"..something about lush guitar effects melding, swirling and floating around icy synths and barely audible vocals seems to work for me.."
Soul Glimpse
Pensive Design Gaze
Soul Glimpse Bio:
Soul Glimpse is not a glimpse into oneself but a glimpse into the overall human soul. Soul Glimpse is an attempt to try and understand what lies within us all. Soul Glimpse creates textures that manifest overwhelming feelings that hurtful past experiences can create within us all. Soul Glimpse is an ambient project of Austyn Sullivan / Portraits of American Firing Squads.
Hello, how are you?
I am existing in Baltimore at the moment. I can’t complain really. Loving the warm weather.
What are you currently listening to?
So many things... Belong 'Common Era', Thou 'To The Chaos Wizard Youth', Unwound 'New Plastic Ideas', Broken Water 'Peripheral Star', Blonde Redhead 'Fake Can Be Just As Good', Tim Hecker 'An Imaginary Country', Deftones 'Deftones', Diet Cokeheads, Max Richter 'Infra', Peter Broderick 'Music For Confluence'..
What do you mean by Soul Glimpse?
Well it’s meaning evolved very strangely. I became really obsessed with this show called Xavier: Renegade Angel that used to come on Adult Swim. There is this episode called Damnesia Vu. In the episode Xavier is sentenced to seven glimpse into his soul. There are seven doors he must explore and there is this scene where he is writing Soul Glimpses on the wall of a jail cell. I really liked the idea of being sentenced to take glimpses of your soul. The concept seemed to fit the ambiance of the music I was making. At the time that I discovered I really like the name, I had been writing, reading and thinking a lot about the concepts and ideas of human souls. I used to release music under my name and I wasn’t happy with that. I view my music as emotions that I am feeling. Music for me is a coping mechanism and so I never liked releasing music under my name because it came across to me as something self centered. Because I don’t want the listener to think it’s about me. It’s just as much about them as it is for me. I don’t like looking at a song and seeing that it was me who created it because it is some unknown force that pushes me to complete anything. But once a song is finished I feel a weight that I was feeling has vanished. Each song is an attempt to portray something I am feeling. I always find myself writing in second person as far as lyrics. So I conclude that Soul Glimpse is the process of taking a glimpse into your soul and seeing and feeling the true colors of your hurt, of your happiness and of your dreams.
Care to tell us a little bit about this project, when/how it started etc.?
I’ve always had my own music project but I guess having a moniker changes everything. It suddenly has a new face or feeling behind it. Most of the songs on 'Recollections Become Phantoms' were all recorded in my incredibly small room in Bushwick / Brooklyn, NY in 2011. I had moved from New Orleans to Brooklyn on a whim in October of 2010. I was close to having a mental breakdown in New Orleans and I needed to get away. A friend of mine told me he had a room that I could move into so I broke my lease in New Orleans and moved to NY. I knew nothing about the East Coast really. I’m from Louisiana so I had never ventured that far north. I had only been to NY once for a high school award. I ended up having a real rough time in NY. I was only there for 6 months. In those 6 months, I went through a lot of emotional transitions and struggles. 'Recollections Become Phantoms' was a project for me to put certain things behind me. Things that were lingering in me that I needed to let go. So basically my RECOLLECTIONS were haunting me, becoming PHANTOMS that I couldn’t escape. So this album is about putting that in which hurts behind you and moving on as a human being. I sectioned the CD in three separate parts kind of like movements. Like finding that which hurts, dealing with it and letting it go. I left NY late April of 2011 to play drums for this band called Dead Mellotron in Baltimore (but I am not playing with them anymore). Baltimore is where I ended up finishing the album and where I came up with the name Soul Glimpse. That is the Soul Glimpse story so far.
Ever get lost in your own euphoric ambiance?
