It was a collaboration made in the electronica heavens. Charismatic lead singer SIRPAUL, who earlier this year gave us the sexually-charged anthem, “Give It Up”, and super hot, superstar dj, Alex Lauterstein have come together to create Simulover, an electronic outfit that embraces the soulful sleaziness of Soft Cell and updates it with club friendly beats to win over a new generation. We recently had the opportunity to chat with Simulover about their new collaboration and irresistible debut album.
Hi guys, I am wondering how the two of you met and came together to form Simulover?
SIRPAUL: We met 15 years ago when Alex was DJ’ing at a club in NYC called Twirl. I had just pressed my first piece of vinyl and Alex was the first DJ to ever play my song.
ALEX: Soon after we met again on the beach at the Winter Music Conference in Miami and we’ve been friends ever since. We had always flirted with the idea of making music together…that’s how Simulover came about…15 years later!
Can you explain the meaning behind your name? It could be read as simulation lover or simulation OVER?
ALEX: I never thought about it like that! For us, it’s all about living in the virtual world and putting ourselves into different realms through music.
SIRPAUL: The name “Simulover” refers to how intimate our relationship with music feels…It’s almost sexual.
ALEX: …and we just like the sound of it.
Can you explain the dichotomy in your music? On the surface, the embracing of computers and electronics to alter your vocals may come across as cold and apathetic, but there is an emotional core to your lyrics. For example, “Tourniquet” explores the rush of emotions associated with raw (sexual) desire while “Unbroken” is about an undying, bordering on obsessive, love.
ALEX: It’s true. We embrace the computer, electronics and anything that can be manipulated through technology.
SIRPAUL: I think we are both really tech-geeks deep down inside. We share an obsession of discovering possibilities when creating new sounds. There is definitely a strong emphasis on solid song writing and the importance of lyrics that actually “SAY SOMETHING”.
Speaking of “Tourniquet”, We are in love and in lust by the video. Can you elaborate on the filming process?
SIRPAUL: (Director) Andreas Anastasis fell in love with this song and had an image in his mind as to how he wanted to bring it to life. The song is very sexual and Alex and I both wanted to express that energy without making it pornographic. Suggestive is usually much sexier to us.
ALEX: With our first video, we wanted to present ourselves in such a way that people could understand who we are as artists, and at the same time explore the themes of the song.
SIRPAUL: The process of filming this video took us an entire day and we loved every second of it! Alex and I are both so excited to bring this song to life and to be able to tell a story through the video.
As out artists, have you found any obstacles in getting your music out there and having industry respond to it?
ALEX: It’s always hard when there’s soooo much out there. But on the other hand, it’s great that technology has allowed us to release our music in the way we had intended it to sound, look and feel.
SIRPAUL: I honestly don’t think anyone cares if the person singing a song is gay or straight…if the song is good, then that’s all that matters. The music industry is full of closeted people…we’re just not into hiding who we are.
You embrace social media like Facebook, Twitter and blogs like bop2pop. How important is it for bands now to embrace these technologies to promote their music? What have you learned from the experience?
ALEX: It has changed everything. Today it is not necessary for a band to be signed to a major label. A band needs to be accessible through social networking to engage their fans. I love this way much better because you can communicate directly with the people who like your work.
SIRPAUL: We’ve definitely learned a lot from social networking and have had to be careful as to how much we reveal and how much we engage our fans. For some people, one minute they are loving our music and the next minute they show up outside our door. It can be a bit scary! We love our fans, but we are also both very private people and appreciate that people respect that.
There is a definite 80’s influence to your debut album. We have already mentioned Soft Cell, but “Tourniquet” seems like a modern take on Front 242’s “Headhunter” and you included a remake of the Love and Rockets hit, “So Alive”. How do you guys know this stuff when in all likelihood you weren’t even born when it was originally released?
SIRPAUL: You are officially our new favorite person in the world! We are both children of the 80’s and couldn’t escape the influence even if we tried…it’s in our blood.
ALEX: If you dissect our music, there’s a little bit of every musical genre in there. I personally love Duran Duran.
SIRPAUL: He is obsessed with Duran Duran. I mean STALKER obsessed. LOL
ALEX: Especially Nick Rhodes!
What’s in store for you and how can our readers find out more about you?
ALEX: The Tourniquet Remix EP will be out on iTunes on September 13th and features some stellar remixes from 7b, Candy Apple Blue, Keven Maroda and Jerome Farley! It will also feature remixes of our first single Unbroken and possibly more…it’s gonna be a huge package!
SIRPAUL: I did some mixes for this project as well… I just can’t keep my hands to myself! We are about to start storyboarding and searching for a director for our next music video. We also have a party at G Lounge in NYC every 2nd & 4th Friday of the month where Alex spins and I host.
ALEX: We’ve already started recording our next album. Besides taking Simulover to the clubs through DJ’ing, we are also working on a live show that will be part art installation and part sound manipulation. We will have live instrumentation and include vocalists Devlinelle and Cherylyn, who are featured on our album. We would also like to release a physical copy of our album sometime in the near future.
The self-titled debut album from Simulover is out now on iTunes and Amazon.
The Tourniquet Remix EP will be out on September 13th on iTunes.
For more information about Simulover visit www.simulovermusic.com
Become a fan of Simulover on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/simulover
Follow Simulover on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/simulover
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