Present yourself to the audience
Hi everyone - I'm Tim. Benign is my music project of dark electro-rock. The debut Benign album "Diaries of Love and War" was released last year - you can check it out at www.benignmusic.com.
The name “BENIGN”...why ?
Ha - good question. It's difficult to articulate it, but basically I like the word. I bounced it around for weeks and it felt right so it stuck. In relation to the music I like to use it ambiguously - it's dark music for good people.
What musicstyle do you prefer personaly and what are your influences ?
I listen to a lot of different music, but predominantly it's electronic rock or experimental rock. I'm a big Depeche Mode fan, Peter Gabriel of course, Gary Numan, and I love NIN and bands of that nature. Both PG and NIN really opened my eyes to what was possible in terms of melding of genres, and how there are really no limits to what you can do in songwriting and production. I also like some singer/songwriter artists which probably influences my writing style. At the moment I'm listening a lot to of Einsturzende Neubauten. It's good stuff.
What's your opinion about the actual electro scene in U.K ?
To be honest I don't pay much attention to the electro scene. My background is more rock, and I am very interested in where rock meets electric. And I haven't had much time recently to keep up with the current goings-on in that scene. In fact it's fair to say at the moment that a lot of my listening is checking out bands that have been around for a very long time that I have only just discovered (like EN) - mostly as recommendations from friends and listeners.
Generally,what is the reaction of the public at the time of your concerts ?
I'll let you know! lol. At the moment Benign is a studio project. I'm currently working hard on the second album at the moment for release next year, and I'd like very much to put a stage band together to promote that. It would be a lot of fun to take the songs (new and old) to the people.
What would be the festival of your dreams ? (with you playing in it of course !!!)
I'd have to say Glastonbury - it's kinda the uber-festival here. Benign on the pyramid stage, Sunday evening... Yes, that could work :) I grew up in Australia, and part of my musical heart is still there, so The Big Day Out in Sydney would be neat too.
What do you expect from the future ?
That's a complex question. So much in the music world depends on chance and demographics. It's a strange time to be a musician. There is a very definite divergence of art and entertainment in the industry, at the expense of the art. It is becoming more and more difficult for the creative musician to make a serious living from selling records - the mass audiences seem to be happy with the talent-show produce. But in a way that is quite liberating, as I can write whatever I like without being overly concerned with whether the industry will like it - quite self indulgent I suppose! Of course there are still lots of discerning listeners out there who are finding other ways to get to the good stuff. And live performance is the one thing that creative musicians can still actively embrace, so the future of Benign will lie in that direction. Short term, I'm busy promoting the "Diaries" album online, and working on material for the next album so that's the rest of this year taken care of.
What is your motto in life ?
Life is short and you only get one shot at it, so make sure you don't end up regretting the things you didn't do.
Is there something you'd like to say to the audience ?
I want to thank everyone for all the great support you've given me so far - it's been amazing. Things are just beginning but I think interesting things are ahead. I hope you'll all check out the debut album "Diaries of Love and War" which you can get from www.benignmusic.com. And come and visit Benign at MySpace and say hello! (www.myspace.com/benignbandmusic)