I would say yes. Before I write a song, I can hear some sound or tune floating around in my head. So basically all of the songs are taken from sounds and feelings of my everyday life. I try to portray them accurately through music. I constantly feel overwhelmed so I always feel comfortable with adding an intense amount of textures in my music. I like to think of it being the sound of my thoughts working and piecing things together.
Will you be touring anytime soon?
I am currently working a lot to buy a car and get enough money to release some CD's and hopefully some vinyl. So after I get my car, I’ll be traveling a lot and trying to play as many shows as I can get.
What movie would work best on mute while listening to your music and why?
I would say Yantra by James Whitney even though it's not a movie. James Whitney’s structure in his visual art is kind of similar to the structure of most Soul Glimpse songs. It’s very repetitious and he continually adds textures to reoccurring scenes and themes. I guess mainly because there is always so much going on with the visuals kind of like there is a lot going on in most Soul Glimpse songs.
Got any other projects we should know about?
I will randomly release stuff under the name Portraits Of American Firing Squads. It’s an instrumental politically fueled project of mine. The whole project is just a way for me to express my indifference towards war, the way man oppresses the truth of matters. How man selfishly manipulates society with fear and illusions to somehow make us believe our written structure is the all holy, all sacramental and only way to be and perceive. That we shall ignore the maternal eye of nature and only see through the dead chaotic eye of man. It's my silent form of anarchy. Aside from that I am playing drums for a Black Metal band called Barbelith. It's been really fun. I have also been working on full band material for a couple of years now. I have some stuff up on my Austyn Sullivan bandcamp that were full band recordings that I did. I have tons of guitar works written. Still haven't found the right people to work on the full band material with but the day will come, hopefully. I've been writing scores for people's films lately. I would love to pursue that as a career. I have two things up on the Austyn Sullivan bandcamp for two scores I've done. I love how music can effect the way you perceive and image. For now, I’m going to keep trying to promote Soul Glimpse. I’m writing a new Soul Glimpse CD at the moment but I won’t release it for a while. I’m gonna try to get the word out first, play shows, get some recognition and then work on putting out a future album.
You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
That is such a tough question. My music taste varies so much. I would say Philip Glass 'Glassworks'.
Are you living your dream?
Dreams are “A series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep.” Am I dreaming or am I awake? Maybe I’m living some kind of dream...
I am existing in Baltimore at the moment. I can’t complain really. Loving the warm weather.
What are you currently listening to?
So many things... Belong 'Common Era', Thou 'To The Chaos Wizard Youth', Unwound 'New Plastic Ideas', Broken Water 'Peripheral Star', Blonde Redhead 'Fake Can Be Just As Good', Tim Hecker 'An Imaginary Country', Deftones 'Deftones', Diet Cokeheads, Max Richter 'Infra', Peter Broderick 'Music For Confluence'..
What do you mean by Soul Glimpse?
Well it’s meaning evolved very strangely. I became really obsessed with this show called Xavier: Renegade Angel that used to come on Adult Swim. There is this episode called Damnesia Vu. In the episode Xavier is sentenced to seven glimpse into his soul. There are seven doors he must explore and there is this scene where he is writing Soul Glimpses on the wall of a jail cell. I really liked the idea of being sentenced to take glimpses of your soul. The concept seemed to fit the ambiance of the music I was making. At the time that I discovered I really like the name, I had been writing, reading and thinking a lot about the concepts and ideas of human souls. I used to release music under my name and I wasn’t happy with that. I view my music as emotions that I am feeling. Music for me is a coping mechanism and so I never liked releasing music under my name because it came across to me as something self centered. Because I don’t want the listener to think it’s about me. It’s just as much about them as it is for me. I don’t like looking at a song and seeing that it was me who created it because it is some unknown force that pushes me to complete anything. But once a song is finished I feel a weight that I was feeling has vanished. Each song is an attempt to portray something I am feeling. I always find myself writing in second person as far as lyrics. So I conclude that Soul Glimpse is the process of taking a glimpse into your soul and seeing and feeling the true colors of your hurt, of your happiness and of your dreams.
