BT - 25th May 2000 - eFestivals

We caught up with BT (Brian Transeau) at his hotel room the day after after Musik's 5th Birthday @ The End, just 2 days before Homelands England.

You were telling Seb Fontaine last night of all the places you have been touring recently...

I've been all over the shop, and even played a couple of places with Seb. Everywhere, from Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Adelaide, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei, Manila... to Miami.

Do you prefer clubs to festivals?

I love the energy of a place like last night [The End], 'cause there's people up there that want to see what you're doing and they can see what you're doing... they're like "Dude, look at that!". It's not the same when you're in a forum with thousands of people. It depends what you're in the mood for. I like doing both of them.

How do you spend your time at festivals?

I like to go and take in as much of it as I can, and there have been times when I've gotten to hang out - when I played the Phoenix festival I got to hang out. That's a great one. T In The Park too - it depends schedule-wise. We don't have the traditional festival experience that you guys have, English festivals are a very different thing that you have.

Who are you going to see?

I want to see my friends basically, and hang out. Sasha, and Jon, and the Hybrid guys. The album is coming out for the first time in America on June 6, and there's a version of 'Movement In Still Life' coming out in England that features a bunch of tracks from the American record - it's a bunch of remixes and stuff. That's out on June 12 for the first time.

Brian Transeau

Your new album is more breakbeat as opposed to the dreamy-ambient material before. Why the change?

Depends on the kind of person you are, what you feel about it. With me, it seems pointless to take a stick and wiggle it to a fine point, and I have friends that have done that with a great deal of precision and made careers out of that, I admire people that do one thing, and only one thing, but do it very well... but it's just not me. I go from studying classical music, studying piano Suzuki method, to being into breakdancing when I was 11, playing drums in a punk band when I was 14, then playing bass and singing in a hardcore band when I was 16. Then I went to Jazz College. I'd be bored shitless if I did the same thing over and over again. It's the kind of person I am. I'd much rather experiment and fail than regurgitate the same idea over and over again... 'cause at least in experimentation, you're going to eventually contribute, and contribute something important. That's the risk I'd rather take.

You've collaborated with Tori Amos in the past, and now Kirsty Hawkshaw, on "Dreamin"...

The thing is, because I'm not in a band, I'm not a DJ, I'm a musician... so getting together and collaborating with people is my extended musical family. It's my way of resonating with other creative people. All these people are part of my little musical family, an extended band.

Hotels, Winnebagos or Tents?

Ha! I'll do a tent in a park, but not at a festival. That must be sooo much fun though... if anyone's got a cool tent, let me know. I've never been able to do that before!

Come the revolution, who would be first up against the wall?

That's a weird question... I think you can learn more from people you dislike, than people you like, so, no one!

Brian was given an eFestivals t-shirt at the time of this interview, which he decided to wear for his performance at Homelands England - read a further interview here.

Thanks to Andy and Matt from Plug for their help.

interview by: Butterfly