David Helpling Interview With The Final On Vinyl Podcast

This was a great time tonight speaking with David Helpling about his latest release IN and the vinyl release coming in June!

Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck

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Transcript

Speaker 1 0:03

Hello everybody, this is Keith MuzikMan Hannaleck with the Final on Vinyl Podcast. Tonight we're with David Helpling, and he is here to talk about his new vinyl release coming out, I believe, the first week of June. Is that right, David?

Speaker 0:20

That is correct. That's the plan. Yeah. Thanks for having me.

Speaker 1 0:23

Great. Thanks for coming on board. I appreciate it. And I was just looking at all of your your social networking on Facebook and uh Instagram. And have four thousand eight hundred K plus followers on Facebook. That's a sizable amount of people.

Speaker 0:48

Yeah, and um that's cool. You know, the people following on Facebook and Instagram and Twitter. I think the cool thing about um creating this kind of a music, you know, ambient electronic music, is it is a smaller pond as far as genres go. But the listener the listeners are deep listening, hi-fi audiophile people. Um, and they really are loyal and um really communicate. And uh I I I just I feel very fortunate. You know, I could be in pop music where I'm I'm kind of removed from the listeners, but um I really respond to all the messages and connect with these people, and it's a deep, it's a it's a deep thinking, experiential crowd, which I think is really cool.

Speaker 1 1:37

That is cool, and I think what you get there is loyalty for your following because you are com communicating with them not only through your music but on an individual basis, you know. That's not everybody does that.

Speaker 1:52

Yeah, well, if they if they reach out and say something or have a question, I respond to every single message in in a way that is kind and and thankful. And I think people appreciate communicating with artists they love, especially when things are cool. So yeah, it's uh it's a great community to be in.

Speaker 1 2:13

Yes, I agree. Um, New Age has a lot of sub-genres, and you're in one of them. And I've seen some develop over the years too. I've been around long enough to see that happen too, and I I it just keeps growing and blossoming and reaching into different areas. And if you have that core foundation of New Age, there's so many different things you can do with it. And I also look at it like that's the classical music background, which is the very foundation of really everything, but more so with um instrumental type of music and new age genre. Would you agree or do you think it's something different?

Speaker 2:53

Well, I you know, New Age. Well, when I when I released my first record in '96, New Age was very much a a legit genre. And my first couple records were full-on New Age releases, and they received or were nominated for awards in that category. And then New Age feels like to me that it kind of split off, and the the acoustic um pianos, guitars, and flutes went into New Age, and then all of us electronic artists that used to be called New Age were suddenly not being referred to as New Age anymore. And now I I people are calling me an ambient artist or an electronic artist. Um, but I think, especially within, um, it is very much a New Age album, even though it's very um produced and and electronic, it's got a lot of acoustic stuff in it. Um and genres are are very difficult because I I don't think that my music fits really well into New Age as it uh on its own or into ambient. It's kind of like um epic, cinematic, electronic, new age dream space music, you know, and it's it's kind of hard to explain to people what it is, you know.

Speaker 1 4:11

Yeah. And you know, I like I said, I always give it the credit that yes, it's new age, but it's this, this, and this. And that's okay because new age is first. Everything else is you know, it's like a tree with roots and branches, it just branches off into different areas. And um it any kind of music to me that helps you focus, meditate, relax, or just feel good is uh, you know, I I don't I don't necessarily say it was new age, it's just really good music. But uh obviously my focus for the most part in the reviews I do is New Age and all the subgenres that I I refer to. And yeah, they're all legitimate and they all fit, you know. That's the way I see it today anyway.

Speaker 4:55

Yeah, I'm very proud to be when I am referred to as a new age artist. I'm like, yeah, thank you. You know, I'm very proud of that. Um, and whatever everybody has a different um view or idea in their mind of what new age means, and some people think, oh, you're doing you know, Enya music because they just don't know a lot of new age. Um, or they think, oh, you're doing new age music, therefore you're doing psychedelic drugs in the forest, you know. Um so some people have some people have their own version of that. But yeah, New Age is awesome, and you're right, it is music that in my case, um, I'm creating music that is specifically designed for listeners to have, you know, an eight-minute fantasy for themselves. You know, I write I have long songs and they're epic and they really take you places. And if you're a deep listener, deep thinker, and doing the headphone journeys, um, yeah, new age, new age is great for that. And I think to in this day and age, we need less noise and more vibes. So um, I'm on board. Yeah.

