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Hemlock Smith

Born in 1966 in the German part of Switzerland, he discovers the French language at the age of 10 when his family moves to Montreux.

“My songs are often very bitter and sad, so “hemlock” seemed to be a good word. As I am also a secret person, I was looking for something that would express that my emotions are well guarded and not often allowed to get out in the open. “Locksmith” came to mind and the name of the project is a (safe?) combination of those two words.”

Listen:

Michael Frei (Songs and Vocals):

Born in 1966 in the German part of Switzerland, he discovers the French language at the age of 10 when his family moves to Montreux.
An only and solitary child, he reads and writes a lot. The shock of a new culture only increases his feeling to be « different » from the other kids, and so he tries to express his alienation through poems and songs. Maybe because none of the two languages he’s confronted with is really his own, he naturally chooses English when he starts to write pop tunes.
Since 1984, he’s played in a bunch of rock bands, first as a drummer and then, unavoidably, as a singer.
His first serious project, KàFKà CiTy, is born in 1989 when he meets Jacques Bevilacqua, the guitarist who has been with him ever since. The band makes two records, tours in Germany and Switzerland and splits in 1994.

He then starts to write words for other artists, tries to make a living and, in 1998, forms another band (Greenhouse Effect) that is still active today. Hemlock Smith is his solo project, planned for a long time.
The first album, released in 2002, is a collection of weird pop songs, built upon loops and enriched with ambient sounds and noises.

The new record though, scheduled for a 2006 release, is an attempt to play simple songs in a simple fashion, to capture the groove and magic of a recording session, often on the first take. It was mostly recorded over a 5-day period and embraces new influences, like folk, soul and jazz, that hadn’t been apparent in his music before…
He lives in Lausanne, Switzerland, is married and father of two.

Michael Frei talks about the new album "Umbrella Fitz & Gerald"

How did you approach this new record ? The sound is quite different from the first one, isn’t it?

MF: There have been several important steps. First of all, actually almost by accident, I’ve been able to work with three exceptional musicians who work together as a trio called Les Vautours. They perform an interesting mix between rock and jazz and are very efficient and brilliant in a recording studio. (Les Vautours = Julien Feltin, Marc Erbetta, Patrice Moret)
I also wanted to improve the quality of my arrangements and, knowing that I wouldn’t be able to pull that off by myself, I asked my old friend Fabrizio Di Donato, who’s a classical trained pianist, if he would help me. His input in the songwriting process has been very valuable.
Then the five of us recorded a unique session that lasted for 4 ½ days. Almost everything you hear on the CD was born during that period of time. We kept as many “live elements” as we could, quite the opposite from the 1st record, which depended heavily on loops and postproduction, unnatural things in a way.
In the end, and without giving it too much hope, I sent an e-mail to my favourite sound-engineer in the world, S. Husky H_skulds, a chap from Iceland who lives and works in L.A. He has collaborated with such famous people as Tom Waits, Sheryl Crow, Aimee Mann, Norah Jones, Joe Henry, Elvis Costello, Ani Difranco and so on… I didn’t really think he would be interested, but not only did he accept right away, he really did an incredible job. His approach allowed us to reach another level in the end.
So, when you look at it, all these elements contributed in creating something different and better. But I need to add that without the help of my old-time buddies, Jacques Bevilacqua, G_rald Rochat, Roger Duperrex and especially Chris Diggelmann, my sound engineer and producer, none of this would have been possible. They’re the ones who guided me when I lost my way, which happened more than once.

There seems to be a difference in the musical style, as well….

MF: Yes. « A Secret Life » relied heavily on moods and ambient stuff. It was a little static, too. For this one, I tried to write better songs, more tightly constructed and to let them sound more dynamic. The input from the musicians who come from different musical horizons also allowed me to integrate new stuff which I wouldn’t have been able to master before.

Like the string quartet, for example ?

MF: (laughs) The quartet was Fabrizio’s idea. We were trying to write a string section for this song called « Down Beat Bird » , and he thought that only wooden instruments would achieve the quality of sound we were looking for. Samples and synthesizers can do quite a lot, but in the end, they’re still just machines. As I’m a bit sceptical towards “classical music”, I accepted but wasn’t too convinced. But I have to admit that this recording session and the final result just blew me away. I witnessed how professional and good these musicians are and realized how much I still have to learn.

