In The Studio With Sunglasses For Jaws

Immersing themselves in textural cinematic glory, David Bardon & Oscar Robertson AKA Sunglasses For Jaws are unshackled, liberated, and inspired. Established in 2017, the pair built themselves a studio space in a friend’s shed and indulged themselves in creating music without confinements. The first rule of Sunglasses For Jaws is that there are no real boundaries when it comes to experimentation. These are the blueprints for fulfilling the musical destinies of two like-minded musicians.

Fast forward four years, the band are preparing for the release of their eagerly awaited fourth album, ‘Everybody’s Made of Bones’. Released June 3rd via Pony Recordings, the record is every bit as experimental as their back catalogue suggests; with actor/vocalist Olivier Huband joining the group to portray Frank, a deluded paranoid schizophrenic. We spoke to the group to find out more about the album, life on the road, and we also spoke to Frank (not the drugs helpline).

Some of our readers may not be aware, this isn’t your first rodeo in the world of music, is it? Can you tell us about life pre-SFJ, how you two met, and what led to the formation of the group?

Sunglasses For Jaws was started on the premise that we had such traumatic, negative departures from our previous projects we wanted to start from scratch with no rules. Less exterior people involved and more room for experimenting and freedom of expression, rather than trying to fit into a stereotype that the industry at the time had put our previous acts into. Dave and I met on the road, introduced by my old manager who tragically is no longer with us (Craig Tarry) he thought we would get on as we had similar tastes and he wasn’t wrong.

I (Oscar) was in a band called Hidden Charms and Dave had his band, the music was similar and rooted in Blues and 60s R&B. This is where we learned our trade, touring the world in a tin can playing for literally one man and his dog, to 20000 people depending on where we were and who we were supporting. When the rug was swept from under our feet and we found ourselves with no qualifications, career prospects, or gigs. The natural thing to do seemed to be to start a recording studio. We didn’t know a thing about it, but we were bonded by our passion for it and we were both eager to learn. We started by purchasing a knock-off ribbon mic and interface, found a shed in a friend’s garden that we could make noise in, and got to work.

You’ve toured the world with the likes of Geowulf & Nick Waterhouse as session musicians, how have these experiences shaped your own musical ventures?

We have both been fortunate enough to work with some incredible artists and people (Nick Waterhouse, Yak, Sinead O’Brien, Geowulf to name a few). Each of them has so much to teach in their own way, and on those journeys that last for days. You discover new music and art that all seeps into your subconscious, stored away for later inspiration. Nick Waterhouse particularly acted as a mentor and has helped us improve as players.

You also learn what you don’t like and how you would do things differently on tour or in the studio and that’s equally important. A peep into another artist’s world of how they work is a great and sometimes rare thing; it’s allowed us to go to places and meet people we wouldn’t have had the chance to. We actually only ended up being able to record with Charlotte Kemp Muhl as a result of a tour finishing with another act in New York, and us staying a few weeks longer.

Your sound has been described as ‘widescreen, psychedelic instrumental music’, would you agree with this?

I mean, if that’s how our sound has been described, I’m more than happy with that! I find it difficult to find the right words for a sound... It’s more a feeling, but cinematic is always something we have aimed for. Whenever we create something it’s always discussed as what part of a movie it would be for, the chase scene, etc. Trying to capture and bottle a mood or a scene is important in instrumental music, as you don’t have words to dictate a narrative.

““Once you’ve heard the magic and realness of tape and real saturation and old characterful instruments, it’s hard to go back to anything less””

Having listened to a large body of your work, there is a clear theme running throughout of strong production values; cinematic textures, with James Ford-esque sensibilities. As producers, is there anyone or any genre you look to for inspiration?

My old band was lucky enough to work with Nick Waterhouse at Sound City Studios in LA as one of my first recording experiences when I was about 17. And if you don’t know, that’s a pure analogue experience, and I think once you’ve heard the magic and realness of tape and real saturation and old characterful instruments, it’s hard to go back to anything less. Also in our opinion, they really nailed sonics to near perfection from 1955-1970; to the point where people are still chasing that sound. It’s classic. Not saying we want to be total revivalists, but I think the respect and admiration we have for recording techniques of the past play a big part, but we also use Logic and Maschine, so not picky. It’s whatever works. Trying to use modern workflow with older instruments and mics etc. James Ford is obviously great. We also love the likes of Tchad Blake, Lee Hazlewood, Berry Gordy, Leon Michels, The Gaslamp Killer, Malcolm Catto, Ennio Morricone, François de Roubaix. We are both a big fan of David Axelrod too, he sort of seems to open the door that perfectly blends cinematic soundscapes into jazz, classical, rock and soul. But I’d say we lean–listening- wise more towards Blue Note jazz, soundtracks, and soul than we do rock, although our new album may not be totally reflective of that.

