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 Eric Quillington (vocalist, lyricist, guitarist, and pianoist of Infinite), takes time out of his schedule to answer various questions submitted anonymously from fans. All questions have been taken, with permission, from Infinite's official website Supernova.netMidnight Skies, while still having its dark moments, is a much happier album in comparison to Blue Nebula. Why is this?
"It’s just a matter of sincerity, honestly. When I made Blue Nebula, I had a very dark state of mind. I was broke and homeless, my band was going nowhere. It was a very ugly point in my life, so that’s what I sung about. There’s a line in Nothing’s Gonna Change, “I’ll go down to Hades, spend my days in paradise.” That’s how I felt; even hell seemed like a fuckin’ joy in comparison to where I was at during the time. So, by the time the time we started recording Midnight Skies, I was in a completely different mindset. I was happy, and I was successful; there’s no point in trying to hide it. Looking at some of the lyrics I wrote during Blue Nebula, I just think to myself, “What the hell is this? Did I really write this?” I could’ve continued bitching on about life, but I would’ve been lying. I’m a completely different person now than I was a year ago, and it’s obvious when you listen to our second album.
Plus, I really wanted to take the lyrics and meanings behind our songs a step further. Infinite’s debut album has praised by fans and critics for what the songs stood for, and I really wanted to make you guys proud on our second album. Instead of wailing on about the injustices of the world, like we did on our first album, I tried to make a bit of a storyline to the album. I came up with the idea of a man who’s shown paradise for a night, and then forced to go back to normal reality. I was inspired by this story I heard a while ago; apparently, this guy died from a stroke or something, saw heaven, and then came back to life. I’m not Christian, but that story fascinated me. I mean, imagine that… seeing a city where the streets are paved with fuckin’ gold, and then getting up at six to go work at the office. It’d be terrible, it would drive you insane. Midnight Skies is, in some ways, as dark as Blue Nebula; it’s just a more sophisticated in it's insanity."
What bands/artists have been the biggest artistic and musical influences on Infinite?
"I grew up in Teignmouth, which is where the rock band Muse is from. They’re about as famous as it gets, so I heard a lot about them as a kid. All the kids who played guitar did so to be the next Matt Bellamy, and I regret to be one of them. The first song I ever fully learned was Plug in Baby, and Origin of Symmetry was my favorite album as a kid. So, to say that I was inspired by the band as a kid was a bit of an understatement. I wanted to be in the world’s best Muse tribute band, but I got to be the frontman of Infinite instead.
As I got older and more involved in the music world, I started listening to more bands. I was completely in love with Reckoner’s music when I first heard it, and I still am today. Most people consider us to be a poor man’s Reckoner, and I can’t say I disagree. I’m glad to have been on tour with them, and I look up to that band so much. Troy Mascenon is like an older brother to me, and I wouldn’t be here today without them.
My third major influence would have to be Mind. They put so much effort into their music, and they release so much. They really, really care about their fans, and I completely respect that. They aren’t the kind of band to tour for 5 years, and then release a shitty demo, y’know? So, their attitude towards fans and making music has been a huge influence on me. Their music is fuckin’ ace, too; Lucky is the closest thing to a tribute to Mind I’ll ever get, unless we cover one of their songs. My screaming at the end of that is an attempt to sound like Jason Smith, but I probably failed.'
Which songs have you always loved, but always found to be underrated? And which songs do you consider to be overrated?
'In many ways, I consider Supernova to be my personal Creep. It’s more complicated than that, though, and my feelings towards the song are very love-hate. The song helped Infinite get to where it is today, but I’ve sung it onstage so much that I probably mumble it’s words during my sleep. I've heard that song and Problems With Pluto have been played by the new band Fathers of Fury quite often, and that means the fuckin' world to me. Fusion Paranoia isn't really over-rated, it's just misinterpreted; it’s a song about how stupid and ridiculous teenage angst is, but weed-smoking 17-year-olds all over the world have accepted it as a “fuck you, I won’t do what ya told me!” anthem.
