DJ-Draven: Interview with Cut, The

Cut, The: Interview with DJ-Draven

2011 May 3

The Cut is one of the newest bands in the electronic, synthpop, EBM, electro-industrial, and industrial worlds of music. As the creation of Sean Whitman, The Cut gives a new style to many of the styles of music.

Q: It is a pleasure to have this interview with you Sean.

A: Thank you, Draven, for having me here.

Q: Many bands strive to standout from other bands. In what way does The Cut stand on its own?

A: Well, a good friend told me recently that this album is a "musician's" album, meaning the project is focused on slick musicality and complex structures. I believe The Cut has a unique sound at this point which is best described as multi-genre. The signature of the sound is a little electro-pop sugarcoating with a pop-rock crunch and a dark, brooding center. There is a timeless quality to some of what the album presents and that was carefully injected into the DNA of the project from the start because I knew it would be quite a while before anyone might hear any of it. I tried to stay away from a formulaic "four on the floor" with screaming synths on this project. I love that element in music and you will definitely hear it in future releases, but that is not what The Cut is representing with this release.

Q: The name itself is quite unique with The Cut, how did you develop the name? Is there some special meaning to it?

A: There are many layers of deeper darker meanings that are more personal, but...
Back in 2001, I had just relocated to Seattle from Los Angeles, and I was really just beginning the creative journey that brought me to where I am today. At the time, I was fiddling around with different hybrids of styles and showing them to friends such as, gospel/IDM... Can you imagine? I would just label CD's with "The Cut" and have one or two song ideas. A friend of mine was snapping her fingers and shaking her ass to an EBM/R&B type track and said, "Ooh dang, this is The Cut, yo!" We all laughed so hard! It just stuck from there.

Q: Bands typically derive influences from other bands or styles of music. With The Cut presenting various styles was it a group of bands, a style, or something else that inspired you in this direction?

A: It was really all things. I can only say that the past 10-years has seen me explore, learn and grow from a place that honestly had me thinking one-dimensionally. I am inspired by bands like The Beatles, Skinny Puppy, Depeche Mode, and artists like David Bowie, Janis Joplin and Nina Simone. It's their spirit that possesses me. I strive to reach the levels these artists achieved. Of course, I realize I'm just a kid in the kitchen with a slotted spoon and some index cards but it's the kinetic energy of these people that inspired The Cut's style. What did each of these people and bands bring to the table at the time they brought it? Today for example, Skinny Puppy's Smothered Hope is a timeless classic that's just as good now as it was over 20-years ago. But what was "it" when it popped onto the scene? It was palpably different in an indescribable way. That's what inspired The Cut and 3Blindwords.

Q: Looking back from when you originally had the idea for this band to its current form, how has it evolved?

A: In the beginning, I was writing for myself and a couple friends. Once I hammered down a definable aesthetic I moved forward with a concept that became the album 3Blindwords. I played around with pop/dance/R&B and wrote an (as yet unreleased) album for (NewYork-based funk band) Sugabush singer, Danni Gee. I've written a couple of tracks and a dance remix for house/R&B solo artist JFortino. Both of those projects helped develop the voice that is heard on my album by teaching me how to grasp the listener quickly and keeping them interested until I am finished with my story.

Q: For those who listen to The Cut, what would you aspire to gain from them in hearing this music?

A: Simply put a thought or an emotion that is constructive. The death of any artist is for someone to experience complacency. Also, to hear in it something that makes him or her appreciate their favorite bands a little bit more. This is, of course, completely idealistic!

Q: Given your depth of history in the music industry, how does The Cut compare to what you have done in the past?

A: When I first put my hands on a piano, as a kid, I was overwhelmed with possibility. I first started writing with Roger Jarvis when we met in High School. We had a band called Servo Sector. We were both obsessed with Skinny Puppy, Front 242, A Split Second... actually anything Wax Trax had in their catalog. Lords of Acid was popping up everywhere so we had that kind of sound. Then Kevorkian Death Cycle, which I left and came back to in 1998. The Cut really represents everything I've ever done all mashed together. The main difference is that with The Cut, I focus unapologetically on a pop format. It's a box I enjoy the challenge of existing in at this time.

