noemi liba press

John Carver features Freefall CD and interviews Noemi Liba On 3PBS radio

The Morning After Show 23-03-2005

JC A CD came my way, about a month ago by someone whose name was impossible to pronounce, Noemi Liba. And I was… just absolutely blown away by it. And, I’ve been lucky to have Noemi come in this morning to talk to us… Thought we’ll start, before we chat to her, to have a listen to a track called Too Late – this is Noemi Liba….

(Track played) TOO LATE – NOEMI LIBA

JC I’m sure that you will agree, that is extraordinary. That’s a track called Too Late. And the artist is Noemi Liba. And good morning Noemi.

NL Good morning…

JC It is a fantastic album and just one of those things that, you know your listening to a whole lot of stuff & it’s all very good, and then something comes along that just blows you away, which is in fact the case with Freefall.. for me, anyway, & hopefully for hundreds of other radio people.

NL Thank you

JC Tell me about the lead up to the album. When was it recorded?

NL It was recorded last year.

JC Okay, & the studio’s here in Melbourne.

NL Yes, Trevor Cronin, plug plug, Elwood, amazing sound studio..

JC (laughter) Got his telephone number?

NL (laughter) Yes! And also Dorian West’s, the producer!

JC Okay, tell me where all this, this lushness comes from & 5/4, we were talking about 5/4 beat in there and so on. For someone who actually enjoys singing Iggy Pop songs.

NL (Laughter) I just mention that in passing! (more laughter). The lushness…. I guess I’ve worked with a diverse group of bands. I’ve sung with Big band to sort of small Jazz ensembles, Middle Eastern ensembles, and I have an appetite for a very sensual and a full experience. So, yes, it all just happened, just built & built. It was like painting on a canvas….

JC And did you have the sound in your head as you were writing? I mean obviously when you were doing the arrangements, but as you were writing the initial songs?

NL Yes, when I write the songs, it almost feels like I’m overwhelmed by an idea….

JC Hmm

NL I’m completely absorbed by it; it’s actually, for me, akin to having an extra sensory experience, as bizarre as it sounds (laughter). It overwhelms me and I just write…

JC And so the idea just forms and just comes out. I think song writing is an amazing craft and it amazes me how many people are affected in that same way. It’s just almost like there is a muse that brings it out.

NL Definitely, definitely, sometimes its hard to explain it to people without sounding a bit, you know, ‘airy fairy’ or ‘wish washy’, but it is, a very intense experience, for me anyway. It’s very consuming and it gives me a lot of energy. When I’ve finished, its like I’m exhausted

JC Tell me about the musicians who appear on the album.

NL I’ve been very lucky to work with some of the most amazing musicians in Melbourne. People like Dave Beck who’s who’s playing drums there.

JC Fantastic drummer

NL Fantastic. Dorian West again, played a lot of the bass on the album..

JC Hmmm

NL And he’s also a flugal horn & trumpet player as well.

JC Oh, Okay

NL And the strings of course – well they speak for themselves, just excellent players. Stephanie (violin) is now residing in Germany unfortunately, but fortunately for her…

JC Fortunately for her, yeah! Makes it a little bit harder to perform on stage.

NL Oh, she’s doing a lot of performing (laughter)

JC No, no for you I’m talking about

NL (laughter) yes, for me here, but fortunately, the other three of the quartet are here & are going to be joining me in a live set in a month or two.

JC A month or two okay…and how do you think it will translate to stage

NL Well, it will be lush

JC Hmmm

NL Because it’s still going to be instrumentally based around a string trio together with a string.. with a Jazz trio

JC Hmmm

NL Of course there’s going to be the electronic elements and I think live, it’s going have a little bit of punch at times as well!

JC Hmmm

NL So it will have the etherealness, but were going to have a solid rhythm section happening

JC And you’ll have the capacity then to improvise of course…

NL Ah yes (laughter) yes, with the Jazz trio, it shall go places.

JC okay (laughter), something to look forward to, we’ll tell people about the various dates as they come around. Are you releasing overseas as well?

NL Sure, it’s currently been visiting Montreal, Spain & other spaces in Europe & yeah, it’s like little drops in the ocean gathering together, and I’ve had a great response so far….

