New Zealand’s Antagonist A.D. have just released their new album ‘Nothing From No One‘ and will shortly kick off their Australian tour to launch it. To find out more about the album, the band have this week answered our On The Record questions. Expand this post to check out the answers and remind yourself of the tour dates which begin on Friday 10th August in Adelaide.
Tell us about the release title.
‘Nothing From No One’ came about after 75% of the album was written. I was waiting for something to jump out at me that would tie the album together thematically. We needed something with the right feel to set the mood for the album. ‘Nothing From No One’ jumped out & just stuck. It pulls all of the songs of the album together into a similar context whether the song is introspective or addressing a social/political issue.
Tell us about the artwork.
The album art was created after we decided on the album title. We wanted to create a story & theme to the album – to reinforce the lyrics & to create an experience for the listener when flicking through the booklet. I wanted to create something that was exciting. We had tattooist Dean Sacred of Sacred Tattoo draw up some images based off the feel of the name. A girl with arrows seemingly lost in herself – a rabid wolf with chains around it, an open palm with words written on it. All of that makes sense in context with the lyrics… We were lucky to have Dean be apart of this – his work is amazing. Also my girlfriend Amber D who works for MAC Cosmetics did the artwork/application on the front cover. Ben Clement who took the snap of that image too.
What format/s will it be released on and how will it be packaged?
At this stage ‘Nothing From No One’ is being released as a Digi-Pak inside a jacket & digitally. Originally we had planned for it come out on vinyl too – no idea why that didn’t happen haha. The packaging of the CD is intended to be similar to vinyl packaging..
Who will it be released through, and when?
It’s out now on Mediaskare Records and via Shock in NZ / Aus.
Tell us about the studio and why you chose to record there?
Red Dog Studios in Mount Maunganui! We decided to record there because it’s where we recorded the 7” ‘Old Bones Make New Blooms’ – & we had a ton of fun making that happen. Nate Sowter who works there really gets what we are trying to do – musically & lyrically – so it just makes perfect sense. Also the fact Mount Maunganui is a small beach town in NZ, it meant we could chill on the beach when we weren’t in the studio.
Tell us about the producer / engineer and why you chose to record with them?
Like I mentioned in the previous answer we all get along with Nate really well & he understands our music more than anyone else in NZ – so it made sense to go with him again. He captures the energy and feel of the music which are things that other people tend to lose & neglect.
Did you go into the writing process with a clear direction in mind?
Yeah we took the whole of 2011 to write this album – we didn’t want to rush the songs & end up with anything we wouldn’t be happy with. We just let the songs come together naturally then spent time refining them.
Were you listening to anything in particular during the writing / recording process that influenced the songs at all?
Nothing in particular – lyrically I re-visted our previous albums for some ideas to continue on from & also to re-use / reference. There’s a nod to some of the older songs musically, keeping the elements that have been there since the beginning but also trying to incorporate some new ideas.
Were there any albums you were referencing to aim for a certain type of sound production wise?
Not really – we just wanted to capture our own live sound & feel. We had a couple of albums to reference against to see how we would sit next to them. But we were out to define & enhance our own sound.
How long did it take to record?
We recorded over about 9 days in January 2012.
Tell us a little about the recording process the band used?
The drums were recorded over two days at ‘The Porch’ in Hamilton with Nathan Sowter, while everything else was tracked over a week at his studio in Tauranga. We spent a fair bit of time on pre-production before hitting the studios, so we were confident with the songs and arrangements and could spend time focussing on capturing the performance. Zack Ohren mixed and mastered the album, we’d worked with him before and liked his sound.
Was this any different to previous processes you have used?
Nate recorded ‘Old Bones Make New Blooms’ and the process was quite simliar, but this time we tracked the instruments song-by-song (except for drums), which meant we could really get everything locking in with the right vibe. It also meant vocals could be done through the whole week, and kept everyone involved through the whole process.
Any guests involved? if so, who.. and what did they do?
We had Oscar from 50 Lions & Ben Coyte from In Trenches/Day Of Contempt sing a few lines on a track each on the album. It was awesome having them involved on the album. My dad also came in & recorded a quote that opens the album – that meant a lot to me to have my dad be apart of it.
Any particular equipment outside your usual live gear used in the process?
We were trying to capture the energy of a live show so we used the same gear we use live, it’s pretty stripped back.
Any memorable studio moments?
Hulk gloves, screeching monkeys at the zoo, haunted pedals, Tyson the dog.
Any additional tracks recorded that didn’t make the cut but may see the light of day sometime?
Nope! All songs recorded are on the album.
What track/s are you most looking forward to playing live?
Every single one – no lie! We all have different favourites, but we can’t to play any of this new stuff, we’ve been sitting on it for awhile now.
Anything else you want to say or tell us about the release?
Pick the album up and catch us on tour in NZ and Australia in August.
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ANTAGONIST A.D – Nothing From No One
New album in stores now.
Buy online [Here].
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