Cloudland Canyon’s Kip Uhlhorn has returned this year with a new psych leaning synth-pop project called U/V Light. Teaming up with the vocalist Gabby Weiss, the duo will release their debut LP Cenotaph via Medical Records on June 11th. Last week we listened to the album’s lead single, “Arriviste“, and this week we take some time to chat with Kip and Gabby about the new project and upcoming album. While both CC and U/V Light often follow a mantric approach to activating deep head space, Kip’s work with Gabby on Cenotaph is more informed by a vintage dance-pop vibe. Using instruments like the TR-909 and Oberheim DMX drum machines, or Roland Jupiter 6 synth, Uhlhorn followed what might be called a “process-oriented” approach to compose these tracks–often sending “random” MIDI data to the machines to generate his source material. While the working method might be experimental, the results, coupled with Weiss’ astrally lit vocals, make for the kind of “turned-on” late night listening sure to please fans of cosmic disco masters like Conrad Schnitzler, Harald Grosskopf, and Klaus Schulze–or more recently, a dub-pop duo like Peaking Lights! You can check out more from our interview with Kip Uhlhorn and Gabby Weiss below; and while you’re at it, follow this Cenotaph embed to pre-order your copy of the upcoming LP…
LETV: So Kip, to get started, can you tell us about how U/V Light came together, and how you began working with Gabby?
KU: Sure. I had a bunch of songs I’d been working on, that were getting finished while I was finishing the new Cloudland Canyon LP. Gabby and I have been friends for a long time, and she just seemed like a natural fit for singing once I decided that I wanted female vocals. She and I were spending almost all of our time hanging out together at that point, and she was psyched to try vocals. It turns out that she’s really a pretty amazing vocalist. We actually finished a second LP, as well, that will hopefully come out a little later.
LETV: Gabby, considering you hadn’t sung in a band before, I imagine it might have taken some persuading to include you in the project–or was this something you’d always wanted to do?
GW: I was extremely nervous diving so quickly into the uncharted territory of “Gabby Weiss, vocalist for this new band”. I thought Kip was yanking my chain when he proposed the idea so nonchalantly one day, especially considering he’d never heard me sing before. I’ve always loved singing, and have definitely enjoyed serenading company (after I’ve had a few) with The Little Mermaid song. Since I never received feedback on my singing abilities, I assumed they probably weren’t too swift. The only real persuading necessary occurred when Kip was assuring me, essentially, that he believed in me, that I should stop being shy and getting choked up–to just start singing. So I decided, oh well, when in Rome! And then, I went hard in the paint.
LETV: Kip, can you talk more about how you distinguish between Cloudland Canyon and U/V Light at this point. I’m not talking about as a finished work, but in the initial stage, when the inspiration strikes. Sounds as though you might of had some pieces that didn’t quite fit as Cloudland Canyon, or the initial inspiration moved in a different direction than CC. Is that true?
KU: Yeah…I think at some point over the past few years I just surrendered to the notion that, musically, the common thread in CC is just whatever I felt like doing or making at the time. Which is pretty broad. More than anything else
I just wanted to have a break from that moniker, (especially after spending a long time working on the forthcoming CC LP).
Working with Gabby also created a different set of parameters. She is definitely more informed by pop music, so it was fun to work a little on that level. A lot of these songs also were made in the computer, so there’s a different feel. I’ve tried to let CC be more writing THAN recording, whereas with this, the recording and writing process is the same thing. I got really into taking the audio from YouTube videos and converting them to MIDI data, then sending that data either to external synths or VSTs. Afterwards, I’d put them into Ableton and quantize, or push and pull them around.
LETV: Sounds like a very interesting working method! I would call it “process-oriented” in that it seems you were fascinated by the idea of taking “random” MIDI data as your source, while allowing it to lead you where it might–thru this process or technique that you’ve developed. And that’s a different working method than a more standard music writing approach, or even one that is improvised. Is that a fair assessment? In addition, what more can you tell us about the instruments you used to make the tracks. To what degree did you use an analogue and digital set-up in the recording of Cenotaph?
KU: Yeah…that’s pretty accurate. I think I’ve always liked the idea of songs generating themselves almost, and trying to more or less guide that process. Almost like working from your sub/unconscious. I like using a mixture of both analog and digital, or more like computer controlled processing of external synthesizers or drum machines, etc. As far as gear, there’s a bunch I use, but I definitely always use the TR-909 drum machine or the Oberheim DMX. I think my go to synths are usually both the Roland Jupiter 6 or computer–sending MIDI to/controlling a modular synth I have. Sending random data (audio from the internet) to the modular is always super fun.
LETV: As far as the work for ‘Cenotaph’ goes, when did you bring Gabby into the process? Did you already have musical parts worked out for the album when you began recording her vocals, or did the two come about in tandem?
KU: Troy from Medical Records was asking me about possibly doing a solo LP, and after a while of kicking that around, I realized that I had about 20 songs. I started narrowing that down, and then started thinking about having someone do vocals. So yeah, the songs were more or less finished (but unmixed,) prior to Gabby and I beginning to work on the vocal parts. In general, I feel like it’s better to get as far into a song as possible, before starting to really dive into vocals/vocal melodies. It seems like there is just so much that can be altered harmonically, by even a single overdub, that I always want to wait and consider the entire composition prior to the vocals happening. A friend of mine told me a long time ago that the absolute most important things in a song are the drums and vocals. A lot of the time I agree with that philosophy. I think the very last thing I did was add my vocals (to the one or two songs on there that aren’t Gabby) prior to mixing.
LETV: Do you do you’re own mixing on the tracks/album? If so, how do you approach it? Is it another facet of your creative process, or more about getting a certain sound fidelity accomplished?
KU: Yeah-most of the time, although I’ve had help, or like an assistant from time to time–mainly just for a fresh perspective. It’s definitely part of the creative process. Especially with this, I feel like half of it is getting the sounds down/recorded, and the other half is manipulating those sounds after the fact. It seems like the second half of that equation exists in tandem with the actual mixing. I guess, as far as fidelity is concerned, I feel like I am constantly addressing that throughout the entire process.
LETV: Gabby, with much of the music already arranged, how did you approach adding your vocals? Did you have to “live” with the tracks for awhile before stepping in, or was this a spontaneous process?
GW: For the most part, the process was pretty spontaneous. I spent very little time alone getting acquainted with the tracks and trying to write lyrics for the first time in my life. Kip was really supportive of any approach I wanted to take lyric-wise. I jotted down some ideas, attempted to use them, and quickly realized what I had written was super verbous– lines that were appropriate for singer-songwriters or poets. So I decided to come at it from a totally different angle. The result was a labyrinth of psychic, metaphysical, and sensual lines disguised as catchy pop verses. There was a lot of channeled and automatic writing involved.
LETV: To finish Gabby, can you talk about the musical or vocal influences you looked to when recording with Kip?
GW: Definitely. Like I said, I wanted this stuff to get stuck in your head– so I looked to the artists I love who tend to get stuck in mine. Lo-fi garage rock bands and Uffie were major musical and vocal influences. The Books influenced and inspired me to be completely comfortable expressing ideas lyrically.
