With Noise Against Tyranny, Calling All Astronauts return louder than ever—fusing genre-defying sound with urgent activism. We spoke with David and Paul about truth, resistance, and music that matters.
1. It’s
been four years since #Resist. What motivated you to return now with Noise
Against Tyranny, and how do you feel the world has changed in that time?
David – We
kind of started work on this album as soon as the last one was out, we released
every track from the last one as a single, so all the promo and making videos
etc took a lot of time
Paul – The
last album came out during Covid lockdown so we couldn’t meet up for quite a
while but we spoke all the time and we both were getting ideas for when we
could finally meet up in person, we love making making music, it’s a continuous
thing for us, when we finish one project we already have ideas towards the next
one, it’s bit like painting one of those giant bridges, when you get to the
end, you just go right back to the start.
David – The world appears to have got even worse, with the invasion of Ukraine, the events in Gaza, Trump being re-elected, there really are not many bright sides to what is happening.
2. The album title is powerful—Noise Against Tyranny. What does it mean to
you, and how does it reflect the message of the songs within?
Paul –
There is a double meaning to the title, the first being that we make a stand
against the rise of populism through our music, the second, that those making a
stand in the real world against the despots, dictators and wannabes need to
make sure their voices are loud and continue to be heard.
David – I think it sums up what we are doing perfectly, and ads continuity to our previous album titles.
3. This record veers between Metal Drum & Bass, Spoken Word Shoegaze,
and Industrial. What was your vision for the sound of this album, and how did
you go about blending these styles?
David – I
like programming all kinds of drum tracks, I take a lot of influences from EDM
and Bass music as well as Industrial, I would hate for us to make the same
album over and over like some bands do.
Paul – We are very eclectic in our influences, if something comes to us, we just run with it, I did so many different styles of bass on this album, but I think that keeps it fresh and interesting for our long term fans.
4. You’ve worked extensively with Grammy-winner Alan Branch in the past. How
did it feel to take the production reins yourselves this time around?
Paul – He
set the bar very high, that’s for sure, it could also be a contributing factor
as to why this album took so long to finish, we had the majority of the
recording done by the end of 2024, but the mixing took forever.
David – Alan did such an amazing job it was a real challenge for me, a week before we sent it off for mastering, I was like I can live with this, but I feel it could be better, which is place you don’t really be ,then I suddenly had a brainwave, now I’m going to get technical 😊it struck me that because Paul plays a 5 string bass and there are a lot of low frequencies, why don’t I let the bass take the bottom end rather than the kick drums, I then changed all the kicks to more modern metal style kicks and used a high pass filter to enable the bass to fill the bottom end, it worked a treat and the album was ready. I think we both feel it sounds just like we wanted it to all along.
5. “Pray For Your Soul” critiques conservative Christianity. What inspired
you to tackle this subject, and what reactions have you received so far?
David – I spend a lot of time watching news channels and social media and got to thinking, these people preport to be Christians but everything they preach seems to be against religious values. One time I was discussing with a US preacher on Twitter, the thoughts that Jesus was a socialist, he denied the idea vehemently, so I asked him about the story of Jesus going into a synagogue and turning the money lenders tables over, to which he replied “that’s because he wasn’t getting a cut”, I think this perfectly sums them up. I’m not a religious person myself, but am respectful towards people religious beliefs, I even have friends who are in the clergy, I recently had them in my garden, drinking shots of Mescal, they are very liberal, very accepting people, just what the modern face of religion should be.
6. Mental health is front and center in “Will Somebody Help Me?”. How
important is it for you to address these deeply personal issues through your
music?
Paul –
Lot’s of creatives score highly on the “Spectrum test”, mental health issues
are something that can affect anyone at any time, it could be anyone reading
this, people need to be supportive of those who are suffering, not ridicule
them or keep their distance. We have all got friends who have had issues and
it’s our job to help them through it.
David – I suffer quite badly from anxiety from time to time, so can in some way empathise with those who suffer greatly. You have to wonder if what appears to be an increase in metal health is not an increase at all, it’s just that people have sadly suffered in silence for a very long time.
