EXEK are one of the most industrious and fascinating bands in Australia, producing records that emerge like a metallic mirage; iridescent, reflective and totally idiosyncratic. Through carefully constructed overdubs, frontman Albert Wolski manifests soundscapes that are at once dissociative and psychedelic. EXEK are the Hawaiian Baby Woodrose seeds of underground Australian music.
There’s a debilitating sense of dread as you choose what type of yoghurt to buy; the dream too mundane, the world too turbulent. You’re lost and in the middle of something familiar. Four cockroaches crawl across the ground. Full fat with a hint of vanilla bean. Nice.
On EXEK’s 6th album to-date, ‘The Map and the Territory’, the group threads intricate layers in their typical style, songs somehow sprawling and restrained; cascading drum beats pattering against Albert’s distinct melancholic reprisals, while weeping guitar lines and atmospheric synths build to dreary, if satisfying climaxes. There is no band which quite sounds like EXEK and they sit totally at-odds with any of the broad umbrella ‘post-punk’ being dished out at the moment.
A lot of such music thrives in fragmenting the everyday, but few are able to as consistently conjure the actual ‘feeling’ of modernity and post-internet/late-capitalism unease as EXEK. “The jpegs arrived / admired by all / for capital gains / jpegs of lifeboats will keep you afloat” sings Albert on ‘The Lifeboats’, with a driving kosmische-beat in the background, and minimal, moody keys laying the foundation. One of the tracks which feels like the freshest *cough* territory for EXEK is ‘Seamstress Requires Regular Breaks’, featuring fantastic jazz drumming at the start and end and creepy, ghoulish instrumentation. Albert sings over the top “the first cities fell / And considered now failures / K after K in the rain with no awning / Infinite growth but look at me yawning”.
I sent Albert some questions over email and he graciously answered them! He writes about the album, EXEK’s process, and some of the different influences that weave their way into the songs.
Stew:
From my understanding of how EXEK songs are crafted, you start with a collage of different drum beats, piece them together and then go about a lot of overdubbing. Can you speak to how that process has changed for you over the course of your many albums, if at all? What are you conscious of when going over the beats/what are you selecting for? Do you communicate anything to Chris beforehand, or just let him go and see what comes of it?
Albert:
Our MO of not being much of a ‘jam band’ hasn’t changed much at all. When we track drums, Chris brings ideas to the table. Other times I come in with ideas and either show Chris on the kit, or better yet, beatbox it out for him to transcribe. “Ut tz ta tz ut ta ta ut ut tish”. It helps being a really good beatboxer.
Stew:
What’re some of your favourite rhythmic parts of ‘The Map and the Territory’, in that sense?
Albert:
Definitely has to be the jazzy instrumental intro and outro for Seamstress.
Stew:
I really love how EXEK is able to conjure the uncanny, the tension between fragmented matter-of-fact, everyday phrases and a general unease. Felt that especially on ‘Glow of Good Will’ and ‘It’s Just a Flesh Wound Darling’! Such a dynamic reminds me of feelings I get from consuming film more-so than music, and was wondering if there is a cinematic influence permeating this record? If so, what sort-of directors, composers, or general film inspiration inspires your music-making? Do you have, even subconscious, a visual reference-point or framing when putting together the songs?
Albert:
Firstly, thanks. The uncanny is fascinating - I love it. It proves that there are multiple truths, as you can arrive at one answer, and simultaneously arrive at another. And EXEK def play on that. You can have a visual reference, like someone glowing because of their good will, but maybe they’re just jacked on Red Bulls. That track has a simple melody. Kinda sweet and innocent. But there’s that metallic scraping sound littered throughout the song. Actually throughout a lot of tracks on the record. They remind me of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which is an amazing soundtrack, created through scaping pitchfork prongs along the ground. So yeah, obviously love movies, but there wasn’t much that was a conscious influence. Moreso unconscious, and making the connections later.
