How spoilt we are indeed these times with such good music around… Needless to say, Perry Hemus has majestically given his contribution to this, providing us with something sounding like an exquisite summer breeze (our album of the month, by the way). And it looks like, this is just the beginning for our Rhodesman…

"We are in a period whereby music needs to be written for the dancefloor and therefore fits into a certain formats. You know 8, 16 bar intro's outro's and such, this does not allow the arranger to build expectation for the track in terms of allowing it to have an introduction other than one to mix in and out.."


I've red somewhere that you're coming from Denmark. What has been your childhood, your environment, your background… Your heroes as a keyboard player ?
Well firstly, I should start by saying that I am not Denish, but I believe through extensive research that my Surname 'Hemus' originates from Denmark (as I've come across a few namesakes recently). I was born and grew up in the Midlands, England and still live and have my studio in Sutton Coldfield which is north of Birmingham. As for my childhood, my father was a recording artist for the BBC and I guess I picked a lot of things up from him. There was always music and keyboards around the house and my father spent every hour writing and arranging music.

Any contact though with the Denish scene ?
Well, no not really, but I love the new music which is coming out of Scandinavia, Labels like April, Hollow, Jazzland, Swedish Brandy etc. are releasing some really captivating music, some real pioneers like Andreas Saag, Christoffer Berg, Jonas Quant, Jonathan Bäckelie, Beady & Bugge et al.

Looks like the whole Scandinavian scene champions intimate atmospheres… Any comment?
Yes. It seems that much of their music allows for intelligent arrangements and textures. Music shouldn't really be something that is constructed by format. Unfortunately, we are in a period whereby music needs to be written for the dancefloor and therefore fits into a certain formats. You know 8, 16 bar intro's outro's and such, this does not allow the arranger to build expectation for the track in terms of allowing it to have an introduction other than one to mix in and out.

Influenced by the Swedish jazzmen ?
You know I still collect Scandinavian Jazz music and have collected Jazz for over 20 odd years now ....I love artists like EGBA, Kornet, Olli Ahvenlahti , Pop workshop, Eero Koivistoinen etc. lots of exciting music was made in Scandinavia in that period...and I'm glad to say still is.

Heard you'll be supporting Bugge Wesseltoft as he comes to UK next April…
Yes, Woodland - my Label - are involved in staging the event on the 17th along with Birmingham Jazz and I will be supporting Bugge in some capacity. We are hoping that Lizzy Parks who sang on the Rhodesmode LP will be able to join us for the session.

What have you done before this first album ?
I've not really released much under my own name, as this is my debut album so I've been involved with lots of other collaborations and live projects and hope to continue doing so in the future.

Funny how there's a sort of latin/brazilian inspired scene in UK (Da Lata, Mr Hermano, Mitch & Dewbury…) In touch with these people ?
The people involved with the projects you mention here are all from the old Skool so to speak. Patrick Forge (De Lata) for instance was someone who influenced my direction in music as I used to travel 200 mile round trip most Sundays in the early 90's to catch his and 'Gilles Petersons' DJ set at Dingwalls. This was an exciting period of time. Likewise, Russ Dewbury who has built up the hugely successful Jazz Rooms Club in Brighton is someone whom I know and respect ....I have been known to make the 300 mile trip 2 or 3 times a year to catch his club nights and Jazz Bop events. Recently, I went to a session featuring Nicola Conte which was 'electric' where I met Ben Mitchell (AKA Mr Hermano) for the first time.

The next single ? Who would you like to work with as remixers ?
The next single will come from the album and feature remixes of the "Changes in ¾" . This is quite a complex piece using some 3/4 rhythm line which is waltz time. This piece has lots of key changes and should be a challenge to the remixers involved.

The next step for you ?
Well, I'm busy remixing for Gerd (4Lux) and Sasso (SingSing) and work has started on some new tunes which will eventually be part of the next album project.

Your label ? The new releases ? Some new acts awaited ?
Our next release for Woodland is actually a re-issue from Potter & Tillman who released an ablum over 20 years ago called 'Space Raptures' which featured Carmen Lundy and has laid unheard for too long. This should hit around April time.
As for new acts, we are to release a 12" and album project by an artist called Bryan Corbett which is a fusion of styles incorporating nu jazz, broken beat and soulful jazz. It's an exciting project and we are looking to go into the studio to complete this towards the end of this month with vocals being added by the wonderful Lizzy Parks.

Any live tour scheduled ?
Not yet as things have been so busy of late and something had to give. In this instance, it was the 'live' project as this needs so much time in organising and co-ordination. I hope it will be something that I will manage to do this year.



PERRY HEMUS Rhodesmode LP + 12" (Woodland Records)
(more info : woodlandrecords.com)