Melbourne-based artist Gonzo Jones is pretty fresh on the scene. After stints collaborating with Client Liaison and City Calm Down, he decided to step out solo — a few days ago. That’s when his debut EP Misty Dreams dropped; a sleepy, laconic record that begs to be taken to the beach. The tracks slip between genres like you slip in and out of conscious — before your alarm brings it all crashing down. Each tune is connected by a distinct longing for sunny days and short warm nights. In the first clutch of winter, we can relate.
Usually talking about people’s dreams is so boring, but after listening to this I found myself wondering what you’ve dreamed about recently.
I’ve only woken up with hints of what I’ve dreamt about this week. I have the falling dream a lot, but I always wake up before I hit the rocks at the bottom. I think a lot of people have that one, I’ve heard that if you hit the bottom in your dream then you die in real life, but I don’t think that’s true. Unless dreams are like the Matrix and if you die in your dreams then you die in reality.
Supposedly, according to the pop-psychology, dreams are a way to process subconscious thoughts. Is all that falling is trying to tell you something?
I think people are too straightforward with this stuff, they don’t give themselves the chance to wander. Whether you’re asleep or awake, it’s about giving yourself the chance to drift off somewhere else and when you come back to reality you might find a change in yourself. That’s what the first single Misty Dreams is about — obsessing about somebody and wondering where that person goes to lay their head, what their room looks like. I was obsessed with this girl at the bakery and would always buy a chicken sandwich, even though they weren’t that good, and wondered who she was outside the bakery.
What spaces inspire you, just bakeries?
The most inspiring place I’ve ever been is Teufelsberg in Berlin. It translates to Devil’s Mountain and it’s the old US NSA listening station on the edge of the city. It was on top of an indestructible Nazi college and there are huge observation towers that were listening rooms. Acoustically they’re perfect. If you hit a note vocally it just reverbs, everything echoes beautifully for about 30 seconds.
What do you always think of — a phrase or a bit advice — when you’re working?
There are people who create and there are people who tear down. This is the kind of industry where you have to put yourself out there and be stable enough to take criticism. You can’t be afraid of what you want to do.
Credits
Text Erin McConchie
Photography Chip Mooney