Pranatricks, a genre-bending multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter brings us an entrancing, experimental sound in his latest single ‘Cobras.’ The track is part of his upcoming album ‘Elements Of.’ He taps into the expanse of psychedelic rock and channels that boundlessness and energy into an intricate geometry of melody and message. The music pulls you in and grips your attention from start to finish, consuming you in its depth and dynamism. Lost in the Manor interviews Pranatricks about his creative approach, musical influences, and future plans.
Tell us about yourself and how Pranatricks came about.
Pranatricks formed after my band broke up around 2010. I released a couple of projects on Bandcamp in 2011. They were little snippets of ideas that I had floating around, sort of experimental, art house, skater vibes. After that, I just really kept recording ideas over the years and amassed a couple of hard drives worth of tunes. 2020 came around and I made the decision to start releasing music on a consistent basis. I wrote and produced Cherished my debut album that was released last year (2023) and now am ready to release a follow-up project.
Introduce us to your latest single ‘Cobras’. What inspired you to write this song?
I wrote this song around 2011 a time when I was exploring a lot of my musicality. It was really an exercise in production as I ran an electric guitar through a circuit-bent synthesizer which created this really interesting sound, which makes up the instrumentation. Once the swell of distortion was there the vocal melody came after lots of listens. I was recording out of this old warehouse in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, it was scheduled for demolition but somehow, I got the keys to it. It made for a great recording space and allowed me to dive deeper into the philosophical, mystical concepts floating around in my mind.
Describe your creative process. What was the most challenging aspect of writing and composing ‘Cobras’?
I think with this song, it is an outlier in terms of form and structure. It was outside of my comfort zone in terms of my songwriting process. Plus, there is no rhythm section to hold it all together so I wrote it to a click but was sort of estimating where things would fall. It actually had another section to it but I ultimately decided to omit that after revisiting it more recently. I sent it over to Chad VanGaalen last year who had a listen and gave me some feedback, that was really cool of him.
Tell us about the themes and messages running through your upcoming album ‘Elements Of.’
Art in any capacity allows one to access the deepest parts of ourselves. For me, there is an insatiable quest for truth. Through song, those aspects can be revealed, and the layers exposed. Ultimately, I think our work is to let go of all of it; any idea or preconceived notion that we have about what we are, or who we may become. Truth isn’t pretty all the time, it’s grainy and not always clear. Its distortion becomes understood when we accept what is, without reservation. The songs on ‘Elements of’ wrestle with this, at times they want things to be positive and light at other times they meander into the darkness that resides in all of us. Ultimately, love resonates and pervades all things so if we can rest in that, we can begin to trust the outcome more.
Name some of your musical influences and how they have shaped your approach towards creating music.
I first remember listening to old country records that my dad had lying around. There was something in the storytelling of Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Waylon Jennings that was magnificent. I got really into the Beastie Boys when I was about 10 and then followed their 80s hard-core punk influences, Bad Brains, Black Flag, Minor Threat, etc. More contemporary influences include artists such as Chad VanGaalen, Tommy Guerrero, Leslie Feist, Kurt Vile, and Khruangbin. There are so many great artists out there.
How would you describe your music?
Indie, psych, and folk soundscapes pushing into performance art awakening.
What is the one important learning that you would like to share from your artistic evolution over the years?
Just to keep going and learn to do it yourself, it’s more rewarding that way.
What are your plans for the future that listeners can look forward to?
Well, there are plans for a third album, which I’m tracking presently. I hope to release it sometime in 2025.
Discovered via https://app.musosoup.com #sustainablecurator