Stew:
In the press release it mentions that the album is “perhaps less ambitious than some previous EXEK releases. In a positive way, obviously.” For you, what characterises this release as being “less ambitious”? Was it a conscious choice prior to starting recording, or something that was emergent as you put it together?
Albert:
The last record, “Advertise Here” had one song that shared the same beat as the following song, so together they went on a journey for over 12 minutes. They were all kinda dense songs. I think I did want to clean things up this time round, so there’s definitely less of a journey with the songs off the new album. They remain grounded, and that’s reflected in the lyrics and even song titles too (On the Ground Floor, Lifeboats, etc...).
Stew:
With a process so defined by layering and intricate overdubs, how do you know when an EXEK song ‘is done’ so-to-speak?
Albert:
Usually I get lost in the sauce, and end up adding waaaay too much shit. Then I remove about 90% of the tracks, and that’s when I know it’s done.
Stew:
How were the lyrics for ‘The Lifeboats’ written? What was the context for that song’s subject matter and the recurring mention of chickenpox?
Albert:
The song shares its title with Succession season 1 episode 3. But it’s mainly about getting the wrong kind of help, such as advice from a goose, or a jpeg of a lifeboat instead of an actual lifeboat. The chickenpox referencing was just making the most of wordplay. Alliteration and loose internal rhymes. Skim, skin, pics, pox. Just utilising words that popped in when I was trying to sound out vocal melodies for the song. And then the challenge is to join the dots and make sense of those sounds as words within the context of the song.
Stew:
What song on the album took the longest to come together, or was the most annoying to get ‘right’? Why was it a troublesome number to finish?
Albert:
Lifeboats for sure. Felt like I was tweaking those guitars for about 9 months. For real, no exaggeration. Simple melody and really fun to play. But near impossible to land on a timbre that I was happy with. I think I got there in the end. I can’t remember. Maybe I just gave up lol.
Stew:
What are some of your favourite performances from another EXEK member on the album?
Albert:
Don’t make me pick. I can’t pick a favourite. They are all my precious children.
Stew:
How many takes do you end up doing for the various dubs on the record? Is it a very organised or more organic process with getting contributions to various parts? How much is clearly communicated versus just vibed out?
Albert:
Sometimes hardly any takes. I like the rawness of the first pass through. Lot of EXEK records still have the ‘demo’ / ‘temp’ tracks in there. And regarding the process, sometimes it is a clear vision. Other times, I’ll get Brocchi to come in to play some synth stuff, and press record before he’s even heard the song. Really throw him in the deep end. It’s sink or swim. And he always swims.
Stew:
What influence does the ‘space’ in which EXEK’s music is made and performed, influence it? That is, does Melbourne as a place or atmosphere permeate the sound in some sort-of way? Does touring other countries and spending time playing the songs in different contexts influence the way you conceive them and then later, make new songs?
Albert:
Yeah big time. We’re all products of our environment. Wherever that may be. The inner north can be heard throughout our records. Trams squealing thru the intersection of Elgin and Lygon. Rainbow Lorikeets screaming near the commission towers in Collingwood. There’s also recordings from around the world too, like talking escalators in Matsumoto, Japan, and church bells from Kotor, Montenegro. I’ve been kinda slack with field recordings lately. There’ll hopefully be more of that stuff on the next record.
Stew:
I’ve seen you guys play at both Jerkfest and Golden Plains, and they were quite different environments for your sound. I’m curious, from your perspective, what’s been some of your favourite shows you’ve played over the last year or so, and what made them good? What’s the ideal set-up for an EXEK show?
Albert:
Playing with some good bands usually results in a good show for us. Cos we need to lift our game in order to not get washed over. It’s kinda like sport.
Stew:
Do you listen back to EXEK records at all? How do you go about reflecting on an album once it’s finished and internalise the lessons from previous LP’s? What were the main takeaways from earlier works that found their way into the process, or sound, for this one?
Albert:
We all listen to so much EXEK that we are unable to share our Spotify end of year wrapped up summaries. Sad but true.
