Since breaking into the music scene in 2013, Plini has rapidly risen as one of the best instrumental prog act. Having released Handmade Cities in 2016, the band went on to extensively tour through 2017. All set to tour again through 2017, Metal Wani’s Vidur Paliwal had a chance to sit and talk with Plini and discuss the touring, new music and exploring new sonic territories.
Having recently released the latest single “Salt+Charcoal” we inquired how the track came about. Plini mentioned that “I started writing that over a year ago almost immediately after Handmade Cities came out, cause I have been touring so much, it almost took a year to finish that song. I enjoyed that cause in the past I used to finish things in a couple of weeks.” Quick to comment on how the process has changed with Chris Allison and Simon Grove handling the drum and bass responsibilities, instead of him alone programming all the music, Plini quips in “It makes the whole process a whole lot fresh. It kind of allows me to listen to a whole new thing. I remember for Salt+Charcoal we booked the studio for the whole day and spent nearly 10 hours for a 4 minute song.”
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When quizzed about touring Plini joyfully adds “One of my favourite things to do in life is travel and to get to do that as a job is a blessing. India specially was insane, cause I never thought I would even get to visit it, amazing hospitality, amazing food, good times”
Set to tour for a major portion of 2018 too, the band will go on road through Europe and North America. In this tour one date stands out – The Be Prog! My Friend festival (which won the best live even at the 2017 Progressive Music Awards) in Barcelona on 29th and 30th June. Plini quotes “The lineup is amazing, the venue is adorable, I never really expected to get to play. It’s funny because, I feel my music would not be suited for a festival because its not necessarily that catchy. But, I can’t wait! Talking about festivals definitely gets us to Plini’s performance at Brutal Assault in 2016, Plini mentions “We would have been by far the lightest band on the bill. But, we did not try to make the set heavier to try to fit in and the lighter stuff was actually well received. I guess if we put a good performance, people will appreciate it for what it is.”
With the new single released recently, we guessed that a record must not be too far down the line. Plini made us happier when he quickly quipped in “It’s pretty much finished. It’s an EP. We started out with 7 tracks, but I decided two were not good enough so I killed them. There was one with which I want more time. I got four tracks that I’m happy with and the EP should come out sometime around July.” Having released 3 EP’s earlier before releasing the full-length Handmade Cities, we were curious to know if he preferred one over the other. In reply Plini quotes “I think a full-length is still a special thing. But what I have realised specifically for me is that I put so much stuff into each song, that an album would be too much and I would rather keep it limited and focus on small amount of music that is well put together.”
Having released music consistently since starting off in 2013, one can always fall into a safe zone sonically. To this he responds with “I feel there is plenty of room to explore in what you can do with guitar based music. I listen to so much stuff all the time and I find that it slowly makes way into my music eventually. So as long as I remain interested in new sounds, there will always be something new to do”
To end the talk, we threw a fan question in asking about possible vinyl release for the trilogy EP (given the release of Handmade Cities on the format last year). In reply Plini quoted “Yeah! We have been putting that for so long. But because it’s 3 vinyls its taking so much time. But, it’s almost ready!”
Stream The Entire Interview Below:
Catch Plini live across Europe and North America (Tour dates HERE). If you are in Spain at the end of June, head down to Barcelona for the Be Prog! My Friend festival which features Plini with Steve Hackett and A Perfect Circle also on the billing. And most importantly, keep your eyes and ears peeled for the new EP this July!