Butch Vig (Garbage) and Bradley Hanan Carter talk about the creative inspirations behind 5 Billion In Diamonds, new material and more!
S] Hi guys, how are you today?
BV] We’re absolutely stoked about the release of “Waiting To Land.” The response has been killer.
S] Talk me through the main challenges you face as multiple (busy) artists working across the world?
BV] The members of 5BID are scattered across the globe, so we’re doing a ton of virtual sessions and file sharing. Nothing beats recording in the same room like we were for “Waiting to Land,” but hey, technology lets us make magic from anywhere on the planet.
S] What’s been the most enjoyable parts of crafting this new 5 Billion In Diamonds material, for you personally?
BV] Meeting Bradley at Rancho De La Luna felt like kismet, and now he’s part of the 5 Billion In Diamonds crew. We’re all about that collaboration vibe. Always something unexpected on each album. It’s like Orson Welles said, “Divine Accidents.”
S] What’s motivating you as individuals, outside of music – think specific people, places…even films, for example – I know soundtracks are mentioned in the PR?
BV] Just finished the book “Shooting Midnight Cowboy.” I went back and watched the film—it’ so gritty, and the soundtrack’s pure gold. Truly inspirational.
S] How would you say this music, in comparison to your other works, pushes you in new ways as artists and creatives?
BV] “Waiting To Land” was one of the first songs 5BID “jammed” on, and we’re itching to hit the studio again and see where the live mojo takes us.
S] Is that track a great signifier of what we can expect in the future?
BV] Album number three’s in the works. We’re hoping “Waiting To Land” inspires us to bring out a bit more Crazy Horse energy in the new material.
S] What’s the plan in terms of bringing this material out into the live arena?
BV] We’re trying to lock in some gigs, but wrangling our international stellar crew’s been quite a challenge. Fingers crossed we can line up a UK and US tour later this year. We’ve got some hardcore fans out there itching for live shows.
S] Can you tell me more about ‘Waiting To Land’? “The song is about feeling trapped”, Bradley says, “and realizing you need to possess insane levels of patience, humility and tenacity to survive”. That’s a really interesting idea, is that based on real, personal experience at all?
BHC] Oh most definitely.. I have found myself in numerous situations these past few years where i have hit walls and couldn’t do anything more to move them forward.. it’s often a waiting game, so patience and tenacity have become a solid pair. Of course when things do began to flow again, I always send a nod up to the universe.. at times it’s hard not to imagine we’re all just characters on a board game.
S] I love the video for it, the gritty black and white vibe – what were the inspirations behind it?
BHC] Thank you! We loved the black and white desertscape.. and how you can see the subjects in the video getting smaller and smaller. The video concept stemmed from the feeling you sometimes get in a dream where you’re trying to get somewhere and the more you walk towards it, the farther away you get from it.