JC Got a great response from a reasonably well-respected musician by the name of Allan Zavod

NL Allan, he’s played on that track, Allan… (laughter) Allan…. (laughter)

JC Well share it with us, come on

NL Allan is an absolute genius with music.

JC Played with Zappa

NL 10 years

JC Yes (laughter)

NL He’s quite, he’s quite an eccentric person as well…(more laughter)

JC Well he is eccentric, but he really gave a fantastic quote about the brilliance of this album…

NL I’ve had a really great response from some musicians that I hold in high esteem which has been really great for me, because you know, this music is something that is a really a personal creation. I’ve written it, I’ve arranged everything, and I’ve felt initially, very frightened to release it because it’s such a personal and unusual thing…

JC hmm

NL It’s almost alternative-to-alternative

JC It’s probably not going to appear on Nova

NL On Nova (laughter), well you know…I’m…

JC You never know, you never know!

NL So initially I was a bit a bit nervous as it doesn’t fit into that many categories cleanly, and to have a response like that from people all over the world…

JC Hmm

NL You know, from producers & people who have worked with many artists. It’s been very vindicating…

JC Okay, I was going to ask you about the themes then I just looked down to see the next track that I had lined up, which is called Rain, which is you know pretty obvious I guess…

NL (laughter)

JC It was to do with rain, but how was it written? What inspired it and where did it come from? This is a good way to segway into the song you see….

NL Yes, Yes, Rain I wrote actually quite a few years ago sitting on my bed with my guitar when I was living in South Australia, and it has traveled with me for years through many different styles and spaces actually..

JC Rain tends to do that

NL Yes, (laughter) rain does. So it started off as performed with just voice and guitar; I was playing festivals solo around Australia & also overseas. And it just evolved when I started playing with Middle Eastern bands, and this is it!

JC This is it (laughter). Well with that introduction…. let’s go into a track called Rain. This is Noemi Liba

(Track played) RAIN – NOEMI LIBA
(Track played) PIECES & PARTS - LAURIE ANDERSON

JC Unforgivable – fading down Laurie Anderson, Pieces & Parts is the name of the track that where having a listen to then. But I have to do that because I’m talking to Noemi Liba, whose album Freefall we’ve been having a listen to. And the track we just heard then was Rain. And I was asking you during that break where people can pick up copies of the album. And you said everywhere.

NL Everywhere, at all good record stores

JC At all good record stores

NL (laughter) and it’s distributed through MGM

JC So it should be very easy for people to find

NL Yes, also on the Internet you can get it in Australia in England, in Europe, in America

JC Via your web site

NL Yes

JC Which is?

NL I’m just waiting for people to get a pen (laughter)… www dot

JC I think they’ve got that bit

NL (laughter) Noemi N.O.E.M.I. L.I.B.A.

JC/NL (together) dot com

JC Not dot au

NL No dot au

JC Okay, excellent and the web site has mp3 snippets.

NL Yes

JC And we’ll be playing lots more of this album over the next few weeks I promise you

NL great

JC I thought we’ll go out with a song that you didn’t write; the only one on the album you didn’t write, which is the Leonard Cohen song. Why did you choose that?

NL It kind of came about. I was asked to perform at a wedding, and I was lucky enough to be performing with a man called Harry Wenig who is a beautiful cellist. So I got inspired and wrote this arrangement.

JC Yes, it’s always a telling thing, isn’t it?

NL If you can stop everyone talking at a wedding at once and just have everyone staring, either you’ve done something very, very wrong, or very, very right. In this case I was fortunately alright!

JC Yes, I think it was right, okay. Well we may have the experience of stopping half of Melbourne’s traffic by playing this. (laughter)

NL Sure you can ring PBS & say…

JC It’s John’s fault, they all do, they all do. Noemi it’s been lovely having you in this morning & I wish you all the best with the album. We are going to go out now with a track called Dance Me To The End Of Love. The album is called Freefall. Available all around Melbourne we’ll just do Noemi’ name again because it’s an unusual one. N.O.E.M.I. L.I.B.A. The album is called Freefall and this is Dance Me to the End of Love.

(Track played) DANCE ME TO THE END OF LOVE – NOEMI LIBA

JC From the album Freefall that’s Noemi Liba and Dance Me To The End Of Love. And wasn’t she very, very nice. She was. And isn’t the album very, very nice, yes, we know because you’ve been calling up & asking about it …….

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