A strong narrative is integral to the success of any project which holds itself to have literal value. While seemingly obvious, it is a message which has been lost in translation. Within the realm of songwriting it holds a natural juxtaposition with music itself. While both are, by nature, restrictive – you have to stay within the solid parameters of either the alphabet or rigid note structures – it is while confined by these borders that the possibilities within them are virtually infinitesimal. This is what makes language so important a tool to master. And, when an artist is performing – whether on record or stage – they are communicating their message to an audience, be it in a fragmented, distorted fashion or through having a more decisive narrative. It all comes back to the importance of language and its role within music.
The concept is one that Jack Goldstein, frontman of lyrical voyeurs Fixers, has instituted as a cornerstone to the identity of his band. “Language, or more specifically words, fascinate me,” he explains to Clash. “On one level you can justify anything with words, which is as scary as it is exciting. They are an incredibly lucrative tool and as a songwriter they are pretty much all you have. The versatility they give you is a factor that goes right through our band. So while the lyrical integrity of Fixers is paramount, we also contrast versatility with unification in our harmonies and our multi-instrumental line-up.”
“When we started the band in Oxford,” he continues, “I was listening to a lot of music by artists like The Beach Boys. Brian Wilson is a huge influence on me, and the rest of the band, and the way in which his music holds together is an aspect I wanted to bring in. He was a big purveyor of using multi-instrumentalists but at the time it seemed so distant a prospect as to seem virtually inaccessible. Then I started consuming a lot of new music and listening to bands like Animal Collective and Gang Gang Dance, which brought that aspect of what interested me right up to the modern day. It all suddenly seemed possible.”
The outcome of Goldstein’s listening is debut album ‘We’ll Be The Moon’, a diverse and sometimes convoluted record which brings in the contrasting strands of a world of influences – from four-man harmonies to psychedelic-infused pop – developing an ambitious tribute which looks set to make Fixers a key outfit for 2012.
“His (Brian Wilson) band was the catalyst for Fixers. But it was seeing contemporary bands following that structure which relaxed me. Bands that weren’t just performing the function of a record like the Brian Wilson Band. I wanted a band that were fun to watch, who could move between instruments – not in a showboaty way – but who could do the music all the justice it deserved.”
This is the crux of what makes Fixers a band worth writing about. Goldstein has managed to assemble a group of likeminded musicians who are not afraid of taking an idea and running with it. To facilitate ambition and dedicate an album to the idea that ambition can be facilitated. ‘We’ll Be The Moon’ is a cornucopia, and what it does is communicate an idea; the idea that restriction is a negative force, and one to ultimately fight against. But can – like language and music – ambition itself be a restrictive factor in development? Where next for a band that chooses to directly oppose itself to limits?
“I’m starting to get thoughts down for our next record and I’m toying with the idea of a meta-album.” finishes Goldstein. “You hear about people who go through an entirely visceral experience when listening to a record and I’d like to achieve the opposite. I want to make people very aware that they are listening to a record: a meta-album where you never detach yourself from the idea of listening. What people normally cite about these great records is the escapism that’s attached to the experience. I don’t fault that for one second, it’s amazing, but I think it would be interesting to not treat music as escapism but to go in and know you’re listening and try to evoke that same visceral reaction. It’s just an idea but that’s the challenge I’m thinking about next.”
Words by Sam Ballard
Photo by Jonnie Chambers
‘We’ll Be The Moon’ was released on 14th May. Read Clash’s review of it HERE