Guillaume : Hello Jem Godfrey. Thank you for taking some time to introduce your new album.

Guillaume : Could you tell us what your album is about?

Jem : It’s about a person on their deathbed looking back at a life that at first seems like it was unremarkable, but upon thinking about it, comes to realise that any chance to live a long and healthy life is a gift and therefore is filled with renewed gratitude and happiness about even having the chance to be alive in the first place. It’s a hopeful message about one’s own inevitable departure and how we should accept death rather that pretend it’s never going to happen. I think it would make for happier nations and less war.

Guillaume : Eight years have passed between "Falling satellites" and your latest album, "Experiments In Mass Appeal". Why?

Jem : Raising a family is more time consuming that I had at first thought it would be. I was also building up 3 other music related businesses to ensure my future survival. Fun as it is, Frost* loses money rather than makes it.



Guillaume : We can feel special efforts on both structure and sounds. How did you compose this album? Was it a collective or a personal work?

Jem : Largely personal. However I did co-write “Heartstrings” and “Signs” with John Mitchell and I think the end results turned out very well. We’ll do more of that in the future I hope.

Guillaume : "Falling satellites" combines pure electronic sounds and more traditional sounds. How did you find this balance, and how musicians did adapt themselves to it?

Jem : I just wrote as I felt I wanted to. I love electronic music and wanted to incorporate it into our sound. I’m not really a big fan of metal guitar, which a lot of modern prog seems to incorporate these days. And the shouty vocal thing, full of rage…I don’t find it particularly inspiring. Us as a band are very keen on ignoring what’s “fashionable” in prog and I think it’s one of the things that keeps us all interested in carrying on with Frost*, we like to see what everybody else is doing and then try to do the opposite of it.

Guillaume : Some members play in other bands. Was it a constraint on the creation of this album?

Jem : Not at all. Nobody’s here that doesn’t want to be, myself included.

Guillaume : What made you think of adding the Chapman Railboard?

Jem : I wanted a broader palette of sound to play with. I’ve always been fascinated by “The Stick” concept, most people in prog play bass with it; many others do more ambient lead stuff. Nobody seems to want to amp it and beat it up. King Crimson was my influence for using it more as a lead instrument. It’s a great arpeggiator for one thing. It also sounds great played with rubber mallets or an EBow, but don’t tell anybody. That’s my contribution to its legacy I hope. Tony Levin and Nick Beggs play theirs correctly and extremely well, I try and break the rules with mine therefore in line with Newton’s 3rd Law.



Guillaume : What makes it better than a guitar?

Jem : 10 strings obviously!

Guillaume : I guess a tour is scheduled... Will we have the pleasure to welcoming you soon in France?

Jem : We’re working on it. 2016 will be the UK part of the album cycle. 2017 will see us head to Europe and, I hope, Japan, South America and back to north America. We’re up for all of it, we’re just waiting for an opportunity to go.

Guillaume : The last word?

Jem : Pamphlet.

Guillaume : Thank you very much.

Jem : Thank you!

Rédigé par Guillaume le 10/05/2016