I don’t consider many of my songs to be underrated, though. The song that’s got the perfect amount of attention, in my views, is Styx. Barely anybody outside of the hardcore group of fans even knows it exists, and it completely flopped on the charts when it was released. Yet whenever we play it live, the audience still sings it louder than I ever will. If I ever want to get a really personal connection with the crowd, I’ll play that song.'
Do you ever feel the attention on you is stronger than on the band as a whole?
"I do, yes, but I’m a frontman. Everybody loves the singer more than the drummer; it’s just a fact of life. I’ve never really asked for the extra attention, though, and I always feel really guilty that the groupies throw themselves at me more often than they do for Matt. I think Greg’s still the most sexually attractive member of the band, so he gets the most attention from the ladies. But, that’s a story for another day...
It’s a bit of a skeleton in the closet, but sometimes I love having the spotlight on myself. It’s one of the reasons I started Infinite in the first place; I wanted to be famous, I wanted crowds to love me. I kind of expected fame to corrupt me, but it actually did the opposite. It’s been such a humbling thing for me, and I don’t want to ruin it with some drug-binge on Vegas, or something. It’s amazing to be so well-known, but I’ll never act like Liam Gallagher."
It’s rumored that your setlists during the ‘All We Want Is..’ tour will have a major focus on Midnight Skies. While this is to be expected, it’s also been said that you’ll only play one or two songs from your debut album. Is this true?
'For the most part, yes. If we went up on that stage and played eight songs from Blue Nebula, and one from Midnight Skies, it would just seem like we’re treading water. We’d be falling back on the safety-net of success, and I never want to do that. Infinite will always be looking forward, always trying new things, which is what a rock band should be doing. I consider Midnight Skies to be superior to Blue Nebula in every single way, but I’d still play those songs onstage even if that wasn’t the case. If I just played crowd-pleasing songs in order to make money, I’d never be able to look at myself in the mirror.
Some of the fans are taking it as a bit of a ‘fuck you’, and that’s not the case at all. We love every last one of you for the devotion that’s been displayed to Infinite, and we’ll never be the band to spit in your faces while on the stage. Fusion Paranoia and Supernova were the two best-received songs from Blue Nebula, so those are the songs we’ll always be playing. Once people get sick of them, we’ll stop playing ‘em. We’ll never play a ‘Greatest Hits’ concert, but we’ll also never do some weirdo freeform-jazz odyssey onstage as well. Alienating the fans is never our intention; playing new songs more than our old ones simply shows people that we’re evolving.'
What is your relationship with the paparazzi typically like?
"It’s not too bad, actually. I’m honestly an incredibly boring person when I’m not playing the guitar, so people don’t feel much of a drive to film me while I’m watching… erm… happy-things with my lady-friends. It’s gotten slightly annoying at points, though, but I usually come up with creative ways to deal with it. Like one time, I dressed up in drag and made out with one of the photographers in an attempt to alienate them away from me. It didn’t work out the way I wanted to, though.
Now there are reporters writing headlines about how I’m a flaming, cross-dressing, homosexual. Oh well, it's better than what they call OJ."
Do you ever think you’ll leave Hot Eye Records and go independent?
"I highly doubt it. Hot Eye Records has been such an amazing home for us, and they’ve been so flexible and willing to deal with our eccentricities, so why would we want to leave? In a way, I work for Stephanie Johnson…. how many people can brag about that amazing fact? Miss Vanity, Stacey Walton, The Producers, and everyone else are amazing label-mates, and I’d never be able to forgive myself if I left them.
After Infinite releases our third album, which is won’t be for a while, our contract with Hot Eye Records expires. We’re going to go on a hiatus afterwards, but we’ll definitely be in talks with the record company during our return. From what the Greg, Matt, and I have been talking about, our fourth album is going to be something completely different than what we’ve done before. A total break from past works, and in a completely different genre. So, if HER is willing to accept that, than the record company will always be our home."
Infinite fans are known to be very dedicated to the band. Do you ever consider us to be obsessive?
"Honestly, I never have, and never will. Every band probably says this about their fans, but Infinite fans are the best in the world. It shakes me to the fuckin’ core when you guys sing our songs louder than I do during the concerts, it almost brings me to tears every time. You’re willing to put up with any crap given to you about being an Infinite fan, and I love that about all you guys. All our music was written for our fans, so loving our music doesn’t make you obsessed, it’s just the greatest reward I could ever have been given."