Speaker 1 6:06

I can agree with that. I mean, I have way too much noise going on in between my ears. Um I'm very cerebral. And you know, I I need to empty out. And um two of the things that help me do that and and take away all that is music or going to the movies. I'm focused on those two things, and I'm not thinking about work or all these different things I have in a list in my mind that I need to do. Um and you know, whereas last night I was supposed to talk to you and I totally spaced it out, didn't put it on my phone, and it was like a a wake-up call. Okay, man, you know, you gotta slow down.

Speaker 2 6:42

Um, thank you.

Speaker 1 6:44

Thank God. Thank God you and Beth are gracious and and um really understanding about things like that, how I guess sometimes I don't like to allow myself to be human. I just have to make sure everything's right, you know.

Speaker 6:57

But uh Well, no matter how hard you try, you're always gonna be human to a certain degree. And you know, things happen for a reason, and I think we're talking today because today's the day to talk. So that's and the thing you said about the movies is the same for me. I think um putting on headphones or sitting in front of a giant stereo system and listening to this album in, it's a 90-minute album. It's uh it's on two TVs, it's on two vinyl discs. Um, and to sit in that space and experience that and just sit back and be immersed in a fantasy world, um, going to see a film, you know, maybe depending on the film you see, but for me, going to the theater is almost the same type of experience that my mind and body has as sitting and listening to to music. You know, it's I I definitely see parallels there.

Speaker 1 7:52

Absolutely. And concerts, live concerts really takes me away too. I love it. Oh yeah. Yeah. You know, um, have you released in on CD? Uh, because usually there's a quite a gap between the C D and the vinyl release.

Speaker 8:05

Yes, IN was officially released on April 15th, so that was two weeks ago. And it's on double CD, and it's streaming everywhere, literally everywhere. Um but it's also on double CD, which you can order from ambientelectronic.com, which is the the the website for the record label. Um the record label is spotted peccary music. Um but ambient ambientelectronic.com is where you order the CDs. And actually, people are buying the CDs and they're really into it. Um and everyone, from what I hear, CDs are going away, but there's still a lot of people that like to listen to CDs and collect CDs, especially when the artwork is is awesome. Um, so I I I feel once again fortunate that I'm in a genre where people are are really um respecting and uh loving the physical media, especially the vinyl, which we can talk about that when you want, but this vinyl package is a special one.

Speaker 1 9:12

Well, I definitely want to talk about it because this is the final and vinyl. And you know, um I I'm just anxiously awaiting it now because this is I think what threw me off with this whole process was the fact that I usually have a review done two weeks, even a month before I interview somebody. This is backwards now for me. So it's like I I can't talk about the music because I haven't heard it, but you sure can. And I can't wait to see that LT, you know?

Speaker 9:41

Yeah, I think it's exciting for us to have this talk, and and I can tell you what I think the music is like and what I think the vinyl is gonna be like. And then you're gonna have the vinyl in your hand, and we get to see if it's all true. So that'll be cool.

Speaker 1 9:57

Unfortunately gray, um the that label spotted uh as pecari? Peccari? Spotted pecari.

Speaker 10:04

Spotted peccary. A peccary is a small, like, like um furry little pig, like a little hog, and they only live in the desert in Arizona. Um and there are no spotted ones. They made that up, but yeah. I never knew that.

Speaker 1 10:20

I think there's something new every day. I think they're a wonderful label, and they really um tend to your needs, you know, in this genre. And uh I understand you're really excited about the artwork and the presentation. Is the album a different color as well?

Speaker 10:37

Um, yeah, the discs themselves, um, it you've seen the cover, correct? The cover art of the um um the cover art is in these really bright fuchsias and pinks and cyans and blues. So the discs themselves are almost this beautiful pink color with this black galaxy pattern in it. Um I don't know what that's called. This is my first vinyl release, but we did a lot of we spent a lot of time working with the vinyl manufacturer in designing everything. But yeah, the discs are colored and have a pattern, and the artwork in the gatefold on the inside and the outside and the insert and even the black sleeves, everything is just top notch and so beautiful and so colorful. So um it's it's in it's an impressive package. I haven't held it in my hand, but we've done all the mock-ups, and you know, I I worked with uh Daniel Pipitone at the record label who does all the artwork, and they just went above and beyond and spent a lot of time creating the vinyl artwork because we had to submit all of that first a while ago, because vinyl takes the longest right now. Yeah, so even before the CDs were designed, the vinyl was already in production.

