Posted on February 16, 2010 - by Mark Zonda

The Leisure Society interview

I think that since we talked about’em on these electric pages The Leisure Society doesn’t even need an introduction any more. Great taste for melodies, magnificent arrangements where ukulele and Gretsch guitars meet and strings and flutes, great harmonic voices on melancholic with a little sprout of irony as well on hearworm tunes. We had a little talk with Nick Hemming.
Mark Zonda:  The Leisure Society: how did you decided to start this magical project and who’s in charge for the art of your marvellous sfuff? Really… it’s impressive!

Nick Hemming: I started the Leisure Society about 7 years ago as a solo project. I never wanted to be a front man & it was never initially going to be a proper band, more a vehicle for me to record soundtracks for films. I moved to London in 2007 to play guitar in Christian’s band & he encouraged me to start singing my songs more. We did a few tentative gigs as a duo & the response was so good it just kept growing & growing. Before I knew it we were playing to huge crowds at festivals & doing live radio sessions…. I never thought I had it in me!

Mark Zonda: What’s behind the success of “The last of the melting snow”? Arrangements are simply superb, what came first, the melody, lyrics or the idea?

Nick Hemming: The melody & the lyrics came simultaneously. The writing process for that song is a bit of a blur, I was blind drunk on Vodka, trying to drown my sorrows after meeting my ex-girlfriend’s new partner & then finding myself alone in London on New Years Eve. It was a pretty dark evening but when Christian returned a couple of days later I played him the song & he burst into tears, I knew then that I’d written something good. The recording didn’t happen until about a year later & the arrangement was very meticulously crafted. Just before we were about to mix it I met Helen, her flute part was the icing on the cake.

Mark Zonda: How do you manage to make out such complex yet direct melodies? What about the whole writing process? Some say that the song hints to Beatles imaginery, but I’d call it a Simon & Gartfunkel “America Pt.2″.  What’s the truth?

Nick Hemming: I’m a big fan of Simon & Garfunkel & The Beatles so I’m sure they are both huge influences. I’m not really sure, I try not to think about it too much, I find that if I try to over analyse the creative process it dries up. I just try to write honest songs from the heart… but without being overly sentimental.

Mark Zonda: Your songs has got so many intruments on it. Can you count anything you used for the amazing “A matter of time”? How can your songs be so complex and emotionally enanching?  It’s still a mistery to me!

Nick Hemming: Matter Of Time is the biggest arrangement on The Sleeper. Christian & I worked on that one for hours & hours & hours! My love of orchestration comes from listening to The Beach Boys. When I first heard Good Vibrations as a child it confused & amazed me at the same time, I didn’t know quite what was going on but I LOVED it. It’s definitely what excites me most about music, the way different instruments combine to produce textures & sounds. You can expect even more from the next album. It’s gonna be bigger & darker sounding I think.

The Leisure Society -”The Last Of The Melting Snow”

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