Centred around his classical and Brazilian Jazz guitar style and unique voice, Geelong’s Rama Jordon’s music and performances are diverse and dynamic.
Making a name for himself with his ballads and bouncy instrumental breaks, his use of experimental applications of musical devices and the results of an expressive and colourful experience for all, Rama Jordon has captured our attention with his brand new gospel-esque 10-minute track ‘Wings’. We sit down with Jordon for a quick chat.
Hey Rama, thanks for taking the time to chat with Forte! First up, can you give us a brief description of yourself and your music?
Hey, thanks for having me. I’m a singer-songwriter/composer. My music is primarily informed by my Classical/Jazz guitar style and is kind of a World/Folk/Jazz fusion. This, of course, is brought to life by the trio I perform with; Jordan Deneka (Bass) and Milo Emmanuel (Drums).
Congrats on the release of ‘Wings’, your new explosive ten-minute journey with dark and deep lyrics, conveyed with un-tamed expression. Talk us through the creative process of this?
Well ‘Wings Intro’, I actually started writing many years ago but was waiting until I had more to say. The project was then re-birthed nearly a year ago when I found myself in a rather dark place. For me, the piece was and is a release of a lot of built-up tension, and very emotional, hence it became quite dramatic, even theatrical, from the sweet and nostalgic vocals and melancholic melodies, to the crashing drums and wailing Klezmer-esque clarinet.
We get a lot of gospel-esque, alt-jazz, folk vibes from this track – where did you draw inspiration for this track?
I think that the gospel vibes, the same as In the Sun, come from my love of dramatic and religious music. I spent a lot of my high school years singing in choirs, working with vocal instructor Lynda Morrow, who pretty much taught me how to sing from scratch, and has had a massive influence on my musical development.
It’s got a lot more elements than your previous works on the album In The Sun. Were you conscious of experimenting with new sounds or was this a natural progression for you?
I had so much fun creating In the Sun as a seventeen-year-old in my bedroom, and I love the stripped-back intimacy of the record, however, this piece just needed to be bigger, I wanted more colours and a more diverse soundscape. One of the biggest things was just being able to work with Milo Emmanuel on the drums, I’m no drummer and he just fleshed out the piece beautifully, and with so much expression.
Is ‘Wings’ a good indication of what is to come next?
Yes. There is a lot more to come next year that is of a similar aesthetic nature, possibly darker and more experimental.
We are living for the abstract album artwork by Hannah Metwally– can you tell us a bit about that? Did you have any direction in terms of concept and design?
Hannah is a good friend of mine and I absolutely adore her work. I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted, but I knew she could do it. I gave her an mp3 of some of the guitar parts and lyrics and told her to paint. What she came up with blew me away, and is absolutely perfect for the music.
Release: ‘Wings’ is out now on all streaming platforms.
