In the next installment of a series of interviews of artists connected with the Fruits de Mer record label, Jason Barnard speaks to Permanent Clear Light’s Markku Helin. This feature also includes an exclusive unreleased track from Permanent Clear Light – ‘Cried’ that showcases the psychedelic Finns at their very best.
Hi Markku, firstly can you tell us about your latest EP ‘Maurice N’est Pas La’?
These 3 tracks were originally recorded for our long overdue 2nd album, Corneville Skyline, but they are different and somewhat edited from the album versions. The title track is more or less a group effort; the inspiration came when I played CAN’s Halleluwah to Arto and Matti, the other guys in PCL. As Matti speaks fluent French, we decided to record the track in French, just for the hell of it. To be honest, I prefer the album version’s much wider stereo field. Maurice is probably the heaviest and most violent track we’ve recorded so far. I guess we just wanted to experiment a little and came up with something very different from what PCL has done in the past. Funnily enough, and purely coincidentally, I think Matti sounds more like David Bowie than Bowie himself here. Great singers, both of them!!
But the main element of the track is, of course, its devilish rhythm section: maniacal drums and one of the most brutal bass sounds I’ve ever heard. There’s even a bit of Morse code halfway through, which just happens to reveal the Meaning of Life, but, sadly, I’ve forgotten what it means.
Arto read somewhere that 20% of adult Finns have at some point of their lives suffered from mental disorders, and One in Five is about this.
This Quiet Smiling Man is a song about Robert Oppenheimer. Sadly topical again today, due to certain idiot ”Presidents” in power right now.
Permanent Clear Light take the pioneering element of the 60s but bring it up-to-date. Is this something you aim for?
Yes, definitely; we don’t want to be retro. Today, there are countless psychedelic bands who are just trying to copy the 60’s sounds, arrangements and ethos as accurately as they can. That’s fine by me, and I like what many of them do. But I consider it a bit pointless; just copying what has been done 50 years ago, probably better. But we certainly steal a lot from the late 60’s because it was such a fertile era in many art forms and most of my favourite music was recorded then. My all-time favourite track still remains Pink Floyd’s See Emily Play. We’ve been thinking of covering it but it just can’t be bettered so what’s the point of trying.
I’m very much interested in SOUND and I think the most important instrument is the studio itself. Today, you have a limitless possibility of using different digitally generated sounds. I think my main aim in music is to try and find a new world of sounds, something that nobody’s ever heard before. I don’t really know if it’s possible anymore. This was The Beatles’ goal when making Revolver, and they unquestionably succeeded in it. So why wouldn’t it still be possible?? But, on the whole, I think PCL sounds very contemporary – but we’re always searching for something NEW.
The band seem to have been involved with the Fruits de Mer from the early days. How did you get involved with the label and what were your first releases on it?
Yes; when we started PCL some 7 years ago I specifically wanted to release a record on a British label. I liked the attitude of Fruits de Mer although I wasn’t too keen on their policy of mainly releasing covers of obscure 60’s psychedelic tracks. Our first release was a cover of a rare The Who B-side, In the City (Entwistle – Moon), on the A Phase We’re Going Through (2010) LP. The album title refers to the fact that all tracks feature heavily phased sound effects (think Itchycoo Park!). I still like our version A LOT!!
Our 2nd release was a cover of Cymbaline, one of my favourite Pink Floyd tracks, on the Fruits de Mer 2LP, Keep off the Grass (2011). I think we actually managed to PSYCHEDELICIZE an early Floyd song, which I’m very proud of.
What were your favourite Fruits de Mer projects to have been involved with?
-My favourite is our first FdM single, Higher Than the Sun (2012), a PCL original. I think it turned out absolutely beautiful. It’s probably our most well-known track, and it’s been aired around the world quite a lot. I hope it will be considered a minor psychedelic classic some time in the future. The flip side was our cover of Van der Graaf Generator’s Afterwards, one of my all-time faves.
The single was also beautiful as an artefact; FdM’s Keith designed the gorgeous 3D sleeve and, naturally, 3D glasses and a cool poster were included in the package. The vinyl itself came in two colours: yellow and grey, reflecting the sleeve colours.
What where your formative musical influences as child/teen?
The Beatles turned me on to pop music when I was around 10, before that I’d mainly listened to my mother’s classical records, Debussy in particular, who I absolutely love to this day – psychedelic and magical classical music. Then came The Move, The Who, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan, Van Dyke Parks, Pearls Before Swine, Mothers of Invention, The Fugs, Tim Buckley, Van der Graaf Generator; King Crimson etc. But the The Beatles were the GREATEST, they changed EVERYTHING!!!
What’s the Finnish music scene like and does it affect your music?
