Recently, I have had the privilege of interviewing a huge artist in the music industry. Although his name may not be as well know as some bands, he has written, performed, produced and remixed some of most memorable and awe inspiring tracks of recent times, and has licensed every track from his debut album, with credits including "Silent Hill", "Doom" and "Spiderman 3". I am honoured to bring you an interview with Klayton of Celldweller.
Banxy : Where did the name "Celldweller" come from?
Klayton : It was a natural evolution of a song title, “Heldweller”, that I had written years ago. I spent all my time in my cellar studios and was naturally unsocial, so I was dubbed “Celldweller” as a result.
Banxy : How did you get into performing?
Klayton : By force. I hate playing live and would much rather be in the studio. I distinctly remember getting my first record deal and before I even had my first disc done, the label at the time had landed me a show. I had no band and no concept of how to pull off a live show. It ended up being to a crowd of 2000+ people. It probably sucked, but I’m glad that I can’t even remember at this point.
Banxy : You have developed a very unique style, blending several genres of music together - Where do you get inspiration for this?
Klayton : I have always been musically schizophrenic, so the concept of blending styles isn’t really that foreign to me. I don’t even do it consciously and wasn’t aware of it until people started pointing it out. I didn’t go into music-making with any set of rules, so anything goes.
Klayton Playing Live with Band Celldweller |
Banxy : What types of music do you listen to yourself?
Klayton : At the moment there isn’t much time to listen to music for fun. I am working on the new Celldweller CD and simultaneously A&Ring material for FIXT Music (my label), so regrettably I don’t have much time to just listen. IAMX, old Cure and Depeche Mode and lots of Harder Trance, Techno and Drum 'n' Bass when I have time.
Banxy : Who are your biggest influences and/or role models?
Klayton : My Mom and Dad.
Banxy : Having your music licensed into films, TV and Video Games such as Spiderman 3, Silent Hill, Doom, CSI, Enter the Matrix and many more must be a huge privilege - What has been your favourite so far and is there anything in the pipeline you can tell us about?
Klayton : It’s hard to say. I don’t actually get too caught up in what films I’ve been a part of etc. I’m just grateful that the industry digs my stuff and I move forward and make more noise.
Banxy : Where would you like to see "Celldweller" in the next 5 years?
Klayton : Retired, sipping sweetened iced tea on some private tropical island. Ain’t gonna happen, but I can still dream…
Klayton with Wes Craven at The Hills Have Eyes 2 Screening |
Banxy : Which band/artist would you most like to work with and why?
Klayton : Truth be told there aren’t a lot of bands that inspire me very much. I’m more into the electronic guys, doing their own thing much like I do. There is talk about some collabs with Technical Itch and Growling Machines/Wrecked Machines both of whose music I’ve been a fan of for years.
Banxy : You have been performing, producing, songwriting, programming and remixing for over 10 years now, and must have gained some invaluable experience in that time - What advice would you give to young, aspiring artists?
Klayton : Choose stupidity over common sense. There will be times when common sense will say “give up and get a day job.” Stupidity says “fuck that, starve and keep pursuing your goals…” Stay stupid if you really want to succeed on some level.
Banxy : What 3 items would you take with you to a desert island?
Klayton : 2 Girls and a laptop.
Banxy : What job would you do if you were not in a band?
Klayton : I was studying to be a Doctor, then got my first record deal and never looked back. I’d go back into something biologically oriented. That or work at an ice cream shop.
Banxy : Are there any upcoming events /singles/albums/releases that you'd like to tell us about?
Klayton : I am working full time on the next Celldweller disc right now. Go to Celldweller.com or Myspace.com/Celldweller for updates, videos etc.
Banxy : Klayton/Celldweller, thank you.
Klayton : Thanks for the questions.
To listen to Celldweller, or find out more, you can visit:
www.myspace.com/celldweller
Celldweller MySpace page
http://www.celldweller.com/
Celldweller Website
http://www.celldweller.com/2007/store.html
Celldweller Store
