Name: Nick Littlemore
Nationality: Australian
Occupation: Producer, singer, songwriter
Current release: PNAU, Nick's band with Peter Mayes, Sam Littlemore, have a new single out: “Stars” features Bebe Rexha and Ozuna and is available via TMRW/Columbia.
Recommendations: The music of the two leaves project is a collaboration between many artists and myself, we’ve been busy making non traditional music for the listener.
Then there are the glorious paintings of Gigi Rose Gray.

If you enjoyed this Nick Littlemore interview and would like to stay up to date with his music, visit the official websites of Empire of the Sun and PNAU.

For an interview of one of his collaborators, read our Tim Lefebvre interview.



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?
 
Nothing much happens in my body.

Some songs I’ve written will give me goosebumps - that’s how I know they hold power within them greater than may first appear.

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?

Music held me long before I held her, she was ever present. People would talk to me of her power but I had little understanding of it, only that it was something my soul needed in abundance. Songs held an extraordinarily emotional connection that I couldn’t quite quantify.

One of the earliest songs that I loved was “Nothing's gonna stop us now” written by Dianne Warren.
 


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?

They were my exploratory years in music, psychedelics, social living. I couldn’t get enough of those experiences and I pushed hard to keep having them and then spent my adult life trying to recapture the feelings.
 
Over the course of your development, what have been your most important instruments and tools and how have they shaped your perspective on music?

The computer in terms of tools is by far the most useful. Then my notebooks.

And lastly my curiosity which seemingly knows no limitations when I find a new obsession.
 
What, would you say, are the key ideas behind your approach to music and what motivates you to create?

“Ever New Joy” and the pursuit of that.
 
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 wanted it to have story and landscape, I wanted it to be warm, to be a comfort or to amplify whatever emotions were happening at that time.
 
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”?

Tripping in the mountains at 3am I woke to the sound of a million pine needles freezing over and clanging together, making the most beautiful chimes I’ve ever heard.
 
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 love extremes. I am not looking for fulfillment in music, or in my own compositions but moreover I want an atmosphere that I may dwell in, journeying me forward
 
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?

Following the energy, it tells you where to go, although it can take time to speak up and give directions.

It’s often clear, when it finally reveals its intention to you.
 
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?

Make some chords, even just one chord or a bass line, forget them and try singing over the top in half speed, play back in real time and pitch the vocal down an octave.

Then, listen to what was recorded and look for the mistakes that feel melodic and pertinent/ essential.
 
Sometimes, science and art converge in unexpected ways. Do you conduct “experiments” or make use of scientific insights when you're making music?

I have designs in this regard. I want to go further and build out a sonic farm ... can’t say too much about it yet
 
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?

I find creating can steal one’s time away, making normal life tricky to navigate. Nothing feels as good as music sounds
 
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?

Most of it is mundane. It’s just that in the process one is often visited by spirits of the dead, it’s an open line to the other side .
 
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?

I don’t well up over music, maybe in a live setting.

There are plenty of records that hit me hard … "The Twelfth of Never" by Nina Simone is one for sure.
 


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

I would like music to reach a place where it can open the doors to other dimensions and levels of consciousness