Wheel – Interview met James Lascelles (vocals, guitars)
James Lascelles: “If something happens in my life, I have to get it out of my system somehow. That is why music has always been a great way to deal with emotions. This one was like a recovery album after ‘Resident Human’ and this is reflected in a heavier sound I would say.
De triomftocht van Wheel wordt vervolgd op dit moment van schrijven! Nu het derde album ‘Charismatic Leaders’ zonet verschenen is, zijn ze vertrokken voor een eerste Amerikaanse tournee als headliner. Dit alles om deze uitstekende nieuwe worp kracht bij te zetten. Eerder dit jaar hadden we een gesprek met de in Finland wonende Engelsman James Lascelles (zang, gitaar) over wat er allemaal gebeurd is sinds het vorige album ‘Resident Human’ uitkwam.
Vera Matthijssens Ι 6 mei 2024
In April 2021 we talked about the previous album ‘Resident Human’ and of course you could not play gigs then, but when did that start again after the pandemic?
That’s a really good question (thinks). I think in 2021, because the lockdowns in Finland stopped and started again. We even did a festival in Finland in the Summer of 2021 and at the end of 2021 we went on this tour in Europe, just two weeks. That one was extremely complicated. We couldn’t actually play some times, because of difficulties on the borders. We didn’t arrive in Paris at time to play, because trouble in the country, but I think since the beginning of last year, in 2023, it has been kind of acceptable.
Were there special adventures after going on tour after such a long time? Where have you been?
We have done two tours in America since then. We supported Vola last September and the year before in September we supported Leprous and Apocalyptica. We did quite a big European tour recently as well with Leprous. We also did a tour in Europe with Apocalyptica and Epica. So we have done quite a bit touring, but we are planning to do a lot more to support the new album and for the first time in our life we will be headlining.
Yes, I saw it when I was preparing myself…
End of April we go to Australia with Caligula’s Horse and we will do our first North American tour as headliner in May. At the end of 2024 we will do a European tour again.
That is fine, then you can play longer.
Indeed, as support act we do four or five songs. It will be nice to play a lot more of our music than just recent stuff.
Now let us talk about the new album ‘Charismatic Leaders’… When did you start writing that and can you tell something more about this struggle to create new music?
Yes sure. I think when we were making ‘Resident Human’ we were complete burnt out and I think it was a mixture of the stress of my life and the world situation and since then I stopped drinking and I had therapy. I started exercising a lot. That has actually changed my mood and gave me the strength to think positive again. I think the latest album is really something in between the socialization of what I am calling the rise of a charismatic leader in society and my sanity. With personal problems you can come in stressful situations. That was actually the next step. It was like a recovery album after ‘Resident Human’ and this is reflected in a heavier sound I would say.
I know that you always have very thoughtful and interesting lyrics. So this is a kind of catharsis?
Yeah I think so. If something happens in my life, I have to get it out of my system somehow. That is why music has always been a great way to deal with emotions. The song ‘Empire’ is a good example. That is inspired by the lawsuit against Fox News in the US. They spread false information about the elections. They paid 787 million dollars to the company of the voting machines. I am just afraid that the owners of the company, the Murdoch’s, they are going to come away with it. I am following the things that happen in this world, but at the same time I am aware that I cannot do much about it. It will have consequences, but maybe not for them, but I feel frustrated about it. Yet we have to accept that it is all part of the game. Most of the things you hear are exact, but it is sometimes good to ask some questions about it.
Why did you call the album ‘Charismatic Leaders’?
The historical origin of the word goes back to cults. More specifically it is about silent manipulation and control and keeping people quite busy, so they cannot think or ask too much questions. We are observing things since we started the band in 2016/2017 and there has been a tendency to swing to extremes in manipulation and control. You can see it in every part of society now. We see in business, we see in popular culture… If you have for example criticized an Apple. It seems that people defend it as if it is a personal case. Four of the songs deal with the tendencies of that.
The last track ‘The Freeze’ is really moving and touching. I think you did the right thing having a reprise of some important sentences that really haunted me…
Thank you very much. I think these are always the best songs, the ones that make you think about a piece of music. The repetition was needed because there is a lot going on in the song. We have many variations, but the essence is the same. I came up with the repetitions to make it more accessible.
What about the other long track of ten minutes, ‘Submission’?
That one, I started working on the last three minutes and then going backwards. Since then it hasn’t changed too much, but there are many twists and turns again. Connecting the real weird section in the middle was taking a lot of trying and trying again to be satisfied. We love making those intricate songs, even when being aware that people don’t have the patience or time to dig deep into music these days. That is also a result of our shallow society. Everything must be fast and forward. We keep on liking those intricate songs as progressive metal band (chuckles). I still hope that people will be going to sit down and listen to a song with intricate structure.
