1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
Paul: We are in the practice space putting things together. We are currently keeping some old material tight and tidy and also writing some new material.
Marie: Pretty much totally focused on writing new riffs with plans to be in the studio recording an album for release late fall this year. We also have plans to do an U.S. east coast tour in May/June to get out and support the S/T release.
2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?
Marie: It’s definitely more focused and even a little more straightforward, less progressive than the previous EP, Ghosts of Proxima Centauri. I think we really got into writing catchy riffs and then harmonizing them, Paul and I really dig getting into harmony world. This album has its’ roots in the classic hard rock and prog sound from the 70’s, the rest is our interpretation of riff orientated harmonic rock, so it’s a bit of the past with the present thrown in the mix with the lyrical additional of mythological themes.
3. What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?
Marie: We tend to explore different elements of greek and roman mythology through our lyrics, human stories we personify to various mythical creatures or the inverse, tales of beasts being adapted to a person's plight. We have delved in epics tales of love, war and isolation. You know, the usual stuff.
4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?
Paul: When i was a little kid i was really into WW2 fighter aircraft. My favorite was the Vought F4U CORSAIR. It was a beautiful plane with what they called "gull" wings. It had grace. I wanted our name to be graceful strong and adventurous. Upon looking on the internet we found there were a few other bands with the same name but we thought long and hard and decided we deserved that name. Since then, most of those bands have dropped off the radar, thank goodness. Side note: Corsair was almost called “Banger.” I think we might’ve turned out a little more AC/DC if we'd kept it. Also a cool name, in my opinion.
Marie: Yeah, I liked Banger too but I think Corsair has more puissance.
5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?
Marie: Our best shows are always the ones we play to a front row of fist-pumpers and headbangers. The crowd often can make a show go from “ok” to “killer” just by their enthusiastic participation as an audience. Stage wise, Corsair is laid back and relatively non-chalant. We’re just regular people, like anyone else, lucky to be doing something we love in front of people who love hearing it. Paul does have great stage antics though, I need to take some notes from his stage book.
6. Do you have any touring plans for the future?
Marie: Yup! We’ll be hitting the road in May/June, up and down the east coast, sprinkling the S/T where we can. We also hope to make it to Europe next year, late winter, for some touring so keep eyes open for that too.
7. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of metal?
Marie: Worldwide, it’s been really amazing. I would guess ¾ of our cd sales are to people overseas, mainly Europe and of that, at least ½ is to Germany and the nordic countries. It’s pretty wild. The bloggers and reviewers in Europe have really enjoyed our music, from the first EP, Alpha Centauri, we’ve consistently been encouraged and supported by the Europeans. There are perhaps a handful of less-than-glowing reviews which we read with our critical hats on and use the comments as rough guides for our future writing. It can be used as a very helpful tool actually.
8. Are there any other musical projects besides this band or is this a full time line-up?
Marie: Jordan and I are both in another band called Borrowed Beams of Light. Jordan plays bass and I, lead guitar. We have done some touring and released a couple albums as well, it’s a different genre entirely, pop-rock with a 60’s Kinks kinda vibe. Paul is the singer in a band with some friends called Megaphor, heavy, hard, math style rock. Paul, Jordan and I also appear in some Manscout songs which is a sorta spoof rap group we created with our recording engineer, Nate Bolling, whilst recording the S/T. We’re a little crazy.
9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?
Paul: Well hopefully we will return to the more non 4/4 riff writing we had on our first EP but also I would hope to get a bit heavier and more precise with our riffing.
Marie: I hope to see us evolve and grow, get smarter with our writing and playing, get more adventurous and challenge ourselves without limiting our listenability to our audience.
10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
Paul: Metallica's first four of course. Mastodon, Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy. Right now I’m listening to the first The Sword record, Age Of Winters and also listening to the Bon Iver record from last year. What a surprisingly weighty record.
Marie: What Paul said plus Iron Maiden, Yes, Steely Dan, Bowie, Pink Floyd, Scorpions... anything from the 70’s basically. Today, I’m listening to Tame Impala, Kadavar and Graveyard, their new albums are killer.
11. How would you describe your views on Greek Mythology?
Paul: We are definitely fans of greek mythology. It interests me because the stories of the gods are like soap operas. Some gods are crappy gods, they're just not good at their jobs. Some gods are slutty gods, some gods are bad ass gods. I guess it interests me because at one point, polytheistic religions were the dominant religion. They were as real as some deities seem to some people these days. Not only that but these are just good stories. Gods used to do all kinds of crazy stuff. I’m gonna turn into a goose and have sex with this chick so my god-wife wont’ know. But god-wife knows and she’s gonna getcha!
Marie: Great stories with more likely than not terrible outcomes. What better reading is there?!
12. Outside of music what are some of your interests?
Paul: I enjoy shooting my bow on occasion and my girlfriend has a daughter who is very much an inspiration to my imagination. Cute little wretched gremlin. I work as a carpenter/Masons apprentice for my day job.
Marie: I am a graphic designer and screen printer by day. I love working with my hands, no matter the project, in the dirt, with wood, food or paper. I screen printed all the Corsair cd arigato packs and all the t-shirts, you can check them out in our store at skykrakken.com/store
Apart from that, Jordan and I are devoted and obsessive Barcelona FC fans.
13. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
Marie: Thanks so much for the interview, we really appreciate your support of Corsair and interest in our music. Cheers!
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