James Perry - vocals, guitar, bass guitar, keyboard, drums, percussion, saxophone, programming
Guest musicians on "Now You're Gone":
Dane Johnson (Vie Victus): backing vocals, bass guitar, keyboard
Erica Mulkey (Unwoman): cello
Adam Bannister (Death Valley High): percussion
Magik Baretta: backing vocals
Corinne Pickett (Corinney and the Dreamies): vocals
The Count [0] (Deathline International): percussion
Steve Watkins (Scar Tissue): percussion
Steve Lam (The Autumners, Deathline International): nylon-string acoustic guitar, slide guitar, backing vocals
Influences
Devin Townsend, Gary Numan, Material Issue, Godflesh, Jesu, Iggy Pop, Iron Maiden, Lycia, Depeche Mode, Opeth, Johnny Thunders, Failure, Duran Duran, Nine Inch Nails, Ennio Morricone
Sounds Like
"A rich and emotive blend of rock, electro, metal and lush orchestrations." "There are songs here that are dark and brooding, and rightfully so, but there are musical passages that are downright gorgeous."
- Ben Wiser, Popdose
"As Shakespeare’s familiar plots are decorated with uniquely superb words, so is Perry’s Now You’re Gone filled with his unique brand of lyrics and orchestration."
"The tenor of Perry's "Now You're Gone" is also intimate and personal. It makes us feel that we are not alone in our struggles during this time of distress, stress, and anxiety."
- Maria Campbell, Gothic Goddess Media
"Rock, with touches of old school metal, goth, and even a dash of electronic make up the sound of James Perry. I could very much hear this getting played on the radio, as it's quite accessible, and at times quite pretty.
Thankfully, however, James is not the next Nickelback, or Coldplay. But, if given a good chance by someone who has brains, I can see James getting the right push to have gold on his wall, maybe even platinum. He's that good."
- Dustin Ekman, Funeral Rain Zine
"“Now You’re Gone” is a gleaming example of a break-up album, with all of the song running along a common theme, but varying in tone and overall sound. The style of music displayed through the course of “Now You’re Gone” runs the gamut from progressive rock (Broken Promise) to alt-rock (Beyond The Pale) and in some instances pop-rock (Dreaming Of You, which is a song that WILL get stuck in your head!). Mr. Perry’s voice is a perfect match for the music he plays; varied and beautiful… though his ability to write a catchy tune overshadows all else."
- Chase "Typhon" Smith, E-MetalSpace
James Perry is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter based in the San Francisco Bay Area. He has been writing and performing music for most of his life on his own and with a variety of musical projects. In addition to his solo pursuits, he is also a member of Oakland, California-based industrial band Deathline International. "I really enjoy working with a collaborative band as well as being a control freak, and being able to write and record my own songs exactly the way I want them to be. Being in Deathline and having my own solo project allows me to do both," he says.
In 2006 James recorded his first solo album "Stuck" and offered it up as a free Internet download. "Stuck" was a stripped-down, hastily recorded screed against consumer culture. It was recorded as a National Solo Album Month (NaSoAlMo) project, the rules of which mandate that the entire album be written and recorded by one person in a single month, with no outside help. "It was an experiment. I made a deliberate decision to avoid certain elements I use in most of my music on that project," James explains. "I didn't use a lot of heavy guitar or electronics. While I ultimately decided that wasn't the direction I wanted to take, that project was a good growth experience for me, and I grew as a songwriter and a lyricist."
Unlike his previous release, "Now You're Gone" took nearly a year and a half to write and record. James explains: "The album actually started as another NaSoAlMo project, but at the end of the month, I decided I just couldn't declare it finished. It was too good and too important to me to rush. So I kept working. I've decided that working under NaSoAlMo's tight constraints works great for me as a writer because it really forces me to focus, but it's no way to record an album."
"Now You're Gone" is James' take on the "breakup album". "I knew I was going to write about this relationship sooner or later," James says. "I decided this was the right time... I wanted to write again, and everything ended long ago enough that I had a bit more perspective on it, but not so far away that I was emotionally detached." The album is a multi-layered and passionate paean to love, loss, and heartache, and features recurring musical and lyrical themes. James invoked many musical styles to convey the range of emotions he went through towards the latter days of the relationship, ranging from dreamy orchestra to pop vocal harmonies to harsh metal.