I was surprised to notice that the trip-hop influences are pretty much gone.

MF: Indeed. While preparing the album, I listened to a lot of folk music, because I wanted to understand how you build a simple song, without using too many technical devices and concentrating on the emotion within the song itself. And, through the influence of the people I worked with, Jazz sort of crept in through the back door.

Which brings us to the rather strange album title…

MF: Ah yes, of course. Originally, the album was supposed to be called “In a coma”, which is one of my favourite songs on the record. But, while looking at the photograph we had chosen for the sleeve, I suddenly realised that this didn’t fit: it suggested a very dark mood and this wasn’t exactly right. Literally 24 hours before the whole thing was wrapped, I imagined something that freely associates the irony that is ever present in my songs with Ella Fitzgerald (jazz) and F.Scott Fitzgerald (books). Based on this lunatic idea, I made up a very strange little poem that is included on the cover.

OK. Am I wrong or can we hear these new influences in your way of singing, too ?

MF: No, you’re right. In this area, the two records are totally different from one another. During the recording of the first album, I was very worried about my vocal capacities and so I sang in a very controlled, cautious, almost anxious way. You see, I was really scared that people would make fun of me. When I wasn’t too happy with the result, we sometimes disguised the voice with trashy effects and hid it somewhat in the mix. For this project, Husky H_skulds’ approach was almost totally different. He canned all the little tricks we had come up with and really put the voice centre stage. So, all the weird stuff that happens with my voice when I sing can be heard perfectly, but I think the emotion is kept intact. I was a little bit shocked when I first heard the mixes, but I have to say that, positive or negative, they do present a good overview of my work, it’s an honest rendition of what I’m able to accomplish today.

And what about the lyrics ?

MF: Yes, in that area too, there’s new things. When I started making music, my words were always very self-centred, autobiographical. Writing was my therapy, my way of getting rid of things. While preparing this record, I was very confident and in such a good mood that I felt able to write about more universal things, stories about people (invented or not), not just about myself. But in the last months of working on this project, certain events in my life interfered with my plans. Among other things, my father got sick and finally died, as well as my grand-parents. I was caught up by destiny, in a way, which makes the album a sadder and more melancholy one than I first had expected.

I’m sorry to hear that. And now, what happens next?

MF: Well, we’re going to play some gigs with these new songs and I’m really excited about that. We’ve asked some filmmakers we know to give us a few of their images to illustrate our music and to create a visually attractive show. We’re preparing this aspect right now and I’m really looking forward to discovering the results.

So am I. Last question : you’re 40 years old, you’ve been making music for more than half of that time, you’re married with kids. What do you expect from this album, particularly in view of the situation in the music industry, today?

MF: Oh…a trick question. Well, I think that I’m in a situation that is both comfortable and a little weird. I didn’t do this album primarily to make money, but because I want to understand who I am, I want to tell stories that move me. If you look at it this way, I’ve already succeeded. I really don’t know if this record’s going to sell, because the ways of success seem mysterious to me. I understand that I don’t really fit in the plans of the big record labels, but how could I worry about that? You see, I don’t know how I could work differently, anyway. For me, music is and remains a passionate affair, and not a marketing chart. I’m going to try to promote this album the best I can and we’ll see…
Actually, in the end, I think that what still pushes me forward after all these years is the desire and ambition to, one day, write a perfect song. Just one would be enough to make me happy.

Download exitmusic.zip (29 KB)

Download music.ch.zip (248 KB)

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un simpleHTML( si votre site emploie le Javascript):

<a xhref="http://rightcart.com/cart/add_no_js/1540?rightcart_pid=1323#anch" 
target="_top"><img alt="Hemlock" 
src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.rightcart.com/image_storage_v1/1231/thumb_v1/c
348c1794df04a0473a11234389e74a236833822/hemlock.jpg" /></a>
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target="_top" >Hemlock Smith</a>

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PAS le javassimple ( si votre site emploie PAS le Javascript):

<a xhref="http://rightcart.com/cart/add/1540?rightcart_pid=1323#anch" 
target="rightcart"><img alt="Hemlock" 
src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/www.rightcart.com/image_storage_v1/1231/thumb_v1/c
348c1794df04a0473a11234389e74a236833822/hemlock.jpg" /></a>
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target="rightcart" >Hemlock Smith</a>

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