I’ve never really followed the Finnish music scene – why, I don’t know. But we certainly had one of the greatest rock bands ever – Wigwam. They were stunningly powerful live and top-notch musicians. They also had one of the greatest vocalists and songwriters of his generation, Jim Pembroke. The way I see it, Wigwam easily swept the floor with all the famous British prog bands with the exception of King Crimson and Van der Graaf Generator. Essential listening: Hard & Horny, Tombstone Valentine, Fairyport, Being, Nuclear Nightclub and Dark Album.
How long have you been making music and what non Fruits de Mer releases have you done?
Since I was about 12. The first songs I wrote were Midnight Hamilton and Portland Tickler. We released our first album, Beyond These Things, on psychedelic vinyl on the Greek G.O.D. label with a slightly different track selection. Some of our tracks have appeared on Italian compilation albums.
How did you come up with the name Permanent Clear Light?
I have always loved the 60’s underground classic, Permanent Green Light, by the US band, The Godz. We were originally called Permanent Green Light but I found out that there had been a US group of the same name in the 90’s, so we changed it to Permanent Clear Light. That, of course, was because of the great US psychedelic band, Clear Light. When you steal, you better steal from the best!!
How do you come up with song ideas for Permanent Clear Light? Is there always a set idea or is it a natural process?
It varies. Sometimes the songs are finished when we start recording them, sometimes we just start recording from scratch & drink white wine, which is great fun. We always record at my parents country cottage for a few days in the summer. We actually meet only once a year for 3-4 days. We never practice; perhaps we should.
Who do you collaborate with on your music?
I colllaborate with Arto Kakko and Matti Laitinen, who, I think, both are geniuses. Arto is our musical mastermind, a virtuoso musician on various instruments and a great composer and arranger. Matti is my favourite vocalist and he also writes some of greatest pop tunes at the moment, a real melodic talent.
Also, I’d like to add that Matti is going to move to Madrid next fall and that PCL have no further plans to go on. But we hope to get our 2nd LP released because it’s the greatest thing we ever did!
What music influences you now? What artists are you proud to be associated to when people compare you? Pink Floyd is often a band that reviewers reference Permanent Clear Light with.
I’m REALLY flattered because we’re usually compared to Pink Floyd and The Beatles – the HIGHEST POSSIBLE COMPLIMENT as far as I’m concerned. Also XTC and Brian Jonestown Massacre, which is fine. I think The Floyd and The Beatles are still my main influences.
Which of all your tracks would you recommend new listeners seek out and why? ‘Higher Than The Sun’ is a track that stands out.
Higher Than the Sun, Corneville Skyline, And the Skies Will Fall, Ribes Nigrum, Weary Moon, Harvest Time and Iris Murray are good places to start.
What’s next – live shows, more new material?
We don’t do live shows, never have and never will; we like to go to sleep early. Besides, this is just a hobby for us. Furthermore, we’re a trio; we could never reproduce our music live, we would need a few more musicians for that. Too much trouble, we’re a lazy bunch.
We have completed our 2nd album, Corneville Skyline, and are currently looking for a label to release it. Easily the grandest and weirdest thing we’ve done so far; I’m REALLY proud of it!!!
I shall probably try and find soundscapes that were thought lost forever and create psychedelic electronic noise in my pretty accomplished home studio, just for my own pleasure. Then again, maybe not; perhaps it’s time to move on to something else. Too much of anything can make a man (or woman) go crazy, you see.
But I’m very proud of what PCL achieved; we never dream’t that we would become so revered in the psychedelic circles around the world. Without Keith at Fruits de Mer it would never have been possible. My personal high point was when a radio station in San Francisco (my favourite city in this particular world) played our first album from beginning to end, without interruption. They said it was the first time they’d done this in their 20 years. Which was nice.
Here is an unreleased PCL track, Cried, from 2012. For some UNFATHOMABLE reason Keith at Fdm didn’t want to release it. It’s one of our finest songs, written by our lead vocalist, Matti Laitinen. In my opinion, it’s the finest bilingual psych-pop song I’ve ever heard. It’s the only track we’ve done in collaboration with somebody. The Italian avant-garde artist, Paola Tagliaferro, wrote the Italian lyrics and sings together with Matti. A GEM!!!
Cried by Permanent Clear Light
Finally, how do people find out about Permanent Clear Light?
Mainly Facebook and reviews in music magazines around the world.
All the best for the ‘Maurice N’est Pas La’ EP and readying release for the second and final Permanent Clear Light album. Thanks for sharing an advance version of Corneville Skyline too. It’s a hugely ambitious, exceptional piece of psychedelia.
Permanent Clear Light ‘Maurice N’est Pas La’ colour vinyl/33rpm – winkle 31, is available from Fruits de Mer records.
