ENTREVUE / INTERVIEW
Different Light
With: Trevor Tabone
ALBUM REVIEW HERE
Philippe André - February 2020
Profilprog (PP) : Hello Trevor and thank you for giving us your time to answer our questions
Different Light : You’re welcome Phillppe
PP : You took almost four years to release the new album, what are the reasons?
DL : The writing and demo recording were done pretty quickly, but Petr Matousek (old drummer) decided not to continue with us due to other commitments so we had to find a new drummer. After we found David Filak, we got down to recording all the individual parts quite quickly but we underestimated the time we needed for editing, mixing etc. Then there was a delay with the CD production company and before we knew it, it was 2020!
PP : This album is conceptual, what is the main subject ?
DL : It deals mostly with the different personalities a person possesses, also subjects like Borderline Personality disorder, depression, dual personality and so on. The lyrics are quite personal and come from situations I have experienced.
PP : This album will have a sequel, did you start to write it ?
DL : It’s actually almost finished, around 90% done! It will also deal with personality issues, this time more to do with drugs, alcohol and so on.
PP : The drummer has changed, for what reasons ?
DL : As I mentioned before, Petr Matousek has other commitments so he couldn’t continue with us. Different Light always seem to change at least 1 musician for each album, though the next one should be the first one that we don’t!
PP : Did you keep in touch with the first musicians of Different Light ? Mark Angius ? The other Trevor ?
DL : We do keep in touch, Mark and Richie live in Aruba and Canada respectively, though I did meet Richie last December in Malta. I sometimes meet Trevor when I’m in Malta, we’re all obviously very good friends!
PP : Do you compose the repertoire alone or do the others help you ?
DL : I compose the songs myself but obviously when the other guys do their parts the arrangements may change. Besides guitars, Petr Lux also arranges and does all the harmony vocals.
PP : Is Different Light only studio training or do you plan to do concerts ?
DL : We’re not really a live band, this is more of a studio project but it depends on the situation. Last July the band was invited to support Nick Mason in Malta which was too big to turn down, so (for logistical reasons) I recruited 4 Maltese musicians to do the gig. If we get the right opportunities we definitely would play live.
PP : What are your professions outside the group ?
DL : I’m a secondary school teacher :) Petr plays with a Beatles tribute band, Jirka does video work and also lectures at a university, I’m not sure what David does!
PP : What are your passions outside of music ? For you I know !!!!
DL : As you know I’m a big LIverpool fan ;) so football, also reading non-fiction and the usual stuff. I’m a pretty lazy person and I spend a lot of time at home. I’m not quite sure what the other guys like to do, you’ll have to ask them :)
PP : Do you participate in any other musical projects ?
DL : I have in the past but not so much nowadays, unless you count playing with the school band!
PP : A slightly personal question, you left Malta by choice or by oblivion ?
DL : Definitely by choice, Malta is a lovely place but a bit too small so I had reached a point where I wanted to experience something new. There was a teaching job in Prague so I went for it and I don’t regret it for a minute. I often go down to Malta to meet friends and family though, so I kind of get the best of both worlds.
PP : We are in 2020, very few musicians now live on their music, what do you think? Is it only the Internet's fault as we often hear ?
DL : The internet is a double-edged sword in that it’s both a blessing and a curse for musicians. On the one hand it is much easier to expose your music to the public, but on the other it is much harder to sell physical albums. Personally I feel it’s a good thing for lesser known bands like ours as we have the opportunity to share our music with people from all around the world, which is the main reason why we do it.
PP : Has physical cd yet a future or are you, like many, become a fervent supporter of digital ?
DL : From what I can see, vinyl seems to be making a comeback but CD sales are still dropping. To be completely honest, I listen to music digitally nowadays but I know that many music fans like the physical experience of a CD or record which is great, especially if you’re a collector. This is one of the reasons we opted for a digipack version as we thought it would be a superior type of product.
PP : What do you think of the comeback of the vinyl record ?
DL : It’s a pretty cool thing, I still remember buying vinyls as a teenager and it was always a great experience. People say that the sound quality is unique and unbeatable so it has that going for it. Plus it’s great for collectors. We’re thinking of releasing something on vinyl in the future, let’s wait and see!
PP : Have you or do you have any musical favorites in recent months, progressive or another ? And in other areas ?
DL : To be honest I always listen to a mix of old and new favourites, so stuff like Haken, Rush, Genesis, Porcupine Tree, Dream Theater (watching them tomorrow 15/2!), Supertramp and so on and so forth!
PP : A big thank you for your collaboration and all the best for Different Light
DL : My pleasure Phillppe, thank you for your fantastic promotion of our music :)