Q: The Cut's music shows elements that are common in EBM, synthpop, trance, goa, and some of the variations of dance music. Was this diversity something you sought for or was it something more?

A: I honestly prefer to listen to albums and not just songs. I'm old-school that way. An album should take you places. I sought to create a diverse project mostly because I like it all: Anything that beeps or kicks or screams is good in my book. But really... it's a deep psychological phobia of being labeled as any "one" thing. As The Cut develops over the next few projects, you will hear more influences coming through. I do have the aggressive intention to surprise listeners with innovative sonic sculptures in a dance format. I haven't even touched my bag of tricks yet. The current project was literally an exploration through my influences. Now that I have it out of my system, I am chomping at the bit to blow up the clubs.

Q: Perhaps one of the biggest differences in EBM music and dance music is in the intro. EBM music traditionally has a longer intro where most dance songs have short intros. The Cut's song intros are neither long nor overly short. Was this something that was planned or incidental in the course of the development of the songs?

A: Since this album is the debut, I wanted to keep it short, simple and sweet, without a ton of pretense. That's what I think remixes are for anyway.

Q: If you could have three mixes made of The Cut's songs, which three songs would you wish to have done and by whom?

A: Oh, Man... Still Restless by Amon Tobin, 3Blindwords by Bill Leeb, and Ricochet by David Ogilvie.

Q: With the songs by The Cut, what traditionally takes shape first: the lyrics, the melody, or is there another form of development that takes shape?

A: I get melodies in my head all the time. I've taken to humming into my phone to remember some of them. Sometimes the lyrics are the last thing to come along. Ricochet, for example, sat for two years as a guitar based ballad until I got the lyrics nailed down and Roger pointed out the chorus to me. Then it turned into something completely unrecognizable from the original. It's a broken, frustrating process of stops and starts and yelling and breaking stuff. My neighbors don't look me in the eye when I see them in the hallway! (Kidding) But that's the way I do things. I build the skeleton and a few shreds of connective tissue and then immediately proceed to try to destroy it. If it survives the process, then it's good enough for someone else to hear. For example, originally, 3Blindwords was to be a concept album. There were interludes and samples and various elements that didn't make it to the final mix. It was going to have big, long and dramatic lead-ins and wavering decrescendos and the like, but when I sent the first track to master with Hillary Johnson, I heard something else that instantly sealed it for me. She brought a garage-style rock edge that inspired me do an abrupt and complete retooling of the whole project! I took the entire album to the gallows and proceeded to flog it into something else. I wanted it to have a broken, somewhat "off" sound so it might be somewhat unusual from most of what's out there.

Q: If the first album is a success, do you see yourself doing a broad tour? If so, what parts of the world would you like to tour to?

A: I can say that Berlin or Hamburg would be really awesome. I'm in love with cities and cultures that support electronic music artists and nearly all of Europe fits that description, and Japan and Russia among many others. Here in the States, Seattle in particular, it's a bit more challenging for electronic music to have much of a presence in the community. But, yes, a broad tour at some point is absolutely in the cards should The Cut be well received.

Q: Some bands are more of a concert band and shine the best in front of a crowd; others give a better presentation of their music in a studio. Does either of these apply to The Cut?

A: The Cut will kick your ass on stage in front of everyone. Girls will cry. Guys will look like heroes holding the girls that cry. It will be epic! I kid, I kid... I'm getting a set together. Roger and I are talking about joining forces. It will be a different sound than what you hear on the album, harder, dirtier and more dramatic. It's hard to say what will happen except that I'll be pulling the best talent around with me up on stage.

Q: What direction do you envision The Cut taking with the music it has today and in the future?

A: The future of The Cut is unwritten at this point. I am lucky to be in a position of full creative freedom. All I can say is the model that will develop over the years with The Cut is one where the album can be popped like a pill and the remixes are the effects of that pill. And with the remixes comes a lost art called... wait for it... B-sides! So, I'm dropping a remix ep in June with two unreleased tracks from 3Blindwords. You heard it here first, kids!

Q: Thank you Sean for this opportunity.

A: Thank you again, Draven!