Robin Jax, through his solo work as RobinPlaysChords, one-half of the transatlantic duo The Companions, and founder of Tiergarten Records, has spent years trying to come to some sort of reckoning with the person he was, the person he could have been, and the person he wanted to become. ‘Unmasking’ is an album about autistic self-realisation, rooted in geography, humanity, flesh, blood and bone, tempered by world events that have proven that reality is stranger than fiction. 'Unmasking' is a journey of discovery, played out from the dark in the hope of finding a light to shine upon it. It is the end result of coming to realise multiple, complex personal truths.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hello RobinPlaysChords. What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
Hello! I’d like to qualify that I make a great musician *for RobinPlaysChords*. When writing your own music, you have to reach a point where you can only be yourself, even when you try to be someone else.
I’m lucky to be considered good enough to work on other projects too. I guess that my ears are fairly intuitive and I’m prepared to approach things in multiple ways, no matter how unorthodox. I recently did a project with Spectra Arts Company where we recorded several samples of the percussive properties of a 250 year-old tree. I’ve sang with bees in Coventry Cathedral and performed in large ensemble pieces. I have range.
Who inspired you to make music?
The list is endless and has no real starting point. A lot of the inspiration comes from listening to music, expressing my feelings to it with movements, and feeding the feeling of those movements back into my own instruments. My brother played guitar before me and sibling rivalry drove me to learn to play in a different way. “RobinPlaysChords” as an artist name was derived from that, because that’s what I chose to play more of as a guitarist.
I tend to have a short RobinPlaysChords FFO that covers all the bases – Placebo, Cocteau Twins, Sigur Rós, Low, Zelienople, Swans, YOB, Planning for Burial. That sounds like a fairly heavy bunch, but the influences – and the comparisons – come from pretty much everywhere. I’m writing this on a train and the sound of the motors, the vibrations of the tracks below, that’s also music to me.
Your latest release is 'Unmasking'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
The record was pretty much written before the following happened.
I moved to the city (Birmingham). An international pandemic began. Moved back out of the city. The Russian Federation invaded Ukraine, which directly affected my family and friends. Life gave out a lot of lemons and not all of them were fit for lemonade.
Can you shortly describe each of the tracks that are on the album?
Archipelago = a musical lighthouse
The Dream = fireworks and chiaroscuro
Miroslava = love, forever
Able Archer = war and tyranny
A Tall White Fountain Played = autistic self-discovery
How do you stay up-to-date with the latest musical trends?
With great difficulty! Then again, I’m mostly spotting trends to avoid being swept up in them. The world’s best A&R figure is Christopher Bynes (aka mynameisblueskye/Lightning Pill/blank videotapes/@cosmicblueautie), who is a verified fountain of knowledge and one of the best musical allies you could wish for.
What makes you different from others?
I am autistic. I can sing more Ukrainian than speak it in a regular sentence.
What’s an average day like for you?
Between 8am and 5pm is wildly different every day. The consistent parts of my day are either side of those hours – wake up at 6.30, shower, eat breakfast and be ready by the aforementioned 8am. I try and get an online yoga class in every day around 5 to 6pm. In between, my day could involve anything from a day of extreme admin, posting CDs halfway around the world, writing proposals for funding new creative work or travelling to day jobs.
Last year, I nearly lost any resemblance of a working creative practice. I’m clawing that back somewhat.
Please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans.
Often by oversharing my gratitude. I’ve definitely played live shows where I’ve won over the previously unconverted, then relayed an overly detailed response about the show, the music, the pedal board or anything else which then makes them second guess their newfound emotional connection. Talking to people is hard!
What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
Make sure your path doesn’t involved standing directly on anyone – the view from wherever you’re gazing from isn’t worth crushing others underfoot.
What are your plans for the future?
Live to see a fully liberated Ukraine, enjoy more years of marriage and to make righteous noise.