You usually remain quiet about your political views, but have always said you’d open up about them if asked. Would you mind describing a little about your personal opinions towards politics, religion, etc.?
"I’ve always been a bit hesitant towards speaking openly about my beliefs, but I’ve never wanted to offend anybody. I mean, it’ll give the band a hell of a lot of publicity, but it’ll be for the wrong things. I don't exactly want to seem like an idiot who has no idea what he's talking about, either. Anyways, I basically consider myself to be an open-minded Deist. I believe in a god, just not one described in any of the so-called ‘Holy Books’ of religions. I don’t believe a God could be described in such a way by humans, but I’m also not sure if such a being even exists. In the movie Donnie Darko, there’s a quote; “The search for a God is pointless if everyone dies alone.” This is a pretty good way to describe my beliefs.
I never want to use Infinite as a springboard for my beliefs and opinions, but a few songs on Midnight Skies are, in a way, about religion. The Infinity Delusion was written during a period I had of spiritual crises, and the song describes it pretty well. But, I’ll never focus on just religion; I write about the entire spectrum of human emotion, not just faith. Politics are pointless to even talk about, though. I’m a musician, and what I say or sing will never change the fact that governments are run by greedy kiss-ups, so what’s the point of even discussing it?"
What will the future hold for Infinite?
"We’ve got an EP that’s expected to be released around Halloween. This is probably a very obvious fact for anyone who knows what kind of person I am, but that’s my favorite holiday. The EP’ll be called Inferno, and it’s based on the story of the epic poem ‘The Divine Comedy’. It’ll be very dark, and stylistically similar to our debut album. A bit of a treat for the fans, I suppose.
The final three tracks for Midnight Skies will be released this week, and the entire album will be released towards the end of this month. I know it’s a bit early to already be thinking about this, but as I mentioned before, our third album will be our last ‘Infinite-sounding’ album. It’ll take all the ideas and themes behind our first two albums and crank it up to the nth degree; the climax to all the music we’ve written prior to it. I’ve only written one song for the new album so far; the ideas behind it are very intriguing, and it points to a concept album. Our third album might be called Insomnia, but it’s too early to tell. We’re still focusing on the release of Midnight Skies, anyways.
Infinite will quite possibly be taking an extended hiatus following the release of this album. I’ve been talking to Troy Mascenon about an interesting project, and while I won’t say what it is, this period of time would be a good place to start it. I don’t know what type of music Infinite will make when it returns. I’ve always been interested in U2’s album Achtung Baby; it’s a bit of a tongue-in-check look at the life of a rock star. Maybe we’ll do something like that, I dunno. I’ll go wherever the music takes me."Edited by user 05 October 2010 06:01:23(UTC)
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Kid Anything- Indie/Britpop/Shoegaze; influenced by Sigur Ros, XXYYXX, Kanye West, Blur, Oasis (Bringing together an eclectic group of influences, Ulysses' songs are sung with carefree abandon by Nick Junk) Kurt Ulysses - Songwriter, Guitarist, Backup Vocalist Nick Junk - Vocals, Mojo Infinite- Alternative/Experimental Rock; influenced by Muse, Radiohead, and The Beatles (Known best for their experimental music and their frontman's eccentric behavior, the band disbanded after Eric Quillington's death to pursue solo careers or, in Matt Robert's case, peace of mind. Infinite released four albums over the course of their career; Blue Nebula, Midnight Skies, Insomnia, and Dancing about Architecture.) Eric Quillington (Deceased) - Lead Vocals, Lead Guitar, Piano, Primary Lyricist Matt Roberts - Bass Greg Oldson - Drums, Backup Vocals, Secondary Lyricist Amelia Florentine - Keyboards, Piano, Lyricist, Backup Vocals "When asked 'how do you write?' I invariably answer, 'one word at a time', and this answer is invariably dismissed. But that's all it is. It sounds too simple to be true, but consider the Great Wall of China, if you will: one stone at a time, man. That's all. One stone at a time. But I've read you can see that motherfucker from space without a telescope." - Stephen King |
