Name: Roger Sellers aka Bayonne
Nationality: Australian
Occupation: Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer
Current release: The new Bayonne album Temporary Time is out May 26th 2023 via Nettwerk.
Recommendations: How Music Works - book by David Byrne; Koyaanisqatsi - minimalist film by Godfrey Reggio

If you enjoyed this Bayonne interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit his official website. He is also on Instagram, Facebook, and twitter.  



When I listen to music, I see shapes, objects and colours. What happens in your body when you're listening? Do you listen with your eyes open or closed?

I am one to listen, as well as perform with my eyes closed, at least most of the time. There’s something about music that is almost demanding of my creative attention.

I do tend to see abstract visions / shapes and colors in different songs as well.

What were your very first steps in music like - and how do you rate gains made through experience versus the naiveté of those first steps?

There’s never really been much of a process to starting a piece of music for me.

It usually starts with a loop or something that I either make really fast or one that I have had a while that can build on. Sometimes it can begin with me playing around on the piano or guitar. Other times it can be born through sampling.

It really just depends on what I’m messing around with at the time.

According to scientific studies, we make our deepest and most incisive musical experiences between the ages of 13-16. What did music meant to you at that age and what’s changed since then?

I’ve not seen those studies but this absolutely makes sense to me. Around 13-14 was when I started writing and recording some of my own ideas.

I fee like this age was immensely important for building my confidence as well as teaching me how to build and layer different instruments.

Over the course of your development, what have been your most important instruments and tools and how have they shaped your perspective on music?

Piano is definitely my main instrument. I also love guitar and drums, but learning the piano was the real catalyst to my creative endeavors. I learned by ear when I was a kid and just fell in love with music by the time I was in high school because of it.

Outside of instrumentation, Pro Tools software played a big part in my musical development. I purchased it in high school and my parents gifted me a computer. This was when I started getting more experimental and daring with some of my earlier work.

What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

Musically, I would say the main takeaways would be melody, repetition, and rhythm. There’s something about repetition that makes one really fall into a groove. It puts you in an almost hypnotic state, much like the music of Steve Reich.



I often find myself asking what is the motivation behind creating. I’ll never know fully but it feels like there is just something within that pushes me to keep making music. I don’t know what I would do without it.

Paul Simon said “the way that I listen to my own records is not for the chords or the lyrics - my first impression is of the overall sound.” What's your own take on that and how would you define your personal sound?

I tend to agree with that. Being a producer as well as a writer, I’m often much more interested in the entire piece and how it all works together, rather than focusing on any particular instrument or lyrics.

Lyrics have never been an extremely important thing to me as a music listener. It’s more about the feeling that it gives you rather than trying to relay any messages.

Sound, song, and rhythm are all around us, from animal noises to the waves of the ocean. What, if any, are some of the most moving experiences you've had with these non-human-made sounds? In how far would you describe them as “musical”?

This reminds me of a take from John Cage about “Chance Music”. The idea is basically that there is sound all around us and it is beautiful and inherently musical.

I’ve been immersed in the activity of sound throughout my adulthood and cherish it greatly. I use a lot of field recordings in my music that tends to create more of an atmosphere.

It really helps to puts the listener somewhere else, which I find fascinating.

From very deep/high/loud/quiet sounds to very long/short/simple/complex compositions - are there extremes in music you feel drawn to and what response do they elicit?

I would say that dynamics are very important to me as a producer.

One of the most difficult aspects of producing and writing music is to find the exact right times to be REALLY loud or REALLY quiet, and dialing the in between.  

From symphonies and traditional verse/chorus-songs to linear techno tracks and free jazz, there are myriads ways to structure a piece of music. Which approaches work best for you – and why?

The majority of Bayonne songs usually stem from one thing, like a loop or a sample of sorts. I love the idea of having one single thing that builds and builds, changing as the layers accumulate.

I’ve found it to be a great method for structuring. Everything is already there so its a matter of adding or subtracting layers to make space for verses, choruses, lyrical hooks, etc.

Could you describe your creative process on the basis of one of your pieces, live performances or albums that's particularly dear to you, please?

This song, “Words” off of my new record is particularly dear to me. I wrote it when I was going through a dark time and it helped me get through.



The song’s lyrics didn’t have an incredibly cohesive concept, but the music and feeling was all there.

I ended up creating a music video using old home video footage that my Dad had collected before he passed away last year. The song was a perfect fit for this because it just felt so sentimental.

Sometimes, science and art converge in unexpected ways. Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

I think that for me I try to make it as intuitive as possible. If I start getting too heady about things, I may become overwhelmed.

My brain has never really worked that way. Even when I was a kid I was much better with the arts than math or sciences.

How does the way you make music reflect the way you live your life? Can we learn lessons about life by understanding music on a deeper level?

In a way, it all comes from my brain so I think it’s fair to say that my life is similarly placed as the way I conduct my music.

I think is mostly a for of therapy for me. Whether its listening to something I really like or composing music, at the end of the day it feels more like a mental and spiritual cleanse, rather than a reflection of myself.

Do you feel as though writing or performing a piece of music is inherently different from something like making a great cup of coffee? What do you express through music that you couldn't or wouldn't in more 'mundane' tasks?

This really depends on the track that I am working on at the time. There really are extremes when it comes to the process of making something. Sometimes it can be really smooth, easy and relatively fast. Other times it can be an absolute headache.

Unfortunately there’s limited ways to control that for me.

Every time I listen to "Albedo 0.39" by Vangelis, I choke up. But the lyrics are made up of nothing but numbers and values. Do you, too, have a song or piece of music that affects you in a way that you can't explain?

There are many songs that affect me in the most mysterious ways. Some of the tracks on Sufjan Steven’s “Enjoy Your Rabbit” have brought me to tears, even though there are barely any lyrics throughout the entire record.



It's just the music that makes me very emotional.

If you could make a wish for the future – what are developments in music you would like to see and hear?

I would like to see more governmental or political actions in order to help musicians and artists of all types feel more economically stable.

There are just too many talented people that don’t get the chance to share their gifts because of fear of impending financial stress. This holds back creativity heavily in our society.