why the order of the songs was changed?
I'm told it got good reviews in Japan, I'm not sure how many records we sold over there though. I get lot's of e-mails from Japan from people into the cd so to me that's cool. The order of the songs was changed because there were some newer songs that i wrote after the Japanese version was released that I wanted to include. I really like both versions of the album though. There are some songs on the Japanese version of the album that are very special to me that I hope will get released in the rest of the world one day.

******You're running the Superglider label. What are the goals you want to reach?
Superglider is run between myself and four other people. We really just want to release records by bands that we love and try to get their records heard by as many people as possible. Our main goal since the beginning has been to find enough money to keep things going and release more records. Things are done on a shoestring budget but we do the best we can to keep the quality high. If we can keep on doing that I'll be happy.

*******If you were a customer, would you buy this album?
Oh yes.

QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU >

Name/Age/occupation

Matt Shaw, 28years old, the person behind tex la homa, a part time superglider and part time gardener.

Favourite quote
At the moment it's
'Parties'
voice-filled rooms
with faces, mindless
words filling spaces
senseless sounds falling
on ears deafened by silent years
spent learning movements
signifying implied understanding
assumed agreement
meaning nothing.
Nicholas Royle, Counterparts

* The song (you wrote) you're the most proud of?
Off the album probably "Here with you" or "feel tied down". I've got a new song i just wrote called "A night so perfect" that i'm most proud of right now but no one's heard it yet.

**What are your musical influences?
I grew up listening to Sonic youth, sebadoh, The Boo Radleys, Dr. phibes and the house of wax equations, Nick Cave, also Massive Attack and tricky. I also really love Smog, Bonnie Prince Billy, Low, The magnetic fields, Jim O'Rourke, Aphex Twin, and Minotaur Shock.

***10 favourite albums
Not in any order and it changes all the time,
Mogwai - "Young Team"
The American Analog Set - "Know by heart"
Neil Young - "After the goldrush"
Her Space Holiday - "Home is where you hang yourself"
The Boo Radleys - "Giant Steps"
Nick Cave and the bad seeds - "Let love in"
Lee Scratch Perry - Arkology
My Bloody Valentine - "Loveless"
Cat Power - "The covers record"
The Magnetic Fields - "69 love songs"

****1 favourite book / author
"Ham on Rye" by Charles Bukowski, or "Girlfriend in a coma" by Douglas Coupland. I love pretty much everything i've read by Coupland.

*****1 favourite painter
My sister.

******1 favourite movie
Maybe Pulp Fiction or Star wars or Raging Bull.

*******1 favourite football team
Crewe Alexandra, sadly relegated to the second division.

********1 favourite music shop
Rough Trade in London.

*********1 favourite band in your area that is not signed
True Swamp Neglect.

**********a definition of the french stereotype
Romanticism in Paris, A good national football team (seemingly turned bad), Blockades of the channel tunnel, i don't really know...i've only been there once and had a great time, my friend paul from brothers in sound was there recently producing a record for EMI and he had a brilliant time drinking and eating good food, sounds good to me!

***********The song you wish you'd written
"Birds" by Neil Young

************1 weird moment of your life
Lying in Hospital at 15 with a really low blood count wondering what the fuck was wrong with me as everyone fussed around me giving me pills and sending me for tests.

*************favourite French bands
"Daft Punk, all the stuff on Source records, Air and I really like the Hip Hop soundtrack to the film "La Haine" but don't know who any of the tracks are by.

**************You're proposed to release a split EP with a band, having the opportunity to choose the band. Which one would you choose.
I'd like to do a split record with my friends Miss Black America, it just might happen too.

Interview by Maki (maple sounds) >

> * Please introduce yourselves, first. (About former bands etc.)

My name is Matthew Shaw, i've played in quite a few different bands before Tex La Homa, I played drums in Seamonster and various instruments in Factotum both of which have records out on Superglider records. I used to play drums with a few bands in the local Bournemouth music scene, such as Betika, The Apes and Exhibit A and did some singing for Paul from Brothers in sound. I also made a record with a friend of mine under the name Hyperkarma which was a mixture of instumental and spoken word music but so far it has never been released. Before that i played drums in a few different bands when i was living in Sandbach, none of which ever really did
very much.

> * Where were you from? Are you living in Bournemouth for a long time?

Originally i am from a town called Sandbach which is in the north west of England. I moved to Bournemouth September 1999. My reasons for moving were that i have lots of friend here that i made over the years from being involved in music and there was also a recording studio here for me to record my own songs that i knew i could use. I also really like to live by the sea so i'm happy in Bournemouth right now .

