Words can do many things for a band – lyrics tell stories or convey a message, frontmen can piss off other frontmen and start rivalries with them, fans and haters alike can create posts on their uber-kvlt blogs, and of course the press can praise or slander. For Los-Angeles instrumental trippy-prog-metallers POLARIZATION, however, words are unnecessary. With members hailing from India and Sweden, the band brings a variety of influences together to create music you can headbang, or have an intellectual debate to. That being said, I will let guitarist Prashant Mathias inform those of piqued curiousity about the trio…
MA: You guys are an instrumental band, with a number of influences. Was the no-vox choice a pre-determined one? Or did you just find too many of your vocalists passed out backstage before shows?
PRASHANT: Hahaha… don’t even get me started on vocalists!!! No, vocals are awesome… we decided to keep it instrumental right from the start. The whole point of the band was to make the music feel like a good trip the whole time, and keep it as interesting as possible so that there’s no need for vocals to communicate the emotion.
MA: Where do you draw your inspiration?
PRASHANT: A lot of sources.. but mostly by watching killer jazz musicians totally go for it on their instruments in the moment. LA is a great place for that, especially with places like The Baked Potato and Catalina Jazz Club!
MA: Bands often use lyrics(along with imagery and other forms of propaganda, of course) to send some sort of message with their music. Do you feel more, or less limited in communicating the band s message, since you don t utilize lyrics?
PRASHANT: It’s slightly limiting, but then again, we focus more on the musicianship aspect of it and don’t really feel the need for lyrics in our songs. We want the listeners to interpret the songs in their own way.
MA: You came all the way from India to attend Musician’s Institue in Hollywood. Is the music scene here wildly different than your home?
PRASHANT: The scene is completely different over there. I’d think of it as a new market for Rock music because more people are getting into it now more than ever. A lot more international bands are starting to play over there. The local scenes are great as well, and bands are starting to take their music to the next level thanks to the internet.
MA: Do you hope to play in your hometown someday? Do you think the music would be understood and enjoyed there?
PRASHANT: I would love to play in my home town some day. I think they will totally dig it!!
MA: Do you feel that going to music school influenced the stylistic direction of Polarization? Would you be making the same music if you were studying something non-music related?
PRASHANT : Absolutely!! MI was the best thing I ever did for my musical growth. I learned a lot of things which would have taken me many years to figure out on my own. A lot of concepts and ideas I use in Polarization come from there. I would not be writing the same tunes if I didn’t go to music school. Not to say that it’s impossible!! But it definitely helped a lot.
MA: What’s next for Polarization?
PRASHANT: We recently got on to King Artist Management, and it’s been really great working with them. We have gotten some label interest, and should be signed sometime early next year. We will also be out on the road again right about then, so make sure you come and check us out! Cheers!!!
www.facebook.com/Polarizationmusic
-Scarlett
Tags: Instrumental, interviews, Los Angeles, polarization, prog, Prog Metal
