The Fracture is an American electronic duo comprised of J Young and Jordan Gilliam. Formed in 2020 as a long-distance collaboration from the two producer’s studios in Bellingham Washington and Grand Rapids Michigan, The Fracture creates instrumental music that recalls the height of late 90’s trip-hop and fuses delay and reverb drenched post-rock riffs against a lush atmospheric backdrop.
So firstly, how would you describe your sound?
J: Well for this project we drew pretty heavily from our love for late 90's trip-hop and shoe-gazey stuff. The result is what I generally describe as a mix of post-rock and trip hop. Everything is pretty beat-driven but our love for heavier guitars and alot of delay and reverb keeps the music from sitting too squarely in the electronic genre.
What’s a typical day in the studio like for you?
J: My studio time is almost always at night after I finish the fight to knock out my other responsibilities so I dont have the luxury of endless creative space. I really dont mind because it's forced me to get pretty efficient with my studio time. I usually come in with a bunch of sticky notes and reminders I have accumulated on my phone throughout the day about ideas I have been dying to try and it usually just works.
Do you have to be in a certain mood to write a song?
J: Definitely not. I have come to accept that with my workflow, these songs are more "constructed" than "written" and I'm ok with that. Jordan and I both have kind of an unspoken agreement that we just give the songs what they are asking for and sometimes that starts with a working title or a visual image that we are trying to bring into focus. I'll admit that sometimes I have to re-acquaint myself with the vibe that the song is asking for at the beginning of a studio session to make sure that I don't color too far outside of the lines but it has less to do with my mood and more about discovering the song as it's coming to life.
Who are your three biggest musical inspirations?
J: Johnny Marr has always been the most persistent influence on my guitar playing and The Smiths are like the center of my musical map. His playing style is something that I can't get out of my DNA no matter how hard I try. Deftones are for sure in the big 3 as well mainly because of their commitment to stick together as a band. I love that they are honest to a fault at times about how they don't always get along but they have still find a way to make it work. You can hear that tension and the authenticity in everything they do and I think that's why they are still so relevant... it's because they are the real deal. I would have to choose Massive Attack as my third if I only get 3. They are like the blueprint for THE FRACTURE in so many ways which is daunting in a sense because to me, no one has ever overshadowed what they did yet we all stand in their shadow whether you like it or not.
Who is the best band you've ever seen play live?
J: Hands down, Radiohead on the Moon Shaped Pool tour. It was an absolute clinic on live performance professionalism. They clearly had zero-tolerance for compromising their creative vision and it was stunningly apparent in everything about the show.
What’s the toughest part of the industry for you?
J: Toughest? I would say it's the sense that as an indie musician you are truly out here on your own these days and survival 100% is up to you. I grew up in a period where artists still had a chance to get picked up by a label for support but I have no illusions those times are basically a by-gone era for most of us. I also miss real record stores. They are getting hard to find.
What’s the most enjoyable part of the industry?
J: In many ways, the grind of being truly independent is also what I enjoy the most. It's a paradox because knowing that the music industry we knew growing up is somewhat gone has removed the middle-man from the equation. If you told me that when I was 15 that someday, I would be able to self-produce an album and have it distributed internationally for a couple hundred bucks, I would have given my left kidney to skip right to that future.
What’s in store for you for the rest of 2021?
J: Just looking forward to the album coming out and getting started on the next one! We were asked to write the music for a short documentary film which is super exciting because that is something we hope to do as much as possible in the future.
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