Heavenly Creatures Chat To Glasswerk

• 10th Mar 2009

Heavenly Creatures was initially a studio project band formed in 2004 by Doctor Ohm (Keyboards, programming) and Ysah Eyres (vocals).
Heavenly Creatures' music combines and blends various influences ranging from electro, ambient, gothic, new wave, world, classical…) It results in an eclectic blend with a particular ethereal and intimate feeling. In many ways, Heavenly Creatures' music could be described as a form of “ethereal electro-pop music” as well as a “mental movie sountrack”..

Let’s start from the beginning – When and how did you break into creating music – and was this originally as Heavenly Creatures?

It all started when I was a teenager and I got my first synthesizer (a Roland Juno-106) that was somewhere back in late 1984. By the time, I was very influenced by the early 80’s synthesizer music. That’s were I had the idea for my pseudonym (Dr. Ohm) and started to do some gigs in school… Heavenly Creatures came much later in the (early 2000’s).

Did you train in music for your education?

Like many kids I took piano lessons around the age of 6, and later I also had 3 years of classical education in grammar school until I graduated. This was a great base for learning harmony and composing. However, I never went to a conservatory, the rest of my “knowledge” in music and engineering was brought by experience.

So tell me… what was the genesis of this project after the first album?

The genesis of New Blood has several origins. First, I wanted to go back to a more ‘dark’ music after the rather ‘lounge-world’ debut album (Forever, Always).  As the vocalist I worked with on the first album didn’t much like “goth”, I had to go on my own. That’s where MySpace took an important part in the creating process in late 2006 where I discovered some very talented amateur musicians which gave me the idea of some collaborations, which I’m very proud of (hence the title of the album, New Blood), especially the one with Dae Noctem, from Era Nocturna.
 
Why did you decide to create New Blood in two parts?

The answer to this question is quite simple. I was on the process of making the album when a friend of mine (Jacques Sirgent, the director of the Museum of Vampires) introduced me to a good friend he knew for years, who was a film director and making a documentary about vampires and the myth of vampires. He had listened to a couple of my compositions and liked them. The day before the meeting, I felt I need to bring more “adapted” material, and that’s where I composed “Vlad Tepes” (in one afternoon), along with a less vocal mix of “Black Rose” (the Epilogue Mix).

The idea was that the documentary would be “premiered” shortly after, so it was necessary to me to have something released by the time, hence the first part, as only 6 or 7 tracks were ready by the time.

Both parts have ambient beat vocal tracks and also grand orchestral instrumental work: Why blend the two together instead of doing separate albums?

I would say probably because I have an eclectic taste! I’m easily bored with one style or way to make music and I feel the need for some variety in my albums. To me, there is no contradiction between electronic music and orchestral music, it’s continuity with different “angles” and “point of views”, like a collection of moods: sometimes, you’re happy, sometimes sad, another time angry… but it’s still you anyway.
I could name a few “pop classics” who where built around the same principle back in the 70’s (Genesis, Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel…)
Nowadays most albums sound pretty boring because they contain more or less 10 or 12 times the same track in more or less the same style. It’ all formatted because that’s what the record companies and media expect of an artist: to be able to reproduce his work ad infinitum and to conform to listening standards. It’s nonsense.

Your instrumental works on such a grand scale it should be used in film (Vlad Tepes for example), Have you ever considered film composing?

I have indeed, this surely would be a very exciting perspective, however, the French film music market is very closed, and the horror/fantasy genre (which would fit me like a glove) is usually despised in France.  So it’s not really easy to make a living out of it. Or at least, I haven’t been lucky enough to succeed in that area so far. However, as my music has managed to reach some “interested ears”, I got recently some proposals here an there, mostly for documentaries, so we will see what happens in the future 😉

What would you ultimately like new listeners to take away from the music experience of Heavenly Creatures?

Let me quote here Klaus Schulze, who wrote once about his music, “I wish everybody a pleasant exploration of themselves, I cannot put it properly into words, I’m not a poet but a musician.” I couldn’t say better…

You have small group of musicians and artist your work with on your projects. Is there anyone else out there that you would like to work with?

I have no names in my mind for the moment. It really depends on the circumstances. I must say I’m rather a lone worker most of the time, but a regular vocalist would be a good basis.

You have listed a wide variety of artists on your myspace who influence your work. Are their any artists in particular who have had a deeper influence on your life than others?

Certainly. Among the major ones, apart from classical music and also because their influence occurred when I was a teenager, I could name the four “cardinal points” that were really important at the time: Laurie Anderson, Peter Gabriel, Klaus Schulze and Jean-Michel  Jarre.
But I should also quote Bernard Herrmann, John Carpenter, Jerry Goldsmith and Ennio Morricone, for their influence was easily as big, even if they came after.

So what comes next? Will you continue this sound, or do you have yet another departure to take for your next project?

The new material I’m working on should be rather in the continuity of New Blood, but until my new album is finished, (which means several months before any release), things can evolve in a different direction, especially if there will be new collaborations or  a “regular” new singer involved in the project.