Speaker 1 11:54

Okay. So you had to submit artwork. Did you commission an artist to create it based on your ideas?

Speaker 12:01

Or oh, oh well the artwork for the album, um, the concept of the album is very um, you know, in is the name of the album. But uh a lot of the music and the concept is all about the intense and amazing beauty in tiny spaces. Um so I found a photographer that I absolutely love. His name is Brand Campbell, and he's in Portland, Oregon. And he had done some stunning macro photography, and I contacted him to ask if he ever had done commission work. Um and I worked with him for him to take the photographs and capture all of the images for the artwork. Um, and I am proud to that this release that all of the artwork is photographic in origin, even though it's been colored and you know processed to a certain degree, it's all photographic and it's like water droplets on on uh feathers, but it looks almost like a landscape. Just really, really he did some really great work based on my descriptions and and all of that has made it to the vinyl and to the CD artwork and everything.

Speaker 1 13:09

So he was able to you bring your ideas to life. And do you feel that the cover is a mirror of your music in a lot of ways, or is it something you're trying to project that's different, or does it all fit together? You just never know.

Speaker 13:25

I think um I think the cover image looks like the album sounds. Um the album is very produced and very huge. I cannot emphasize that enough. Um and it's very complex with a lot of textures and it's multifaceted and it's brilliant. Um it's shimmering, you know, and the the artwork is just this massive light coming at you with all these tiny details and intricacies, and and yeah, to me the artwork definitely represents the sound of the album, and it would be great to uh to hear your take on that once you experience it. So, what kind of instruments did you play on the album? Um well, I'm primarily um textural, electric guitars, synthesizers, samples, and um quite a bit of percussion, live percussion that's recorded with microphones, um, but a lot of special processing and multi-layering techniques, granular synthesis of guitar textures. Um I did also invite a couple of guest artists to perform on a few songs. I've got uh two wonderful vocalists, a cellist and Benji Wertheimer, who plays the Ezraj, which is an exotic stringed instrument from India. So there's quite a bit going on on this record.

Speaker 1 14:51

So the vocals are the vocals I'm gonna guess are spoken word, just wordless vocals like background and these are our wordless vocals.

Speaker 15:01

Um have you heard of Audi Amos? The records with okay. Well, Miriam Stockley is the voice of Audie Amos, and she also has released a bunch of her own solo records, and she sang on the Lord of the Rings soundtrack and all that stuff. She's uh super amazing, and I was fortunate enough to have her um come in and sing on two tracks, and she has various vocal techniques that I have taken into outer space with really, really um interesting processing to create a very lush sound. Um, and she is one of the two vocalists. The other vocalist was Nidhi Bhatmuli, who's an Indian singer, and that was for um the second track, This Burning Sky, but still wordless. Um, it's a little difficult to explain the music without listening to it. It's so almost intangible at times, you know.

Speaker 1 15:59

Well, that's interesting that you you're taking their voices, which in effect are instruments themselves, and processing that and tweaking that to fit into the other sounds that you're bringing into that one track. I never thought of it that way. I I definitely would love to be a fly in a while to watch you do all this. I just can't imagine everything that went into this, and I definitely wish you all the success. I'm sure you'll you'll do well with this. And did did you have at least 500 copies made of that album?

Speaker 16:27

Uh of the vinyl?

Speaker 1 16:29

Yeah.

Speaker 16:30

Or um, I don't know how many copies they ordered, but probably something like it. It might have been 300, maybe it was 500. I don't know. Um I should know that. That's a right, that's a record label thing, but I'll find out for you for sure. So was that part of an offering that you had for a pre-order, perhaps, or no? Um no, we did we did a a limited edition set that was the double vinyl, the double CD, the 2496 Studio Master Download, and a 12 by 12 fine art print, all hand numbered and signed by me. Um and those all those all sold out. Um there was 50 of those limited, and they all sold. And um to me that's pretty amazing that people are buying the vinyl and excited about it. Yeah. Um, you can still order the vinyl and ask for it to be signed, but it's not part of the limited edition bundle that has the art print and all that stuff. Well, that's gone now, so yes. Yeah, that's great though. Yeah, yeah, I'm I'm really excited about it. And the fact that people are going to be performing the ritual of vinyl listening to this big album is is just the best thing in the world. I grew up in the 70s listening to records as my first musical experience, and um I feel I still I still feel very connected to the ritual of vinyl listening. Um it's coming back. I love it.

