FMLY friends and scene stalwarts Magick Orchids have a reputation for free-form, trance-inducing psychedelic live shows that utilize improvisation and group collaboration. The duo’s upcoming album, Origins of Grinding, finds Rhea Tepplim and FMLY Fest poster artist Champoy Hate combining their penchant for being etherial and experimental with somewhat more “pop” influences on DIY dance jams like “Bad Acid” and “Bored in da Burbs.”
The album will be released early new year via Vanity Projects. While you wait for the album to be released, you can download this free remix EP as a preview. The duo is also performing at KXLU’s Holiday Party this Monday, December 19. It’s hosted by Sean Carnage and Pehrspace, and Magick Orchids will be joined by W-H-I-T-E, Batwings Catwings, Casy and Brian, and Sea Lions. You can RSVP on Facebook.
I asked Rhea and Champ to share some videos that have inspired them. Here’s what they shared.
howardAmb: “Spotted”
Rhea:
Underrated and evasive by nature, these guys are prolific and they make weird music. They’re really one of the best projects in L.A. We have been influenced by them for several years and are always listening to their music while working on projects at home.
Whenever we describe our music as “electronic,” we usually have to follow up with some kind of clarification that we don’t play club banger music or ambient techno. After that, we usually get stuck in a rut of saying that we play “experimental electronic” music. It’s always uncomfortable to be asked where your music fits in with the rest of what’s out there, so instead we like to say “Here, listen to howardAMB. We hope to be half as amazing as these guys!”
Psychic TV: “Message”
Champoy:
I am big on semantics and symbolism. Having studied advertising early on, I am naturally drawn to certain types of visuals and imagery that register on certain parts of our consciousness. I think a lot of Psychic TV’s works are filled with that. I have always admired Genesis P-Orridge’s works with TG and his/her ability to generate different sonic incarnations with the band. I believe its rooted in the performance/conceptual art aspect that the group manages to exist in some kind of esoteric realm that is not just focused on making the music but also using it as a vehicle for ideas that one can explore for him/herself. This video should explain the obvious.
Preview: Temples of the Mind at LACMA from Emily Lacy on Vimeo.
Emily Lacy: “Temples of the Mind”
Rhea:
I first stumbled on this video a couple of years ago, right before her residency at LACMA. I had one of those “FUCK YEAH” moments when I thought, “these are the boundaries we need to be pushing in music and art.”
There is so much that technology opens up for us to evolve as artists. It also presents us, as the viewer, with an opportunity to challenge our perception of sounds and energies, and confront something that initially mystifies or makes us uncomfortable. I admire Emily Lacy’s desire to conjure the music of our past along with the sounds of the future. Being most connected to my voice as an instrument, I spend a lot of time on my sampler with a microphone, effects pedals and a pair of headphones, exploring sounds, mood and environment. Watching this video makes me want to curl up in a hooded cloak and blast off.
Henry Miller in a Bathroom
Champoy:
I consider Henry Miller as a constant source of inspiration in living life. Blurring the lines between fact and fiction, his writings have resonated with me ever since I first read them. Having been raised in a somewhat religious background, I find inspiration in the way his outlook through his writings challenged the social mores and moral conventions people use to adhere to without question. I know that it’s hard for some people to see past the blatant sexuality of most his writings, but thats not all there is to it– at the core it is very spiritual and we kinda aspire for that similar effect in our music.
This video is a source of constant inspiration mostly for the story he tells. I just love that he is doing this interview in a bathrobe inside the bathroom.
Yoyoy Villame: “Butchekik videoke”
Whenever we get stuck working on anything together we just take a few minutes to watch (or sing-a-long) to this video and we always manage to snap out of whatever creative rut we find ourselves dwelling in.This totally sounds like some foreign language but its all completely made-up gibberish by the late Visayan artist. And yes! The dancing in suspenders is classic!
It was between this and a Michael Nhat video– but who isn’t already inspired by the prolific nature of Michael Nhat’s song making process? Maybe Lil’ Wayne?
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