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An interview with Andy Tillison of Tangent and Parallel or 90
Degrees
Completed on October 30, 2004 at the Chippenham, England prog music festival by
Stephen Ellis.
Stephen:
There seemed to be more of the Po90 sound in this new
Tangent CD than in the last, was that done on purpose or just the way it happened?
Andy:
It’s just the way it happened. I write all the Po90
stuff, I wrote all the Tangent stuff so inevitably parts of me are going to pop out
and sound a little bit like the work I do other times. Just the same as every time
you hear a Peter Hamill record, even though it’s been a long time since his work in
Vander Graf Generator every so often you hear a bit of that in his current work.
It’s inevitable that the guy who writes the songs for Po90 is going to let that out.
Stephen:
So is there a difference in how you write for Tangent
verses how you write for Po90?
Andy:
Yes, there is a big difference. Po90 is a bit more
focused, its simpler music, at the same time its ambitious music, even though it’s
simpler it’s just as ambitious I think.
Stephen:
Why would you say simpler, I don’t necessarily see the
stuff you’ve done with Po90 as simpler than the Tangent music? What do you mean by
saying Po90’s music is simpler?
Andy:
 I mean musically, I suppose musically the music is
simpler, easier to play, truthfully Po90 music is easier to play but it’s just as
involved it’s just as complex mentally and we just have to build on the sections and
the textures and the sounds in a careful way. But like I’m writing music for the
Tangent that is more free to be music just for the sake of the music where music for
Po90 is much more focused on songs even though of course we do have long songs the
same way The Tangent does, you know we still try to build, develop make a long suite
of songs into a 20 minute number. It’s just that the Tangent is a bit more, it tips
its cap a lot more to the old style of progressive rock bands with lots of musical
virtuosity within it which is of course why we have musicians like Roine and Jonas
to play along with us.
Stephen:
Okay that said, can we expect another Po90 CD and how
can we expect it to be musically different from your work with The Tangent?
Andy:
It’s going to be different, well I mean we use a lot
more solid, noisy guitar in Po90, a lot more in your face, generally a lot louder,
generally a lot darker but it still will go down, there are gentle tinkling moments
and things like that. It’s a lot more politically motivated lyrically in Po90. The
next Po90 release has a track on it called Four Egos One War; I consider it to be
one of my best pieces of writing. I’m very, very pleased with that song and rather
than coming across as some sort of big head about it I need to say that the new Po90
that we’re working on at present currently features some of the best material we
have ever done and also features some of the worst material we’ve ever done. That’s
why it hasn’t come out yet as I want to go back and I want to get rid of the bad
stuff and do some new.
Stephen:
It’s been quite a few years since Po90 has released
anything new so I suppose there are some songs mostly worked out.
Andy:
There are some new tunes ready, we haven’t actually
worked together as a band because Po90 works as a band it’s not just a “project” we
are a band, we are very close.
Stephen:
Friend’s wise?
Andy:
Yes, we’re very good friends and that’s how the band
works, on its friendships. We’ve had the same lineup for quite a while now, since
the year 2000, we’ve had the same people in the band and we really don’t plan on
replacing anybody.
Stephen:
Is that the reason why when you did Tangent you didn’t
mix band members? Would it have been more of a problem to involve Po90 band members
in the Tangent project?
Andy:
Yes, it would have been a problem; it would have caused
more problems to involve them in it. The first thing is Dan and Alex the guitarist
and drummer in Po90 are really not into the type of progressive rock music that The
Tangent tips its hat to. They like it but their more into Radio Head, Mars Volta
bands like that and even more modern bands. They are young guys, both still in their
20’s, their not ready to give up on their music to play stuff written by people who
were playing music before they were born. I find it a great pleasure to work with
young people like that. I’m delighted to still have them in the band and I can’t
wait to work with them again.
Stephen:
Is there a goal that you had with the Tangent? Let me
rephrase that, obviously Po90 has a purpose, you have a purpose, I think that any
artist has a purpose when they are doing these types of things certainly musically,
so Po90 has a purpose a focus, to me it seems that the goal, the purpose of the
Tangent is to kind of revisit some of your classic prog roots and to put together
some music that is reminiscent of those old days, so what is it you want to say with
the upcoming Po90? Is there something particular you want to say? Are we going to be
treated to something delightfully different?
Andy:
Yea, I think that with Po90 it’s going to be different,
I mean Four Egos One War is a 20 minute long piece with some melodic acoustic guitar
sections it also features some blues for the first time to appear in Po90’s work,
it’s got some funky sections in it some stuff reminiscent of Captain Beefheart, the
usual trashing of mellotrons and all sorts of keyboards, treading on the Leslie
pedal, you know all that kinds of stuff, that’s all in there as well. Then you’ll
find there is some interesting, some uh, you’ve got to be very very careful how you
use the word really but there will be some very interesting experimentation of hip
hop rhythms. Now that does not mean that anybody is going to “rap”,
Stephen:
Yea, I know what you mean. So the reality is that while
you’re not going to rap you are going to work with the rhythmic structure of what
hip hop is?
Andy:
Yea, that’s right. The rhythmic structure, there’s no
rap at all. Rap is a musical form that simply has not attached itself to me.
Stephen:
So, let’s talk about your performance at ROSFest next
April. When you come to play you have to put a band together that may not be the
band we saw and heard tonight, are we going to hear songs that Roine sings even
though he may not be there? Do you have another singer in mind that could fill in
Roine’s shoes, so to speak?
Andy:
We don’t know, we started sorting it out when we found
out we were going to play at ROSFest, who else we would have to use. Let me say that my first
choice would be Roine and the band as it appears, I’ll ask him straight away if I
had a choice to do that, I say that today, it’s only my first day out with him. I’m
fairly certain…
Stephen:
So at the end of this tour you might say God, I don’t
want this guy
(Mutual laughter)
Andy:
 I really enjoyed working with him and he’d be the first
person I’d ask. The point is that the Flower Kings are very important band, it’s
very important to me apart from them. They have to exist as well. The Tangent can’t
take away from their right to exist. So if they are busy doing Flower Kings things
next year that’s what they will be doing and we’ll still be doing the Tangent. Now
if people put a good head on it and think well okay let’s give Andy a chance to see
what we can do. I can assure you we will find somebody as good and we will come
across and play a concert and if somebody wants to throw tomatoes because it’s not
the same people, well that’s up to them. We will deliver.
Stephen:
The organizers of ROSFest have not set any expectations
that it might be Roine or anyone else and have made it clear that the Tangent will
definitely be Andy Tillison and whoever you bring. Frankly the people I’ve talked to
don’t care about that. They expect the Tangent music to be the Tangent music, so I
guess what you’re saying is that the Tangent music WILL BE the Tangent music.
Andy:
That’s right. Absolutely the same stuff.
Stephen:
Good luck to you on the tour, I know you are short for
time.
Andy:
Thank you, it’s been a pleasure to talk to you.
Stephen:
We’ll meet again next spring at ROSFest, thank you very much.
Andy:
That’s right.
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