Speaker 1 18:01

Well, you stepped in just the right time. It's almost like you're being reborn again and turning back the clock, but moving forward and being reborn again into vinyl. And I'm sure you're gonna want to continue that trend, you know.

Speaker 18:15

Yeah, and and this is my first vinyl release, and because of because of the size of the artwork and like I said, the ritual, um, I don't think I'm gonna want to create an album that isn't on vinyl now. You know?

Speaker 1 18:28

It's too exciting. I know it is. I just uh I always say this on on my talks that I have with you folks is that I'm I'm addicted to it big time. I have boxes, I have an entire room with boxes of vinyl and CDs. It's unbelievable.

Speaker 18:45

I love this.

Speaker 1 18:46

I love this. And it's like I can't tell you how many albums I have that I've only listened to once because I want to open up the next one. That's how crazy it is for me. I mean, probably about 90% of what I have I've listened to once.

Speaker 19:02

That's okay, but the the point is you can walk through your collection and pull out a record and look at it and read it, and you don't have to listen to it to appreciate it. That's true. That's true. As a collector, you know.

Speaker 1 19:15

Yeah. Yeah. The the artwork is extremely important in LPs, and that goes way back. I mean, if you look back into the history of vinyl, when they remember when uh well you probably don't remember, but um you've probably seen some of the jazz albums they had out with the was it the they had a certain look, like stuff that Miles Davis did, and they all had a certain color and look, and and I guess it would depend what label too, but you know, that it was like a trademark the way they presented things, you know.

Speaker 19:48

I'm not I'm not I'm not privy to that. I guess I'll have to go research that and try to see this vibe you're talking about in the book of these jazz releases, you know.

Speaker 1 19:58

Um is this all stuff from the 50s and 60s or uh 50s was yeah, it was a really strong period for jazz, and Miles Davis was really really big and influential. And um there was there was a certain label out there that had those covers. I just can't think of the name of the label at this this moment, but if you look into that, uh you you'll see it, and you'll see that they all had the same nuance to them uh with all their stable of artists, which was kind of interesting how they used that for for uh identification. Oh, that's that label, yeah. They put out great music, I'll buy that. I don't even need to know.

Speaker 20:38

But they sort of sort of branded themselves. I think that's really cool. Um just to go back to what you said, you know, it's if you go through this massive collection of yours and you listen to a record one time, and you you perform the ritual of sitting and putting it on the turn table and listening to it and looking at the artwork, and you put it away and put it back in your collection, and you and let's say you don't listen to it again for a long time, you get to pull it out, and as soon as you pull it out and hold it, you go right back to the moment where you listen to it for the first time. Um, and the music is still gonna be in your mind. So um that's the magic of vinyl, is it's experiential. So you get to to pull out each record you have and connect listening experiences to it or memories to it. Um, and vinyl holds that for us um much more than a tiny square on Spotify, you know.

Speaker 1 21:28

Absolutely. Yeah. This has been great talking to you, especially about vinyl, getting your insight into that and the way you feel about it. And I I'm so glad I had the opportunity to speak to you. And I gotta say, I I can't stand it any longer. I think as I promote this tonight, after we get off the call here, I'm gonna get on Spotify, bring your album up and listen to it while I'm promoting this interview we just had.

Speaker 21:51

So thank you. I I do invite you to do that. Crank it up, and you've got my email, so let's let's talk, let me know what you think. And you're a really cool guy to talk to. So I'm really glad that that this happened. And I think we are supposed to talk today. So it's all good.

Speaker 1 22:07

Yeah, I got my energy back too. I think that's probably what my problem was that I was just totally sapped of all my energy yesterday and you know, the Monday blues.

Speaker 22:18

It it happens. It's uh it's Tuesday, and it's all it's all good. But thanks for talking to me. You're a great guy. You're really fun. Yeah, I I can tell you really appreciate music and especially new age music. Um, and that's where I am. So it's really great to have this connection.

Speaker 1 22:35

Thank you, David. Thank you, thank you so much. It's been a pleasure to speak to you. Very grateful for you and your music and your patience and your time.

Speaker 22:43

All right, thank you so much. Awesome. I look forward to your uh your future. Yes, sir. Take care. Okay, thank you. Bye bye. Bye.