Those who found it hard enough to cope with PVT's recent name change from Pivot (due to the fact that a band from North Carolina was already using it) may want to brace themselves for the release of Church with No Magic.
Sitting down to chat with Exclaim!, PVT's laptop specialist Dave Miller laid out the Aussie band's style overhaul, saying, "Obviously the biggest difference is that there is singing and that was mainly through jams. Rich [guitarist/keyboardist Richard Pike] had a mic in front of him and instead of playing melodies on the guitar or keyboard he was singing them, it was pretty basic. We didn't have words at the time, it was really just improvisation."
Church with No Magic, the band's third LP, sees the trio trading their angular, math rock instrumental sound for slicker beats, goth-inspired vocals and actual verse-chorus-verse song structures. As Miller puts it, "We've been listening to old music really - '70s, early '80s stuff and further back. I think we just challenged ourselves on stage a lot where we always are trying out new things. And you would say, 'Oh, I remember that thing from that song'. And then we'd end up doing that in the studio."
But Miller explains that the inclusion of vocals was more than just a natural progression of the band's sound.
"It was one of those things where we were trying out ideas and blurring the sounds in the live show and that followed through to the record. If we were going to start singing, if we had something to say, I didn't really see the point of obscuring that too much."
PVT's Church with No Magic will be in stores and online Tuesday (August 10) via Warp Records. Read our review and full interview with the band here.
Sitting down to chat with Exclaim!, PVT's laptop specialist Dave Miller laid out the Aussie band's style overhaul, saying, "Obviously the biggest difference is that there is singing and that was mainly through jams. Rich [guitarist/keyboardist Richard Pike] had a mic in front of him and instead of playing melodies on the guitar or keyboard he was singing them, it was pretty basic. We didn't have words at the time, it was really just improvisation."
Church with No Magic, the band's third LP, sees the trio trading their angular, math rock instrumental sound for slicker beats, goth-inspired vocals and actual verse-chorus-verse song structures. As Miller puts it, "We've been listening to old music really - '70s, early '80s stuff and further back. I think we just challenged ourselves on stage a lot where we always are trying out new things. And you would say, 'Oh, I remember that thing from that song'. And then we'd end up doing that in the studio."
But Miller explains that the inclusion of vocals was more than just a natural progression of the band's sound.
"It was one of those things where we were trying out ideas and blurring the sounds in the live show and that followed through to the record. If we were going to start singing, if we had something to say, I didn't really see the point of obscuring that too much."
PVT's Church with No Magic will be in stores and online Tuesday (August 10) via Warp Records. Read our review and full interview with the band here.