Last week Low Swans, who have been rumbling under the surface of the Chicago scene for a few years now, put out their newest effort POST, a 30 minute symphonic journey through the minds of Jon Scarpelli and Scott Simon. We caught up with Scarpelli at his home, as we are all at home, to talk about the impetus of releasing a one track (it’s two on bandcamp) record, how social media affects his creative juices, and how pulling away from the music scene has produced a more introspective record. Plug into POST, (you won’t regret it), and let Low Swans take you on a synth laden, percussive journey through the modern soul. 

JS: Jon Scarpelli

There are a myriad of influences throughout POST. What drives you to create?

JS: This is hard to put a finger on. For us, influences come from all mediums, movies of course are huge. For me personally... anytime i have an emotional reaction to anything, it eventually translates to some kind of sonic experience. So I'll sit down and tinker with an instrument. At that point, there's just a feeling you get when you happen upon a sound that captivates you and connects. And then it takes you on a ride.

The album is broken into two parts instead of particular songs, almost like a modern symphony, even though there are song snippets within those parts. What was the impetus to present the record this way?

JS: It is actually meant to be ONE whole track. Bandcamp.com would not allow such a long track so I had to split it in 2 for that release. If you go to our soundcloud page, it exists there as one long piece. This album is more diverse, stylistically, than previous albums so I wanted to make sure all of the songs were in context. Certain songs, taken on their own, don't really give a whole picture. "Stuck in my mind" for example, seems like a huge outlier on it's own. By connecting them all, I was trying to make a point that they all should be felt as a progression, one to the next. I think they all work on their own, but they're stronger as a whole. It felt more cinematic and meaningful. I wanted people to be forced to think of them in relationship to one another. I wanted to avoid people just listening to one at a time. I think eventually I'll split them all up for single consumption. But for now, I am really happy with listening front to back. 

(We are too Jon!)

Low Swans has been putting out music for five years. Are there other projects the two of you are involved in?

JS: The two of us are jobbing musicians. Scott is heavily involved in the musical theater world, playing drums and percussion for major productions. I am in a variety of cover bands as well.  I am also working on the soundtrack and sound design for a video game. Scott and I also used to be in a group called Push, which was basically a large percussion band where I played synths and pianos. We had a giant battery of orchestral percussion and performed mostly long drawn out songs blending minimalist styles with more ethereal pop like Sigur Ros.

Some of your previous work takes a questioning look at society and our current global predicaments, however POST seems to dwell in the realm of love and relationships. Is there a reason for this turn?

JS: Over the past couple years, Low Swans has been much less active in terms of playing shows due to personal issues. I think just having more time isolated from the music scene has produced a more introspective record. More time to self reflect and get down to what's important on a personal level. Though, I always see my viewpoint as being mixed. I try to bring the personal ideas into a bigger picture or vice versa. This album is definitely weighted to the personal. For example "I Don't Wanna Be Alone" seems very personal. It is. But it's also meant to be a comment on social media. The dichotomy of all humans wanting human connection yet doing it in a relatively isolated way.

The age of the internet taking over social interactions is another theme within your music. Can you speak to how this has influenced your creative process both positively and negatively?

JS: It has made me want to avoid it. The pressure in the current media world to be both VERY definitive about your "brand", your "point of view", your "style" is just... incredibly off-putting. It's not real life. Especially because the new media world also requires that we constantly "evolve" our brand/style/point of view. It just seems too disingenuous. I try to examine what we're doing as little as possible while we're working on it. And even as we approach the finish line, I just accept that what came out of it is earnest and thus worth continuing to work on.
Not to say that I don't take an overall critical ear. Clearly I'm trying to make sure the communication of the idea is clear and impactful. But we have already tried being a brand. It's not even a remotely useful or productive way to be a musician/artist.

Hope you are dealing with the great quarantine in a positive manner. What's the first thing you hope to do when we can all go outside again?

JS: Play shows!