Care to tell us a little bit about this project, when/how it started etc.?
I’ve always had my own music project but I guess having a moniker changes everything. It suddenly has a new face or feeling behind it. Most of the songs on 'Recollections Become Phantoms' were all recorded in my incredibly small room in Bushwick / Brooklyn, NY in 2011. I had moved from New Orleans to Brooklyn on a whim in October of 2010. I was close to having a mental breakdown in New Orleans and I needed to get away. A friend of mine told me he had a room that I could move into so I broke my lease in New Orleans and moved to NY. I knew nothing about the East Coast really. I’m from Louisiana so I had never ventured that far north. I had only been to NY once for a high school award. I ended up having a real rough time in NY. I was only there for 6 months. In those 6 months, I went through a lot of emotional transitions and struggles. 'Recollections Become Phantoms' was a project for me to put certain things behind me. Things that were lingering in me that I needed to let go. So basically my RECOLLECTIONS were haunting me, becoming PHANTOMS that I couldn’t escape. So this album is about putting that in which hurts behind you and moving on as a human being. I sectioned the CD in three separate parts kind of like movements. Like finding that which hurts, dealing with it and letting it go. I left NY late April of 2011 to play drums for this band called Dead Mellotron in Baltimore (but I am not playing with them anymore). Baltimore is where I ended up finishing the album and where I came up with the name Soul Glimpse. That is the Soul Glimpse story so far.
Ever get lost in your own euphoric ambiance?
I would say yes. Before I write a song, I can hear some sound or tune floating around in my head. So basically all of the songs are taken from sounds and feelings of my everyday life. I try to portray them accurately through music. I constantly feel overwhelmed so I always feel comfortable with adding an intense amount of textures in my music. I like to think of it being the sound of my thoughts working and piecing things together.
Will you be touring anytime soon?
I am currently working a lot to buy a car and get enough money to release some CD's and hopefully some vinyl. So after I get my car, I’ll be traveling a lot and trying to play as many shows as I can get.
What movie would work best on mute while listening to your music and why?
I would say Yantra by James Whitney even though it's not a movie. James Whitney’s structure in his visual art is kind of similar to the structure of most Soul Glimpse songs. It’s very repetitious and he continually adds textures to reoccurring scenes and themes. I guess mainly because there is always so much going on with the visuals kind of like there is a lot going on in most Soul Glimpse songs.
Got any other projects we should know about?
I will randomly release stuff under the name Portraits Of American Firing Squads. It’s an instrumental politically fueled project of mine. The whole project is just a way for me to express my indifference towards war, the way man oppresses the truth of matters. How man selfishly manipulates society with fear and illusions to somehow make us believe our written structure is the all holy, all sacramental and only way to be and perceive. That we shall ignore the maternal eye of nature and only see through the dead chaotic eye of man. It's my silent form of anarchy. Aside from that I am playing drums for a Black Metal band called Barbelith. It's been really fun. I have also been working on full band material for a couple of years now. I have some stuff up on my Austyn Sullivan bandcamp that were full band recordings that I did. I have tons of guitar works written. Still haven't found the right people to work on the full band material with but the day will come, hopefully. I've been writing scores for people's films lately. I would love to pursue that as a career. I have two things up on the Austyn Sullivan bandcamp for two scores I've done. I love how music can effect the way you perceive and image. For now, I’m going to keep trying to promote Soul Glimpse. I’m writing a new Soul Glimpse CD at the moment but I won’t release it for a while. I’m gonna try to get the word out first, play shows, get some recognition and then work on putting out a future album.
You can only keep/listen to ONE album for the rest of your life ..which album would it be?
That is such a tough question. My music taste varies so much. I would say Philip Glass 'Glassworks'.
Are you living your dream?
Dreams are “A series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep.” Am I dreaming or am I awake? Maybe I’m living some kind of dream...
Thanx Austyn!
Soul Glimpse is constantly working on new material, more on that soon;]
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