Get to Know the Musician: Natan Rondelli

Well, I have a new instalment of Getting to know the author, only this time its not an author it’s a musician! I had the privilege of having a bit of chat with Natan Rondelli whose album In A Soundless Land is out now!

Let’s get to know you a bit better. Tell Us About Yourself

Where are you from. 

I’m from Bologna, Italy. I love this city and the culture that we have here. I like that people from all around the world come here to the first university in the world and  yet the town is small enough to let people know each other.

What do you consider fun. 

Girls, evenings with friends, some sports. Good movies, paintings, music.

What do you consider NOT fun. 

Clubs where you are supposed to have a lot of fun but where I usually get bored.

How long have you been musical? Does it run in the family?

I started playing guitar when I was 10. It was my father who taught me my first chords in those early years.

Do you have a favourite solo artist?

Can we call Ludwig Van Beethoven a solo artist? There’s his name on record haha

Do you have a favourite Band?

I listened to a lot of Pink Floyd and never stopped enjoying.

Do you have a favourite film or television show? 

I liked a lot the philosophy behind the movie “A.I.”. I like many films but I could not choose a favourite one.

Do you have a favourite book? 

I don’t read much but I’m absolutely sure that the book that struck me the most is One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Tell us about your music: You sing and play guitar? What other musical talents are you versed in?

I recorded synthesisers in my album and I love keyboards (you can hear it in my music) even if I can’t play the piano well.

What is the writing process like: Is it lyrics first then music or vice versa? 

I always start with the music, it is the main part for me. I’ll tell you more, even words come out because of their sound. If I wanted to tell something that doesn’t sound good in a situation I think I just can’t tell it. This is my vision and the reason why lyrics are always the last and hardest part of the job for me.

Do always know exactly what you want or do with a song or do you have a lot of room for experimentation when writing?

Good question. I like not knowing what I want to do. In terms of structure, I have no limits. The composition is free, no rules for repetitions or durations.

What is your favourite part about recording?

I love recording, I could spend days in the studio without getting tired. What I like the most is the team job, working all together to make something beautiful. Assisting other musicians recording tires me more than playing myself. I want to influence positively every process and apparently I put more concentration into others’ performances than into mine! Not good…

Where do you get your inspiration from when writing lyrics? Is it personal, random, or both?

It’s personal, but hopefully humanly and socially interesting.

What type of music inspires you the most?

I don’t have a genre, I like good ideas and especially instrumental music. From electronic to orchestral.

What is your most memorable gig so far?

The album release party, in my town.

You have an album out now called ‘In A Soundless Land’. Tell us about that. 

It’s a concept album about the acoustic pollution of our time. We are exposed to many kinds of noises, useless information, and we cannot distinguish what’s beautiful and what’s not. So everything becomes silence. And in this soundless land -as the title track says- something grows in the light and people gather there. It’s a metaphor of my work, it’s like: I don’t like the world as it is, I don’t like the things you want to sell to me, so I’ll make my own world and people will be able to get in if they want. “In a soundless land grows – in the morning – And the living souls form a watching crowd – Some eyes are closed in the light – but the faces are turned to the same side”

Do you have a favourite track?

I think it would be incomplete without the instrumental intro Soundrise.

(listen to soundrise here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_BzVQdpJguY)

Do you have any fond memories when creating this album?

Well there are a lot of real people inside the songs, many of them don’t even know. I had a lot of support at different levels from people around me.

What’s Next? With In A Soundless Land out what are your future plans? Tours, videos, new music?

Of course I want to make a new album soon, and hopefully release it this year. I will give you more information as soon as possible! We are also producing my first videoclip for Frivolous and hope to show it soon as well.

Thank you for sharing, Natan!

Thanks a lot, Luke,

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Pick up a copy of the Natan Rondelli Band’s new album In A Soundless Land from itunes or from their website. You can also find them on youtube, Facebook, and Twitter!

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