Following the recent release of the explosive new track and accompanying remix for Darkstar, we caught up with the songwriter and frontman of ocellus LUCANUS, to find out more about the music, the inspiration behind it, the style and ambitions that drive things, and plenty more. Here’s the conversation in full.
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Hey – great to connect with you! For those new to your journey, who or what first ignited your passion for making music?
I have always been passionate about music, but it was a concert experience back in the day that encouraged me to start playing myself. I saw one of the first shows by a great Houston band called the Hunger, and I was blown away by the music they were able to make with just keyboards, samplers, and drum machines.
I was asking one of the guys in the band about their gear and he encouraged me to get my own. That weekend I picked up a Roland Juno keyboard and an Alesis HR16 drum machine and pretty much dove in and haven’t looked back.
What’s your creative process like, and what are your go-to instruments and plugins when crafting something from scratch?
I have started incorporating more and more guitars into my music, so lately a lot of my songs start, as most guitar-driven music does, with a riff. I usually program a drum track to help me record bass guitar and keyboards and flesh out the idea. Then I typically focus on the arrangement and once I think I have that in hand, I bring in a live drummer and singer to help my finish off the track.
When I am producing some of my more electronic focused tracks, I tend to start with the drums and bass, focusing on the groove. The equipment has gotten so good these days, it’s really quite amazing what can be done in a home studio. While I use all the latest and greatest gear, I still primarily play analog instruments live and record them in real time.
What was the idea and intention behind Darkstar, and how important was collaboration in bringing the track to life?
Darkstar was written as a love letter to my fiancé. Last year, I was pretty excited about the total solar eclipse. I took a road trip to put myself in the perfect place to experience totality and she couldn’t make the trip. I was really moved by the experience, far more than I expected. I was telling her about the experience, this rare moment of grace, gratitude, and perspective. Later that evening, I realized the parallels between that experience and our relationship, and I started writing lyrics that spoke to both.
She is my darkstar, this rare person of exquisite beauty, and the lyrics speak to an appreciation for how lucky we are to have found each other in this world and gratitude for the fleeting time we get to spend together in this life. So, I guess I would have to say I am most proud of the lyrics I wrote.
Oh, and I took the photo that appears on the album cover, which is also cool. All that to say, it is a very personal and meaningful song to me and hopefully to her as well. I think the next total solar eclipse is in 2040 something, so if I’m still around, I’ll make a sequel.
The Remix is brilliantly intoxicating and completely reimagines the song. How did you come to connect with Ben Casey, and how important was it for you to showcase the strengths of the track in this alternative dance setting?
I have a good friend, DJ Dax, who sat in on a couple of my recording sessions for darkstar and helped with the production. He really loved the song and kept pushing me to do a club mix that he could spin in his sets, but honestly, by that point, I had spent months on the song and was just over it.
I heard a remix that Ben did and reached out to him. He really liked the song and said he would bounce some ideas off of me. I told him no need, I trusted his instincts and encouraged him to make it his own. I think he did a great job. While it is faithful to the original, I think he took it a different direction and I love what he did with it! It’s gratifying to hear your music interpreted by other people.
In the past your music has leaned more notably towards the heavier side of metal, with tracks like Chaos Theory. How do you decide which themes to address in your music, and also, which stylistic direction to take with something new?
I grew up when the post-punk scene was giving way to new wave. My favorite band of the time was Joy Division, who were guitar focused, and later became New Order, pioneers of modern electronic music (and in my opinion among the very best to ever do it). I think they struck a perfect balance between analog and electronic instrumentation and the nexus between quiet and loud. That really resonated with me and I strive for that same balance, as best I can.
When I’m writing, I don’t really write to styles, I tend to just write my mood, whether consciously or unconsciously, as that is what comes out in the playing, ya know? I wouldn’t say anything I do is metal per se, but I do like to mix the beauty and perfection of electronic instruments with the rawness of guitars and will be using them more and more in future recordings.
Stylistically, I have started moving away from instrumentals toward more vocal driven performances, people seem to like them better, so I’ll probably keep moving in that direction.
Does live performance factor into your plans at all, and if so, is there much of a scene for this style where you’re based?
I don’t really play live, but I’m not opposed to the idea. I guess the issue is, since I play most of the instruments myself in the studio, I’m not sure how to go about playing live in a way that is authentic. Just shoot me if I ever become the guy that hits play on a MacBook and plays to backing tracks, ya know?
If there is a way to put together a live show, maybe bringing in some friends so we could actually perform the tracks live, it might be something that interests me, but for now, not on the radar.
When did you come up with the self-defining description of stay-at-home astronaut, and what does this title say about you and your creativity?
I think you are asking about my bio on the YouTube channel? I adopted the name of a long dead Greek philosopher/astronomer as my stage name. Since he has been dead for 2500 years, I assume he won’t mind. I’ve always been drawn to the night sky and the use of this stage name is a wink to my being yet another Greek that loves the night sky.
I always wanted to be an astronaut and even applied three or four times and got a few rounds into the selection process at one point, but all that changed when I had a kiddo and responsibilities to the people I care about.
“The stay-at-home astronaut comment is basically an acknowledgement that, while I would love to blast off this planet, I got people needing me to not be taking those kinds of risks, so I keep it on the ground and stay at home.”
What’s your biggest ambition with this music?
I make music for the pure love of it, I really have no ambitions per se.
A friend of mine, who is a famous musician, said that people like me are lucky because we have day jobs to pay the bills and we’re the type of people that will continue to make music for the rest of our lives whereas those that try to do it as a career tend to flame out and quit to get a day job. And I think he is totally right.
So, for better or worse, I will keep playing and recording, for the pure love of it all.
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Visit the ocellus LUCANUS Website for more information. Follow on X.
