Lost Few is the audio-visul project of David Thomson, an experimental artist based in Melbourne, Australia. Lost Few’s debut double LP ‘Between the Silence’, to be released on Australian label Southern Lights in June 2019, showcase ambient techno, disturbed electronics, processed instrumentation and sub-bass experiments. Likened to a more rhythmic “music to play in the dark”, with Lost Few’s own sharp, dissonant edge. Live, Lost Few is a visceral exploration of layered textures, found sounds and rhythmic noise, exploring our relationship to physical space through an immersive performance of sound and light. His sound traverses between the physical form of multiple screens and light installations, creating space between uninhabited corners and grey-scale electronics.
FACTS:
1: The Lyrebird – a native to the Dandenong Ranges (where I live) is famous for its incredible ability to imitate natural and man-made sounds.
2: The vocals throughout the Album is my Mum – a hidden soprano, I recorded the vocals in an old shopping arcade with huge cathedral like ceilings.
3: The first song of the Album – Blessed Are The Tears We Forget To Shed- the cymbal sounds are rain falling on a high hat.
QUESTIONS:
1. What is the biggest inspiration for your music?
My surroundings, both natural and manmade – the physicality of space inspires the soundscapes I create.
2. How and when did you get into making music?
I was living in Beijing, a friend laughed when I said I wasn’t creative. So I came back to Australia and started studying fine arts – sound.
3. What are 5 of your favourite albums of all time?
All time is a big call – Albums on current rotation:
1. Sylvan Esso – What Now
2. Swans – The Glowing Man
3. Roll The Dice – Until Silence
4. Navagraha – Ancestral Voices
5. GZA – Liquid Swords
4. What do you associate with Berlin?
The Cold, Nick Cave.
5. What’s your favourite place in your town?
The creek/rainforest in my backyard. I live in the outer suburbs of Melbourne in a place called Mount Dandenong. It is surrounded by natural rainforest with lots of birds and animals. In Winter the mist closes in and you can barely see a thing, great for hibernation in the studio.
6. If there was no music in the world, what would you do instead?
I aim to create sculptures and spaces out of sound, so I think I would end up creating large scale sculptures or video art.
7. What was the last record/music you bought?
Vinyl – Perfume Genius – No Shape
Digital – Urge Theory – Lemna
8. Who would you most like to collaborate with?
I love to collaborate with visual artists as they push me in new ways – I have a regular collaborator Keith Deverell who is an amazing visual and sound artist. For my live show of Between the Silence he handles the video and lighting design, unfortunately I couldn’t bring him to Berlin for the MONOM show, but together we always find new answers to questions we ask – musically – Eric Sein (Oake) is visiting in June so hopefully we can find a space to collaborate. People that push me musically or visually – particularly vocals or intensity like Bobby Krlic or Lawrence English.
9. What was your best gig (as performer or spectator)?
Performer: My last performance of Between the Silence I hit a new space of comfortability in finding the soundscape and emotions I wanted to create and invoke. My performances have a lot of improvisation in them, so it is a balance between being prepared and having the right amount of confidence in your tools to choose the path you want to take in creating an immersive experience that invokes certain emotions and ideas for the audience.
Spectator: My Discos Environment launch at Geddes Lane – beautiful execution, sonic brutality and amazing lighting design by HOV.
10. How important is technology to your creative process?
Everything I do is focused around utilising technology to translate my ideas both sonically and visually, I’m really excited about the MONOM performance as it will allow me the opportunity to explore spatial performance inside a new space utilising new technologies. I’m really interested to see where I can take the performance and how the use of sound technology will push me into new creative directions.
11. Do you have siblings and how do they feel about your career/art?
All very supportive, my whole family is very creative in their own way. My brother is an award winning cinematographer for example.
Lost Few brings ‘Between the Silence’ to MONOM on Wednesday, 5th June 2019. The 4DSOUND performance will be followed by an intimate DJ set from Tommy Four Seven.
Photo © Lost Few