The album was entirely self-produced and recorded at James' home studio. James enlisted a slew of local talent to help achieve his creative vision. "I'm pretty self-sufficient in the studio as a musician, but it was great to be able to bring in a lot of really talented people I know who could do certain things I either can't do or can't do as well as they could," James explains. "It gave me the best of both worlds: I was able to maintain control over my music, but still make use of other people's talents, ideas, and perspective. It's always good to work with other people because everyone sees and hears things differently and brings something new to the table. It also made the vocal harmonies a lot richer to bring in more vocalists than just myself." Most of the contributors were people James had been in bands with before. "It was a lot of fun to work with my old friends again, and I think working on this project was a positive experience for everyone," James says. "I'm very fortunate to know such talented people, and grateful for all the help I got on this project."
"Now You're Gone" also marks James' first foray into music video, with the video for "Waiting". James explains how the video came to be: "I had Corinne (Pickett) over to record some vocals for the song, and I mentioned to her that I was interested in getting a video made. I'd never done a video before and thought it would be a cool new artistic endeavor, and since I didn't know if I'd be performing live very much, I wanted some means of presenting my music visually. Corinne told me about a film director friend of hers named Mareesa Stertz. She showed me Mareesa's demo reel and I was totally impressed, and Forbidden Love was so close to what I already have in mind for my video aesthetically." James got in touch with Mareesa, and Mareesa wrote the video around the song with James' input. "It's a little different take on the lyrics than what I would have done if I knew how to make a video, but that's part of the beauty of art, it can be interpreted so many ways anyway. I'm really pleased with the results. I feel funny when people congratulate me for the video, when Mareesa and the team she assembled did most of the work, but I'm very proud of it."
It’s October! The leaves are turning brown and orange. The rain is falling more often (unless you live here in the pacific northwest. Then it’s falling no matter what the fucking season!). And the dead are coming back to life in hopes of snagging some candy! And in honor of this unholy month (and by a sheer overdose of coincidence) we have a whole lot of black metal for you! Check it out!
Featuring Reviews Of:
3 Inches Of Blood - Here Waits Thy Doom Aanal Beehemoth - The Forest Paranoid Be’lakor - Stone’s Reach Cosmic Atrophy - Codex Incubo Dalep - 2009 Demo Dream catcher - 2009 Demo Eat The Living - Braaiiins Harness - Prepare For War Legions Of Crows - Cacophonous Aural Wickedness Nebrus - Twilight Of Humanity Protest The Hero - Gallop Meets Earth Ruiner - I Heard These Dudes Are Assholes Sidus Tenebrous - Born From The Dark Rib Stonecutters - Christhammer Tjolgtjar - Ikarkitomidon: Lord Of The Forest Tovarish - Da Tovarish Various Artists - Pressure Zone Vol. 1 Compilation
And An Interview With:
Scott Mosher (From Oceans Of Night)
And as always:
Would you like some *good publicity that's easy, quick, and free? Then send your Demos/EPs/LPs/Vinyl/PROMO MATERIAL (We don't care how old it is, we will review anything! We'll even wear/pimp your merch!) for review to:
E-MetalSpace C/O Chase "Typhon" Smith 4807 SE Boardman Ave Apt 4 Milwaukie, OR 97267
Thank you very much for the kind words! My friend Amy has told me a little bit about you. I like your music and in particular your music video. I'm always glad to see fellow performer taking the craft seriously and making a career of it. It can be a challenging and rewarding choice. Please keep me updated when you are playing shows in the bay area, I would love to come see one!
It’s that time of the month again! No, I don’t mean that the dudes have to stakeout on the couch for a week and the womens have the craving for Bon Bons and human flesh! I mean it’s time for a new E-MetalSpace blog!!!
Featuring Reviews Of:
Born Of Osiris - A Higher Place Divine Heresy - Bringer Of Plagues Doubts Cast Shadows - The Downfalls Exence - Hystrionic Fallen Man - Mercenary Fischel’s Beast - Commencement Impending Doom - The Serpent Servant Ivan Mihaljevic - Sandcastle Kadavar -Kadavar Kansas City Gunfight - Villains Municiapl Waste - Massive Aggressive Murder On The Dancefloor - 2009 Demo Oceano - Depths Oceans Of Night - The Shadowheart Mirror The Pax Cecilia - Blessed Are The Bonds Urto - Upside Down
And as always:
Would you like some *good publicity that's easy, quick, and free? Then send your Demos/EPs/LPs/Vinyl/PROMO MATERIAL (We don't care how old it is, we will review anything! We'll even wear/pimp your merch!) for review to:
E-MetalSpace C/O Chase "Typhon" Smith 4807 SE Boardman Ave Apt 4 Milwaukie, OR 97267
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ I’m here to leave a rose for you … And to thank you for your friendship I hope you’re enjoying our original songs. Take care and keep in touch, It will always be lovely to hear from you. ----<--@ May blessings & happiness always be yours You’re precious, unique and deserve every happiness.
stranger....lol!