> * How was the band started? What kind of image did you have at that time?

Tex La Homa was started by me arround about May 2000. It really started when i recorded my first two songs which we're called "Clear" and "Tonight" I played them to some friends and they encouraged me to do more. The live band came about very naturally, with friends joining me in playing the songs at acoustic nights and at parties. The band has always looked pretty much the same as it does now, although there have been about fifteen different people play the songs of Tex La Homa at one time or another so sometimes the people change but the vision is always the same.>

> * Why have you chosen "Tex La Homa" as a name of the band?

I chose the name Tex La Homa because i thought it sounded really interesting. I found the name in the book "Generation x" by Douglas Coupland. It is a place in that book where it is always 1974, the year i was born. The story about Tex La Homa in that book is really beautiful and sad and it made me think about a lot of different things. I won't tell you what happens because i think you should all read it, i don't want to spoil the book for those that haven't read it.

> * It seems that you love to read many books. You've already read all Douglas Coupland, haven't you? Whose books do you love except for him?

I do like Douglas Coupland very much, i also like reading James Kelman, Will Self, Charles Bukowski some of Martin Amis' books i really like, james Ellroy too.

> * What can you tell me about your musical career?

I have played in indie bands, harcore punk, riot Grrrl, Drum'n'bass and acoustic bands. I started out playing drums in my first bands at the age of 17. At about 19 years old i started to write my first songs and i'd give them to whoever the singer was in the band i was with at the time to learn and sing at gigs. The first song that i wrote that got recorded was called "Fluorescent" and was by a band called Crawl. I played drums and sang backing vocals on that one. Tex La Homa is the first time i have been able
to do exactly what i want to do and have things sounding how i really want them too.

> * How do you write songs and make music?

Sometimes i will write a song on a guitar or on a keyboard and then set about recording it other times i will record just music and then write a song to that music later on. Sometimes i write words first and then put music to them. All of the Tex La Homa songs were recorded by myself either sat at a computer in my bedroom or at the studio i have access to which is called House Of Dog.

> * As for your first album,"Dazzle me with transience", what was the concept of it?

All of the songs on "Dazzle me with transience" were written over a period of about six months. they document how i was feeling at that time, about
relationships, my friends, love, life and death. All of the songs are written from a personal perspective, all are completely honest, i left nothing out, nothing is sugar coated, it's as close as i can get right now to putting the way i feel to music.

> * We guessed an EP from Kamikaze was your first single. When did it come out? Is the sound similar to your recent sound?

The first Tex La Homa ep did come out on Kamikaze. It was called "Good news for the dead" and had four of the first songs i wrote on it. The sound is quite similar to now, that single had a good mixture of songs on it, some of which we played live for a long time. The first track "Tonight" is a very happy sounding simple pop song. I was listening to a lot of New Order at the time. Kamikaze records no longer exists and that ep is very rare as there were never many copies made.

> * Do you picture a scene while you are making a song? [ Your music is sublime and melancholic. It looks like a feeling which the person is in alone in the early chilly/foggy morning, or the rainy afternoon of winter. That is very personal time. The image comes clearly here to watch it actually... As for me, I pictured such scenes on your music.]

Yes i do picture a scene in my mind, i usually try to mentally put myself in the place i was when i wrote the song and what it's about. I know what you mean about the feeling of a rainy afternoon and being alone, i love that image of being inside and watching the raindrops fall against the window. It does give me a melancholy feeling, sometimes it's a really good time to reflect on things.

> * Could you please explain us about the lyrics of "Dazzle me with transience". What are you singing about mostly on it? Which one is your favorite?

A lot of the songs on the album are about a girl i once knew, moving to a new place and a time when my health wasn't so good. some of the songs are about being in love, some are about when that comes to an end. "Feel tied down" is my favourite at the moment, it was written about my sister going through a pretty hard time in her life, i'm relly happy with how that song sounds. I also really like the way "Here with you" sounds and "Sleep" means a lot to me, that song is about when i was in hospital once and it's based arround a conversation i had with a nurse.

> * How about your live shows? Are they similar to the records? Or quite different?

When Tex La Homa plays as a full band the sound is quite similar to the records. Sometimes i like to try doing songs a different way. We might do a gig where it's completely acoustic and sounds very stripped down. Usually though we play the songs very much in the same style as on the records.

> * How do you feel that your music was estimated as "follower of Joy Division", and "post-rock" or "dance / trance music" on some reviews?

