When Goat's debut album, World Music, buzzed into the collective consciousness with its blend of rock psychedelia and Afrobeat syncopation back in 2012, it seemed to come out of nowhere, literally. The band were touted as coming from Korpilombolo, a small town in northern Sweden with a possible history of voodoo, where they had apparently been playing and living communally for the last 30 to 40 years. Subsequent interviews with unusually named band members have done little to confirm (or dispute) their alleged history, the meaning behind the masks in which they perform, the real names of their commune members, or anything other concrete details. Thus, the Goat fantasy continues to thrive in a world so often distilled to black and white facts.
"Fantasy, reality? What is the difference?" ponders Goat member Fluffan. "If the eye is what sees everything, then what sees in dreams? Dream eyes? What hears in dreams? And if there is a so-called 'I' somewhere in the brain, how come that no neurologic scientific studies have been able to prove where in the brain this 'I' is located? It's all fiction in a way."
Factually speaking, Goat did complete Commune, their sophomore album and first after signing to Sub Pop, in 2014. But Fluffan remains steadfast that touring and notoriety have not changed life on the commune or their creative process, proclaiming, "We kind of approach it the same way we always have: plug in, turn on, tune out!"
"Commune basically evolved out of jams we have recorded at different locations, holy and unholy sites," Fluffan discloses. Compared to World Music, recording Commune was "more or less the same. A couple of new faces, a couple of old ones."
Though frustrating to fact finders, there is an empowering open-endedness to the Goat mythology. Before noting that anyone can join the Goat commune, Fluffan says, "Anyone who wants to can play and should have the right to play an instrument. Any instrument they want to. Remember that. There are no rules as to how or why music should be made a certain way. You just play for whatever reason you might have, relaxation, anger, frustration, love, etc. Do it!"
Though Fluffan admits he doesn't practice very often, professing an inclination towards the "sloppier side of things" musically, there is ambition in his work. "If I could say that I hope that world peace would evolve out of the Commune LP would it sound stupid?" he asks rhetorically. "I guess so but it would be pretty cool. 'Commune inspires World Peace.' Haha!" From nowhere to world peace in two albums — can you dig it?
"Fantasy, reality? What is the difference?" ponders Goat member Fluffan. "If the eye is what sees everything, then what sees in dreams? Dream eyes? What hears in dreams? And if there is a so-called 'I' somewhere in the brain, how come that no neurologic scientific studies have been able to prove where in the brain this 'I' is located? It's all fiction in a way."
Factually speaking, Goat did complete Commune, their sophomore album and first after signing to Sub Pop, in 2014. But Fluffan remains steadfast that touring and notoriety have not changed life on the commune or their creative process, proclaiming, "We kind of approach it the same way we always have: plug in, turn on, tune out!"
"Commune basically evolved out of jams we have recorded at different locations, holy and unholy sites," Fluffan discloses. Compared to World Music, recording Commune was "more or less the same. A couple of new faces, a couple of old ones."
Though frustrating to fact finders, there is an empowering open-endedness to the Goat mythology. Before noting that anyone can join the Goat commune, Fluffan says, "Anyone who wants to can play and should have the right to play an instrument. Any instrument they want to. Remember that. There are no rules as to how or why music should be made a certain way. You just play for whatever reason you might have, relaxation, anger, frustration, love, etc. Do it!"
Though Fluffan admits he doesn't practice very often, professing an inclination towards the "sloppier side of things" musically, there is ambition in his work. "If I could say that I hope that world peace would evolve out of the Commune LP would it sound stupid?" he asks rhetorically. "I guess so but it would be pretty cool. 'Commune inspires World Peace.' Haha!" From nowhere to world peace in two albums — can you dig it?