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Interview with Orion Rigel Dommisse
Interviewed By: Amy Wagner
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Singer-songwriter Orion Rigel Dommisse creates the kind of stirring folk tunes that creep up on you and then get stuck in your mind. Her beautiful, yet haunted songs tell stories of heartbreak, weakened bodies, and princesses with castles. We caught up with Orion at Union Pool in Brooklyn where she was on tour in support of her solid debut disc, What I Want From You Is Sweet. |
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You're based in Providence, Rhode Island. Did you grow up there?
No, I grew up in Virginia.
What was the music scene like there?
There wasn't one. The closest would have been in Richmond, Virginia. I grew up in Newport News.
Did you ever get a chance to hit any live shows at all?
The thing to do was drive up to [Washington] D.C. or Baltimore to see shows. It was about two and a half hours away. I remember driving up to see Blonde Redhead one time and that was interesting.
Would you say there was a particular record or artist who turned you on to music?
I started playing piano when I was nine, and I guess that turned me on to music more than anything I was listening to.
Were you one of those kids who was forced to take lessons or did you want to do it on your own?
I begged for a teacher. I was playing piano when I was a kid, and I bothered my grandparents until they got me a piano teacher.
When you first started playing, were you able to do it by ear?
I was pretty much doing it by ear. I didn't really think anything of it, but my uncle thought I had a really good ear, and he would tell me all these songs he wanted to figure out. He played guitar, but he didn't have a good ear, and he would want me to write the songs down for him. I didn't even know how to write music then. I would just write the names of the notes.
[Orion's cell phone rang and she excused herself to take a quick break to give her friend directions to Union Pool. It was the usual mention of trains and train stops until I heard something about a sword being carried around.]
I have to ask what the sword is about.
My friend Brett, he's a sword swallower. He does very freak show things and he's coming tonight. Maybe he'll do some sword swallowing.
Is he walking the streets with a sword?
(laughing) Probably. I just hope they don't give a problem getting in with it.
So, we were talking about music pre-sword. Would you say that your music comes mostly from things you imagine or things you experience?
Those things combined, I guess. Because I think the things I experience, I tend to use them as metaphors for random things, automatically, without realizing it until they become these things that I've imagined.
When you're writing, what comes first for you? Music? Lyrics?
It varies. Sometimes it can be simultaneous. Usually, it's the music first. I'll start working off the melody in my head and sing it over and over again as I'm driving around in my car until it has words.
Do you ever sing nonsense words to yourself just to hold the place until you come up with something better?
Sometimes. Sometimes, I'll even just sing the words to other people's songs that I like but to my own melodies just so that I can get an idea of what could work.
Have you always recorded as a solo artist or were you ever part of a band?
I've been in a few bands. I used to be in this band called Kiss Kiss. It was sort of prog rock. I don't know what else to call it. It wasn't like Yes or anything, but it was a little proggy.
What made you make the change from band to solo?
When I was playing with Kiss Kiss, things were getting way too loud for me. I still want to be in bands. I sing in this band called the Eyesores right now as well.
When you went in to record your album, What I Want From You Is Sweet, what did you worry about the most?
I guess I didn't want things to get over-produced. I wanted my words to stand out. Some people have told me that they don't, but I feel like they do as much as I want them to.
How long did you have to make the album?
I would come down to Philly and stay for maybe, like, five days at a time, and I probably did that two or three times.
When you're working on new material, are you the kind of person who likes to hide away or do you like to have people around to bounce ideas off of?
I like playing out a lot when I'm working on new things because then I have a chance to try them out.
You have no fear trying out new stuff on an audience?
I kind of do. I'm sort of a perfectionist, and I don't like fucking up in front of an audience.
What do you think of the classification of "new folk" to describe people like Joanna Newsom or Devendra Banhart? Do you think you belong in that category?
I think that's all marketing. Some people might think I sound like those people. I somewhat like them, but I don't feel especially kindred towards them or anything. I guess other people just like to classify my music as a certain thing, and I don't really like doing that.
Are there any artists that you do feel a kinship with right now?
I have what I listen to and what I'm influenced by, but I think the things that I like would surprise people.
Like who?
I love The Residents a lot. They're one of my favorite bands. I like a lot of twentieth-century classical music.
Is there anyone that's twenty years or so into their career that you'd like to be have ten minutes in a room with to pick their brain or get some advice?
I feel like I don't really look up to people like some people do. It might sound arrogant, but I like to see myself as on level with people that I really like but just doing something different than what they're doing. |
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