Jacob Montague's album 'Fly On' is available at name your own price on BandCamp, which means you could pay zero or a thousand dollars to listen to this incredibly pleasant instrumental album. Download the album HERE.
How do you describe the music you make?
As an adjective, I would say “folktronic”, but I think I’ve officially settled on “Electro-folk” as the genre. I come from more of a folk-rock background, but lately I’ve started venturing into more electronic landscapes, so this project is a really natural way for me to keep one foot in both worlds. As a composer, I am very interested in sound textures, and in creative structuring, so in my song writing I usually try to stay away from the pop format of “Verse - Chorus - Bridge”.
How long did it take you to write, record, and release "Fly On"?
I’ve been composing instrumental music for a few years now. Even as I’ve become involved with other musical projects in the last year or two, I never stopped writing on the instrumental front; the songs of “Fly On” are the most recent extension of that. I started working on “Nocturne A” last October, and the rest of the album followed pretty quickly. Because I am a one-man-band and do all of my own recording, I have a really quick process. I released “Fly On” this February, so I guess from start to finish, it was about a four-month process.
How many instruments do you play? What are you playing on the album for
equipment?
It’s hard for me to quantify how many exactly...I still consider myself primarily a guitarist, and have been trained classically, but the last few years I have been playing pretty much anything with frets and strings. I also dabble on keyboard instruments, which opens up the whole world of synthetic sound and samples. On the album I play banjo, ukulele, mandolin, acoustic and electric guitar, bass, glockenspiel, electric piano, piano, accordion, and organ, in addition to lots of synthesizers, drum machines, samplers and some theremin. Also, as a digital musician, I guess I would consider my computer an instrument.
What musicians have influenced you the most?
The most influential artists as far as the sound of this album would probably be The Album Leaf, Mogwai, and Sigur Ros. Not only do I look up to all of these artists sonically, but in a broader sense, they are the bands that have really paved the way for the last decade or so for alternative instrumental music. As a composer, I have definitely been influenced by Sufjan Stevens, which sometimes can be a little depressing, because it’s a bit of an unattainable comparison- I’m not sure if it will ever be possible to make an album as great as “Illinoise.” But as a guitarist, my greatest hero would have to be Django Reinhardt, the pioneer of gypsy jazz, and although his influence isn’t necessarily found within this project, it would be a shame not to mention him.
What made you decide to go the Bandcamp route?
I was first exposed to Bandcamp when Stevens released his “All Delighted People” album. I was impressed by the simplicity and functionality of its design. Also the fact that your songs can be fully streamed and sold/downloaded on the same sight is a great feature, not to mention the “name your own price” option. “Fly On” can also be found on most digital download sites (Itunes, CDBaby, Amazon…).
And what made you decide to give your album away for free?
I put it up with the free download option because when it comes down to it, what I want most is for as many people to hear it as possible. And who doesn’t like free stuff, right? Right now I’m not supporting this project with a tour, so a free download option has been a great way of spreading the word.
Do you create any other types of art? Is so, what kind?
Like I mentioned earlier, I’m involved in other musical projects. I play a variety of instruments in the band Branches as well as co-produce all of our recordings with Tyler Madsen, the front man of that band. But as far as visual art, I’ve never really made it, but always greatly enjoyed it. The album artwork, for example, was a really fun project for me because I got a chance to collaborate with artist Peter Heirendt and graphic designer Mitchell Dong, both of whom are close friends of mine who happen to make amazing art. They were also both involved in the album art for all of the recordings I have published in the last few years: the Branches’ “O, Light!” EP, and the Achilles and the Tortoise albums, “Home”, and “Maccabee”.
What do you do outside of music?
Well, I recently completed a bachelors degree in Physics, so naturally, I’m in to outerspace and time travel and stuff. Aside from that, I read, I bike, I eat, I movie, iPod, and I play more music.
Any additional thoughts?
I believe it is worth your time to download my album here (jacobmontague.bandcamp.com). Also, come check out Branches music here (soundslikebranches.bandcamp.com). And stay tuned, because both of these projects have full-length albums in the works that are looking forward to releases in the near future.