Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
Dustin Wong has released so many solo albums, there’s probably no need to specify that he used to be in a band called Ponytail. Yet it is interesting to look back for comparison’s sake. He’s gone from the Baltimore group’s spastic rhythms and hyper energy to dreamy loops and improvisation. He’s also moved to Japan. I look forward to hearing his meditative and loopy but intellectual jams in a live setting when he returns to the United States next week, accompanied on many dates with his frequent collaborator and Japanese subculture icon, Takako Minekawa. Here’s the scoop…
MW: You’re on a roll with new releases. Have you been out of your mind creatively or do the releases just happen to be coming out around the same time?
DW: 2012 was a really productive year for me, writing-wise. Only a moment after finishing the mix for the last album, Dreams Say, View, Create, Shadow Leads, I started writing new songs. Since I finished this record I haven’t been writing as much for myself but I have been writing with Takako more, which has been really fun and imaginative.
MW: After leaving Ponytail and doing so much solo work, what is it like to collaborate again? And with Takako Minekawa!
DW: Oh my god, so much fun! Making music with her is like recess, running around the playground. In the beginning, we were definitely trying to figure out how to work together but once we got it going it’s been really amazing. We are working on a bunch of songs right now and hoping to put something out next year!
Dustin Wong has released so many solo albums, there’s probably no need to specify that he used to be in a band called Ponytail. Yet it is interesting to look back for comparison’s sake. He’s gone from the Baltimore group’s spastic rhythms and hyper energy to dreamy loops and improvisation. He’s also moved to Japan. I look forward to hearing his meditative and loopy but intellectual jams in a live setting when he returns to the United States next week, accompanied on many dates with his frequent collaborator and Japanese subculture icon, Takako Minekawa. Here’s the scoop…
MW: You’re on a roll with new releases. Have you been out of your mind creatively or do the releases just happen to be coming out around the same time?
DW: 2012 was a really productive year for me, writing-wise. Only a moment after finishing the mix for the last album, Dreams Say, View, Create, Shadow Leads, I started writing new songs. Since I finished this record I haven’t been writing as much for myself but I have been writing with Takako more, which has been really fun and imaginative.
MW: After leaving Ponytail and doing so much solo work, what is it like to collaborate again? And with Takako Minekawa!
DW: Oh my god, so much fun! Making music with her is like recess, running around the playground. In the beginning, we were definitely trying to figure out how to work together but once we got it going it’s been really amazing. We are working on a bunch of songs right now and hoping to put something out next year!