THE RECENT PAST (& THE FUTURE TOO)

Mark Islam is a very interesting person in both conversation & his music. He recently sent a copy of his latest album The Recent Past to hEARd for review & subsequently got in touch by phone, wondering if an interview might be in order. Never one to miss out on finding out more about music & the people behind it, we set up a time for a bit of a chat.

For those who don't know of Mark or his music, he is a US based artist who also visits Australia. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee & records both there & in Los Angeles.

On the dot, Mark rang & in the middle of what was a stunning day weather wise, Mark told me where he was ringing from.

"Oh yes, it's just a fabulous day here. There's not a cloud in sight & the sun is overhead & there's a lot of people around. I'm in Centennial Park in Sydney, just enjoying the day."

After exchanging greetings, I got into asking some questions about the album, now having listened to it more than a couple of times.

"It's great you're finding more about the album. I've always found that listening to an album the first time is like taking a photo. The first time, it's impossible not to make some sort of impression about the whole thing, I don't care who the album is by. Some albums are quite instant & others might take a lot of getting into, but they can both be very satisfying ways to find out about an album."

The Recent Past as an album certainly has a lot of layers & quite a number of diverse styles. Mark elaborated on what he wanted to achieve with it.

"Well, I really wanted to have an album of songs that people would still enjoy listening to, even after more than a few times listening to it. A lot of albums these days are about instant gratification, almost too instant. I guess they're a little like fast food that way, but they have their place as well. I don't like listening to a lot of mainstream music for that reason, though I admire the people who make it. They're really making that kind of music, no matter what the genre, for a particular purpose & some people have made a lot of money doing that, but it's not for me."

Mark's album was recorded in Los Angeles & I asked about the differences between recording in the 2 cities.

"Well, I don't disrespect Nashville, but it's a little like an assembly line there. If you're doing straight country & western music, then fine, but if your music is like mine, then it's much harder to make in Nashville. This album isn't country. There are a couple of songs that have a little of that in them, but it's a very hard album to pigeonhole in that respect. When I'm in LA, I somehow feel more creative. I can't really explain it. Maybe it's the sheer amount of different musical styles you find there. If you're in Nashville, you're pretty much subjected to country all the time. I prefer to expand myself beyond that, but I still like it."

As I write this, Mark is in Australia for the Sydney Film Festival. An interesting diversion into that led Mark to explain a bit more of his reason for being at the film festival.

"The film area is something I've been interested in for a while. I've been lucky enough to have some of my songs used in films & I've made a bit of money off that, so this sort of event is great for coming face to face with the film makers, who actually use your music. I guess as a reason to come here it's great, but I also return here for working with other people here."

That last comment intrigued me a bit & I asked about Australia as compared to other places Mark had recorded.

"Well, I guess on a smaller scale, Tamworth is like Nashville as it's the centre of country here really. It's been used to launch a lot of great artists here. I've been lucky I guess to sort of fall into collaborating with a bunch of great people here. I've worked with people like Gina Jeffreys & others."

As always, the state of radio interests me & we got on to discussing radio in both the US & in Australia.

"Well, commercial radio in the US is sort of like in Australia. A lot of throwaway stuff is played on there. It's very conservative, a lot like here. I think people who listen to commercial radio are listening to it because of one of 3 things. They get comfortable with listening to what they're used to, they aren't adventurous in their musical tastes or they're listening to a particular station because of what that station offers. It's a little bit like that in Australia. Of course we have things like public radio, which is a little like what community radio in Australia. Then again, Australia has Triple J. There's really nothing like it anywhere else that I know of. The US has stations that are similar, but they certainly don't play the variety of music & they certainly aren't on as big a scale."

The conversation drifted to the Internet & Mark said that it has assisted him in getting his music out to many more people than would have been possible without.

"Yes, it's been excellent. My music is selling, which always makes you happy when you're a musician, that people are willing to spend their hard earned money on your music. I'm listed on Amazon.com, which is a very big store & some others & I've sold quite a few copies through that way, so it has been helpful. to me."

We'd already spoken at some length & I asked a double barreled question about who Mark's main influences were & where he saw his career heading in the future.

"There are 3 main people I have to go back to. Linda Ronstadt, who I always go back to, Emmy Lou Harris & I guess I'd also have to say Carly Simon. In the future, I hope to be a bit more involved in the film side of things, but there are 2 albums I feel I have in me if no more, one of them is almost completed, but the other is one I try & do a little of each year. I try & write an original Christmas song each year, that being an album of original Christmas songs. Every year the same songs get brought out & I think by the 100th time a song has been re-recorded, there's nothing more left in it. The other one is almost written & I have a tentative title - The Fine Print. It's a concept album, from the point of view of a sideline observer. I can't say when that will be released though."

Check out Mark's album The Recent Past or contact him for more information through Noble Savage Records. noble_savage@mailexcite.com