I really like Joy Division so i'm quite happy with that comparison. I'm not so sure what post rock means any more, so many bands get called that all the time, i think it's maybe a state of mind more than anything. I do listen to quite a lot of dance music so that probably rubs off on what i do but i wouldn't say it's any one of those things really.

> * Who were doing show with you so far? We heard that you have supported a show of Bright Eyes and Her Space Hoilday at the end of last year.

Bright Eyes and Her Space Holiday are two of my favourite bands so it was really cool that our first ever gig was supporting them. a lot of the time we play with other bands on Superglider such as Seamonster and Betika. We also do a lot of gigs with DJ's as support, people like Robot Dog or Brothers In Sound.

> * Who are the artists that influenced you the most? Or, who did you grow up listening to?

I really like The Boo Radleys, Aphex Twin, Massive Attack, Mogwai. I grew up listening to so many types of music, lot's of Hardcore like Fugazi, The Jesus Lizard, manchesters own Slum Turkeys. I used to watch my friends bands such as Dr Phibes and the house of wax equations, The Boo Radleys and many more at gigs in manchester, Liverpool and Stoke-On-Trent. I think going out and seeing bands live influenced me a lot because i was exposed to so many different types of music from the age of 13 onwards.

> * Also, what is your recent favorite album?

My favourite recent album is "Manic Expressive" by Her Space Holiday

> * Is there any Japanese artists that you've listened to?

i really like a band called Nehha and i like Pizzicato Five a lot.

> * What do you think about the current British music scene? How about '80s-'90s British music scene?

There is some great music around in the UK at the moment, Mogwai, Belle and sebastion, Aphex twin, squarepusher, Super Furry Animals, Broadcast are some of my fanourites right now. A lot of the bigger indie bands don't do as much for me. there seems to be a lot of very mainstream bands that just sound too safe to me. I think the 80's and 90's produced some fantastic music such as My Bloody Valentine, The Boo Radleys, Primal Scream, (early) Manic Street Preachers, New Order, Massive Attack, Tricky. Also going further back bands like the Cure and the bunnymen and the whole Manchester and liverpool scenes that were so much of my life.

> * How does it feel to be staying there (England, or Bournemouth) being in a band?

I love living in Bournemouth, it's a great place to be based right now but there's so much of the world i've yet to see. For now it's a good place to be based with Tex La Homa but who knows where we might all end up.

> * How do you think about the current American music scene?

There are so many bands i love from america right now, Her Space Holiday, Cat Power, Bonnie "Prince" Billie, Smog, Pedro the lion, Lambchop, bright Eyes, Low, i could go on forever with this list. Having said that i hate a lot of the nu-metal bands, i don't get that at all.

> * You seemed to be good friends with Her Space Hoilday and Betika. Betika wrote a song named "Matt Shaw?"... that is your name, isn't it? Do you have any other bands that you are close friends with?

Marc from Her Space Holiday is someone i have a lot of respect for with what he does musically, with his label and personnaly. Yes "Matt Shaw" is named after me, Betika are good friends of mine but you would have to ask them why they called the track that, it is flattering though because it's a great track. I know Rob from the Boo Radleys very well and Keith who plays in Broadcast amogst others.

> * Tell about the Superglider Records. How was the label started?

I am one of four people that run Superglider records. The label was set up by my friends Mal and Richard and Griff, they really liked the music i was making as Tex La Homa and wanted to put out my records, i got involved with Superglider through that. I do get quite involved with the running of things and love all the bands on Superglider.

> * Well, you've done many post to BBS of some Japanese websites when we knew you. It seemed that you were keen on what is known by Japanese, especially. Right? What do you think about Japan/Japanese listeners?

I think Japan is a very exciting place, i would love to come over sometime and play there and just take in the place really. I love the way that japanese listeners seem to really involve themselves in the music they listen to and are so passionate about music. It is important to me to have people hear Tex La Homa in Japan and i'm really excited about the record coming out in japan on Painted Sky Discs.

> * What are your future plans as the band and the label?

My plans are to keep on writting more songs, to keep on playing live, the more i do the better it seems to get. I'm always striving to make each song better, each production more exciting. Theres so much i want to do. For Superglider the plan is to release a second Tex La Homa single and the album. We also want to release an album by Betika and future records by Robot Dog, Seamonster and Factotum as well as some other very exciting things that i can't say to much about right now, just keep your eyes on www.superglider.com for all the up to the minute news on Tex La homa and superglider Records.

> Thanks for your time.

Thankyou!