Asobi Seksu to perform dream pop at Bishop bar

For the second time in just a few months, Brooklyn dream pop group Asobi Seksu will headline at the Bishop, going on after local phenoms Chandelier Ballroom and Stagnant Pools. Live Buzz recently had the chance to speak with lead guitarist James Hanna about what being in a band for 10 years has taught him and the making of Asobi Seksu’s most recent album, 2011’s “Fluorescence.”

LIVE BUZZ This is your second time at the Bishop in five months. What made you decide to come back so soon?

HANNA That’s a good question. I don’t know, exactly, but it was on our roster. I think with our other show, something weird happened and it got cut off early, so maybe that’s why. There was like a noise problem with the comedy place next door (Comedy Attic), and we got cut off early. We probably played half a set, like 30 minutes or
something.

LB Asobi Seksu has been around for more than 10 years now. What have you guys learned in that time, either with performing or making records or seeing your music scene evolve?

HANNA I just realized that I just need to be happy with what I’m doing, and that’s kind of the most important thing. It’s pretty simple, but I guess it’s just reality. If the kind of shit I’m doing isn’t making me happy, I gotta stop doing it.  When I was younger, I didn’t really know anything, and I was very happy just to play, period. And at the same time, consistently dissatisfied, like before we started. But I don’t know how that works.

LB When you guys started out, it was right after the initial tenures of shoegaze bands such as My Bloody Valentine and Smashing Pumpkins. And now shoegaze is making a comeback of sorts, and then there’s also dream pop, which is kind of like its cousin.
Beach House and Pains of Being Pure at Heart, for instance, seem to be two of your contemporaries. What artists did you guys originally draw from the most, and which ones today are you fans of?

HANNA We just started using the term dream pop because I didn’t like the term shoegaze. But you know, it’s fine. I was a child of the ’90s, but I like a lot of music.
A lot of shoegaze bands were OK and some of them were really good. I mean, Slowdive was a great band and obviously My Bloody Valentine was a great band and Cocteau Twins was a great band. And you know, then there’s a bunch of OK ones.

But that’s just my kind of music. I like atmospheric, kind of emotional, pretty music.

I like female vocals, so that’s just what I gravitate toward.I feel really out of touch recently, to be honest with you. Beach House, I like their first two records, I don’t think I heard the last one at all, but she (Beach House singer Victoria Legrand) has a really
good voice. I think there’s something much more organic about them than us, which
is different. There’s something a little more — I don’t want to say ’70s, but there’s just something a little more organic. I don’t know if I would consider them contemporaries.
I think they’re a little bit of a different genre, but I think she has a good voice. I’m a fan of female vocals, so if a female vocalist is good, there’s a good chance I’m gonna be OK with the band.

LB You guys have a number of music videos that incorporate lots of blur and bright color, which are words I think are also fitting to your music. How involved are you in filming music videos, and how much attention to detail goes into that?

HANNA For me, not much. Yuki (singer Chikudate) is kind of the band liaison for the visual side of things. I’m kind of just an opinion in the background when she wants one. I really leave that stuff up to her, I trust her. Videos are cool, but at the same time, they’re kind of bullshit.

They’re just little commercials that you have to do. I think they can have cool moments, but in general, it’s like, who sits around watching music videos, you know? That’s all.

LB Your most recent studio album was called “Fluorescence.” I thought the production for that was a little cleaner than your last work. How was the making of Fluorescence different than your other albums?

HANNA “Fluorescence” was a good one. It was easy to make. The one before that, for whatever reason, was just a challenge.

I don’t know, it was fun, we had a lot of good times. It’s always a little stressful toward the end. You wonder whether it’s any good or not.

But I enjoyed “Fluorescence.” I guess the production was pretty bright. The idea was something really vivid and crisp and bright, you know? So I guess that’s why it sounds clearer.

LB Do you guys have any recording plans for the near future in the works?

HANNA No, we’re really just writing music. We’re just getting ready for a few shows, and I think we’re going to Japan and then that will probably be it for shows until we have a new album.

I’m really just enjoying writing music. The album’s in like the pre-pre-conception stages. But I mean, eventually.