There are still many people who like that, but it is not a fashion anymore, not in vogue anymore…
I think that is true. They expect instant satisfaction. I notice that even with myself. I have to be in the right state of mind to enjoy progressive music. If you are busy, it is probably not the right kind of music to play. You need time to absorb. Maybe starting all over again the next day with a different state of mind? In that song, ‘Submission’, there are lots of themes that pop up on various instruments. The first time it might sound weird, but if you dig deeper, you learn to know it and hopefully like it. Each layer, each part seems to connect then.
This time you most likely did not have to play and record all the guitars, since Jussi is second guitarist now, but I see you have played bass now too!
Yes it is a different problem this time. Our previous bass player, Aki, he left in June last year. We parted on good terms, but he couldn’t make it anymore to do lots of touring because of his family. So it just seemed the right move that he left the band. We have replacement in Jyri for the Australian and American tour and we are still looking for a full time bassist. We just started doing that, because we were so busy with the album till the end of last year. So we decided to do the record first and come back to that in 2024.
Jussi is a permanent member now on guitar and I think his leads are magnificent…
I think so too. He is a great musician and in this style he is exactly what we need. He can be very technical in his playing, but I always think it is really tasteful. Jussi always puts the composition first. I think he fits very much into our style and in the band.
Is there something you can tell about the recording process itself?
Sure. We went to Sweden to record with Fredrik Thordendal from Meshuggah and the main man Daniel Bergstrand who produced tons of records in the past. This was in their rehearsal studio and we really did not expect Fredrik to be involved, but he was there, basically every day, being involved, especially with the drums. He spent a ridiculously amount of time on the specific sound of the drums. He has got technology I have never seen before. These big toms with those little cymbals. Also with the guitars. At first I was a bit sceptical, because I am used to certain things, but eventually he upgraded everything. I think the guitar sound is 50% Fredrik and 50% me, but the result is amazing..
So it was a positive experience to work with these guys…
Definitely. I think you’ll always do something new when you are working with different people, because creative habits are put through a test and you are more open for renewal. Just the way how they approach things can be different and fresh. This is very interesting to me. I think what they have done is great. We felt at ease in their environment, a gathering of musicians and people with the same passion.
‘Empire’ is the first single and video. Can you tell something about the making of the video?
Yeah I can. It was fuckin’ freezing, excuse me. I was on holidays in Spain with my wife for a two weeks and the next day after I got back, the next day we got to shoot the video. Unfortunately in Finland, in Tampere where we filmed it, it was minus 22 degrees and we recorded in a factory without heating. So we brought some small fire heaters, but it remained so cold in the morning when we shot. It was unbelievable. However, it looks great I think. Kie von Hertzen was the director and edited it. He is a member of a band here in Finland who plays prog music. Having him involved was amazing. I really liked his vision. He is very organized. I think the result speaks for itself. It is simple and it is not trying to be too much, but I think that the song really fits the action and the playing.
And it is a perfect example that the album is a little bit heavier…
I think so, yeah. There are still moments on it, like ‘The Freeze’. It is definitely not heavy all the way through, but I think all the other songs are heavier than our last album.
Are there other video clips coming up?
Basically this was the only video we have made for this album this time around. We rather do one video that we are pleased with than more while having to compromise on the quality and production of more videos.
When following your lyrics, I think you are not a fan of AI…
It is going to change the society in ways we cannot predict. On the album I am not really speaking about it so much this time, but I have been thinking about it a lot. In some respect it is wonderful and I think it can help lots of people. Yet the difficult part is that it is changing the economical landscape completely and factories will reduce their number of working people. I think we are running towards this wall in society which we are pretending it isn’t there. Many people are going to be unemployed and they don’t have a system or place to support them. I think there is a whole world between going full communist and where we are at the moment. I think the outcome will be worse than ruination. The power in the world is in the hands of few people now, and that is dangerous. I can say some things, but it will not change anything and that is the part which is not so satisfying in art. It is not really something we can do about and it is true, but it isn’t the full truth.
This time the artwork was not created by your wife…
No, she literally did not have the time to do it anymore. She is making YouTube videos and her company is just doing better and better. We spoke to this German guy called Lucas Mayer. We really love what he has done. We got in touch with him and we really like it. It is different than we have done before, but the music is also a bit different.
What are the plans for the near future?
We are preparing our live shows for the tours we have planned. We go to Australia for the first time in April and we go to the US in May. We are going to do a European headline tour at the end of the year. We are still kind of learning the new album stuff. We are training bass player Jyri for Australia. That’s what we are doing now. Once we get back from the US, my plan is start writing new music. I missed it and I have been listening to album hundreds and hundreds of times last year. I really need something new.
We occlude with a funny thing: when I looked at the title of your former album ‘Resident Human’, it was funny, because at the moment we are looking at a kind of series and it is called ‘Resident Alien’… Do you know that?
Actually my wife and I have been watching that. We thought it’s pretty good. We saw it a week ago. It is a lot about comedy, it is definitely my thing.
