MINIMALIST-MAXIMALIST: An Interview with the Famines' Raymond Biesinger

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Ryan Craven

The Famines’ Raymond Biesinger is a craftsman. Pure and simple. That’s his initiative. That’s his trajectory. That’s his way of life. His tools – computers, pens, inks, acrylics, photos, rubber stamps, photocopiers, printers, exacto blades, typewriters, letraset, guitars, and microphones. Known internationally for his work as an illustrator in noted publications such as the New Yorker, New York Times, NYLON, Business Week, the Globe & Mail, the Economist, and Courrier International. And work with companies such as Adidas and BMW. When Raymond’s obsessions run off the page and onto the stage, alongside collaborator/drummer Grant Kruger, perhaps his greatest strength, his unremitting force is born. Collectively they call themselves The Famines and in years to come others will simply call them ‘one of the greatest Rock n’ Roll bands going’.

4 years in the making, this week marks the first full length release from the Famines. The album collects their magnificent and criminally underheard 7” singles from 2008 to present. This is what the impeccably curated Alberta-based Mammoth Cave Recordings has to say about their newest release:

“The Famines are our favourite band. They are a band that we gladly wave the banner for, a band we would take a bullet for, and they require your attention. Personally, I’ve only ever been brought to tears by a live show once, and it was for The Famines who were closing out Wyrd Fest II, in a performance that was both visceral and unexpectedly sweet. As Bruno Latour would say, we have been enrolled.

The Complete Collected Singles is a small encyclopedia of minimalist-maximalist modernist noise garage songs from 2008 to present. These songs range from sly to monstrous, teething to biting. Indeed, The Famines are a band working in extremes, pushing two-piece dynamics simultaneously toward new highs and new lows.

In a culture of disposability, The Famines offer something worth holding on to. When you find yourself weeding out your record collection in five years, you will hold onto The Complete Collected Singles. Famines guitarist/vocalist Raymond Biesinger’s sleeve visuals give these things a lasting appeal.”

http://soundcloud.com/bill-fuckin-murray/sets/the-famines

This Sunday afternoon, at 256 Richmond Street (Beside Forest City Gallery) the Famines take to the Forest City to deliver a performance those in attendance will cherish for years to come. I recently had a chance to catch-up with Famines vocalist/guitarist Raymond Biesinger:

What were your initial goals or pursuits with the Famines or making music in general?

Ah, central to everything has been the assembly of as much as possible using limited means. We are minimalists--we have six strings, a drum kit, two voices. No pedals or effects. We use those things in a sparing way some times, in a complete way in other instances.

And has this changed along the way?

This has not changed, and won't. This has been my calling for a long time in terms of life, visual art, and music. We live in a very fortunate time and place, where technology and wealth allow us to do almost anything. In that environment, I'm convinced the most interesting thing to do is to enforce limitations and seek innovation within them. Might also be excellent preparation for a society due for austerity.

What happened in Edmonton that spawned so much great music (see the Famines, Sean Nicholas Savage, the Group Sound, Gobble Gobble/Born Gold, Makeout Videotape, Brazilian Money, the Wicked Awesomes, etc. etc.)?

Edmonton is the world's largest small city, and the music scene is incredibly open to new ideas. When only a small number of people are playing music or touring through, audiences can't be picky about genre or style and are simply enthusiastic about enthusiasm. It was a fantastic environment to try new things in.

How important is Weird Canada Dot Com to the development or greater acknowledgement of the ridiculous amount of great music happening in this country right now?

Incredibly, and it's just begun. Increasingly Canadian musical tastes are international and American, from top to bottom. Weird Canada is doing its best to show that our culture can make interesting things, and the bulletin board system is a fantastic and open discussion about the practicalities of making audio in such a challenging place as ours. Mandatory reading.

What were some of your key findings on the road that compelled you to write 'How to Book a Maybe Successful Tour for a Band That Hasn't'?

We noticed we were in a special place, below "the music industry" but not expressing symptoms of being below "the music industry." That is: we were touring a lot, we weren't breaking up, we weren't getting screwed by unsavoury promoters, and things were improving slowly but noticeably. GHK (Grant H. Kruger) and I, combined, have toured Canada from coast to coast something like 14 times, the USA twice. We were doing things very well for being a niche-interest under-the-radar band, and sharing how to do that feels important.

Is the approach of performing and recording music similar or dissimilar to your work as a graphic designer?

I'm not so much a "graphic designer" as a "commercial artist that occasionally does non-commercial art," and the two are very very linked. The Famines visually and musically are an idealized version of what I'd like to do in my commercial practice.

When I spoke to you in Montreal you mentioned that you'd played London once before but you couldn't quite figure it out. Can you discuss your previous experiences coming here?

Very empty shows at Call the Office, and the venue treating us very very well despite that. Every city is a bit of a mystery in a different way. And London just hasn't been solved yet.

Below is Raymond's Road mix (RB notes Drummer GHK's 'would be very different'):

Dead Ghosts - When It Comes To You