Named in honour of the mythical creatures, the Sirens, who lured sailors to their death with beautiful singing, the London based Gothic Rock band, Sirens of Light describe their name as representing “ a juxtaposition, a mystery created by the opposites of light and dark, life and death, love and loss.”
Sirens of Light comprises of Indie Rock songwriter, producer and artist Andy J. Davies and James Patrick Quinn, musician adding rhythm and guitar as well as ethereal textures to the music of the band. Davies explains “I‘ve always found music to have a magical and mysterious quality, the whole being much greater then the sum of the parts.“ For Davies music has always been a fascination with the ability to evoke emotions in an audience as well as transport them to different times and places.
Davies cites Bowie as an early influence to his music and describes Bowie as “a very theatrical performer, delivering both visually and sonically material which was years ahead of its time“. The original architects of a haunting sound driven by a bleak drum machine, while using a sense of romanticism and artistically orientated lyrics, Sisters of Mercy were also an early influence on Davies. The awe inspiring soundscapes and introspective lyrics of bands such as March Violets, The Cure and Pink Floyd had an influence on the direction of Davies music. He was also motivated by The Cult and Vangelis, in particular his work on 1982‘s Blade Runner. It is not only music that has influenced Davies he has found inspiration in Film Noir movies such as Casablanca, The Big Heat, China Town and literature by H.P Lovecraft and Philip K. Dick.
Quinn believes the main themes of the bands music “draw on life experiences and/or commentary on experiences that human beings such as ourselves have.“ He gives the example of the inspiration for their song “Planes of Sorrow“ being a tour of East Germany that both Quinn and Davies participated in when playing in a heavy Metal band. “I don’t think that the world needs another boring love song, but singing about the deep pain and loss and sorrow with a degree of lyrical content, I think people can relate to and can let them know that they are not alone with their pain“ according to Quinn.
The choice to play Goth Rock came from exposure to the genre when Quinn was growing up. The famed band Fields of Nephilim were a local band for Quinn “we would often spot them in the local pub dressed in their inimitable style and I would later end up playing with Last Rites, the band formed by Nod and Paul Wright of Nephilim in the late 90s“ Quinn was attracted to these types of bands, especially when they performed live. He enjoyed the very dramatic, musical and visual ways they performed. Goth music is relatable according to Quinn because of its honesty and the ways in which it explores pain and sadness, all inherent to the human condition. Davies, while playing in a band in the London Glam scene, became attracted to the style, mystery and aesthetic of the London Goth scene. He recognised the crossover in the two genres.
All the art and indeed the overall aesthetic of Sirens of Light is created by Quinn and Davies. They take complete control with only the occasional photographer or videographer assisting with some aspects of their creative image. They are however always open to collaborations.
Davies treats the writing of a song as an organic process. He believes that any idea, no matter how small can be developed into a piece. When it comes to creating music Davies says “the key to it is the initial idea and not to be too attached to it, as that will prevent the process taking its natural course.“. For Quinn the creation of a song starts with “a guitar riff or two, a lyric idea or a piano piece that we start to brainstorm together.“ Getting the right sound in the beginning, using a style that may be a distorted rhythm guitar riff or a clean guitar riff with a delay, helps decide the ways of playing the piece. Once this is decided Quinn explains that they create a rough structure of verse and chorus before adding a bass rhythm and drum. The process isn’t stagnant and things can quickly change and shift with new ideas sometimes unexpectedly leading to changes in the initial parts of the process.
For Quinn live performances are “an opportunity to share your creation“, the culmination of all the work involved in writing a song.“ He believes that live performing is the climax of all the hard work coming together. Quinn explains that there is nothing comparable to an audience responding well in a live performance. Davies finds live performances “a blast“ and he teases that they have a very specific and surprising way of presenting the music of Sirens of Light in a live performance.
Sirens of Light have a new album set for release in August 2022. The album has an interesting back story having been recorded in 2004 and released in 2005, it then went missing. The album turned up again in 2021 and Sirens of Light decided to remix and update the album while keeping it as authentic as possible. The band decided to reissue the album which has an old school, retro vibe. In the future Sirens of Light plan to write and record some new original material that will be aligned with classical Goth while being aligned with the 2020s.
If you are new to the music of Sirens of Light the band wants you to know “ they are an example of a traditional gothic band that goes back to the roots of gothic music and culture. Combining those traditional influences with a more contemporary sound stimulates the listener with rock n’roll guitars, driving rhythms and dark introspective vocals invoking an epic and theatrical sonic and visual experience“
Links
Webpage : http://sirensoflight.com/
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/sirens_of_light/?hl=en
