In the creative process, one of the most important–if not the most important–rule is never to set goals and numbers. The risk is to focus too much on the result (or what will come later), irreparably compromising its quality. This, fortunately, Mount Kimbie knows well. When Kai Kampos and Dominic Maker set out in the desolation of California’s Yucca Desert to write and record some demos, they had no idea what or how it would come out. It was the summer of 2021.

Immersed in a backdrop sharply divided by two elements–the alienating expanse of Martian land dotted with plants of the strangest shapes and a sky of breathtaking vastness–Dom and Kai formed the skeleton of their fourth, ambitious album. After that, the project’s founding duo returned to London to submit their new sound ideas to the group’s two other official new members, drummer Marc Pell and keyboardist Andrea Balency-Béarn. Those who, until 2022, were only live turners, with The Sunset Violent became fully-fledged members of the band, transforming the duo into a splendid quartet.

Listening to the album, one can clearly hear Mount Kimbie’s new spring unravelling along the tracklist. Never before has Mount Kimbie been so guitar-oriented, with shoegaze bursts, dream pop forays, and a solid new wave base. Also inevitable is the usual appearance of King Krule, whom even the band now considers to be a fifth element. Perhaps he too would have been recruited full-time into the band ‘if only he wasn’t so frighteningly famous’, as Dom chuckled.

Claudio Biazzetti: The last time we met, we were drinking wine by the sea after your live show at Ortigia Sound in 2017. You were pissed off because the airline had lost one of your luggage with a synthesiser in it.

Dom: Oh yeah! I remember that well. By the way, I’m going back to Sicily soon for a holiday with my wife. What’s the name of that place you were talking about?

CB: Ortigia, the historic centre of Syracuse. A beautiful place, even when you lose your luggage.

Kai: It happens a lot. Maybe what you say is the worst episode, but in general these are unforeseen events that happen. There’s no way to avoid these mishaps. That time we did well to play without an important piece of our setup.

CB: A lot has changed since then though. You are now a four-piece band.

K: Right around that time, between 2017 and 2018, we started working with Marc [Pell] and Andrea [Balency-Béarn] but only on the live part. We toured together until 2019: the band that is there today started to form like that. Then came Covid and for two years we were stationary. Maybe it was that stop, the longest in our discography, that made the nature of the band change a lot.

CB: The Sunset Violent is your album with the most guitars, isn’t it?

K: Definitely, yes. We wanted to try to do something new. Although guitars have always been present, this time we put them right in the middle of the songwriting process, on the instrumental part. It was a fun challenge.

CB: Did recording in the desert influence this choice?

D: It certainly did. It was such an alien landscape. We’re not used to that kind of terrain, even though I live in Los Angeles and spend a lot of time near Palm Springs, which is pretty close to that area. But that particular part of the desert is really hallucinating. It’s a surreal experience. We rented a car and everywhere we tuned in, the radio was playing nothing but country music. Everything was bizarre, and oversized, the cars were those classic American power cars you see in the movies. But the sky was the most incredible thing: the stars, the sense of vastness. And then, the heat. We were in the middle of summer, in the middle of the desert, and it was really hot, so hot that it was very difficult to be outside during the day.

CB: The sky must have been a spectacle, as there was no light pollution.

D: It was really clear. The biggest luck for us though, I think, was not having any distractions. That allowed us to be really focused on what we wanted to do creatively. It is a really calm and serene place.

CB: Don’t you sometimes miss that feeling of calm?
D: Of course we do. But it’s important to realise that the sense of peace that comes from being in such remote areas also creates a sense of constant restlessness in the long run. It was useful for us to focus on music and nothing else, anyway: thanks to those four or five weeks in the desert, we came back with the skeleton of an album. It was a successful and effective move, which we will certainly repeat.

CB: It was effective because you were in no hurry and had no distractions.
K: We didn’t even have expectations. We had no idea what we were doing and what was going to come out of it. The only thing we knew was that we wanted to make sounds together. These assumptions were very stimulating and allowed what then happened to happen.

CB: Between studio sessions, what did you do to pass the time?

D: There wasn’t much to do. We had a swimming pool, which was essential to survive the 40-50-degree temperatures during the day. During daylight hours it was simply impossible to do things outside. We started work in the morning. I don’t think we ever had late-night sessions. We had a healthy schedule of going to bed early and waking up early. There was a barbecue, and hot dogs.

K: Yes, we grilled a lot of hot dogs. Plus in those days there was the European football championship. England got to the final against the Azzurri, which was driving me crazy. If it had won the final and I was in fucking Los Angeles I would have gone mad. Luckily that didn’t happen, you Italians won [laughs].

CB: Wasn’t there even a small cinema in your town?

K: No, not at all. We were a long way from Joshua Tree. Once, we travelled for a change of scenery, to see a different kind of sand. But no, there wasn’t much to do. There was, however, a sushi restaurant that ended up becoming a regular haunt of ours. For us, ice-cold beer and raw fish were like a mirage in the desert after all those hot dogs.

CB: No wonder people around there see UFOs.

