beatlanta.com
FEATURE FRIDAY – AKUYOU
artwork from myspace.com/akuyouAkuYou is a talented experimental, industrial band. The various members have been in an array of projects for the last 15 years and AkuYou is their latest take on 80s inspired industrial goth. Its a really interesting sound and it a great example of creative minds doing something a little different.
The interview and album review below was done by Danny of Atlanta band Free Ticket, who has been helping beatlanta with some writing from time to time.
There are also a few questions that I sent to the band as well.
What, other than any bands, has inspired you guys to make music?
Other than boredom, because it is a fun and fulfilling creative outlet, and just going to shows at an early age.
What bands have inspired you guys to make music?
Joy division, The Cure, Susie and The Banshees, Nick Cave, Fetus, Lydia Lunch, Swans, The Smiths.
Where did the name AkuYou come from?
Aku means “me” in Malaysian. So I figure Me and You. I have come to find out, after a little research, that in Japanese it (AkuYou) also means “perversion”.
Do you guys have a favorite song/group of songs that you guys have made?
Kim- I still like Piano Somewhere. There’s not a whole lot going in it, its really sparse.
Clara- I like some of the newer stuff that we are about to record a lot. It has a little bit of a different… Some of it is harder, and then some of it’s… I don’t want to say beat oriented because it’s by no means dancey, but maybe like a marching rhythm. Whatever that is.
On the Split release with Grammal Seizure who plays which instruments?
Clara does all of the singing and helps with the mixing. Kim does everything else.
Do you have any idea when you guys are going to start playing shows?
Clara: We just got asked to do one, but Kim is hesitant.
Kim: I am very hesitant. Its not that I don’t like playing live, I did it for a long time in Pineal. Its kind of nice to take a break, you know? I won’t say, honestly, down the road that it won’t happen.
What are your favorite colors?
Clara- Black… I don’t know, Purple.
Kim- I kind of like brown.
Clara- Yeah, I like brown too. I like brown and purple together. The combination.
What do you guys think of the city of Atlanta?
Kim- Well, I haven’t moved away yet.
Clara- Yeah, me neither. I’ve thought about it a hundred thousand times.
For all its shit, conservativeness, and all that kind of crap that it has, there’s enough people here that are interesting that it doesn’t make you feel like you have to run to New York, or have to run to Chicago, or San Francisco, or something. But its still lacking a lot in its openness, its like you gotta be in this niche, you gotta be cool. People seem kind of snobby-ish in a way, especially in the scene.
Kim- I think there are a lot of bands that don’t come here. They skip. I’ve noticed a lot lately that they are skipping Atlanta and hitting Athens because people don’t come to the shows here.
Are there any bands from around here that you guys really enjoy?
Untied States, Hawks, Thy Mighty Contract, All the Saints, and Deerhunter, I definitely think that they work hard, and that they are good for the city.
Would you guys consider your music psychedelic?
Kim- …You tell me.
Clara- You just mean weird, spacey? I don’t know.
Kim- We don’t really set our to do any particular kind of sounds, it just kind of happens.
Do you guys have any big plans for AkuYou?
Keep Recording.
Any plans for the next release?
Kim- Well, a small label in Canada called Scotch Tapes. He puts out some really neat stuff. Some cassettes, 7-inches, 12-inches, and CDs. He has another label called Frequent Sea. We are going to release about 40 minutes of material in November.
Here are a few questions that I (ak of beatlanta) asked the band…
Tell me a little bit about AkuYou…your bio says you draw on old habits from Pineal Ventana, how does AkuYou like to differentiate yourselves from your previous projects together? What are your goals with AkuYou? Are you involved with Lonesome as well? Tell us a little bit about Lonesome and what you’re trying to do there? Do ya’ll find it more gratifying to be involved with multiple projects at the same time rather than being constrained to one archetype…or would you say they both have their benefits?
AkuYou started out of boredom for me. (kchee) I recorded all the music at home then gave the recorded tracks to Clara to see about adding vocals. Most of the tracks are spontaneous with little editing. We try not to go back and keep tweaking what comes out first.
It is different from our other projects in that there are no expectations other than what we decide to put into it. I guess the only goal is to continue to put music out that challenges us and hopefully not bore ourselves.Regarding Lonesome, Clara is the singer. Currently they are reworking the band/project and change names. Whether working on just one thing or multiple projects, each has their rewards and benefits.
How many projects and/or albums have ya’ll been a part of in your musical careers? Is there any one that stands out above the rest for you?
Over the last 15 or so years we have been part of over 7 full length cd’s, a few 7″, 12″ record, bunch of tape and cd comps and some cool local releases like Our Heat Your Moisture cd comp, 7″ split with BOB, Tweezer and Suzy Beat and an Album 88 radio comp from the 90’s.
The only projects I have been involved in was Pineal Ventana and now AkuYou. Clara sang in Pineal Ventana, Victory Girls and worked with William Carlos Williams. She was also part of a really great comp “Extreme Music from Women.” The one that stands out for both of us is Pineal Ventana.
How did you find yourselves doing a split with Grammal Seizure? How was that experience? Who produced the split? Any plans for a solo AkuYou album?
Thee Brad Miller runs a blog that puts out download only releases – mostly free – We sent a track for inclusion on a 4 part series and hooked up with Erik (Grammal Seizure) on the comp. A few months later Erik contacted us expressing interest on doing a split on his label, Thee Transmissionary Movement Records. Erik is a great guy to work with who is ambitious and constantly releasing new material.
We produced our tracks and Erik his. We are working on a release for Scotch Tapes right now for November then hopefully one of our own after that.
ABLUM REVEW: AkuYou split with Grammal Seizure of Maryland.
Review by Danny Bailey of
Atlanta band Free Ticket….
Holy Hell. These girls just turned my brain inside out. This brand-new Atlanta band just let eight infinitely forceful songs loose on a split release with Grammal Seizure, a one man band from Maryland. AkuYou, consisting of Kim Chee and Clara Clamp, doesn’t seem to easily fit into any existing musical genre that I am aware of, unless pineal gland rock has already been coined. Using multiple effects and well thought out instrumentation, Kim shapes unique sound textures, which surround both Clara’s vocals and some pounding percussion that will certainly wake you up. Their song Bass Split is a perfect example. It flawlessly imitates the sounds one’s brain might produce while having a not-so-great experience on a strong psychedelic drug… plus drums. If this doesn’t sound fun to you then you need to just get over it and give it a try anyways. If you desire something a bit less ambient, their song SS has a bit more of a driving force, which really allows Clara to show you what she’s got. Or there is Henry, my personal favorite, which lies somewhere in the middle. Set aside the time to lie down, grab your biggest head-phones, concentrate, and experience AkuYou. You wont regret it.
Contact AkuYou on MysPAce to buy the album.
– SS by AkuYou
– BassSplit by AkuYou
– Checking out by Any Means – by Grammal Seizures (of Baltimore) from the split CD
learn more about Danny Bailey and Free Ticket here.
