Felix Bechtolsheimer of the rock group Curse of Lono talks about their latest album, As I Fell.
Founded and fronted by Felix Bechtolsheimer, former lead singer and guitarist of British group Hey Negrita, Curse of Lono has been putting out consistently compelling moody Americana since forming in early 2015.
Besides Bechtolsheimer, the London-based five piece comprises Joe Hazell, Charis Anderson, Dani Ruiz Hernandez, and Neil Findlay. Together, they produce melodic and harmonious alt-rock music that has garnered international praise.
In keeping with the “Southern gothic rock” label that sometimes attaches to their music, their new album, As I Fell, delivers high-energy tunes with melancholy undertones. Album highlights include the title track, “As I Fell,” written in memory of bassist Anderson’s boyfriend, Tom Edwards; and the ’80s indie throwback “Tell Me About Your Love.”
Recently, we caught up with Bechtolsheimer to talk about Curse of Lono, the new album, and the award-winning documentary short about their time in the Mojave Desert making As I Fell.
Cowboys & Indians: As I Fell came out August 17. What do you hope your fans will get out of the project?
Felix Bechtolsheimer: Our aim is to transport people to another place enough for them to put their phone down for a little while. If we can do that, we’re doing alright.
C&I: What was the writing and recording process like?
Bechtolsheimer: I did the initial writing on my own; then I recorded some rough demos for the rest of the band and our producer, Oli Bayston. After that we worked on some ideas together and then headed out to California to whip the album into shape. We spent some time in the Mojave Desert near Joshua Tree working on the songs and making demos. It was the perfect place to get everyone to focus and try stuff out. After that we had a lot of touring to get through before we were able to finish the album in London in January.
C&I: Any fun memories along the way from getting it from concept to actual release?
Bechtolsheimer: Too many to mention here, but I think the main things we all still talk about are being out in the desert, driving through these incredible landscapes, and hanging out and eating barbecue at Pappy & Harriet’s.
C&I: You explore so many different sounds and are categorized as cinematic Southern gothic alternative rock. What inspired your signature sound?
Bechtolsheimer: It’s hard to pin it down as we all come from different musical backgrounds. I guess if you put someone who loves Steve Earle, John Prine, and Leonard Cohen in a room with fans of the Sisters of Mercy, Nick Cave, Wilco, and the National and then teleport them to a remote desert location whilst listening to Ry Cooder, you’ll probably get close to where we’re coming from.
C&I: This is a follow-up to your acclaimed album Severed. How do you think As I Fell differs?
Bechtolsheimer: I think As I Fell is a more ambitious record both in terms of sound and songwriting. Severed was recorded almost entirely by myself and our producer, Oli Bayston. The band then came in and started playing the album live. As I Fell was made very much as a band record. We developed the tracks together and I think that comes across in the recordings. As far as the writing goes, I tried to stay away from songs about heroin addiction as much as I could. I’ve been off that stuff for a long time now, so it was time to move on. That said, there are always a couple of songs that slip through the net.
C&I: Since the release of Severed, how do you think all of you have evolved as artists?
Bechtolsheimer: We’ve been on tour so much since Severed came out that we are much tighter as a band, both musically and as friends. It’s also been a different way of compiling songs. I wrote the songs on Severed over a 14-year period. Apart from a couple of songs, As I Fell was pretty much written in one stint.
C&I: You have an alternative project as well: a short film documenting your time recording As I Fell. What gave you the idea?
Bechtolsheimer: We wanted something that would give our audience an insight into the stories behind the new songs as well as how we work. I met filmmaker Gregg Houston last year and he was keen to come out to the desert with us so that our fans could join us on our little desert trip.
C&I: What do you hope your fans will get out of joining you on that desert trip?
Bechtolsheimer: We hope that the film will put the new album into context, both visually and in terms of what the songs mean. Gregg has done an amazing job with the film and he deserves all the success he’s having with it. Somewhere in Their Heads has won a bunch of awards already and has made the official selection at nearly 20 international film festivals, including L.A., Palm Springs, Paris, London, Berlin, Rome, Moscow, and Sydney.
C&I: What can we expect in terms of touring?
Bechtolsheimer: We’ve been on tour pretty much nonstop since March. We have a couple of festivals left this month and a short Scandinavian tour, but then we’re taking a few weeks off before it all kicks off again in October. There will be more European dates in the fall, followed by a U.K. headline tour in November and December. We will finally be hitting the U.S. early next year. We can’t wait for that!!
C&I: You guys are from London. What are some of your favorite places to visit when you’re home?
Bechtolsheimer: Some of us are from London, but our keyboard player is from Spain and our drummer is a proud Scotsman. We spend most of our time hanging out in our studio or in the pub at the end of our road.
C&I: What’s something fans might not know about you?
Bechtolsheimer: Our music can sound quite somber and dark, but what a lot of people don’t know is that we’re actually a very happy bunch of people. We do our best to leave the gloom on the records.
Listen to “Tell Me About Your Love” and watch a trailer for the Curse of Lono documentary, Somewhere in Their Heads, below.
For more information on Curse of Lono and the new album, visit their website.
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