Artist Interview: Current Red
Current Red is the musical brainchild of high schoolers Ben Ackell and Isaiah Panton, who bring a "dreamy, curious, deep, emotional, and complex" sound to the New York music scene. Drawing heavily on the instrumentally complex works of Radiohead—specifically OK Computer, Kid A, and In Rainbows—the band's sound also incorporates elements from The Killers, The Black Keys, and Djo. Operating under the constraints and inspiration of NYC, they've even recorded their debut drum track in a busy Guitar Center, embracing the city's unique energy and diverse music. With a commitment to visual aesthetic and an upcoming album, Ben (nephew of Drop Nineteens' Greg Ackell) and Isaiah are focused on the "devotion that music requires" to get their art heard.
Tori: What was the moment or feeling that made you decide to form Current Red after playing music together in other groups for over five years?
Ben: We both are big Radiohead fans and I especially had been into them recently and wanted to capture parts of their sound and put my own spin on it.
Tori: Being based in NYC, how does the city and its unique energy influence your songwriting and overall sound?
Ben: We utilize places around the city to record and take photos at since we are broke highschoolers. Our whole drum track for the first song was recorded in a busy guitar center and we sort of embrace the fact we can’t use expensive equipment, it’s formed our style and way of music.
Isaiah: I think that being based in NYC influences our influence and energy because you can often find many people who are playing music in the subways and streets. And New York has such diverse music.
Tori: You cite Radiohead as a major inspiration. Which specific album or era of theirs do you feel most directly shaped your creative direction?
Ben: Definitely their most instrumentally complex albums, Ok Computer and Kid A have most inspired me just out of how perfectly composed they are.
Isaiah: I think that In Rainbows shaped our type of music the most because of its mix of loud and quiet parts. This is what you can find in our song "Bevy" and some other projects coming soon.
Tori: Beyond Radiohead, what other bands or artists have been essential influences in developing your sound and why?
Ben: The Killers, The Black Keys, and Djo have all been inspirations for me. I like to mix all sorts of genres within the rock world and make it my own thing because I don’t want to be thought of as solely being in a band of only one genre.
Tori: What five words do you feel best capture the essence of a Current Red song?
Ben and Isaiah: Dreamy, Curious, Deep, Emotional, Complex.
Tori: Could you describe the typical songwriting process for the band? Does it start with a guitar riff, a rhythm, or a lyrical concept?
Ben: For "Bevy," it started with me finding an E chord high up on the guitar neck and finding an interesting rhythm to play it in, then I workshopped vocals and a small riff into it and that was the instrumental. We recorded the drums after and then recorded empty drum lines that were each around 3 minutes to use for future songs.
Isaiah: It starts mostly with a guitar part and tempo and type of rhythm then we usually move onto drums which I can make very easily with my good use of sound tempo and rhythm. I can make up a beat I think is good and goes along with the song.
Tori: Having designed your own singles covers, what is the importance of the visual aesthetic to your music? Do the covers reflect the mood of the song or just use symbolism?
Ben: When people are looking through new music the cover heavily impacts their choice on what they listen to. I put lots of hard work into designing and creating photo shoots for covers and band photos because I believe they play an equal role in the greatness of a song or album as the actual music itself.
Tori: With your five-plus years of experience on your respective instruments, how has your technical mastery changed the way you approach writing new music?
Ben: We’ve both accumulated lots of knowledge over the past 5 years in the music itself as well as creating a full band product. Learning in depth technical aspects of music are very useful in songwriting because it’s what elevates you from anyone else who decides to write. We believe we are ready for taking on the challenges of being an up and coming artist and know that with our combined experience and knowledge we will succeed.
Isaiah: I’ve been playing drums for about 5 years but am still quite professional at what I do. But with that being said, both of us have been very successful in terms of being able to make music and tunes on the spot. This allows us to just make test music which can be refined well enough to be published.
Tori: For Ben Ackell, what's the most valuable lesson you've learned about music or the industry from your uncle, Greg Ackell of Drop Nineteens?
Ben: I’d say the biggest lesson is that music takes time. I’ve felt the urge to produce instantly and rush the creating of new music to try and put it out as soon as I can but that is not the way to approach writing. I like to write a new song and then wait a few weeks and then come back to it with brand new ears and see what I can change because it ends up very influential in the process and that’s how I came to write Bevy’s instrumental and vocals. It’s because I took the extra time to wait and not rush the music and let it come to me.
Tori: Drop Nineteens is a key band in the shoegaze movement. Does that genre heritage find its way into your music, and if so, how?
Ben: 100% it does. Making new music is a process of taking what others have succeeded with in the past and making it your own. Shoegaze is such an interesting and compelling genre and listening to my uncle’s music as well as others who have succeeded in the shoegaze genre shapes how I write new music because of how different everything can sound and each piece of information surrounding the artists and their music.
Tori: What is the biggest challenge for an emerging band today that doesn't have an official website but relies on direct messaging and social platforms?
Ben: To be taken seriously. Many musicians, especially at this age, have trouble getting others’ attention. When you pour your soul into a song the least you want is for someone to just take the few minutes of their day to listen, but that often isn’t the case. It’s hard to succeed in this industry but all it takes is devotion and a vision and we know with that we will get where we want to be.
Isaiah: Our biggest challenge is being able to make time. Considering we are both young and very busy with our lives it can be challenging to find a time and place that we can both come together and produce music.
Tori: You've released singles—is there a full-length album or EP in the works? What themes are you exploring on your next major release?
Ben and Isaiah: Yes, this is all leading to something. An album is what we hope to release within the next few months and we are currently working very hard to produce this project. So far, "Cozmology" is releasing on Halloween and that is the soonest thing people can look forward to as far as Current Red releases go.
Tori: If you could open for any band, past or present, who would it be and why?
Ben: The Killers. It might be a surprising choice considering all our Radiohead praise but I’ve been a Killers fan since I was 4 years old and their music has been a very big part of my life. If we could open for them that would be a dream come true.
Tori: What is the single most important thing you want a new listener to take away after hearing a Current Red track for the first time?
Ben: The devotion that music requires in order to be made. We’ve sacrificed a lot of our time working on our music and we ultimately just want our art to be heard. People listen to songs a lot without focusing on it deeply and taking apart very little detail that us artists put in to it. The best part of finding a song you like is listening to it on repeat for hours and hours and that’s what we want our listeners to experience with our music.
Tori: What are your immediate goals for Current Red for the next six months?
Ben: We want to devote ourselves to this album completely and that’s what we are doing. Lots of music is on the way and there good things to come for the future of us.
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