Your forthcoming album, ‘Everybody’s Made Of Bones’, is out June 3rd. This is your fourth record, what can we expect?

Everybody’s Made Of Bones will be our fourth record but really our first in terms of a campaign behind it. Before we just self-released without much thought as we just wanted it to exist out there. We recently teamed up with our friends at Pony and we are all on the same page, they are creating a great environment for artists to exist and grow without some of the usual creative interference that can occur with record labels. This record also includes Frank Ox (Olivier Huband) as vocalist. Which already sets it apart.

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“The whole ethos of Sunglasses For Jaws was for it to be an experiment, fun, and limitless””

You recorded the album at Sean Ono Lennon’s studio in New York, with Charlotte Kemp Muhl taking over production duties and Elliot Henrich supplying the mixing. How was working with Charlotte and was it easy to hand over the production baton to someone outside of the group?

We were blessed to meet Charlotte. Handing over the production role to her was a breeze. Incredibly welcomed. Sometimes it feels when you’re so close to something, having this third party to help you over the line and be the mediator between Dave and I is what you need. We totally trusted her musical taste - so in this instance it was good. Charlotte is insane, she has an ear like no one I’ve met, and being able to record it at Sean Lennon’s studio meant that we had pretty much every instrument we could think of at our disposal, which was heaven, if not actually a distraction. Sometimes limitations are good but in this case, it was like right, we are seizing this opportunity. Let’s get the glass harp out. We didn’t have long to make the record, which suited Charlotte’s work ethic – I don’t think she slept for about 5 days straight and would be up through the night editing and be fresh ready to go in the morning. When we finally got back to London with all the stems ready to mix. It sounded great but it was dense and messy due to the pace we were having to work at. There were a few moments of doubt that we had overdone it. But when we sat down with the calming, patient presence of Elliot Heinrich, it quickly started to all come together and he made it sound better than I imagined it could.

Did you utilise any weird and wonderful recording techniques you can share?

Lots of reversed tape, some licking of an omnichord, programming children’s toys and group vocals direct into an EMT 140 Plate were some of my highlights.

With everything that’s gone on in the world, logistically, what was the recording process like for the album?

We managed to record the album before the pandemic hit, and we literally finished mixing it a day before the first lockdown was announced.

““I’d say this album sounds like a twisted, bombastic, circus.””

The added dynamic of a vocalist-cum-lead role is incredibly unique. You’ve made another notable recruit, in the form of actor/vocalist Olivier Huband. Conceptually, what can you tell us about the record, and do you think the added dimension of Olivier will be a permanent fixture?

Olivier’s arrival allowed a full concept to form. He’s an actor by trade, so for him, it was a chance for some deep character exploration. It was a sort of experiment in method-acting, being this kind of mentally unstable volatile creature, wanting to explore the concept of everyone thinking they are living out their own movie. He really was the thread that pulled this album together to be a cohesive piece of work and having known him for years we knew he would understand the music and respond and react and write to it in the right way.

The whole ethos of Sunglasses For Jaws was for it to be an experiment, fun, and limitless. We are not against the idea of working with different vocalists in the future – but we’re confident and would love Olivier to be involved in some capacity moving forward. His acting schedule is getting busier though!

‘Everybody’s Made Of Bones’ will be released via Hackney independent label Pony Recordings. Can you talk about your relationship with them and how the record has come to be released through the label?

I touched on it earlier, but the Pony boys are basically our dream label scenario. Friends and other musicians who really dig and get what you do and are about and willing to help you get your art out in a world where people are increasingly unwilling to take risks for fear of it not being commercial etc. They have slowly been building a little empire of studios and connections and now a label. I’m confident they will continue to grow and happy to be along for the ride with them

Finally, in your own words, can you review your own album in three words or less?

I’d say this album sounds like a twisted, bombastic, circus.

SFJ’s new album ‘Everybody’s Made Of Bones’ is due June 3 via Pony Recordings. Watch their latest video for the single ‘Woke Up From Something’ here!

This feature was originally released as part of Yuck Magazine Volume Four, available to buy here!