K: Exactly! Your mind starts seeing things that don’t exist. It plays tricks on you. In life in general it is important to allow your mind to get bored. Because it is from boredom that most ideas come. Boredom is now a luxury that is difficult to afford and maintain.

CB: What was Marc and Andrea’s input in the writing of the album?

K: Dom and I went into the desert with these demos. The ideas came pretty quickly, but we weren’t trying to finish the album. The idea was to have a rough idea of the album and then go back to London to finish it with the others. Once we got back, Marc and Andrea really added a lot to the songs. Dom and I didn’t want to complete the record in the desert. We left it to Marc and Andrea to start from our ideas and enrich them, like a real band.

CB: Four brains are better than two, then?

K: Yes, for us it was like that. Adding variables to the equation can’t always end well. Fortunately, there is a good balance between the four of us. We each have our own way of listening and providing new creative possibilities.

CB: By now, after so long, can we say that Archie [King Krule, ed] is the fifth member of Mount Kimbie?

K: By now I would say yes! [laughs].

D: He’s a constant on our albums now. It’s even weird to consider him as a ‘guest’ on our records. If he wasn’t as incredibly famous as he is, we would love to have him in the band full-time. It would be obvious. We hope to have him more live, on the tracks he is involved in. Every time he comes on stage with us it’s wonderful. Plus, King Krule just finished a very long tour with his band after the release of his last album. So there’s a much better chance that he’ll have a few dates to dedicate to us. Anyway, yes, he is a very dear friend with whom we simply love to play music. He also inspires us in the way he writes songs.

CB: Are you doing any dates in Italy?

D: I think so! For now, we have two dates in Rome in September, at a place called Cinecittà.

CB: Ah, well! It’s the Italian equivalent of Hollywood!

D: I didn’t even know we had a date in Rome. I found out by looking at our Spotify. Anyway, it sounds like a good line-up. There’s also Bar Italia. We can’t wait to come back to Italy. It’s a place where we love to play.

CB: Let’s hope you don’t lose your luggage this time.

D: You know what? Since then we’ve greatly reduced the amount of equipment we take on tour, so we’ve also reduced the chances of them getting lost. It’s really nice to tour with less stuff. That synthesiser we lost that time in Italy was really crucial to our show. It was also very fragile. Luckily Marc and Andrea are good at creating digital patches that recreate analogue synths. So we can leave them at home without giving up their unique sound.

CB: What about the contradiction between the words Sunset and Violent?

K: The best thing about working with other people is that you can appreciate other people’s work, and at the same time be stimulated by it. That would be impossible on your own. Sometimes it happens that some songs are left a bit on the sidelines, but then maybe Dom comes along and brings them back to life with other ideas. Which happened with Shipwreck. Regarding the title of the album, I drew on the lyrics written by Dom to find something that fully reflected the album. We didn’t have a plan on how the album should sound or what the general idea should be. It was only when we listened to it again that we realised the story and the themes that came together. The title was an intuition, a small expressive portion of the album that ended up giving the whole thing a definitive title. The desert and the readings we did while creating it played a key role in the choice. But it is also a title that leaves a lot of room for the listener’s interpretation.

CB: Are all the lyrics written by Dom?

K: Yes, except for the ones Archie sings. Those are written by him. So is Yukka Tree, where Andrea sings on the lyrics he wrote. Let’s say that the one who sings also wrote the lyrics.

CB: I also find a wonderful contradiction in the fact that it is a very trippy record but at the same time allows you to stay focused. While listening to it I was writing an article. Looping the album five or six times in a row made me incredibly productive.

D: I’m very pleased about that. I for one find these songs perfect for driving. It’s great music for moving, motion.

CB: In any case, the article I was writing was about James Blake complaining about music streaming. According to him, the industry doesn’t pay artists enough. Do you agree with that?

K: Yes. I don’t think it’s a system that favours musicians and producers. Streaming favours a certain type of music and penalises others. It doesn’t pay enough for you to make a living. It is definitely not a sustainable system to remunerate the people who do our work. It only rewards a certain genre and musical approach. There are records that you discover and listen to once or twice that are inspiring, maybe that you wouldn’t listen to all the time but that are equally important. It is not culturally healthy for a record that is streamed less to be penalised.

CB: Are there solutions to this in your opinion?

K: It is difficult to close a door like streaming once it has been opened and used so much by so many people. We all agree on the problem but nobody, myself included, can find an alternative solution, because of the very convenience of streaming. There are very organised people. I personally have never been able to keep track of the records I like on streaming platforms. I listen to them for a while and then I forget about them. When I buy music instead, it automatically goes into another category that I can manage much better. If I buy a track, it starts a much more lasting relationship. Streaming remains a complex problem because for most people it is easy and convenient. A possible future could be that streaming continues to exist for all those who have a more occasional and less deep relationship with music. However, there must be other attractive options for consumers.

CB: Last question: what’s it like being in the same band and living so far away from each other?

K: When Dom moved to LA, we were probably finishing the last record. Then we went on tour and he went back to the States. But since then we’ve always met up in person to work on new music because Dom would often go back to London. So we didn’t have as many opportunities to work remotely, over the Internet. The band has changed a lot, and every time we see each other it’s for a very concrete reason, like an album.