Happy Friday! We had the chance to talk to pop group NEW AIRS about what’s next for them in 2017, who they are musically and how they met. Read more below.
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- Introduce yourselves and your role in the band
My name is Glen Austin and I am an Irish composer and music producer. I am the arranger, producer and director of NEW AIRS. I arrange and record the videos we create for the NEW AIRS You Tube channel and I also perform the live electronics.
- Describe your sound for someone who may not have heard it before
NEW AIRS is a combination of classical strings with rock/folk percussion and synthesized electronics. NEW AIRS arrangements are written for the group with vocals and we also do instrumental arrangements.
- How did you get your name?
I began the group in 2015 with an album of Irish songs or airs for string quartet, bodhran, and electronics. The idea of the album was to show these Irish songs and traditional airs in a new way so the name NEW AIRS grew from that idea; songs and airs are being shown in a new light. The actual NEW AIRS name I thought of just out of the blue one night while watching a movie, as you do!
- How did you guys meet?
I knew a lot of the instrumentalists from other productions that I have worked on, its a pleasure working with such great players again. I met our singer Rachel Voloczi in music college years ago, I always wanted to work with her so its great to have such an amazing vocalist in the group and she also edits and produces the videos.
- How do you choose the songs you arrange?
It’s a long and careful process, but also a very enjoyable one. Firstly I have to love the song and connect with it. Secondly I have to feel there is scope for it to be shown in a different way from an instrumental an expressive point of view. Another consideration is the instruments that I will be arranging it for and if the song technically works well for them . I have a soft spot for classic rock and pop from the 80’s, so they can be top of my list, it’s a real pleasure working on songs like Don’t You Forget About Me by Simple Minds. I have a long list of songs I want to do from that era!
- Who are your musical inspirations?
I listen to all genres of music so my inspirations are very broad and diverse, over time you discover more music and artists and they stay with you.
I was quite fortunate to grow up in a house where everyone listened to different types of music and I soaked it all up. My father was big into early jazz and big band music, my mother listened to the rock and pop music from the 60’s and 70’s like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. My brother listened to metal bands like Iron Maiden and my sister listened to Nirvana and Pearl Jam so I had all this great music available to me
I grew up loving guitar music so as a kid so I connected with groups like the The Beatles and Thin lizzy. When I started learning guitar Oasis were big at the time so I learned to play a lot of their songs. I discovered Led Zepplin in my teens so they took up quite a lot of my time! All that music is still with me and I enjoy listening to it now.
As you explore more music and study it in depth you also appreciate the music by the great classical composers from history so they would be an influence on me also
I love Quincey Jones’ production work, he has worked with artists form Frank Sinatra to Michael Jackson and all his work has a quality to it that is extremely high, Mutt Lange’s work is great also. I am also a big fan of Cinematic music from the early years of cinema right up to now.
- What’s something our readers should know about NEW AIRS?
We record all our videos live with a pop up recording studio so that’s important for people to know when they watch our videos. Also Jim Kerr the lead singer from Simple Minds shared our video of Don’t You Forget About Me on the groups social media pages last year, he loved what we did to their iconic song so that was amazing!
- What’s something you hope to accomplish in 2017?
I want to keep working on arrangements of songs I love, to continue working with great performers, and also to continue to connect with people through music
- What’s your dream venue?
I am going to answer this in two ways: one for a NEW AIRS video location and another for a performance :
I would love to record a live video in New York’s Subway
I would love to perform in Madison Square Gardens.
- What’s next for you in 2017?
We are working on more videos so they will be released soon, we are also working on some special projects this year so watch this space!
- Coffee or tea?
Probably coffee, but I do drink a little too much of it! I really like tea also, I think its an Irish thing, it’s a difficult choice between the two.. but coffee just scrapes it!
- Song you wish you wrote?
Too many to choose from but I would have love to have written Bon Jovi’s Dead or Alive.. great tune!
- Favorite city to visit?
I’m based in Dublin now so that’s a great starting point! Of the cities I have visited so far I would choose London, but Cork is a close second! Carlow town is good also.. its not a city though but its my home town!
- Staycation or Vacation?
Vacation, although Ireland is ideal for staycations so I don’t mind either way!
- Beach or pool?
Beach, depending on temperature, it can get cold here in Ireland!
NEW AIRS Social Media Links:
NEW AIRS YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGnxcLjOGd9Va9-4jR360QA
NEW AIRS Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NEWAIRSMUSIC/
NEW AIRS Twitter: https://twitter.com/Newairsmusic
NEW AIRS Website: http://newairsmusic.com/wordpress/
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