7. “War on Truth” and “Old World” call out disinformation and populist
rhetoric. In a world where facts seem increasingly fragile, what role do you
believe musicians can play in the fight for truth?
David – I
have just been made and official “Community Notes” person on Twitter and spend
a lot of time debunking far right lies and disinformation.
Paul –
Musicians are no different to anyone else, it is the responsibility of
everyone, to call out populist lies at every opportunity, don’t let them try to
play the victim when they are put into the spotlight, turn the screw and send
them back to the bridges with the rest of the trolls.
David – If though our music, we can make a few people have a greater awareness to what it happening we will always be on the right side of history, nobody wants to be tomorrow’s Ted Nugent or Kid Rock.
8. “I Can’t Breathe” is a haunting track on domestic abuse. How did you
approach writing such a delicate subject while still retaining the intensity
that defines your music?
David – I
have watched several harrowing documentaries about the victims of domestic
abuse, and the statement “I can’t breathe” after the sad killing or George
Floyd by somebody who is their to supposedly protect them, resonated with me, I
could see the comparisons between somebody being killed by the authorities and
somebody having their lives destroyed by somebody who is supposed to love them.
Paul – I put a really atmospheric synth line under the verses which seems to compliment the anger of the cry for help on the choruses, I hope that it feels like a contrast between the despair at times and then the positivity of the lyrics
9. “Time to Party” is an interesting curveball—a drum & bass anthem that
seems to celebrate musical freedom. Was this a conscious break from the album’s
heavier themes?
Paul –
David had programmed some dnb drums and the idea just developed from there,
it’s a lot of fun to mix dnb, metal and industrial all in one track.
David – I’m a big fan of Pendulum and Chase & Status and really wanted to do a track like this, there is also a VIP (variation in production) mix that will surface at some time. It’s a really uplifting track, which hopefully adds a bit of light to the album, the world isn’t totally fucked yet, we need to know there is light at the end of the tunnel.
10. You wrote “1979” nearly half a century ago, and yet it still resonates.
What does it say about our world today that its message remains so relevant?
David –
It’s really scary that I wrote those lyrics as a poem so long ago, and that
nothing has changed, in fact it may well have got worse, the rise of the new
right seems to have empowered all those who would have kept their abhorrent
thoughts to themselves 20 years ago, we need to get back to those days somehow.
Paul – It’s the only tsong that didn’t start out as a rhythm track instead it was a lyric and a haunting piano riff. David told me the poem he had written back in the day and I immediately knew we had to set it to music, I think this is the perfect track to end the album, it includes so many different genres all in one, from dubstep, Industrial, shoegaze, goth, dub reggae bassline, traps snares and somehow we’ve managed to fit them into an epic 6 minutes
11. With Noise Against Tyranny, what do you hope listeners walk away with after
hearing the full album? Is it more about awareness, catharsis, action—or all of
the above?
Paul – I
hope they can feel just how much we care about the planet and society and that
their actions no matter how small can make a difference, and that the should
never stop fighting against this monster.
David – I echo what Paul said, we are just two old family guys sitting in my lounge making the music we love, if anyone takes our message on board, it will be quite something, don’t be an asshole, join us on the right side of history
12. Looking ahead, what’s next for Calling All Astronauts—more music, live
shows, collaborations? And how do you plan to continue challenging norms and
speaking truth through sound?
David –
sadly I’m waiting for an operation and have a condition that can be quite
debilitating at times so we can’t play and shows until that’s done, but
thankfully, I am able to record.
Paul – We
have lots of ideas, actually we never run out of ideas, as soon as the summer
is over, we’ll be back in the studio, lets see if we can make the next album in
less that four years.
David – On
behalf of both of us, I’d like to say thank you for asking us the kind of
questions we enjoy answering, it’s so much nicer than having to come up with
new answers to the same generic questions.
Peace and
Love
David and Paul
Calling All Astronauts - Pray For Your Soul (Official Video)
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